Catholics got some 'splainin' to do.
#ToChristAlone
Discussion
🤷♂️
Matthew 22:32 KJV — I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living.
Revelation 5:8 KJV — And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.
Revelation 8:3-4 KJV — And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel's hand.
Luke 1:46-48 KJV — And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.
James 5:15-16 KJV — And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
These are beautiful scriptures, and they show believers praying to God. But I don’t see any mention in any of these scriptures that Christians should pray to Mary or other saints (someone set apart for God).
Descriptive not prescriptive. 🤝
Should Christians ask each other for prayer?
Yes, of course. References in the New Testament clearly show this as living Christians going to receive prayer from other living Christians. But to claim this includes those who have died is a big stretch, especially when scripture commands us not to consult the dead and there are no examples of this practice anywhere in Scripture.
“There shall not be found among you anyone who burns his son or his daughter as an offering, anyone who practices divination or tells fortunes or interprets omens, or a sorcerer or a charmer or a medium or a necromancer or one who inquires of the dead, for whoever does these things is an abomination to the Lord. And because of these abominations the Lord your God is driving them out before you.” - Deuteronomy 18:10-12
Scripture tells us there is one mediator, Jesus the Christ.
“For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus” - 1 Timothy 2:5
The Saints are not dead. They are alive in Christ and present with the Lord. Just as the intercession of a Christian on earth is not a usurpation of Christ as mediator, neither is the intercession of a Christian in heaven.
Arguments from silence in Scripture, misapplied references to literal pagan child sacrifice, or claims that prayer is a usurpation of Christ do not do anything to defeat this basic entailment: a Saint that is absent from the Body is present with the Lord. The Saints make up a great cloud of witnesses to our faith and struggles towards Christ. Their existence out of their body is every bit as real as in their body. Their faith is perfected and their capacity for prayer, if anything, is increased. If we believe in the power of prayer, we ought to ask for theirs.
More masculinity is needed