I Believe in Jesus, Not Doctrine

You cannot separate what a person believes from who they are. This is the reason why doctrine is so important.




Some people say, “I do not believe in doctrine; I believe in the Lord Jesus Christ; I’m saved, I’m a Christian, and nothing else matters”. To speak in that way is to invite disaster.



We are to guard ourselves against being tossed “to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.” (Eph 4:14).



If your doctrine goes astray your life will soon suffer as well. This is why the New Testament warns us against this very danger:



“Test everything; hold fast to what is good.” (1 Thess 5:21)



And again:



“Do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world.” (1 Jhn 4:1)



It’s in our best interest to study doctrine so that we may safeguard ourselves against erroneous and heretical teachings that are as common today as they were in the days of the early Church.



- Martyn Lloyd-Jones

How do the Priests get this special "Power?"

Of course the forgiveness comes from God. But in he case of the Sacraments such as "absolution" (forgiving) the Priest receives the power through the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit provides this special gift through the process of "succession." That means there is an unbroken line of Bishops laying hands on priests which can me traced directly back to the Last Supper. It is directly because of the commission at the Last Supper on the Apostles, who laid hands on Bishops who laid hands on priests who were appointed bishops who laid hands on priests etc..., that the priests of today who are in an unbroken lineage to that day have this unique role.


In the Old Testament we see prophets passing on power to their successors by the laying on of hands and anointing. For example:

Joshua son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom, because Moses had laid his hands on him (Deut 31:1-8)

You [Elijah] shall anoint Elisha son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah as prophet in your place (1 Kg 19:16)

...Samuel took a horn of oil, and anointed him in the presence of his brothers and then spirit of the Lord came mightily upon David from that day forward. (1 Sam 16:13)

So the LORD said to Moses, "Gather for me seventy of the elders of Israel ... bring them to the tent of meeting, and have them take their place there with you. I will come down and talk with you there; and I will take some of the spirit that is on you and put it on them; and they shall bear the burden of the people along with you so that you will not bear it all by yourself....and he gathered seventy elders of the people, and placed them all around the tent. Then the LORD came down in the cloud and spoke to him, and took some of the spirit that was on him and put it on the seventy elders; and when the spirit rested upon them, they prophesied." (Num 11:16 -25)

Catholics believe these were a foreshadowing of Christ's ministry. In the New Testament:

After this the Lord appointed seventy others and sent them on ahead of him in pairs to every town and place where he himself intended to go. (Lk 10:1)

Jesus said..."As the Father has sent me, even so I send you." And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained." (John 20:21-23)

Perhaps an important thing to note is that Thomas was not present at this time - but he did receive the gift. This suggests that perhaps Peter (who was given the keys to the kingdom) gave it to him. Jesus said to Peter "whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven" (Mat 16:19)

These apostles prayed over the next generation of apostles. Some of them became Bishops. The Bishops in turn prayed over the newly ordained priests. Every priest from the beginning of the Church right back to Peter was prayed over in the same way. And hence Catholics feel that from generation to generation this Grace has been passed on.

Catholic mass or church service is Biblical?

Mass is The unbloody re-enactment of the sacrifice which Christ offered to God on Calvary - but which He now offers through the priest under the appearances of bread and wine.A sacrifice is the offering of a gift to God by a priest, and the destruction of the gift.No, because true religion has to have some external, public act by which men can demonstrate their worship of God.


Yes, God made Aaron and his sons priests and commanded them to offer sacrifices to Him.

"But thou and thy sons look ye to the priesthood: and all things that pertain to the service of the altar, and that are within the veil, shall be executed by the priests." (Numbers 18:7)Usually the priest would take an animal, offer it to God, kill it and then burn it on an altar.the sacrifices in the Old testament were imperfect because...

"It is impossible that with the blood of oxen and goats sin should be taken away." (Hebrews 10:4)

Jesus Christ offered the perfect sacrifice when He died on the Cross.

"But this man offering one sacrifice for sins, forever sitteth on the right hand of God." (Hebrews 10:12)

It was perfect because both the priest and victim were not only man but also God.

"But now once at the end of ages, He hath appeared for the destruction of sin, by the sacrifice of Himself." (Hebrews 9:26)Jesus intend that His sacrifice be continued.because He instituted the Mass, which is the representation of His sacrifice on the Cross.

Jesus offered the first Mass at the Last Supper when He changed bread and wine into His Body and Blood.

"And taking bread, He gave thanks, and broke; and gave to them, saying: 'This is My Body, which is given for you. Do this for a commemoration of Me.' In like manner the chalice also, after He had supped, saying: 'This is the chalice, the new testament in My Blood, which shall be shed for you.'" (Luke 22:19-20)

Mass is a is a sacrifice because it contains all the elements of a true sacrifice: Priest and victim are Jesus Christ, and the destruction consists in the separate consecration of bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ.

Catholic theology teaches that, "a Sacrament effects (does) what it signifies (symbolizes)." Jesus Christ died on the Cross from loss of blood; His blood is the price of our Redemption, according to Scripture and Tradition. In the Mass, the separate Consecration - first of the bread into His Body, then of the wine into His Blood - signifies the separation of Christ's body and blood, which was the cause of His death on the Cross. This signified or symbolized separation of His body and blood, therefore effects in the Mass the re-enactment of His death - though in the Mass, it is in an unbloody manner. sacrifice of the Mass the same as the sacrifice of the Cross

they are the same in that the victim and the priest are the same, Jesus Christ.

"For as often as you shall eat this bread and drink the chalice, you shall shew the death of the Lord, until He come." (1 Corinthians 11:26).

Jesus Christ gave anyone the power to offer Mass .He gave it to His twelve Apostles when He said,

"Do this for a commemoration of me" (Luke 22:19)

Tha Apostles and their successors said Mass.

"We have an altar, whereof they have no power to eat who serve the [Jewish] tabernacle." (Hebrews 13:10)

"And they were persevering in the doctrine of the Apostles, and in the communication of the breaking of bread, and in prayers." (Acts 2:42)

The Sacrifice of the Mass FORETOLD BY MALACHIAS THE PROPHET

"For from the rising of the sun even to the going down, my name is great among the Gentiles, and in every place there is sacrifice, and there is offered to My name a clean oblation: for My name is great among the Gentiles, saith the Lord of hosts." (Malachias 1:11)

THE SACRIFICE OF THE CROSS

"And it was almost the sixth hour; and there was darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour. And the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was rent in the midst. And Jesus crying with a loud voice, said: 'Father, into Thy hands I commend My spirit.' And saying this, He gave up the ghost." (Luke 23:44-46)

THE SACRIFICE OF THE MASS

"For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, that the Lord Jesus, the same night in which He was betrayed, took bread, and giving thanks, broke, and said: 'Take ye, and eat: this is My Body, Which shall be delivered for you: this do for the commemoration of Me.' In like manner also the chalice, after He had supped, saying: 'This chalice is the new testament in My Blood: this do ye, as often as you shall drink, for the commemoration of Me.' For as often as you shall eat this bread, and drink the chalice, you shall shew the death of the Lord, until He come." (1 Corinthians 11:23-26)