Is the Catholic Church right.
St.John 20:21-23 says that Jesus is sending his apostles just as the Father sent him. Then He blows on them and says receive the Holy Spirit , who's sins you forgive they are forgiven and those you do not forgive they are not forgiven. ( take time to look it up and read the scripture direct from the Bible)
Now this is after the Resurrection. The non-Catholic says we can now go directly to the Father in Jesus's name and have our sins forgiven. If this is so why did Jesus give the apostles power to forgive or not forgive sins? Do non-Catholic really believe the Bible?
Was this just for the 11 apostles? In acts chapter 1, Peter says that Judas needs to be replaced. So they chose Matthias to replace him. Now we must ask ourselves did he ( Matthais) also have the power to forgive sins? If so we have what the Catholic's call apostolic succession. As the Father sent Jesus, Jesus sends the apostles, the apostles sends others as the church grows and apostles or ministers dies.
Do you have to be baptized by Jesus for it to be valid. Of cource not. See John chapter 4:2. Remember Jesus said ( what is easier to say thy sins are forgiven or get up and walk). Jesus had the power to do both and He told His deciples that they would do greater things than what He did. He said to the lady at the well go, thy sins are forgiven.
Now the question remains if the Catholic Church is wrong " Why did Jesus give the apostles the power to forgive sins?". And "Why did the apostles say that it's important, even necessary according to scripture, to replace Judas?" We can only believe and explain these scriptures if we believe as the Catholic Church says that Priest has the power to forgive sins.
Eternal live with God is too important for us to blindly follow other people. Either we believe that the Bible is the word of God or not. If we believe that it is then let us believe what it says ( not what the preacher or so and so says). The Bible is written in English. Don't go to a blind man and ask him to lead you, ask Jesus Himself if what you have just read is true. Think about it, meditate on it. Do you believe and follow the scripture where Jesus commands us to forgive our enemies and love those who use and abuse?
Where in the Bible does it say that everything that belongs to the apostles belongs to us. When Jesus blew on his apostles and then gave them power to forgive sins, This belonged to the apostles not us. Jesus gave the apostles the power to heal the sick in Jesus's name, not us. Some where along the way people got the idea that whatever Jesus told His deciples belongs to us. Peter in acts chapter 9:40 raises Tabitha from the dead. Can you or some one you know do that.
This is my first blog. As I get to know better what I'm doing there are other issues I want to address, concerning "is the Catholic right?.
St.John 20:21-23 says that Jesus is sending his apostles just as the Father sent him. Then He blows on them and says receive the Holy Spirit , who's sins you forgive they are forgiven and those you do not forgive they are not forgiven. ( take time to look it up and read the scripture direct from the Bible)
Now this is after the Resurrection. The non-Catholic says we can now go directly to the Father in Jesus's name and have our sins forgiven. If this is so why did Jesus give the apostles power to forgive or not forgive sins? Do non-Catholic really believe the Bible?
Was this just for the 11 apostles? In acts chapter 1, Peter says that Judas needs to be replaced. So they chose Matthias to replace him. Now we must ask ourselves did he ( Matthais) also have the power to forgive sins? If so we have what the Catholic's call apostolic succession. As the Father sent Jesus, Jesus sends the apostles, the apostles sends others as the church grows and apostles or ministers dies.
Do you have to be baptized by Jesus for it to be valid. Of cource not. See John chapter 4:2. Remember Jesus said ( what is easier to say thy sins are forgiven or get up and walk). Jesus had the power to do both and He told His deciples that they would do greater things than what He did. He said to the lady at the well go, thy sins are forgiven.
Now the question remains if the Catholic Church is wrong " Why did Jesus give the apostles the power to forgive sins?". And "Why did the apostles say that it's important, even necessary according to scripture, to replace Judas?" We can only believe and explain these scriptures if we believe as the Catholic Church says that Priest has the power to forgive sins.
Eternal live with God is too important for us to blindly follow other people. Either we believe that the Bible is the word of God or not. If we believe that it is then let us believe what it says ( not what the preacher or so and so says). The Bible is written in English. Don't go to a blind man and ask him to lead you, ask Jesus Himself if what you have just read is true. Think about it, meditate on it. Do you believe and follow the scripture where Jesus commands us to forgive our enemies and love those who use and abuse?
Where in the Bible does it say that everything that belongs to the apostles belongs to us. When Jesus blew on his apostles and then gave them power to forgive sins, This belonged to the apostles not us. Jesus gave the apostles the power to heal the sick in Jesus's name, not us. Some where along the way people got the idea that whatever Jesus told His deciples belongs to us. Peter in acts chapter 9:40 raises Tabitha from the dead. Can you or some one you know do that.
This is my first blog. As I get to know better what I'm doing there are other issues I want to address, concerning "is the Catholic right?.
Hello Wilton, I would like to present the evangelical response to this. Here is the passage in question.
ReplyDelete21 So Jesus said to them again, “Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” 22 And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” (NKJV)
To better understand this I recommend going to the Greek. Here is a literal translation. "Those whose sins you forgive have already been forgiven; those whose sins you do not forgive have not been forgiven." The first verbs in the two clauses are aorists, which imply the action of an instant; the second verbs are perfects, which imply an abiding state that began before the action of the first verbs. God does not forgive men's sins because we decide to do so nor withhold forgiveness because we will not grant it. We announce it; we do not create it. This is the essence of salvation. And all who proclaim the gospel are in effect forgiving or not forgiving sins, depending on whether the hearer accepts or rejects the Lord Jesus as the Sin-Bearer.
Therefore your premise that God gave them the "power to forgive" is incorrect. Since this is the foundation for the remainder of the post, until you can prove this premise from Scripture you cannot build the other doctrine upon it.