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— I R R E F U T A B L Y —
Steve Ray, who runs a web site called 'Defenders of the Catholic Faith', created the following list of 38+ questioning-allegations (with assistance from David Palm),
to repudiate the views of those whom he calls 'Bible Christians', which he then uses in Catholic dominant areas
to oppose the work of Protestant/Evangelical missionaries, as follows –
to repudiate the views of those whom he calls 'Bible Christians', which he then uses in Catholic dominant areas
to oppose the work of Protestant/Evangelical missionaries, as follows –
| OF THE HOLY BIBLE: |
is not and never has been! Jesus gave the Holy Spirit to all Christian believers because no human mind is to be unconditionally trusted with the truth of God from any source; either of the pope, his cardinals, or his bishops of any century.
attention to the words of Jesus would help, where He said that – "When the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all the truth, for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears [from the Father] He will speak, and He will declare to you the things that are to come" (John 16:13). The New Testament represents the teachings of these foundation apostles.
cannot be based on a 'book', for it is based on a personal relationship with Jesus through the Holy Spirit, but God is consistent and His integrity means that what His Spirit says now never contradicts the Spirit inspired Holy Bible if it is understood in its own context.
He did not bind them to 'oral tradition! Even though Jesus repeatedly corrected the oral tradition of the Scribes and Pharisees ('it has been said, but I say...'), by which they made the written Word of God of no effect, He instructed His hearers to yet still respect the responsibility of their position ('seat') as the teachers of their people. Jesus did not justify rebellion.
(And why does the Protestant NIV change the word “tradition” to “teaching”?)
Being honest with the Bible means understanding it in its own context, and Paul is simply referring to his own teaching given to the churches through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, which is kept for us today in Holy Scripture as a standard to compare to anything any teacher claims to be an inspired understanding. (The 'word of mouth' and 'letter' are his teaching and his writing.) And God is consistent!
Concerning the NIV, the word is παράδοσις (paradosis) which may be translated as 'precept', 'transmission', or that which is 'handed over' – so both 'tradition' and 'teaching' are correct.
Concerning the NIV, the word is παράδοσις (paradosis) which may be translated as 'precept', 'transmission', or that which is 'handed over' – so both 'tradition' and 'teaching' are correct.
• Matt.2:23 – is not a tradition! It is a coded prophecy in the written Scripture where Nazareth is contained in the word 'Branch' (נצר) in the original language, so that the massacre of infants at Bethlehem would not be replicated at Nazareth.
• Matt.23:2 – is Christ reinforcing the teaching responsibility of the Scribes and Pharisees in spite of their blatant hypocrisy.
• 1 Cor.10:4 – is Paul showing how inspired Scripture in the Old Testament carries metaphorical as well as literal teaching. It has nothing to do with tradition!
• 1 Pet.3:19 – is a statement of the Apostle Peter of where Jesus was between His death and His resurrection and has nothing to do with tradition.
Because Jude gives us information about Moses' death and Enoch's prophesying, which had not been included in the Old Testament, does not mean that he picked it up from some tradition. Remember Christ's promise about the Holy Spirit as the Spirit of Truth! Jesus keeps His word!
• Matt.23:2 – is Christ reinforcing the teaching responsibility of the Scribes and Pharisees in spite of their blatant hypocrisy.
• 1 Cor.10:4 – is Paul showing how inspired Scripture in the Old Testament carries metaphorical as well as literal teaching. It has nothing to do with tradition!
• 1 Pet.3:19 – is a statement of the Apostle Peter of where Jesus was between His death and His resurrection and has nothing to do with tradition.
Because Jude gives us information about Moses' death and Enoch's prophesying, which had not been included in the Old Testament, does not mean that he picked it up from some tradition. Remember Christ's promise about the Holy Spirit as the Spirit of Truth! Jesus keeps His word!
is not restricted to Holy Scripture, for the gifts of the Holy Spirit in Christ's Church today include prophesying (speaking by immediate inspiration of the Holy Spirit), and God neither contradicts Himself nor does He leave us to be deceived by self-proclaimed 'prophets', which is why He said that if a prophet prophesies the others used in that gift of the Spirit must evaluate what is said (peer review, not hierarchical oversight such as the papacy). (1 Cor.14:29).
We do not know, except be human deduction from evidences within the text of each writing, for the authority of the New Testament is not based on its human authorship.
Because the Apostle Paul was not one of the Twelve and he is the principle writer of our New Testament, for spiritual authority was never hierarchical from a special group of Twelve.
(This 'Table of Contents' comment descends into ridicule and is unworthy of argument, for a publisher's page-numbering of a Bible is obviously not part of the inspired text in its original language).
On the same basis as Ancient Israel recognised only 39 books as canonical, and no others; even though others such 1st and 2nd Maccabees were sometimes read in the synagogue service. No one knows who wrote the inspired books of Job, Ruth, etc., but Ancient Israel had no doubt about their inspired character, which is why we have them in our Bible today.
On the same basis as Ancient Israel recognised only 39 books as canonical, and no others; even though others such 1st and 2nd Maccabees were sometimes read in the synagogue service. No one knows who wrote the inspired books of Job, Ruth, etc., but Ancient Israel had no doubt about their inspired character, which is why we have them in our Bible today.
The Apostle Peter makes it clear that, even though he was personally an eye-witness of Christ's ministry, his own report is not as trustworthy as the Holy Spirit inspired word of prophecy contained in Holy Scripture (2 Pet.1:16-21).
Because the principles of God are consistent, whatever the century, when the Bible is understood in its own context!
It does not, for nothing less than the moral character of God, demonstrated in Jesus Himself, is the source of all authority. Conformity to this is alone authoritative. For that reason we are told that the love of God is poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit given to us (Rom.5:5).
For the simple reason that they carry the essentials of the Faith which make it Christian. Anything more added later by any person or any papal edict is not an essential, or the first Christians could not have been Christians! God does not change and is consistent!
The confusion did not arise until the Church began to be seduced by the world's methods represented in Roman practice. Its confusion was symptomatic of its corruption.
The Holy Spirit does not lead everyone called Christian! Even genuine Christians are warned not to 'grieve' the Holy Spirit! But, most denominations, including the Catholic church and its sister churches as much as any Protestant grouping of congregations, are simply products of history, for God's true people are only those born of His Spirit as Jesus described to Nicodemus (Jn.3:3-8), and not any organisational structure. Jesus died for people, and people only, not for doctrine or organisation of any kind.
No one! For the only arbitration taught by Jesus was reconciliation in personal relationships (Matt.18:15-20), for that is the character of Christianity.
The existence of our New Testament is a testimony to the consistency of Christian understanding in the beginning when led by the Holy Spirit in terms of the character of God's love demonstrated in Jesus. The New Testament laid down a minimum standard of belief, but its application is by the character of Christ – love – and not by authorities burning heretics as history testifies to Catholic discernment and influence.
There is a consensus reflected in the New Testament, which is why the term 'Protestant' can be used as a group definition, although it reflects a very incomplete reformation in the restoration of Christianity to its original character.
It did not 'overthrow' the Roman Empire! The Church of Rome took over power when political Rome collapsed under barbarian invasions. No synod canonised Holy Scripture any more than any synod canonised Ancient Israel's Holy Scriptures!
Your behaviour reflects your inner condition. You can tear out as many pages as you wish but that changes nothing. There is no authority in any believer that can bind other believers. It is only the character of Christ which carries authority, and He laid down His life for those He loved.
Some 'Protestant' scholars do not even believe that Jesus rose from the dead, but that has nothing to do with reality. Protestants in general believe in Christianity as founded in the first century by Jesus and those who heard Him, and later councils only reflect the opinion of that later time. In Protestantism 'scholars' are not popes who define the faith!
They do not! The so-called 'post apostolic Jewish decisions' at Jamnia is a myth invented in 1871 AD by Heinrich Graetz to try and find an event when the third division (Ketubim) of the Hebrew Bible was decided, and has since been totally discredited. The Catholic inclusion of Apocryphal Jewish books in the canon is a byproduct of the Septuagint Greek Translation of the Old Testament which included books used in the synagogue but not regarded as authoritative. Ignorance of this at the time resulted in the extended Catholic canon.
The bishops at Hippo and Carthage, or any other place, had no authority over anyone except to lead their own congregations!
Christianity is not a 'book religion' or a set of doctrines, or religious ritual! It is a living personal relationship with Jesus Christ, in which our communion with Him is attested intimately by the Holy Spirit in each individual.
Holy Scripture was always written in the language of the first recipient, which is why the whole New Testament was written in the international Greek of that time. If 'Thomas' became an evangelist to India, as some believe, there was no reason for him to set up language schools or translate Old Testament Scriptures when Christianity is based directly on a personal relationship to Jesus Christ, any more than that he needed to build church buildings in India.
The rediscovery of the Bible by Reformation leaders in Catholic Europe, whatever phrases they may have invented, in no way sets the standard or defines the character of New Testament Christianity.
That does not deserve an answer! Jesus did not write one word of Holy Scripture, but He held His generation responsible for knowing and obeying Holy Scripture when He declared to them – "have you not read [in Holy Scripture] what God spoke to you!" (Matt.22:31), and He will also do so to this generation of so-called 'Christians'.
"Catholic" means 'universal', has no relevance to Roman Christianity, and it is a declaration of the unity of all who belong to the Lord Jesus Christ world-wide!
Martin Luther was not the first, and he was certainly not a good example of Christianity, either in his anti-Semitism to burn synagogues (arising from his food-poisoning blamed on kosher food), or his utter intolerance of Bible-believing Christians such as Ulrich Zwingli. Centralising control of how people think is not Christian!
If the last book of the New Testament was written by the Apostle John in the first century, why would it take a decision of some church synod three-hundred-years later to decided it was true? What do you think the Apostle Paul meant when he wrote – "For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope." (Rom 15:4). Is our New Testament then, which carries the full revelation of Jesus Christ, any less than this?
The Church of Jesus, not the Church of Rome, is the pillar and foundation of truth – for in it is demonstrated, if it be true, the character of God's revelation in Jesus Christ, even though their blood stains the history of Catholic Europe in their martyrdom! (Rev.12:11).
The world was not meant to see a monolithic world-wide organisation! It was meant to see those to whom Jesus was speaking, His disciples, in their living personal relationships. Jesus said, and it is recorded for our instruction today, that – "By this all people will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another." (John 13:35). Love is not hidden in the heart. It is demonstrated in relationships!
The fragmentation of all church organisations, which were once useful vehicles to assist God's precious people in their life-witness for Him, but have now become spiritual museums of the past, must be allowed to fully collapse and be destroyed. They are rusting wrecks of past spiritual vehicles along the path of history and must not be allowed to restrict the newness of the life of Christ in His people as He restores them for His return to a Bride prepared for Her Groom. The true witness to the world has always and only been the character of Christ in His people!
The Filioque Clause
This letter to Jewish Christians refers to their local spiritual shepherds of God's flock, but is true for all believers everywhere. This will never expire, for the leaders (plural) are to be followed because, as even with Jesus Himself (Jn.10:27) the only shepherd of the whole flock, the 'sheep' recognise the voice of their local shepherd in that personal relationship and follow. They are not driven by threat of punishment or loss! This is a direct pastoral relationship which is only possible at the local level. Christian disobedience does not change this.
A silly statement! The New Testament writings claim inspiration in many places, for example – "If anyone thinks that he is a prophet, or spiritual, he should acknowledge that the things I am writing to you are a command of the Lord.
If anyone does not recognize this, he is not recognized [as a prophet]. (1 Cor.14:37-38).
Personal moral standards were never meant to legislated. God banned work on the Sabbath in Israel at a national level, but Jesus demonstrated that this was not an absolute when His own disciples picked grain on the Sabbath, and He then justified it by supporting David's violation of the restriction of the bread in the tabernacle to priests (Matt.12:3-4). True morality is the expression of God's character – love – and does not lie in the legislative authority of a centralized organisation of any kind.
Understanding baptism, as belonging to believers only, arises from understanding the nature of the Christian Church. Therefore, progress in the one led to insight regarding the other. If the Christian Church is composed of believers only, then Christian baptism, as the symbolic entrance into that spiritual identity, applies only to believers. If Christian baptism applies to infants the same can be said of participation in the Eucharist, which confesses our participation in Christ's atonement and applies to all Christians. At least those who practice believer's baptism are being consistent, for its boundary line is faith and not age.
God created the world/universe out of nothing?
It does not need to, for if God created everything, then He created whatever pre-existed as well. So, of course He did!
salvation is attainable through faith alone?
The New Testament teaches that works express faith and that without works faith is dead (James 2:17). But, to ever think that doing good can earn mercy insults Christ's atonement and is a contradiction is terms for mercy means it is undeserved!
how we know that the revelation of Jesus Christ ended with the death of the last Apostle?
It did not end!
a list of the canonical books of the Old Testament?
It does not! See above.
a list of the canonical books of the New Testament?
It does not! See Above.
the doctrine of the Trinity, or even use the word “Trinity”?
God is only known through Jesus, and if so you would not have asked that question.
the name of the “beloved disciple”?
By deduction from the content of the Gospel called the Gospel of John in which the phrase occurs.
the names of the authors of the Gospel of Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John?
It does not!
who wrote the Book of Acts?
The author of Luke's Gospel. It tell us!
the Holy Spirit is one of the three Persons of the Trinity?
If you know God through Jesus you will find it in His Word at John 15:26.
Jesus Christ was both fully God and fully man from the moment of conception (e.g. how do we know His Divinity wasn't infused later in His life?) and/or tells us Jesus Christ is One Person with two complete natures, human and Divine and not some other combination of the two natures (i.e., one or both being less than complete)?
By understanding the Bible from the viewpoint of the people it was written to, and not as a document for theological debate!
that the church should, or someday would be divided into competing and disagreeing denominations?
God does not recognise denominations. He recognises only those sanctified by the death of Jesus, and therefore to them alone He gave His Spirit.
that Protestants can have an invisible unity when Jesus expected a visible unity to be seen by the world (see John 17)?
Jesus Christ is of the same substance of Divinity as God the Father?
There can only be one infinity and that is not too hard to understand, but the Bible did not need to say it, when it taught that Jesus created all things created, in John 1:3!
| Theological definitions do not define Christianity. |
| Christianity is not confined to any organisation. |
| Christianity is a living relationship at a personal level with the Saviour of the world, |
| and this is demonstrated, as evidence-of-authenticity, by how we treat each other! |
AS JESUS SAID AND DID
