Four Marks of the True Church
In the previous episodes, we have proven that since Christ and his apostles died, the Bible used today is no longer pure and truly the work of God. Because the Bible used by churches today is no longer the original work of God, all who use it will be severely cursed by God according to Galatians 1:8-9: "The people or church that preach to you any gospel other than what we preached (meaning the Catholic Church), will be cursed by God for life."
In this episode, we will discuss the story of the Catholic Church, whether Peter was the first pope, and the Four Marks of the True Church of God based on the Bible (Matthew 16:18), (Acts 2), and (Colossians 1:18). The Catholic Church originated from the Roman Empire under Constantine, who was influenced by a pagan religion called Mithraism. If it weren't for Constantine, Mithraism might have been the religion of those who believe in God today.
The Roman Empire was the most powerful civilization at that time.
Because there was no leader among the group of believers in God and Christ then, its members were gradually killed by the Roman emperors because they were seen as a threat to the state of Rome. In 65 AD, Nero was the first emperor to make a law to kill Christians. Then in 85 AD, it was repeated by Domitian until 300 AD under Diocletian.
When Constantine became emperor in 325 AD, the persecution of Catholics ceased. This was because he made Catholicism the official religion and decreed which books should be included in the New Testament. However, some church leaders whose former religion was Mithraism began to add their pagan doctrines and ceremonies to the New Testament, such as the use of holy water, incense, the concept of the pope, the worship of images and statues, the mass, crucifixion, baptism, circumcision, confession, belief in purgatory, Sunday worship, Christmas, and the Trinity.
When the Roman Empire fell in 476 AD, its political power also collapsed, but the church became more powerful over all its subjects. However, all the priests at that time had intentions of becoming the pope, the highest position in the church. The Catholic churches also fought among themselves and split into two: the Greek Orthodox Catholic Church, which became the church in the west established in Rome, Italy, and the Roman Catholic Church, which became the church of the east located in Constantinople, Turkey.
At this time, the Roman Church, along with its Pope, Cardinals, Archbishops, and Bishops, had established a strong dictatorial governance that controlled the lives of people. The very "priests" were corrupt, full of evil, and immorality. This marked the beginning of the so-called "Dark Ages," where people who did not believe in the new doctrines of the Bible and its worship were killed by the church. Because of this, those opposed to Catholicism began to burn their Bibles and secede from the church. This was the era of the "Reformist Movement." However, most of these reformists were killed by the church through burning, burying alive, and other cruel methods.
When the printing press was invented, reformists emerged again, and the first religion to break away from Catholicism was Protestantism (1517). This was followed by Lutheranism (1530), Presbyterianism (1536), Anglicanism (1534), Baptist (1644), Methodist (1739), Unitarian (1787); Mormons (1830); Christian Scientists (1870); Salvation Army (1876); Jehovah's Witnesses (1886); Seventh-Day Adventists (1844), Iglesia ni Cristo (1914), and others.
However, these religions cannot be considered the true church of God because they lack the four primary marks of the true church of God.
a. It was founded by Christ. Jesus promised to build his church in Matthew 16:18.
b. It began in 33 AD, on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-4, 41) until the time of the death of the last apostles in 100 AD.
c. It was established only in the city of Jerusalem (Acts 2). Not all Christian churches have a church in Jerusalem or started in Jerusalem.
d. Christ is the only head or founder of it (Colossians 1:18). Christian churches have their own founders. The list of fake churches, founders, and when they were established can be found in episode #5.
In 588 AD, John Faster of the Greek Orthodox Catholic Church was the first declared Pope of their church. Meanwhile, in 600 AD, Phocas aka Boniface III became the first pope of the pagan Roman Catholic Church. However, many believe that the apostle Peter was the first pope of the Latin Catholic Church, serving from 30 AD to 64 AD. So, who among these Catholics was the original pope - Greek, Roman, or Latin?
In this episode, we showed that the pagan elders of the Roman Empire added their pagan doctrines and ceremonies to the Catholic Church. Because of this, the churches within Catholicism and those who no longer believed in the purity of the Bible gradually separated from Catholicism and established their own churches. However, due to the four marks of the true church, the Christian churches that broke away were also considered fake.
In the next episode, we will discuss the authors of the Old Testament and the doctrine of Mithraism, the pagan religion of the Imperial Romans.
DISCLAIMER:
Please remember that I respect your beliefs, this is your right, but other people also have the right to know different religions around the world and this should also be taught in our education so that we have a balanced knowledge our young people and let them have their own decision in choosing the right religion. Since these are not taught in schools in the Philippines, this channel serves as a school for those who have a strong desire to expand their knowledge or perspective to find out the right truth.
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