(Author Wishes to Remain Anonymous)

When I was an infant, I was baptized in the Roman Catholic Church and was raised by Catholic parents. My father is a devoted church lector (the one who reads a bible passage at mass). He attends mass almost everyday and leads his family on praying the rosary almost everyday. 

I was educated for 10 years in a Catholic school and there I learned about the catechisms of the church and some of the church history, including the lives of the so called 'church heretics' like Martin Luther and John Calvin, who were according to the church, God-haters, liars and morally bad people. 

From the sixth grade until high-school, I got involved in church activities, with the purpose of becoming famous and not really serving God. Another reason was also to lessen the time I will be spending in purgatory (one of the false and unbiblical doctrines of that church), because we were taught that every good work, especially every mass we have attended in our lives, will go with us to judgment and will plead for pardon for us. I wanted to go to heaven, but not because God is there and I will worship Him there forever, but just because it's good to be there. I applied to be an altar-boy (the one who assists the priest during the mass or any church activity) and became one after fulfilling the requirements, like attending mass everyday and some seminars. I was even asked by people who know my family if I would be going to the seminary and become a priest and challenge my brother (who was already a pastor in Ozamis at that time) in a debate.

During those years, I believed that I was a very good person and that I deserved to go to heaven because at least I was better than the many people who don't go to mass, who don't pray the rosary, and are inactive in church. I took sin very lightly. In fact, I didn't call it 'sin' because it sounds too hard. I called my sins as just 'mistakes' or 'short-comings'. I lived like having no conscience at all, like disobeying and answering back to my parents, cheating in school, thinking very bad thoughts about others and even playing demonic games. I didn't take my sinning seriously because I could confess them to a priest anyway and still be forgiven. I didn't know I was a radically-depraved and God-hating person and very much deserving to directly be struck dead by God and be thrown to Hell and be there forever.

I was so confident of my religion that I thought reading the Bible myself (which for me was a really boring thing to do) would be unnecessary because I was following the church anyway. I even doubted if the Bible really is the Word of God. Most of the time when my Protestant brother told me about what the Bible says about things, I didn't want to listen. I would try to change the subject, or find excuses just to get away with it because I knew he would be telling me things that are not taught by, or are contrary, to my church's teachings and would just make me doubt my beliefs.

What I thought about 'true Christianity' before was that it's like a funny organization made up of brain-washed Protestants who say that they believe Jesus, just to make us Catholics believe that they are really of Christ, and that my brother and older sister were unfortunately brain-washed by them. I and my family felt sorry for them and that we even included them in the list of our final prayers every time after reciting the rosary, that they may be converted back to the Catholic Church.

Almost two years ago, I attended the Sovereign Grace Bible Church camp and some Sunday services after that. There I saw that Christians were really good people, not like what I thought them to be; but I really didn't like the sermons because although the messages were clear, they still didn't make sense to me. There was still a veil on my eyes that disabled me to see and understand the truth, and besides - I still really didn't believe that the Bible truly is the infallible Word of God. I also didn't want to listen to the sermons because it seemed to me that pastor Nene in his sermons was pointing out to me my sinfulness... that I'm going to hell and I badly and desperately need to be saved before it's too late. I never knew he was right at the time.

After that, my doubt on Catholicism increased and I knew that the Catholic Church's answer on those 'attacks' will not be by quoting scriptures but only by saying that it's part of the church traditions...and since I didn't believe the infallibility of the Bible, I was on their side. I still had a heart of stone. I still loved my sins and hated God even though I didn't think of it and admit it to myself.

My aunts knew I attended the camp and Sunday services of SGBC, so they also invited me to a Catholic seminar, and I went. I cannot really remember what the messages in that seminar were, but one thing is for sure, that we were not told about the true gospel, the message that is CLEARLY written in God's word'that Jesus came into the world to suffer and die for ALL our sins if we will just only believe in Him and in Him alone by God's grace. Most of the time, we were just singing, dancing and having fun. We also attended masses and confessed sins to the priest and then went home with the feeling that we would be just fine with our lives as long as we would make or do those rituals frequently. So with that, I went back to my old worldly life as a Catholic, and still doubting that the Bible is truly God's Word.

During school breaks, I always would go to Bohol and spend the break there. Watching DVD's and playing computer games were the things I usually did every time I was there. My brother put some videos of Kent Hovind about Creation Science in the computer, and since I got bored at that time, I watched some of them. I got amazed on how he really disproved the theories of Evolution and the Big-bang theory and proved that the statements of the Bible in Genesis and the other books are true, like: that the age of the earth is just about 6000 years, and not billions of years as what 'science textbooks' say; that dinosaurs were living with men before, and not that they were already extinct when man appeared; that there was really a universal flood; and many more.

God really used those videos to convince me that the Bible really is His Word to man; and finally on September 8, 2007, God saved me! God saved me from my sins!  God saved this wicked, unworthy and sin-indulging punk by my faith and God's grace.

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.  ' Ephesians 2:8-9

Being forgiven for all our sins is only possible because Jesus Christ took full punishment for them on the cross. True or False?   TRUE! The Bible clearly states that, and no one can prove otherwise, so I believe it to be true. My faith declares it as truth.  

Was it man's idea for Jesus to do such an act of love? Yes or No? NO!  God alone came up with the idea. The only thing man did was hang Jesus on the cross to painfully try to destroy Him, thus no mere man can possible take credit for the REAL reason God the Father allowed Jesus to be killed on the cross by mankind. That is a total work of God's grace, and God's grace alone.  

So exactly what 'church' can a person join that died on the cross in their place? Exactly what 'church' took full punishment for my sins and your sins and the sins of every other person, so our punishment would be fully placed on that 'church' so we could escape eternity in hell and have the assurance we will get to spend eternity with God in heaven? You won't find one!  

Furthermore, people (disciples of Jesus Christ) are the 'church' of the Bible, not the name of a denomination or the name of ANY fellowship on the street corner where the 'church' goes to fellowship in the truest sense. Sure, the Bible addresses collectively all the disciples of Christ in a given city as a specific church, but the Holy Spirit never intended people today to be so confused by 'which' is the 'right' church? When people refuse to stay blinded to the fact that individual people are the TRUE church, it wouldn't be so easy for the devil to continue to bring so much confusion to Christianity. 

The true definition of CHURCH is: The called out ones. Webster's Dictionary is as confused as the Catholics are. The 'called out ones' that matters to God are those who are true disciples of Jesus Christ, period. It's impossible to be a true disciple of Jesus Christ until you begin agreeing with the Bible that He paid full penalty for all our sins on the cross, and that we owe Him everything for being that loving and gracious and merciful for it. 

"Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it."  - 1 Cor. 12:27  

In New York City, God has ONE church. Every true follower of Jesus Christ is an individual member of that city-wide church, which is also called the body of Christ in the Bible. Yes, there are all sorts of different names put to the local Christian fellowships that meet throughout the city of New York, but God STILL sees only ONE corporate body of Christian believers when He sees New York. The same can be said for Chicago, Houston, Boston, Moscow, Tokyo, Rio de Janeiro, New Deli, Baghdad, and every other large to small city, community, village, hut, cave around the world where Christian believers live or congregate. Where God's people are, the church IS located. When the people leave a given location, the church leaves also. The empty shell they leave behind is not the church. It's an empty shell. Always was to God; always will be. God didn't die on the cross for the sins of an empty shell. He died for the sins of real, live sinners.

'Not of works, lest anyone should boast.' What is God saying to us in this statement?

The Catholic denomination reeks of 'religious works.' If one can do enough 'proper' Catholic 'religious activities,' one has greater assurance within themselves that maybe, just maybe, they will not have to even go to 'purgatory' (and you will NOT find the whole demonic teaching of 'purgatory' in any accepted Bible translation, in case you aren't aware, by the way). The Bible makes it abundantly clear that we are incapable of being saved from our sins by GRACE plus FAITH plus 'religious works.' If it were possible that we could be saved from our sins by some 'religious works,' as the Bible clearly tells us we can't be, then what a total wasted death it was for Jesus Christ to die on the cross at ALL!  

Here's what we need to pester God over until He makes it crystal clear to us, which He WILL, if we have a humble desire to truly please Him. Here is the ONLY question that really matters when addressing all spiritual matters:  

Did the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross pay FULL payment for the sins of every person who has ever lived, or ever will live, on this planet, or did it not? That will be the ONLY question God the Father will ask every one of us when we stand before Him on the Judgment Day. According to the Bible, those who confess to Him that it DID, they remain forever in heaven with Him. For those who confess otherwise, they better quick grab a fire extinguisher and pray like crazy that it may cool the flames of fire they'll get to experience in hell for all eternity.  (God doesn't mention fire extinguisher in the Bible so don't try to find it, but He sure does mention the eternal hot flames).  

I hope that helps unconfuse someone. It's bound to upset all those who are slaves to 'religion.' Religion is what Satan uses as God's counterfeit to personal relationship. True Christianity is having an intimate, personal relationship with the Creator. The Bible says Jesus Christ is one of the three Persons of the Godhead who created all things. You knew that of course, right?

Well, since I got truly saved (from my sins), my life did a 180-degree turn to Him. The message of the Good News of the Gospel in the Bible made sense!  (One more time: That Good News is that God Himself died on the cross for sinners, and none deserved nor deserve that act of kindness and mercy on God's part, nor can anyone try to become 'good enough' to deserve to have their sins forgiven. God's grace and God's grace alone is the SOLE reason WHY God executed that sacrifice of Himself).  My heart of stone was changed to a heart of flesh. I felt like being very at peace, and my body seemed to be very light because the burden of sin was gone. I then hungered for God. 

Since then, I have been reading the Bible everyday (which was very impossible for me to do before) and I also listen to sermons of Reformed Christian preachers like John Piper every time I visit the internet. I also have the feeling of wanting to share His amazing love to everyone, which is the Good News.

I wanted God to embrace me and never let me go. I am a child of God now and I'm going to be in heaven, NOT because there is something good in me (there absolutely is nothing good in me), but because JESUS CHRIST, the Son of God and the Creator of everything SUFFERED, DIED and then RESURRECTED for me! He had already paid my fine.

To my friends here who are still not in Christ, please, GO TO CHRIST. The happiness that the world offers you, WILL NOT, AND CANNOT satisfy you. He alone can give you that ever-satisfying happiness that you couldn't even imagine. SEARCH HIM with all of your heart and you WILL find Him.

Email: tricky_pa3ck@yahoo.com 

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Remember:  All that we do in this life comes back to our God-given purpose which is to serve and glorify God. The money and assets we accumulate, the fame and power we've attained or seek to attain - all of the things of this nature will one day pass away, but those lives of others we impact for Jesus Christ will last for eternity, and we will be rewarded for the part we helped play by impacting those lives ... for eternity. (Matthew 6:19-21 is our assurance)