Is the praise that the Catholic Church gives to Mary hold up to scripture? Mary is worshipped as a goddess by the catholic community, however surprising little is said about Mary in the Bible. According to the Catholic Church, they have declared dogmas of Mary elevating her to goddess (don’t believe me, click on the links all from Catholic sources). Let’s examine
Fifth Dogma: Mother of the ChurchSince the Virgin Mary's role in the mystery of Christ and the Spirit has been treated, it is fitting now to consider her place in the mystery of the Church. "The Virgin Mary . . . is acknowledged and honored as being truly the Mother of God and of the redeemer.... She is 'clearly the mother of the members of Christ' . . . since she has by her charity joined in bringing about the birth of believers in the Church, who are members of its head." "Mary, Mother of Christ, Mother of the Church."
In this dogma the Catholic Church Mary plays a role in the "mystery of Christ" and "mystery of the Church" but what is this mystery. You might be surprised that the bible does speak of a mystery concerning Christ and the church but no where in that mystery is Mary or the Mother-Son relationship is mentioned instead it is concerned about Husband-Wife relationship. In fact out of all the mysteries spoken in the bible this one is call the "great mystery"
Ephesians 5:32 This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ and the church.
A great mystery it is! It is a mystery as the world including what people call Christianity doesn’t know it. When is the last time your church has talked about this?
Ephesians 5:22-32 is known as marriage chapter but Paul says it’s a "great mystery" about Christ and the church. Is God married to his church and what does that mean?
God often uses the principle of duality in his word and teaching. This simply means that it has a twofold meaning often a physical and spiritual meaning as seen in this example.
The relationships mentioned in Ephesians 5:22-32 are summarized below
The chapter continues to say that the Husband to love your Wife as you love yourself as Christ loved the Church and gave up his life for it. Note this is the greatest love one can give:
John 15:13 The greatest love you can have for your friends is to give your life for them.
Just as it says in Genesis when God created Adam and Eve and declared them Husband and Wife they are one as God and the Church are one!
Genesis 2:24 That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united with his wife, and they become one.
Being one simply means being on the same team, having one mind. In a disordered organization there is a saying "Left hand doesn't know what the right hand is doing". When the Lord says "we are one" means we are all on the same team and in agreement. This is clearly portrayed in Paul’s teaching that we are of the same body just like the ear and the eye or the hand and the foot. As the parts of the human body do not argue with each other but simply work together in perfect unison to perform the same common goal!
1 Corinthians 12:12-17 Christ is like a single body, which has many parts; it is still one body, even though it is made up of different parts. In the same way, all of us, whether Jews or Gentiles, whether slaves or free, have been baptized into the one body by the same Spirit, and we have all been given the one Spirit to drink. For the body itself is not made up of only one part, but of many parts. If the foot were to say, "Because I am not a hand, I don't belong to the body," that would not keep it from being a part of the body. And if the ear were to say, "Because I am not an eye, I don't belong to the body," that would not keep it from being a part of the body. If the whole body were just an eye, how could it hear? And if it were only an ear, how could it smell?
This is the marriage covenant between God and Church which also existed between God and Israel. Before Babylon conquered the kingdom of Judah, God raised up a prophet Jeremiah whom prophesied to the people of the up-coming disaster in 40 years. Jeremiah told the people that God is married to them, they being his wife and when they strayed from the Lord they are like a wife cheating on her husband, like a prostitute!
Jeremiah 3:6 The LORD said also unto me in the days of Josiah the king, Hast thou seen that which backsliding Israel hath done? she is gone up upon every high mountain and under every green tree, and there hath played the unfaithful .
Jeremiah 3:14 Turn, O backsliding children, saith the LORD; for I am married to you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion:
Jeremiah 3:20 But like an unfaithful wife, you have not been faithful to me. I, the LORD, have spoken."
Bible tells us we a children of God but goes further and says we are heirs of God and to become like Christ hence of the same body! Not only heirs but JOINT-HEIRS!!!!
Romans 8:16-17 The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.
1 John 3:2-3 My dear friends, we are now God's children, but it is not yet clear what we shall become. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he really is. Everyone who has this hope in Christ keeps himself pure, just as Christ is pure.
Hence why even Jesus called us gods (See
The Divinity of Jesus)!
John 10:34 Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods?
Jesus told his disciples that they are no longer servants but friends and everything he has is theirs and everything they have is his but funny enough disciples have nothing and Jesus has everything!
John 15:15 I do not call you servants any longer, because servants do not know what their master is doing. Instead, I call you friends, because I have told you everything I heard from my Father.
John 16:15 All that my Father has is mine; that is why I said that the Spirit will take what I give him and tell it to you
John 17:10 All I have is yours, and all you have is mine; and my glory is shown through them
Currently as Christians we believe in Christ and his salvation from sin and eternal death. But we are not yet "one with Christ" we are only considered as children of God! When Christ appears we will become
"like him" (1 John 3:2)! This is the great mystery that when Christ appears we are to become like Christ, Spiritual perfect beings, born into the family of God hence one with Christ of the same body! This is said plainly below:
1 Corinthians 15:50-54 Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption. Behold, I show you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.
Note the last trumpet mentioned above is the seventh trumpet in the Book of Revelation which ushers in the return of Christ. This trumpet fulfils the mystery of God and declares his servants the prophets!
Revelation 10:7 But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets
Note flesh can never see the kingdom of God only the spirit can so we must be born again of the spirit. This is what it means to be born again, a spiritual birth with a new spiritual body where we become children again. Just like children entering this world so we shall be seeing the spiritual world for the first time learning again a new world even a new language.
John 3:5-6 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
1 Corinthians 15:50 Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.
Zephaniah 3:9 For then will I turn to the people a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the LORD, to serve him with one consent.
Notice in Jeremiah 3:14 above we see God is selecting his people, the faithful among the unfaithful
"I will take you one of a city, and two of a family". God is hand picking people after his own heart to start a kingdom of God.
John 15:16 You did not choose me; I chose you and appointed you to go and bear much fruit, the kind of fruit that endures. And so the Father will give you whatever you ask of him in my name.
John 6:64-65 Yet some of you do not believe." (Jesus knew from the very beginning who were the ones that would not believe and which one would betray him.) And he added, "This is the very reason I told you that no people can come to me unless the Father makes it possible for them to do so."
Even the ancient nation of Israel was chosen by God.
Deuteronomy 7:6 For thou art a holy people unto the LORD thy God: the LORD thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth.
This purpose of hand-picking his people is to build a holy nation a "City on a hill". This simply means a city that is an example to the world hence it is on a hill so all can see it and be drawn to it. This is no different to today; if a city sees another city doing a great job in its design (e.g. no traffic problems, no crime, environmentally friendly etc) cities will strive to be like that city. So the same with Gods Kingdom, it will be a perfect city of perfect moral and ethical standing living in perfect unity. When other cities see this city they will strive to be like it.
Isaiah 2:2 And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD's house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.
Micah 4:2 And many nations shall come, and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for the law shall go forth of Zion, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
Matthew 5:14 Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid.
Exodus 19:6 And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel.
In book of Revelation, John sees the Revelation of Jesus Coming in there he sees he is already a priest in the kingdom of God:
Revelation 1:5-6 And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.
Before Christ returns the Church will be ready for him to return, ready for the marriage with Christ where they become one with Christ
Revelation 19:7 Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.
This mystery has been kept secret from the beginning; even the angels desire to understand this mystery.
Romans 16:25 Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began,
1 Peter 1:12 God revealed to these prophets that their work was not for their own benefit, but for yours, as they spoke about those things which you have now heard from the messengers who announced the Good News by the power of the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. These are things which even the angels would like to understand.
The great evil of this dogma is to conceal the real meaning and substitute this great truth with a lie (Romans 1:25). The marriage covenant between God and his true Church (the people of God) is that, as wife, remain faithful to Jesus by keeping all the commandments (Revelation 12:17, 14:12, 22:14) of God. The Harlot is the unfaithful wife those of the false Church (Revelation 17:5-6) whom teach the Babylonian religion in disguise of a false form of Christianity. The Catholic Church (The MOTHER of HARLOTS) and her daughter churches (those that broke away from the Catholic Church including Protestants, Church of England) do not keep Gods Commandments but teach lawlessness by saying the law is done away with. This is not inline with the bible, consider the following verses
- Jesus teaches to obey even the least of the commandments (Matthew 5:19)
- Jesus tells the religious teachers are breaking Gods Law by keep their traditions) Mark 7:7-8)
- Jesus equates love of him to keeping the commandments (John 14:15, John 15:10)
- Paul teaches that keeping the commandments is what matters the most (1 Corinthians 7:19)
- John says that anyone that says they love Jesus but do not keep the commandments are liars! (1 John 2:3-4)
Nowhere in the bible does it teach that the law is done away with instead God’s true church keep the commandments of God, every word from Old Testament to the New Testament. For more information see
"The New Covenant: Does It Abolish God's Law?"God Bless, In Jesus Name
And ye shall know the truth, andthe truth shall make you freeJohn 8:32
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