Re: Just a thought...

It is difficult to address Catholics. No doubt there are many sincere "God lovers" in the Catholic church that are sincere and may even profess to be born again, they just don't know that they are not worshipping in spirit and truth because they were taught to be "regimented" (like the army) and follow a "chain of command" (priest, monsignor, bishop, archbishop, cardinal, etc.). There was a woman (ex-Catholic seeking the truth of God) who came to my church who was very active for more than a year in bible studies and other church activities and recieved a lot of "polite" born again doctrine. Then, one Sunday, I made a point at a bible study of saying that the only priesthood that was ever sanctioned by God and had any authority to forgive sin was the Levitical priesthood, but it became obsolete when Jesus died on the Cross. I later spoke to her personally and made sure she understood, but she didn't know what to say or how to react. My friend later told me that he was shocked that I said that to an ex-Catholic because it goes against every fiber of their being and that she probably didn't chew me out because she was being polite. The next Sunday, she came running over to me from the other side of a crowded room and thanked me for saying what I did (she was so excited, I finally got her to stop thanking me after 3 or 4 times). She had recieved more than a year of "polite" instruction, but the new covenant of God cannot be established until you "destroy" (abolish) the old (Hebrews 10:9). If they are SINCERE, God will give them the strength to endure the harsh truth, if they are not sincere, your "harsh truth" will just fall on deaf ears, if they do get upset at what has to be said, it's because you are destroying their "old covenant" (and they are listening to every word you say), but before you "destroy" their "old covenant", establish "in no uncertain terms" an attitude of LOVE for them. Christianity is not a popularity contest and tactful evangelism has it's limits. There is just no way to always be "the nice guy", and trying to be is actually a disservice to them and to the Lord. Tweet