Catholic or Protestant: What Our Churches Should Be Teaching

By Steve Childers

I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
Matthew18:3

Our salvation is so much more than an emotional night at a revival or perfect attendance in mass. It may be the first step, but God is looking for a commitment; and as creatures of free will, we have the choice to be obedient or to turn back to our sinful nature. It is up to us whether we experience the wonderful promises of Jesus Christ or suffer the consequences of bad decisions following the sinful ways of man. Our life on earth and our standing in heaven depends on the daily choices we make.
Many Christians are frustrated because all they hear about in church are the blessings of Christ, and they wonder why they are not experiencing them. Many churches only teach about the benefits so as not to upset anyone and, in turn, hurt contributions to the building fund. However, Christians must understand what the Lord expects in order to experience His blessings, even as harsh as some of it may sound.
The Bible was given to us to make changes in our own lives, not as justification of how we are living or to support criticism of those with sins different than our own. Scripture in this book is organized by topic, along with authors interpretation, and then you can decide if you are in a church being lead by the Holy Spirit.
www.CatholicOrProtestant.com

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Jun 27, 2008
• ISBN: 9781465320377

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Copyright © 2008 by Steve Childers.

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Contents

Chapter 1

What God Promises and What God Expects from Us

Chapter 2

The Word of God: Catholic or Protestant

Chapter 3

Accepting Christ as Your Lord and Savior:

Chapter 4

Good versus Evil—It’s All About Choices:

Chapter 5

Fruits of the Spirit:

Chapter 6

We Are Called to Action:

Chapter 7

Judgment, Punishment, and Chastisement:

Chapter 8

Suffering and Tough Times

Chapter 9

Rejoice in Our Troubles, God Loves Us

Chapter 10

Prayer: We Are Not Alone

Chapter 1

What God Promises and What God Expects from Us

A Summary of What Is to Come!

I remember the exact moments when my two sons were born as being the most exciting and happiest times of my entire life. In fact, it was so exciting that I never really knew what happiness truly was until then. I have a photograph taken of me holding Allyn, my first son, when he was only a few moments old. Up until that time, I always had a problem producing a natural smile when a camera was pointed at me. However, my joy was so complete at that moment that it was the first picture I can remember of me with a huge, natural smile, holding my newborn son. As excited and happy as I was at that moment, I knew it was only the beginning of a long journey raising them, and I also knew it was a major commitment we had made to bring these children into the world.

It is much the same when we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior; that is why they call it being born again. It is a time of great joy, filled with much anticipation. In fact, the similarities during our walk through life, while following the teachings of Christ and maturing in our faith, is very much like a child growing to be a responsible and mature adult. Being born again is only the beginning of a long spiritual journey and a commitment to follow the commandments of our Lord. Our Christian lives may have begun with an emotional night at a revival or possibly quiet as we went through our religious training classes at church. However, there is a point we make a commitment to the Lord and invite Him to come into our lives. At that moment, we are born again, and the Word teaches us we are washed clean of our sins by the grace of God and are given the Holy Spirit to guide us through our walk on this earth. We are also given a power to overcome the temptations of our society here on earth, which are contrary to the ways of the Lord.

Now what we do with this newfound grace and power given to us by the Holy Spirit is up to us. The Lord created us as creatures of free will, free to follow God’s teachings and commandments or free to continue in the ways of the world. The choices we make on a day-to-day basis determine the depth of the commitment we have made to our Lord Jesus Christ.

This book is intended to be a guide to help us understand the commitment we made to our Lord, what the Lord promises us, what the Lord expects from us, and the consequences of following or not following the will of God for our lives. As I read the Bible, the Word of the Risen Lord, there are concepts that I do not hear being preached that often in our churches. The Lord promises us not only eternal life, but also peace, joy, wisdom, and many other things listed as fruits of the Spirit. However, many Christians are wondering why they are not experiencing these things, and it is because we must be seeking his kingdom above all else and living a righteous life in order to expect the promises of his son, Jesus Christ. The Lord also promises us judgment and consequences if we are seeking the pleasures of this world, living according to the standards of this world.

Jesus Christ often spoke in parables, and the teachings of the apostles are often hard to understand by a newborn Christian or even by a more mature Christian for that matter. The reason God does this is once we understand what God wants us to do, then God expects us to follow it. Our eyes are opened to the truths of the Lord as we are ready to accept them and act upon them. Again it is similar to the growth of our earthly children. Just like my sons when they were young, they had to learn to walk, I had to hold their hands when we crossed the street, we had to teach them to study in school, and we took them to church to expose them to Christ. We did not teach them to drive a car at age five, but we taught them what they needed, when they were ready for it.

The Holy Spirit will open our eyes to concepts of Christ when we are ready to follow them. Our maturing faith is a lifelong process to claim the promises of Jesus Christ. I have been involved in church-related activities all my life and do not remember a time I did not believe in Christ as my Lord. However, as I was making my notes and researching for this book, I was totally amazed at how the Lord opened my eyes to passages I had read over and over through the years. So this book is my understanding of the Bible after fifty years of life, but please remember, if you read this and the Holy Spirit opens your eyes, then you need to be ready to act on it because that is what our Lord expects.

A few years ago, my younger son, Andrew, got me started listening to country and western music. One of the songs from an artist Van Zant has a phrase in it, If you want to hear God laugh, tell him your plans. God must really be laughing at me because I went through college earning a degree in math and physics, hoping to escape writing as many papers as possible. The Lord will work in mysterious ways and uses the most unlikely of people in his plan to spread His love and Word. Why God chose me to write this, only He knows; but the deeper I studied, the more convinced I became that this is what the Lord has given me as His will for my life, at this time. Many times I will read through a book and wonder if it is ever going to make a point or even if it is worth my time reading it. This chapter is an expanded outline of what you can expect in the following chapters, which is my interpretation of the Word of God, what he promises, and what he expects from us. As you start reading, you will notice there are scripture, along with the reference where it can be found in the Bible. Then it is followed by my interpretation of the scripture. There are several things I would like to point out as you go through this work.

1.   Word of God—This book will only make sense if you accept the Bible as the inspired Word of our Lord. My assumption is that it is the final authority on what the Lord promises us and what He expects from us.

2.   Have your Bible by your side—When I quote scripture, it may only be one or two verses, but the reference may include several others. It is important to understand the verses in context with others surrounding it, so I recommend reading all of the verses referenced to understand the full meaning. My intention was not to rewrite the entire Bible but to get you thinking about a concept.

3.   Religious fanatic—I am huge believer in the importance of attending a church in order to draw strength from the body. However, much of what I am putting forward in the book is not being preached in our churches. If you accept the Bible as the Word of God, then we do not have the option of picking and choosing which parts of the Bible we are going to believe in. God’s promises are more wonderful than we can even imagine, but there are actions the Lord expects from us. Some of what I read in the Bible can even sound very harsh, but it comes from a loving God. So as you read, you may think of me as some kind of religious fanatic. However, I challenge you to look at the scripture I put forward, along with my interpretation, and then you make up your own mind on what to believe. We all have a choice, and your relationship with the Lord is based on the decisions you make on a daily basis.

Use it as a study guide on your walk through the riches of the Lord. By reading through the next few pages, you can then determine if you think it is worth your time.

I.   The Word of God: Catholic or Protestant

Which is going to hell?

There are many churches with different doctrines that believe Jesus Christ is the risen Lord, be they Protestants or Catholics; and even though we will explore some of the differences, they are all based on the Word of Jesus Christ as explained in the Bible. The Bible is the basis for our belief and the foundation of all Christian doctrines. If we accept this as true, then why is there so much intolerance between Christian faiths? We all remember how God dispersed His believers at the Tower of Babel in Old Testament times. God humbled the Babylonians by scattering them among the world and giving them different languages. Then as their societies developed, differences in doctrine grew. In the not-so-distant past, Martin Luther split from the Catholic Church; and the Protestant church started, splitting multiple times after that. If there is one God who created heaven and earth, then why did He scatter His people and allow different doctrines? Is there truly only one right religion, or is there a plan by God that we do not fully understand? Regardless, as Christians we are called to love and be tolerant. There are obvious differences in doctrine between Catholics and Protestants that will be explored, but the underlining foundation for both is the teachings of Christ as taught in the Bible.

The concentration of this book is not on church doctrine but on what Christ teaches. Many of us are so caught up in the doctrine of our churches; there is a tendency to put others down, even when their beliefs are very similar to our own. Worship and fellowship are extremely important and should be done where you are most comfortable, but love and tolerance are a big part of Christ’s teaching.

 . . . to suit their own desires,

they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.

2 Timothy 4:3

During the time of Christ, there were many false prophets as there are today (possibly even more). Paul warns us in 2 Timothy to challenge what is being taught in our churches. If we go on the presumption that the Bible is the final authority of what God is telling us, then we really need to challenge and test what is being preached today. The Lord says that heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will live forever. His words are as relevant today as they were two thousand years ago, and Christ teaches that the ways of the world is contrary to his ways. So when our religious leaders are struggling to make the Bible relevant to the world today, we need to ask why. What was wrong then is wrong today. Challenge the church you are attending, and are they really teaching what is in the scripture, or are they trying to make everyone happy so the contributions to building fund will not fall?

When we made a commitment to Christ, that means we agreed to understand His commandments, then follow them for life. It is a process. Even though our sins are forgiven immediately and we are part of the family of God, it takes time to become the mature, fruitful Christian we are expected to become. Find that dynamic congregation and earnestly seek the kingdom of God and contribute to make it even better.

II.   Accepting Christ as Your Lord and Savior

What does it really mean?

What does it really mean to accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior? The Bible teaches salvation to be the free gift of God, if we accept Christ as our Lord and Savior. We are called to confess with our lips and believe in our hearts that Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior of our lives. Jesus was the perfect and complete sacrifice for our sinful ways, and His grace will make us whole. However, what does it really mean to accept Christ? By accepting Christ, we are making a commitment to him and confessing our sins, possibly on an emotional night at a revival, but then what?

Christ tells of the farmer that sowed seed, some falling on good soil, but then some falling on the path, some among the thorns, and some in the shallow soil. The seed is the wonderful message of the saving grace of our Lord, but how that plant grows and whether it matures to produce fruit or dies because it is not rooted in good soil is up to us. God created us as creatures of free will; we have the ability to accept the Lord, living a righteous life, or we can turn back the next day to the ways of this world. So once our sins are forgiven, we have to make conscious decisions every day to honor that commitment we have made to the Lord by following his commandments and following his will for our lives.

Since we live in a world conditioned by years of living with the evil nature of our society, we must put aside evil and become a new creation. Our Lord tells us in Matthew, Unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. It does not say you will automatically start living according to the principles of Christ. We will have salvation, but it says we must make changes in the way we live to demonstrate the commitment we made to the Lord. Salvation is the free gift of God and is instantaneous, but living as a Christian is a lifelong process. In order to partake of His goodness, we must accept Christ as our Lord and Savior, but we have to make conscious decisions daily to turn from the ways of the world and put the ways of the Lord above all else. To love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and all your mind. Only God knows what is in our hearts and minds. Only the Lord knows if in accepting Jesus as our Savior we have turned over our hearts and minds to Him.

Since we have the ability to choose whether we are going to walk along the narrow path and through the small gate that leads to life or the wide and easy path most in society choose, we must be sincere in our words and actions. We also have the ability to hide our true desires while sitting in our churches and attending Bible studies, that is from everyone except the Lord. Again we need to carefully understand what it means to accept Christ and gain eternal life. The criminal next to Christ on the cross confessed his sins on the day he died and went with Him to live in eternal glory. Since his commitment to Christ was sincere, he went to live with Christ that very day, cleansed of all sin. But for most of us, that commitment is only the beginning of a lifelong process of maturing faith as we make daily decisions to seek first the kingdom of God. We do not just accept Christ, sit back, and say, I have made it. Standing firm in our commitment to the Lord, as life continues, is a struggle the Lord fully understands and is with us every step of the way. So as you go through life, making every effort to follow God’s commandments, stand firm in your commitment to Him. It is so much more than walking to the altar on an emotional night at church, which is the start, but then it has to be followed up with action.

III.   Good versus Evil: It’s All About Choices

Who we are is based on the choices we make on a daily basis

Our existence is the sum of the choices we make on a daily basis. These decisions we make are based on the desires of our heart, but the question is whether we desire the kingdom of God or the pleasures of this world. In the Bible, the Lord and His disciples are very clear as to what are the ways of Christ and what are the ways of this world. There are long lists of what the Bible considers evil or sinful, and as we read through them, some of them just do not sound that bad. The reason is because we are conditioned by years of living in this world and a society that is not living according to the principles taught by Christ. The fruits of the Spirit and the evil in the world are as opposite as anything can be. The evil of this world can be summed up as pride, lust, and greed versus what the Spirit is offering us which is summed up in humility, faith, and service. The Lord even goes so far as to combine them all in one word—LOVE.

We are asked to seek the kingdom of God above all else, and it is through the decisions and choices we make that demonstrates to Christ the depth of our commitment we have made to Him. Here is the exciting part. When we accept Christ and are born anew, we are not only cleansed of our sins, but we are also given a power to overcome the ways of this world. We are promised an advocate to guide us and protect us, the Holy Spirit. In other words, we are not in this alone. Yes, we have to make the right decisions; but left to our own, we would never get it right. As temptations from our own desires confront us, we now have the power to turn from them and choose to follow the commandments of the Lord. Then as we mature, turning from the evil of this world, we will be filled with the fruits of the Spirit. Salvation and the fruits of the Spirit are free gifts of God; we just have to demonstrate to the Lord He is important to us.

Now this is where I believe many of the teachers today who are trying to adapt the Word to modern times get into trouble. The Bible promises that following His commandments and carrying the cross He has for us will not be burdensome. But our teachers are only telling us what God will do for us; very little is spoken about what we need to be doing. So as it tells us in the scripture, test everything that is being taught in our churches. The Bible is very clear about what is expected of us.

IV.   Fruits of the Spirit:

Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness,

Gentleness, and Self-control

How we conduct ourselves, how we choose to live, and how the world sees us is what our daily walk with Christ is all about. Our goal is to live our lives, as much like Christ as possible, and we are given all the tools we need to make it happen like wisdom and guidance, which the Lord gives us generously when we ask. In chapter 4, there is a complete listing of the evil or sin we have surrounding us and which controlled our lives before we knew Christ. We have the power to overcome the desires of this world. So as our eyes are opened and we become aware of the evil in the world, we are to turn from it and live a righteous life. While reading the scriptures in this chapter, there is verse after verse that uses words like make every effort, pursue, follow the narrow path, be completely humble, and seek which all refer to action we are to take in our walk with Christ. Now that we have accepted Christ as our Savior, received His saving grace and power over sin in our lives, we have to make every effort to live a righteous life through the choices we make on a daily basis.

Since we live in a world were the evils that are so clearly defined in the Bible are so much a part of our everyday life, living as Christ tells us to is no easy task. So often the process of maturing in our faith is referred to as a journey and even a battle between how God wants us to live and what our society tells us is the way to get ahead in the world. Once we accept Christ as our Lord and Savior, we are automatically cleansed of our sins, but this is where the work starts. Along this journey of maturing faith we will often stumble as we attempt to call upon His strength and guidance to live a righteous life, but this is fine and I believe the Lord even expects it. What I also believe is the Lord is looking for the effort and choices we make daily to live a Spirit filled life. Then He is expecting us to be making progress along that narrow path and toward that small gate that leads to eternal glory.

As we fully commit to Christ and start the process of turning from the ways of the world, the Holy Spirit will start to replace the earthly nature that we all know and understand with the fruits of the Spirit. It will be a real challenge to turn away from what the Bible calls sin, especially when your past experiences are telling you otherwise. However, as you start to experience the love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control that the Holy Spirit will fill your lives with, the wonders of the Lord will overwhelm you.

We will not only be given the power to turn from sin, the strength to endure suffering, but then will also be given rest when the burden gets tough. The Lord not only promises us peace and joy as we earnestly seek to do His will, but also an eternal reward at the end of the road when our life here on earth is over. However, we have a responsibility to follow his commandments, follow His will for our lives, and produce fruit based on the spiritual gifts given to us.

Will the choices we make take us down the narrow path and through the small gate, where only a few enter, leading to life? In the short term, it is much easier to go along with society, but that is not the path that leads to eternal life. Christ says the kingdom of God is the most precious thing we can imagine, and we are to seek it with all of our being. Total surrender of our earthly desires, being replaced by the fruits of the Spirit, will lead us to experience the promises of Jesus Christ.

As we make every effort to make the right choices that will lead us closer to the Lord, it is also important to look at our families. Society may have changed the way it looks at our families, but the Lord gave us a road map to promote peace and harmony in our families. Just like in our daily life, we must make choices that develop the family structure based on the formula outlined in the Bible if we expect to have peace within our home life as well.

V.   We Are Called to Action

Ask not what God can do for you but what you can do for God

When Christ was asked what was needed to inherit eternal life, He answered with what I call the great commandment, Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all of your mind. However, how do we love the Lord with all our heart, soul, and mind? We love the Lord by doing for others, the least of those on earth. Christ said the righteous are those that feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, give comfort to the stranger, clothe the naked, look after the sick, and visit those in prison; and then they will receive their inheritance, eternal life with the Father. Then it goes on to say those that did not serve one of the least of these will be cursed and sent off to eternal punishment. Meaning it is a sin not to serve those in need. In this passage, Christ did not differentiate between the people that were his followers, who had publicly confessed their devotion to Him and the people outside the church. The only division was the people who did for others and the ones who did nothing for the hungry, thirsty, strangers, naked, sick, and imprisoned. Our love for the Lord is shown by what we do for others. Our actions must back up our words.

If we look at the number of people in our churches across the nation, there is no reason why we should have the number of poor, hungry, thirsty, or downtrodden that exists. This is not a suggestion the Lord makes of His followers, but it is the basis and at the very foundation of how we will be judged. Everyone one of us has a purpose and a function as part of the body of the church. We are each given unique spiritual gifts intended to be used in the service of our Lord. As a Christian, each person is important and has a specific purpose in the body that Christ expects us to perform. We must earnestly seek that purpose and then follow it. God will put people in front of us that need our help, but then it goes back to those daily choices—to do it or not. As our eyes are opened to the work the Lord has for each of us, we learn that it is actually a sin to not do as we are asked. Good deeds will not save us, but faith without deeds will not get us to heaven either. We are God’s workmanship, created for good deeds, and He needs our hands here on earth to perform His work.

We are each given a measure of grace, and based on that grace, different things are asked of different people. The more grace the Lord bestows on us, the more that is expected from us. Again salvation is not based on what we do, but it is a manifestation of our faith, and our eternal glory or punishment depends on it. We are all apart of the body of Christ, and even though each has a different purpose, each is just as important to the body as anyone else.

There are mysteries in the Bible that I do not fully understand, but the concept of reward or punishment is very clearly spelled out in the Gospels. Christ’s love for us is far greater than anything imaginable, and He wants us all to share in eternal glory in heaven and on earth. He will protect us and give us everything we need, but He expects obedience and devotion from us, which are shown by doing for the least of the ones here on earth. Even though salvation is the free gift from God, Christ himself clearly tells us that there are severe consequences for not taking care of those less fortunate and in need. We are not allowed the luxury of doing nothing and are to test the leaders of our churches that do not challenge us to work for the Lord.

God tells us to lay our burdens at His feet, and He will give us rest. He is a God of love; however, what I hear so much of in our churches is what God can do for us. He is there to do for us, but in order to claim these promises, we must (in a twist from a former president) ask not what God can do for us but what we can do for God. Then you will see the wonders of His love, and your prayers will be answered that will fill you with more wonderment than you can ever imagine. We often get the cart before the horse. We go to church looking for God to bless us without putting the effort or sacrifice to follow His commandments. In our society, the earthly way of looking at life is based on what can I get for me. In God’s world, we are called to humility, faith, and service, then we will be blessed beyond our wildest dreams. We serve others before we receive, and our sacrifice will never go unrewarded.

VI.   Judgment and Punishment versus Grace and Reward

There are consequences to our actions, good or bad

Our life is filled with consequences (positive and negative) based on the choices we make about how we live our lives. The Lord is a fair judge, and we will all stand before him one day. God is love, wanting all the good for us, but He is not a God that can be walked on or taken lightly. The Bible is full of the wrath of the Lord, with many scriptures showing where the Lord expects obedience and expects us to follow through on what He asks us to do. If we are given a talent to be used in the service of the Lord and do not use it, we are subject to judgment. He promises that the one who has little, even what he has, will be taken away if it is not used for the glory of God.

Every believer is at a different stage in the development of his or her faith, and consequently since the Lord is patient, He will only expect from us what we can do at our current level of faith. We will be judged based on what we know and the talents given to us. As we mature and our understanding increases, much more is expected. An earthly child is not expected to work and support himself until he fully develops and grows to be an adult. It is the same with what the Lord expects from us, and we will be judged based on our understanding and the desires of our hearts to perform the work He has set aside for us.

There is judgment, and then there is punishment from the Lord. Judgment is when we give a final accounting of our lives to the Lord, and He determines how we will spend eternity. However, the Lord will punish or chastise those He loves to bring about correction in our lives. To the righteous, He promises correction through chastisement, but it will be done lovingly: punished but not torn down, pressed but not crushed, tough times but not destroyed. Going back to the comparison of the earthly parents trying to raise a responsible adult, have you ever known a well-behaved child or young adult where discipline was not a part of their growth? It just does not happen, and there are times the Lord needs to do the same with us. The Bible teaches that we will receive chastisement or correction for our sins or ultimately judgment depending on the intentions of our