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Continuing our discussion from part one, I daresay that despite the way in which certain of the true Messengers of God have been glorified and glamorized by modern organized religion, as well as by the cinematographic industry, all of the true Prophets of God since ancient times have been fully aware of their lowly condition. They were all conscious of the fact that it was only the anointing of God's Spirit upon them which made them who and what they were.

For example, while we are told that Moses originally relied upon his own strength and wisdom in his attempt to liberate the Hebrew captives from Egyptian bondage -- and fell flat on his face -- after forty years of being slowly molded in the hands of God, we are told that he eventually became the meekest man upon the face of the Earth. Consider this group of verses:

"(Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.)"


"And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and in deeds. And when he was full forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren the children of Israel. And seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him, and avenged him that was oppressed, and smote the Egyptian: For he supposed his brethren would have understood how that God by his hand would deliver them: but they understood not."


So it seems that at first, Moses apparently thought that he could do it on his own, and he went about it the wrong way by smiting the Egyptian. He tried to do things in the flesh without God's help. However, by the time that God was done working on him, Moses had become so meek, after having been of such a high stature while living in Egypt, that when the Lord called him through the burning bush, Moses did not want the job. In fact, Moses questioned how God could possibly even use him. He tried to get out of it by arguing that the people would never believe him. He even argued that he was too slow of speech, which some people have interpreted as meaning that Moses stuttered. In short, Moses told the Lord to go and use someone else. All of this is clearly evident in the following group of verses:

"And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?"


"And Moses answered and said, But, behold, they will not believe me, nor hearken unto my voice: for they will say, The LORD hath not appeared unto thee."


"And Moses said unto the LORD, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue."


"And he said, O my Lord, send, I pray thee, by the hand of him whom thou wilt send."


Despite Moses' futile pleadings, as we all know, the Lord did in fact place His anointing upon that humble shepherd; and after performing a variety of mighty wonders -- that is, the various plagues -- He used Moses to deliver the nation of Israel out from under hundreds of years of oppressive Egyptian bondage.

In another Scriptural example, we are informed that the fiery Prophet Elijah fled from evil Queen Jezebel; despite the fact that he had just slain four hundred and fifty false prophets of Baal with the sword. The words of that wicked woman seem to have frightened Elijah so that he "went for his life". In the First Book of the Kings, we find the following verses:

"And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and withal how he had slain all the prophets with the sword. Then Jezebel sent a messenger unto Elijah, saying, So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy life as the life of one of them by to morrow about this time. And when he saw that, he arose, and went for his life, and came to Beersheba, which belongeth to Judah, and left his servant there."


Then there is John the Baptist, who was the Lord's prophesied flaming evangelist of the New Testament. John too recognized that by himself, he was simply nothing. Thus, he humbly bowed himself in submission once Jesus Christ had revealed Himself to the nation of Israel. Consider some of the things that the Prophet John said concerning himself:

"I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire:"


"He must increase, but I must decrease."


Looking at another example, the Apostle Paul was clearly one of the most influential and powerful leaders of the First Century Church. Yet despite the important position within the Church which he eventually came to occupy, Paul was humble enough to recognize and to admit his own human weaknesses and shortcomings. Of course, just as God had to humble and break Moses before He could begin to use him, Paul -- then known as Saul of Tarsus -- had to be broken and humbled first on that fateful day on the way to Damascus. But as a result of that incident, Paul readily recognized that without God's Divine Anointing upon him, he was absolutely nothing. Consider some of the things that he wrote:

"For I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God."


"For his letters, say they, are weighty and powerful; but his bodily presence is weak, and his speech contemptible."


"O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?"


Taking this line of thought a step further, we also know from the Holy Scriptures that despite their elevated position over humanity, we are told that even the Angels of God refuse to accept recognition, or to be worshipped by human beings. The following group of verses are particularly useful for sharing with people of the Roman Catholic faith who have erroneously elevated Mary, the mother of Jesus, to the supposed status of "co-redemptress" or "mediatrix", thus making her almost equal to Jesus Christ Himself. I encourage you to read the article entitled "Mary Worship, Christianity and Roman Catholicism" for a deeper look at this topic:

"And Manoah said unto the angel of the LORD, What is thy name, that when thy sayings come to pass we may do thee honour? And the angel of the LORD said unto him, Why askest thou thus after my name, seeing it is secret?"


"And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things. Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God."


Finally, we look to our primary example of humility. That is, to Jesus Christ Himself. As the Scriptures inform us, He took upon Himself the lowly "form of a servant", and He was "obedient unto death". Despite Jesus' much elevated stature, even He humbly admitted that He was really nothing without the Anointing and Power of His Father. I discuss this topic in much more detail in the series entitled "So You Really Think You Are So Humble?". But for now, please consider the following group of verses:

"Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls."


"For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many."


"I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me."


"So after he had washed their feet, and had taken his garments, and was set down again, he said unto them, Know ye what I have done to you? Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you. Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him. If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them."


"Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross."


Sad to say, despite all of these clear examples of humility which are found throughout the pages of the Bible, there are some people today who claim to represent the Lord, and who claim to teach the true Word of God, who manifest absolutely no signs of humility whatsoever. They absolutely crave man worship, and they love getting attention. As Jesus said in the Gospels, these modern shepherds love to wear long robes, and to receive the praises of men; very much like the proud Scribes and Pharisees of the New Testament era. Consider the following group of verse as evidence of this truth:

"Beware of the scribes, which desire to walk in long robes, and love greetings in the markets, and the highest seats in the synagogues, and the chief rooms at feasts; Which devour widows' houses, and for a shew make long prayers: the same shall receive greater damnation."


"Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed on him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue: For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God."


In sharing this particular point with you, I am immediately reminded of the Roman Catholic pope who is carried around on his "sedia gestatoria". That is, the portable throne which is used in certain ceremonies such as during the coronation of a new pope, during the pope's entries to St. Peter's Cathedral, and during other public functions as well. This church leader is praised and worshipped by millions of Catholics around the world! This act of wanting to see the pope when he is driven around in his pope-mobile is nothing short of man worship. It is putting faith in a man, instead of in God where it really belongs. But then, this is truly the way of our present world, as I point out in articles such as "The Only Credentials You Need!".

Knowing the evil which lurks in the heart of man, one can only wonder how the pope can possibly receive so much praise and attention, without being corrupted by it. After having his hand kissed so many times, one would think that the pope would have to either find the act totally repugnant, and be totally humbled by such admiration and praise, or else he would have to be wholly given over to his pride and vanity. Only God knows his true heart, I suppose.

Personally, despite the unfounded, erroneous claims which for many centuries have been made by the Roman Catholic hierarchy regarding so-called "apostolic succession" -- which insists that each new pontiff is fulfilling a sacred tradition which supposedly began with the Apostle Peter -- I cannot imagine for a moment that the Apostle Peter would have ever sat upon such a throne. It certainly wouldn't follow Christ's example of washing each other's feet, or any of the other examples of humility which I cited previously. In fact, even in his own Epistles, Peter promotes the virtue of humility, as we see by the following two verses:

"Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:"


What some of my readers might find interesting, is the fact that this custom of carrying the pope on his portable throne appears to have connections with the ancient Roman "sedia curulis", on which newly-elected consuls were carried through the streets of Rome. As I explain in other articles -- some of which are listed at the end of this series -- many Roman Catholic traditions are adopted directly from pagan practices and beliefs which were later integrated into Christianity at the time that Emperor Constantine the Great declared Rome's version of Christianity a "religio licita". That is to say, a legal religion. In fact, by the second half of the Fourth Century, Emperor Theodosius I declared Catholicism the only acceptable state religion. Furthermore, any citizen who did not embrace his bastardized religion was in fact threatened with persecution.

This bastardization of our faith was done in order to appease the masses, and to bring as many people as possible under the umbrella of the so-called "holy mother church". In short, it was a power grab. Thus, contrary to what was actually taught by Jesus in the Gospels, the Roman Catholic Church has always been more interested in power and numbers, than in preaching the pure, undefiled Gospel of Salvation. Even today the "holy mother church" allows the "natives" to continue with some of their local practices, as long as she can control their minds and hearts.

Returning to the previous Scriptures, please notice how in the verses I shared with you earlier from the Gospel of Luke, Jesus also said "which devour widows' houses". If there's one thing which greatly disturbs me, it is the fact that in many of the messages which are supposedly received by so-called Catholic visionaries and charismatics, poverty is quite often stressed as being a very important virtue. As you may already know, it's an established fact that a large percentage of the Roman Catholic laity consists of many of the poorest people in the world, who basically live a hand-to-mouth existence.

I personally witnessed this myself over four decades ago when I lived in Mexico. Despite their lowly condition, these poor people were made to feel a moral and spiritual obligation to tithe to the "holy mother church". At least that was the case back then. I am not sure what the situation is today. At any rate, over the centuries, the Roman Catholic Church has grown into one of the richest financial empires in the world! In a word, she has truly devoured widows' houses! This unhealthy desire for worldly abundance -- that is, power, popularity and plenty -- is in direct contrast to Jesus' own teachings in the Gospels where He said things such as the following:

"Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also."


". . . My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence."


The Apostle Peter, from whom the Roman Catholic hierarchy claims all popes have succeeded, also wrote the following lines which clearly expose the Roman Catholic Church's sin of a love for wealth and materialism at the expense of their poor flocks. What a stinging rebuke to this false church! Please note that in these two verses, according to Thayer's Greek English Lexicon, the phrase "filthy lucre" is derived from the Koine Greek word "aischrokerdes". This word means to be "eager for base gain, greedy for money":

"Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; Neither as being lords over God's heritage, but being ensamples to the flock."


In two of his Epistles, the Apostle Paul likewise warned the leaders of the First Century Church to beware of filthy lucre when he listed the qualifications for one who was chosen as a bishop over one of the local congregations. Paul wrote thusly:

"Not given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre; but patient, not a brawler, not covetous . . . Likewise must the deacons be grave, not doubletongued, not given to much wine, NOT GREEDY OF FILTHY LUCRE;"


"For a bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God; not selfwilled, not soon angry, not given to wine, no striker, NOT GIVEN TO FILTHY LUCRE . . . Whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, FOR FILTHY LUCRE'S SAKE."


So how can the Roman Catholic Church possibly justify its misguided beliefs and practices in light of the Scriptures? Surely, if ever a modern religious organization perfectly fit the description of the church of Laodicea which is found in the Book of Revelation, the Roman Catholic Church is clearly it. Consider part of the message which was delivered to John by the Angelic Messenger:

"I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:"


In his Epistle, the Apostle James also clearly pointed out that the people who are truly rich, are those who are rich in faith, and not in material abundance. Through his strong words, we see that similar to our modern day, even in the First Century Church there were misguided people who were partial to the rich, while they neglected the spiritual needs of the poor. Consider this group of powerful verses:

"My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons. For if there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment; And ye have respect to him that weareth the gay clothing, and say unto him, Sit thou here in a good place; and say to the poor, Stand thou there, or sit here under my footstool: Are ye not then partial in yourselves, and are become judges of evil thoughts? Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him? But ye have despised the poor . . ."


What an accurate depiction of so many worldly churches today which are more concerned with appearances, than with helping the physically and spiritually poor of the world. Aside from the Roman Catholic Church, I am thinking of certain American churches which are rich, white, and very prejudiced in their views. Decades ago, I attended a few of these churches in the American South. Then, of course, there is also the blight of the "Prosperity Gospel" and "Abundant Life" preachers who fleece the Lord's sheep. Oh how God must weep as He gazes at what His Bride has become! But as I explain in a number of other articles, even this is not new. Consider what God had to say to the false shepherds of Israel thousands of years ago who fed themselves, but who neglected and in fact abused God's sheep:

"Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD unto the shepherds; Woe be to the shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves! should not the shepherds feed the flocks? Ye eat the fat, and ye clothe you with the wool, ye kill them that are fed: but ye feed not the flock."


As I have mentioned a number of times before, in the Gospels, Jesus did not hesitate to expose the extreme greed of the Jewish religious elders of His day. Turning again to the writings of the Apostle Peter for a moment, we see that he too exposed the very same thing. Consider this group of verses where we are clearly informed that these vile people viewed their followers as nothing more than just a revenue stream. That is what the Apostle Peter means when he writes "make merchandise of you":

"And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves, And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves."


"And the Jews' passover was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem, And found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting: And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers' money, and overthrew the tables; And said unto them that sold doves, Take these things hence; make not my Father's house an house of merchandise."


"And they come to Jerusalem: and Jesus went into the temple, and began to cast out them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves; And would not suffer that any man should carry any vessel through the temple. And he taught, saying unto them, Is it not written, My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer? but ye have made it a den of thieves."


"And through covetousness shall they with feigned words MAKE MERCHANDISE OF YOU: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not."


If all of these things weren't enough, consider the shocking news stories we often read concerning homosexuals, lesbians and pedophiles which have been knowingly permitted to perform their sinful deeds within the Catholic structure for decades, without ever receiving any kind of reprimand or demotion in their position. Thank God at least a few of these perverts are now being brought to justice. Even here where I live, in recent years, a Roman Catholic archbishop was defrocked after it was revealed that he had been sexually abusing young boys for years, as were a number of other local Roman Catholic priests.

In my view, the real tragedy is that all of these terrible acts of sexual perversion could have easily been avoided, if the Roman Catholic Church hierarchy had simply followed some of the sound advice which was given by the Apostle Paul two thousand years ago, when he wrote the following to the Church at Corinth:

"But if they cannot contain, let them marry: for it is better to marry than to burn."


Truly, due to their willful disobedience to the Scriptures in not allowing their priests and nuns to marry, the Roman Catholic Church has fulfilled one of the very things which the Apostle Paul prophesied would happen, when he wrote the following to Timothy:

"Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron; FORBIDDING TO MARRY, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth."


Many too are the embarrassing stories of alcoholic priests who have gotten rather drunk while attending certain feasts or public gatherings where they are supposed to perform a certain function. If you can believe it, some Roman Catholic priests are even claimed to have performed mass while in a drunken state, totally ignoring the following sound advice which we find in the Holy Scriptures. Please note that in the first verse that is found in Luke's Gospel, according to Thayer's Greek English Lexicon, the word "surfeiting" is derived from the Koine Greek word "kraipale". This word means "the giddiness and headache caused by drinking wine to excess":

"And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares."


"Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying."


"A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach;"


"For a bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God; not selfwilled, not soon angry, not given to wine, no striker, not given to filthy lucre;"


While it may appear to some that I have a preoccupation with exposing the hypocrisy of the Roman Catholic Church, I should point out that all of these things are not limited to that organization alone. Some Protestant and other non-Catholic denominations are guilty of the very same things. This is indeed a sad situation; for while there are some spiritual leaders within organized religion who do take their position seriously, and who do try to faithfully feed their flocks with their current knowledge and understanding of the Holy Scriptures, these problems with materialism, hypocrisy, unbridled lifestyles, and imposing a double standard upon their flocks, have given them, and organized religion in general, a bad name. Thus, it should come as no surprise that a growing number of people who have a sincere faith in God, in Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Bible, simply don't want to have anything to do with organized religion any longer.

Please go to part three for the conclusion of this series.

⇒ Go To The Next Part . . .

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