The Facts Speak For
Themselves.
If You Can't Believe What The Bible Says, What, or Who
Can You Believe?
Let us briefly run through some of the most important highlights of the
foundation and the growth of the only Church which Jesus Christ founded.
Matt 16:18, "And I say to thee, thou art Peter, and upon this rock I
will build My Church."
Notice that Jesus said church, not
churches. Jesus Christ founded His One and Only Church around 33 A.D.. At the same
time He made Peter the leader of the Apostles by changing his name from Simon to
Peter. See the file 'Primacy of
Peter' elsewhere on this site.
Matt 16:18, "And the gates of hell
shall NOT prevail against it."
The Church which Jesus Christ founded will be
defended by its founder from within and from without, and forever.
Matt 18:17, "And if he refuse to hear them, appeal to the Church, but if
he refuse to hear even the Church,
let him be to thee as the heathen and the
publican."
What does this verse tell you about who has the authority and who does
not?
Matt 28:20, "...And behold, I am with you ALL days, even unto
the consummation of the world."
Jesus Christ will be with the Church He
founded, every day in every century until the end of time, with no gaps
whatsoever.
Right here Jesus Christ guaranteed that the Church He founded is
still with us to this very day. It has a name. Please name it?
John 14:18, "I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you."
Jesus
Christ will not abandon His Church , but will watch over it forever.
John 10:16, "And other sheep I have that are not of this fold, them also
I must bring, and they shall hear My voice, and there shall be one fold
and one shepherd." All are not in the Church which He founded, which is the one
fold of the one shepherd.
John 14:16-17, "And I will ask the Father and
He will give you another Advocate to dwell with you forever, the Spirit of Truth
whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. But
you shall know Him, because He will dwell with you, and be with you."
The
Holy Spirit will dwell with the one Church that Jesus Christ founded, and with
no other church, and that Church will be the Church of truth.
John
14:26, "But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name,
He will teach you all things, and bring to your mind whatever I have said to
you."
The Church that Jesus Christ founded will receive its teaching from
the Holy Spirit.
Matt 18:18, "Amen I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound
also in Heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed also in Heaven."
Here the Apostles are given the authority they need to conduct affairs of
the Church that Jesus Christ founded.
Acts 1:26, "And they drew lots
between them, and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the
eleven Apostles."
They voted among themselves to elect another Apostle.
Isn't this how they elect the Pope today?
Acts 15:7, "And after a long
debate, Peter got up and said to them, 'Brethren, you know that in early days
GOD made choice among us that through my mouth the
Gentiles should hear the word of the Gospel and believe'."
Here Peter
reaffirmed the primacy given to
him by GOD in Matt 16:18.
Acts 15:4-12, the embryo Church held its first
council, the Council of Jerusalem.
4 - "On arriving
at Jerusalem they were welcomed by the Church..."
6 - "So the Apostles and
the presbyters (priests) had a meeting to look into this matter."
12 - "Then
the whole meeting quieted down..."
Rome had spoken. The issue was
settled. This is much the same as what the Catholic Church does in councils today.
1Timothy 3:15, "...but in order that thou mayest know, if I am delayed, how
to conduct thyself in the House of GOD, the pillar and mainstay of the
truth."
The Church which Jesus Christ founded is the One True Church, and the Church of
truth.
1Cor 3:10-15, "According to the grace of GOD which has been given
to me, as a wise builder, I laid the foundation and another builds thereon.
But let everyone take care how he builds thereon..."
Here we see that
there will be a succession of Church leaders to carry on the building of the
Church.
Acts 20:28, "Take heed to yourselves and to the whole flock in
which the Holy Spirit has placed you as Bishops,
to rule the Church of GOD,
which He has purchased with His own blood."
Bishops will rule the Church
which Jesus Christ founded. Isn't that as true today as it was then?
1Timothy 3:8-10,
8 - "Deacons also must be honorable...
10- and
let them first be tried,
and if found without reproach, let them be allowed
to serve."
Deacons will be found in, and will serve in, the Church that
Jesus Christ founded.
1Cor 3:2, "I fed you with milk, not with solid food, for you were not yet
ready for it."
Here Paul told us that knowledge of GODly things will come
over time. With the authority given to it, and with the guidance of the Holy
Spirit as shown prior in this text, the Church can make announcement of
doctrines such as it did in 1854, the Immaculate Conception, and in 1950, the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin
Mary.
107 A.D., approximately, as St. Ignatius of Antioch, an Apostolic
father of the Church, was being taken to Rome in chains to be martyred, he wrote
several letters. In his letter to the Smyrneans he called the Church, which Jesus Christ
founded, by its proper name for the first time on record (*CCC 830).
In
paragraph 8.2 of his letter he said, "Just as where Jesus Christ is, there is
the Catholic Church."
397 A.D., at the Council
of Carthage, the Church which Jesus Christ founded, finalized the Canon of the Bible. The Old
Testament would retain all 46 books including the seven disputed books which it
always had, which were removed by the protestants later during the
reformation.
1545, the Council of Trent was called in response to the
protestant reformation.
One of the things the Church accomplished at Trent was a reaffirmation of
the Canon of the Old Testament
and all 46 books were retained.
Now with all the evidence I have presented in this text, what is the
name of the Church which Jesus Christ founded?
It is still with us today
after almost 2000 years. That was His promise.
Is it your church?
Written by Bob Stanley, Sept 2,
1997
Updated May 25, 2000
Updated March 30, 2007
*CCC is the new Catechism of the Catholic
Church...
"Have I then become your enemy, because I told you the truth?"
Galatians 4:16
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