Thank you, Chuck, for having me. What a privilege it is to be here, to open the Word of God and to look back 500 years to how God raised up key men to bring the Word of God back to the people. That was the spark that brought about the Reformation, and we are the beneficiaries of that Reformation 500 years ago. But we have some troubling times in which I want to talk about in this hour. Why are people trying to reverse the Reformation today? the reformation that took place with the reformers 500 years ago. So more than ever, I think we not only need to evangelize those who were trapped in religious deception throughout the world, but we also need to earnestly contend for the faith that was once and for all delivered, signed, sealed, and delivered 2,000 years ago. So anything that comes against the faith that we are to contend for, We need to put on the full armor of God, fight the good fight of faith, and stand for the gospel of Jesus Christ. I believe the greatest attack on the gospel of Jesus Christ today is an attack on its exclusivity. More and more evangelical leaders want to compromise the gospel, make it more inclusive, even to the point of including Roman Catholics as a valid expression of Christianity. So let's begin at the throne of grace, shall we? Our gracious and holy Father, we thank you for an opportunity to look at church history and to see your sovereign hand in raising up people to restore the gospel of Christ to the people. Thank you, Father, for what you have for us this evening, and may more than ever we be found faithful to contend for the faith and to evangelize those who are perishing. So I pray, Father, that you give me the words to say and that we would leave here with a greater compassion for those who are lost in this religious system, but also a greater compassion for anyone that may be perishing apart from God. streams of Christianity. For 2,000 years we've seen two streams operating side by side. You have the Apostolic Church made up of born again Christians who share the same faith as the Apostles. The Lord Jesus Christ said, the gates of hell will not prevail against the Apostolic Church. The Apostolic Church is made up of all those who have been born again in the Spirit of God. But we also have another stream that's been operating right alongside the apostolic church, and that's the apostate church. How do we know it's been going for 2,000 years? Because in 1 John 2, 19, John said they went out from us because they were never part of us. Had they been part of us, they would have remained with us. Another way John could have said that, they went out from us because they were never born of the Spirit of God. Had they been born again, they would have remained with us. But they went into apostasy. They departed from the faith, and so we have this apostate church that's been going for 2,000 years. The Apostle Paul wrote in 1 Timothy chapter 4, verse 1, that in latter times, some will depart from the faith and do what? Follow doctrines of demons. And then he goes on to describe two of the doctrines of demons that people will follow. One of them is forbidding people to marry. Not too long ago we had a couple of nuns attend our church and they were easily identifiable. They had their habits that they were wearing and so after the service I went up and engaged them and I said, what brings you to Believer's Chapel this morning? And this was our assignment to go out and find out what you do here. And so they began asking questions of what we did during the service. And each time they asked a question, I opened my Bible and I showed them why we did certain things. Well, this went on for 15 minutes. Each time they asked a question, I turned the pages of scripture and I showed them why we do it. And so one of the nuns finally said, how is it that you know the Bible so well? Every time we ask you a question, I said, well, I was once a Roman Catholic just like you, and since I didn't know the Bible, I was easily deceived, and I never want to be deceived again, so I studied the Word of God. Well, now the nuns were ready to leave. I said, before you go, can I ask you a question? Is it true that you're not allowed to marry? people will follow doctrines of demons and not be allowed to marry. She said, wow, we're going to have to check with our priest about this. So we gave her a couple of gospel tracts and we said, please, make your priest do what you've asked me to do and show you from the Bible why you follow certain doctrines. And you'll find out that these are doctrines of demons in Christ, that's the nature of deception. If you do not know the truth, then you're easily prone to being deceived. I mean, think about it. Those who have been deceived, what happens when they're We had scripture being proclaimed and then during the medieval church which is known as the dark ages, scripture was hidden from the people. And then we have the reformation church where God raised up certain men to bring the word of God back to the people. Scripture was restored. And now most recently we're in what's called the postmodern church or the modern church and this is where scripture is often ignored. preaching the Word of God. And so we're in this decline again and we're in that epoch of time where the Bible describes it as the church being lukewarm and Christ will spew us out of his mouth. So praise God that you have a church here in the area where the Word of God is faithfully being preached every Sunday from the pulpit. So now when you look at the questions that we will address in this You're going to be somewhat amazed, I think, at how disciplined Rome is. They have a purpose for reversing the Reformation that took place 500 years ago. But the big question that we want to look at is why are evangelicals aiding and abetting the Roman Catholic Church and helping to reverse the Reformation by signing unity accords? And then most importantly, what's the application for you and I? what are Christians to do in contending for the faith. So let's take you back a couple hundred years before the Reformation and show you some of the things that were going on. In 1215, Peter Waldo and the Waldensians were declared heretics and they were persecuted by the Roman Catholic Church. In 1229, the Bible was banned by the Roman Catholic Church at the Council of Toulouse in France. Five years later, There are still some Bibles being circulated, so the Catholic Church ordered the Bibles to be burned at the Council of Tarragona. Can you begin to see that the Catholic Church hates the Word of God? They don't want the Word of God being in the hands of the people. In 1382, John Whitlip translated the Bible into English. In 1384, Whitlip dies, and 31 years later, he was declared a heretic. and his remains were dug up from the grave and burned. This is again the hatred of the Catholic Church toward the word of God. In 1415, John Huss was burned at the stake as a heretic. Why? For proclaiming the glorious gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ and renouncing the false system of the Catholic Church. And then in 1516, Luther, translating the Bible from the Greek into the German language recognized errors in the Latin Vulgate. One of the most critical errors that he discovered was the word metanoia in Greek which means to repent. The Catholic Church had mistranslated that to mean repentance. And that's why Roman Catholics in order to be forgiven they must do penance today. If you went to the Catholic Church, you know that each time you go into the confessional, the Roman Catholic priest, before he would forgive you of your sins, he gave you penance to do, and that normally was repetitious prayers. And you would often go up to the altar room with your buddy and you'd elbow him and ask him how many prayers did you get because that was the determining factor as to who was the greatest sinner during the week. of Martin Luther's discovery of the Roman Catholic Church's errors. In 1516, indulgences were being sold to get people out of purgatory and this was a fundraiser to rebuild St. Peter's Basilica. So this is what took place prior to the Reformation when Martin Luther nailed his 95 thesis on the castle church door in Wittenberg on October 31st, 1517. The selling of God's forgiveness through indulgences was the last straw for Martin Luther. He was outraged that salvation was being sold like any other commodity in the marketplace. Now, have you ever considered why Martin Luther chose October 31st to nail his 95 thesis exposing the errors of Roman Catholic indulgences? Well the very next day the Roman Catholic Church was celebrating All Souls Day. And so Roman Catholics would go into the church and they would venerate 1900 relics and the church granted them plenary indulgences if they would worship or venerate these indulgences along with making a confession for their sins. And so it was purposeful that Martin Luther nailed them the day before so that every Catholic going into the church would read the 95 thesis and hopefully be convicted that what they were doing was against God's word. Well, this got Martin Luther into a lot of trouble. In 1521, the Pope and the Roman Emperor called Martin Luther to the Diet of Berns, and there Luther appeared before Charles V, the Roman Emperor, seven electors, Spanish troops, princes and bishops, and he was asked to recant. I'm sure all of you remember Martin Luther's response. He stated, unless I am convinced by scripture, I do not accept the authority of the popes and councils, for they have contradicted each other. My conscience is captive to the word of God. Here I stand, so help me God. Martin Luther stood alone. The Roman emperor was against him, the Roman pontiff was against him, and he stood firmly on the word of God. He would not recant. Well, Luther was not the cause of the Reformation, and by his own words he would admit that. Listen to some of the quotes. He gave all the credit to God, God and His Word. He said, all I have done is put forth, preach and write the Word of God. And apart from this, I have done nothing. The Word has achieved everything. He was simply a mouthpiece. And that's exactly what we need to do today, isn't it? Unleash the power of the Word of God. That's what's going to bring forth life. Luther goes on to say, by the Word, The earth has been subdued. By the word, the church has been saved. And by the word also, it shall be re-established. Jane and I just got back from walking in the footsteps of Martin Luther and John Calvin and Irwin Zimwingli. And one of the things that we noticed was that the focus of attention in all of the churches that Luther and Calvin and Zimwingli preached in The focus shifted from the altar where the work of redemption in the Catholic Church was carried on to the pulpit where the Word of God was being faithfully preached. And so you see the pulpit there. Martin Luther is actually buried under that pulpit, but this was the transfer of the focus and this is what brought life to those who were hearing and believing the Word of God. You probably know Martin Luther's story that he was kidnapped by friendly people and they did that in order to protect him against the threat of death by the Roman Catholic Church. So they took him to the Warburg Castle and there is where he translated the Bible into German, the Latin Vulgate into German, the common vernacular of the people. So why was the Reformation necessary? 1. To re-establish the Word of God as the supreme authority for faith. 2. To re-establish the Lord Jesus as the only Head of the Church. How dare the Roman Pontiff steal the title, Head of the Church, when it was the Lord Jesus who shed His precious blood to be the Head of His Church. Well, the Pope not only stole the title Head of the Church, he also stole the title Holy Father, a title given to God alone. It's only mentioned once in the New Testament, when the Lord Jesus prayed the high priestly prayer to the one and only Holy Father. And he also stole the title Vicar of Christ. The Lord Jesus said, I must go, and I'll send someone in my place. And he was not referring to the papacy, but to the Holy Spirit. The Reformation was necessary to return the Bible to the people in their own language and to recover the gospel of Jesus Christ and the biblical doctrine of justification. I don't know how many of you are aware of how corrupt the doctrine of justification is in the Roman Catholic Church. John Calvin was another one the Lord raised up. He was after Martin Luther, lived from 1509 to 1564. Typo there, his institutes of the Christian religion were completed at the young age of 26 in the year 1536. He preached the sovereignty of God, man's total depravity, unconditional election, irresistible grace, and the perseverance of the saints. So when you look at Reformation teaching, we're all familiar salvation. In other words, everything we need to know about our salvation is fully contained in Scripture. It doesn't point us to any other authority, to any other book, to any other person. Scripture is the supreme authority for truth. In Sola Gratia, that is the means of salvation. We know that God saves by grace alone without merit. I think Paul made this clear in so many places. It is not of works, otherwise grace is not grace. And don't you know that the father of lies, the devil, knows that the only means God saves is by grace? So what does he do? He creates all of these religions that proclaim a works righteousness salvation. Because if you add one word to God's grace, you've nullified the only means by which God will save you. And so it's gotta be by grace alone. Sola Fide was the instrument of salvation. God saves through faith apart from works. And I think it's fascinating to know that the instrument of salvation is faith. The instrument of condemnation is also faith. Have you ever considered that? Let me take you back to the garden. Adam and Eve had a perfect relationship with God because the instrument of their faith and an object as God alone. But then Satan comes along and twists and distorts the word of God and says, is God really set? And so what do Adam and Eve do? They shift their instrument of faith from the object of God to the object of Satan. And so the instrument is still the same. The only thing that's changed is the object. So the instrument, faith, brought condemnation to Adam and Eve. The only way anyone can be justified today is to take that same instrument, which is faith, and shift it from Satan back to God. That is how people are justified today by faith alone. So the five solas of the Reformation were a response to the Vatican's false teaching on justification. The Catholic Church was teaching that you are saved by Grace plus merit. Faith plus works. Scripture plus tradition. Christ plus other mediators. And they gave glory to God plus glory to other mediators, such as Mary and the saints. So oftentimes you see the Catholic churches referred to as the plus religion. And so often we have people say, well, I know Roman Catholics who are saved. I said, well, how do you know that? I thought only God knew the heart. Well, because they have faith in Jesus. Because realize it's faith plus works. Jesus plus other mediators. Grace plus merit. And so what the reformers did is they took away all the pluses. You were saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, according to scripture alone, all through the glory of God alone. Okay, the corruption of the Roman Catholic Church's position on justification. The Catholic Church thought justification is temporal, and it's a process whereby righteousness is infused, gets lost by sin, and regained through works and sacraments. I think these two arrows really depict Roman Catholic justification. Rome taught that initial justification is by water baptism, and final justification is for only those who are good. A total corruption of the biblical doctrine of justification. God's Word says that justification is a change in our legal status before God. It does not change our character. is because the holy judge in heaven brings the gavel down and at that very moment, that very instant, he declares the repentant sinner justified because of faith in Jesus Christ. It is a legal change in status, nothing about our character. It's declared over once, only once. I often ask Catholics, can you show me where anybody is de-justified in the scripture? Where they have to be re-justified. And yet that's what the Catholic Church teaches. When you commit a mortal sin, you are now de-justified and condemned, and you must be re-justified by confessing to a priest and doing enough merit to gain heaven. Biblical justification is eternal. It is never lost by sin. I love Hebrews 10-14. By one offering, he is made perfect for how long? forever those who are being sanctified. So, since sin is what caused spiritual death and condemnation, have you ever been asked, why don't born again Christians die again spiritually when they sin? It's a good question, we need to be ready to answer it. I think you find the answer in a couple places. Romans 4, 8, blessed is the man whose sin God does not take into account. 2 Corinthians 5.18, God is reconciling the world to himself through Jesus Christ, not counting men's sins against them. Why doesn't God count our sins against us once we've been born again? Because they were all placed on Christ. All of our past sins, all of our future sins, placed on Christ. He took all of our guilt, all of Justification is instantaneous, not as Rome teaches. It is a process. It is imputed righteousness, which means it is immediately credited to the repentant sinner's account. It is not infused. that righteousness is infused every time you receive a sacrament, every time you do more good works. No, it's instantaneous and it's imputed. It is by grace alone through faith alone and has nothing to do with works or sacraments. It is fixed. It does not increase or decrease. What a total corruption of the doctrine of justification the Roman Catholic Church had then and still has today. You see, nothing has changed. And if you know Roman Catholicism and its theology, once a doctrine has been elevated to an infallible dogma, it can never change. It is in eternal cement. Because if one infallible dogma were ever to change, the whole Roman Catholic religion would implode. And so they must hold to the same dogmas that they proclaimed 500 years ago. Well, here's a little humor to relieve the tension going on here between Roman Catholicism and Biblical Christianity. Luther said, no, the door was fine. I was just fixing your theology. Well, we all know that in 1545, the Roman Catholic Church tried to reverse the Reformation. They had what was called the Counter-Reformation of the Council of Trent. And we can say by the authority of God's word that in 1545 the Roman Catholic Church deliberately and dogmatically departed from the gospel of Jesus Christ. Her apostasy is documented by over 100 anathemas, all infallible, all pronounced by infallible bishops, and they condemn you and I because we do not submit to the authority of Rome and her corrupt doctrine of justification. I don't know if you are aware of this, you and I are condemned over 100 times by the Roman Catholic religion. And for the life of me, I cannot understand why our evangelical leaders are signing unity accords when that church has condemned us. By the way, the Bible has condemned the Roman Catholic priest. Because in Galatians 1, 6-9, Paul said, if anyone, even if I were an angel from heaven, would come back and preach to you another gospel, let them be anathema. So by the authority of God's word, we can say the Roman Catholic clergy is under the condemnation of God's holy word. The word of God gives us only two anathemas. The other one is found in 1 Corinthians 16 verse 23. Those who do not love God are anathema. So Paul is elevating the purity of the gospel same level as loving God. If you do not love God and you pervert the gospel, you are doubly condemned. So we cannot have unity with the Catholic Church. But the Catholic Church tried to reverse the Reformation right after Luther and the Reformers began proclaiming the Word of God. Luther responded, Popish writers pretend that they have always taught what we now teach concerning faith and good works. and that they are unjustly accused of the contrary, thus the wolf puts on the sheepskin till he gains admission into the fold. It grieves me more than ever when I see evangelical churches inviting Roman Catholic priests to come in and preach the Sunday morning message. I don't know if it's happening in Oregon, but in the Bible belts. In Dallas, Texas, I was told of a Roman Catholic priest that was invited into First Baptist And so I went because I wanted to hear what this priest would say to 1,400 Southern Baptists. He preached out of John 17 that we would all be one. And then he said something that was so startling and so upsetting, I thought everybody in the church would get up and walk out in anger. He said, just as the Jews were surprised when God extended salvation to the Gentiles, We Roman Catholics are now pleased he's extending salvation to all of you Baptists. So at the end of this message, the pastor of the church gets up and says, the priest will be welcoming anybody that would like to greet him. And so a line formed and I waited my turn. And when it was my turn to talk to the priest, I said, very interesting message that you're calling for unity with Southern Baptists today. Why didn't you mention all the anathemas that condemn everybody in this church? And knowing that everybody was listening, he said, we just don't talk about those anymore. And knowing that everybody was listening, I said at the top of my voice, why didn't you tell everybody that they're condemned by the infallible anathemas of the Council of Trent? I didn't want them to be deceived. This wolf in sheep's clothing invited them to an evangelical church. By the way, that pastor was let go within the next year. The Vatican's ongoing strategy to reverse the Reformation is so clear. It really all began in 1965 at Vatican Council II. They issued a decree on ecumenism, and then you may be familiar with evangelicals and Catholics together. They first developed one in 1994 and dared to say that Catholics and Evangelicals share a common faith in the Gospel. There were very few dissenting voices among Evangelicals, but praise God there were some. John MacArthur and R.C. Sproul and D. James Kennedy, a few of them, they stood up against us. And then you had Catholics and Lutherans signing a joint declaration on justification In 1999, by the way, it wasn't the Catholics that changed, it was the Lutherans. They're the ones that compromised. And then we have the Manhattan Declaration, the most recent unity accord signed in 2009. And each time a new unity accord comes down the pike, more and more evangelicals are jumping on the ecumenical bandwagon. Now over 600,000 evangelicals have signed the Manhattan Declaration. Part of the problem is because some of our most influential and highly visible evangelical leaders have signed it, including Al Mohler, the president of Southern Seminary, including Mark Bailey, the president of Dallas Theological Seminary. My wife and I had a meeting with Mark Bailey, and we asked him, we pleaded with him to take his name off because of your influence, because people are looking to you And if you signed it, then they think it must be OK because you're the president of Dallas Theological Seminary. You know what his response was? Well, Al Mohler signed it. My wife Jane said, you just proved Mike's point. People sign it because other influential people have signed it. And so very few people are reading the document. They're just signing it because their leaders have signed it. asking people to take their name off, and we asked Mark Bailey to take it off, and he promised to do that, but as we speak, he has not. The president of the Manhattan Declaration is a graduate of Wheaton College, once a bastion for conservative Christianity, and when people were writing to him asking to have their names removed, this was their response. This was his response. There are a number of ignorant, angry rabble-rousers who regularly lie about us to serve their small, twisted propagandas. Some are filled with hate for those who don't comply with their version of Christianity. These fools harm and hinder the gospel. Let me ask my brothers and sisters a question. Who is hindering the gospel? Catholics, Orthodox, and Evangelicals share a common faith? Or is it those who would say that, no, they're apostate. We need to get the gospel to them because they have a different gospel. They have a different Jesus. Who's the ones that's hindering it? The signers. And yet, I don't know. It's just heartbreaking to see. Why are so many Evangelicals being duped today? Why don't they know church history? Why aren't they looking at these accords and realizing that there's no way that we share a common gospel and a common faith with Catholics and Orthodox? Well, the papacy is rebuilding the religious tale of Babel, and they've been doing it for 500 years through the Jesuits. Often they're called the Secret Service of the Pope. Their responsibility 500 years ago was to eliminate any opposition to the Roman Catholic Church, and many of those in opposition to the Catholic Church were put to death. They cannot put people to death as often as they did back then today, so they've got a new strategy that's called seduction. So what are the catalysts for ecumenical unity? Well, the clarity and authority of God's word is being compromised. We're living in a postmodern state. The church is affected by it. Many people are saying, your truth is just as valid as mine, that there is no absolute authority. And so when that kind of postmodernism creeps into the church, then people don't know what truth is. Romans 1, biblical commands to expose false teachers are being ignored. Pastors today won't be politically correct, they're afraid to name names. And yet, once again, if they would just read the Bible and emulate the apostles, they would see that the apostles named names of false teachers and apostates. I mean, you look at 2 Timothy, there's four chapters and each chapter, two false teachers are named, two apostates are named. It's because he was concerned about the eternal destiny of the people that were under the influence of these false teachers. He warned them. He exposed them. He named them by name. We're not doing that today. Vivable ignorance and a lack of discernment are producing fertile ground for discernment. You know, if the Word of God is not being faithfully preached from the pulpit, then people in the pew are not getting a steady diet of truth. And if you're not getting truth, how do you know what's false? until they are contrived with truth. For the time has come when they will not endure sound doctrine, wanting to have their ears tickled. They will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires and will turn away their ears from the truth and turn aside to mess. But more than ever, the time is now here. Or don't we see that in the church in America today? Well, there are two kinds of unity that the Bible talks about. There is a biblical unity, which demonstrates a common faith in the gospel as a sovereign work of the Holy Spirit. We see in 1 Corinthians 12, 13 that we are all baptized by one spirit into one body. because of a common faith in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. In Ephesians 1, 13 and 14, when we heard the message of truth, having believed, we were sealed with the Holy Spirit who is a deposit guaranteeing our eternal inheritance. That is biblical unity, a work of God. But we also have a false unity which is a work of Satan, and he uses man's prideful ambitions and biblical ignorance to unite the world. rebuilding the religious tower of Babel right before our eyes. And this can be both encouraging as well as discouraging. I mean, it's discouraging when we see the great apostasy continuing to grow, people falling away from the true faith to an apostate form of Christianity, but it's also encouraging because the Lord Jesus said, these things must take place before I come to my church. And so we're living in that time where we're seeing biblical prophecy fulfilled. And it's tragic to see, but it's also encouraging to know that the Lord Jesus could come at any moment. Well, if you know anything about the way I teach, I love to do point counterpoint. I love to lay out the truth and then show you what opposes the truth. It really makes the truth shine even brighter. So I like to contrast God's church with the apostate church. In God's church, Members are called by their father, saved by the Lord Jesus Christ, and sealed by the Holy Spirit. Members of the apostate church are blinded by their father the devil, deceived by a false Christ, and blinded by another spirit. Members of the apostate church, by their works they deny knowing God. You will know them by their fruit. Members of God's church contend earnestly for the apostles' faith. Members of the apostate church seek common faith among all religions. And don't we see Pope Francis doing that today, building bridges into all the religions of the world. God's church is uncompromising, believing there is only one way to God. Jesus said in John 14, 6, I am the way for those who are lost. I am the truth for those who are deceived. I am the light for those who are dead in their sin. He is the only way to the Father. But in the apostate church, it is tolerant of all faiths, believing there are many ways to God. I think Mother Teresa was a prime example of this. It really grieves me when I hear evangelical pastors lifting her up as a godly Christian woman. When she was ministering to the poor in Calcutta, she said, if you're a Muslim, be a better Muslim. If you're a Hindu, be a better Hindu. If you're a Buddhist, be a better Buddhist. If she only knew the gospel of Jesus Christ and its exclusivity, she could have taken care of their physical needs and focused on their spiritual needs. But she didn't know the gospel. Members of God's church are sealed by the Spirit of God to do His will. Members of the apostate church are ensnared by the devil's spirit to do His will. of the gospel and we should pray for them that God would grant them repentance, leading to a knowledge of the truth so they can escape the snare of the devil that holds them captive to do His will. Every member of God's church is alive in Christ. Members of the apostate church are spiritually dead in sin. Members of God's church abide in God's word to be sanctified by the truth. Members of the Apostate Church abide in Satan's world to oppose the truth. There's a few more contrasts I'd like to share with you. God's Church is the Bride of Christ, united in love for the Savior. But the Apostate Church is the harlot of Antichrist, united in hatred for the saints. God's Church will worship and serve the true Christ when He appears in glory. The apostate church will worship and serve a false Christ when He appears in the seat. God's church will rejoice in God's presence eternally. The apostate church will weep in an eternal fire of torment. What a contrast between the two churches that we see today. The apostate church is gathering more and more members, and I believe more than ever that the catalyst for the building of a global church that will worship the Antichrist is the Roman Catholic Church. Think for a moment. They have a leader who people look to as being infallible. Can you see one day he points to a political leader and said, this is the Christ, and everybody will believe him because he's quote unquote infallible? The Bible says there will be a false prophet that will work with a antichrist to deceive the world. And we're living in those times today. You look at Rome's strategy for unity, Proclaim all roads, leaves of Rome, and urge separated brethren to come home for the fullness of salvation." Look at all the different religions coming at the beck and call of the Pope. Did you know that we used to be called heretics by the Catholic Church? But remember, they're not killing us anymore, they're seducing us. How do you seduce someone? Not by calling them names. Let's call them separated brethren. And let's tell them they don't have the fullness of salvation until they come back to the Holy Mother of the Church. Do you know what they tell us we're lacking? Oftentimes I go into Roman Catholic priests' offices and I witness to them. And each time they'll say, Mike, you need to come back with the fullness of salvation. I say, what am I lacking? come back and receive the Eucharist, the physical body and blood of Christ, you will not have the fullness of salvation. And so I tell the priest, according to your catechism, you don't have the fullness of salvation that I have. Because in Christ, I have the complete forgiveness of all of my sins. You don't. In Christ, I have the assurance of salvation. backed up by the power and promises of Almighty God, and according to your catechism, you don't. No, you need to leave your religion, exchange it for a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ, and only then will you have the fullness of salvation. But be prepared for that. That is their calling card, the Eucharist. And they're using postmodernism to make doctrines ambiguous, vague, and acceptable to all. If there's any night when you can't sleep, pick up one of the Unity Accords and start reading through it. You will see this great wordsmithing going on. The doctrines are so vague and ambiguous that you can have unity when there's really no unity at all. Beguile and confuse people with Catholic mystics and contemplative spirituality. Do you know the number one person quoted by Protestant pastors today? Henry Nowell, a Catholic mystic. He said, it is my ambition to help each person find his or her own way to God. This is the one that's quoted more often than anyone else. But what's wrong with strategy for unity? Seduce highly visible evangelicals to promote Catholicism as a valid expression of Christianity, and it grieves me to see this strategy is working. Rick Warren, often called the Protestant Pope, he's called America's pastor, he's called Pope Francis our Pope, and he's pushed the Jesuit agenda for religious unity. You may remember last year, maybe 18 months ago, Rick Warren and Russell Moore of the Southern Baptist Convention were invited to the Vatican for ecumenical dialogue. The Roman Catholic Church knew that they were safe inviting both men, but they were not proclaiming the exclusivity of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. And so, they're aiding and abetting the Roman Catholic Church and reversing the Reformation. Rick Warren has made his purpose-driven life available to Roman Catholics. We've got evangelical leaders praising popes today. He said Pope Francis is a very Bible-centered and Jesus Christ-centered man. He's really centered on the Gospel, the pure Gospel. He is a friend of the Evangelicals. Now I know Louis Blau's organization is located here in Portland. And it grieves me because I did conferences with him 15 years ago. He would take our Roman Catholic tracts in Spanish down to Latin America, South America, distributed them among pastors down there because he understood Roman Catholics needed to be saved. He knew they had a different gospel. But now his buddy has been elected Pope from Argentina and all of a sudden he's changed his tune. He's a very Bible-centered and Jesus Christ-centered man. Do you know the very first thing he did when he came out of the balcony to receive adulation from over a million people, he asked everybody to pray to Mary for the protection of Rome. Is this being a Jesus Christ-centered man? Praying to the dead? Praying to another mediator? He's really centered on the gospel? Which gospel? The one that condemns him for distorting and perverting it? Wow. It's really heartbreaking. But this is why the average evangelical today doesn't know if a Roman Catholic Church represents a huge mission field, or that there are brothers and sisters in Christ and together we need to go out and evangelize the world. There's a lot of confusion because of these leaders. But how quickly we forget, 500 years ago, Protestants called the Pope anti-Christ as they were tortured and killed for refusing to bow their knee to the Eucharist. Now many are calling him Holy Father. This survey conducted by Life by Research just breaks my heart. It's quite stunning. They surveyed 1,000 senior pastors, and it revealed that almost two-thirds of evangelical pastors say Pope Francis is their brother in Christ. More than one-third say they value the Pope's view on theology. and that he has improved their view of the Catholic Church. This is alarming. Can you see more than ever why we need to contend for the faith? You know, we have six different gospel tracts, but I want to tell you the reason we published Rome versus the Bible is for this reason. We not only need to evangelize Roman Catholics, we need to instruct evangelicals why they need to be evangelized. And so in this gospel tract we point out 13 major differences between the Roman Catholic Catechism and the Word of God. And we give this to evangelicals wherever we go so that they will know that the Catholic Church represents a huge mission field. Well there is a warning for all the compromisers that we see today. Those who promote unity with false teachers without challenging their errors leave their own convictions and beliefs open to question. Those who praise false teachers are giving credibility to their heresies. We will all be held accountable for the souls who are misled by our unwillingness to contend for the faith. And that's a warning for all of us. I've coined a phrase that I hope you take to heart. We can never, ever let a lie of the devil go unabated. If we're in a conversation with people in our circle of influence, and they spew a lie of the devil, you have every right to stand up for the glory and honor of our great God and Savior. What's at stake if we just let the lies go unabated? Well, the glory of our God and Savior, but also the sanctity of His church, the purity of His gospel, and ultimately the eternal destiny of those who are being deceived. We must learn from the apostles. Peter didn't seek to join hands with false teachers who had forsaken the right way and gone astray. He didn't go after them and say, hey, we've got a few differences, but let's have ecumenical unity. Paul didn't seek unity with the Judaizers who believed in Jesus. The Judaizers believed in the death and resurrection of Christ. But they said, if you're a Gentile, you not only need to believe, but you need to be Why should we divide over a minor point? No, we condemn them. John didn't call for unity with those who went out from the church. He didn't run after them and say, come on back, we need to have unity. He let them go. Well, there's a popular bumper sticker, if you know Jesus, you will know peace. And when there is no Jesus, there is no peace. The Holy Spirit inspired me to come up with a corollary. When you know doctrine, you're going to know division. And when there is no doctrines, there is no division. And that's what the ecumenical movement is trying to do today. That's what promise keepers was all about. Let's tear down doctrinal walls that divide us. Let's come together and sing kumbaya. No, divine division and truth is infinitely better than satanic unity and error. Our gospel is made up of doctrine. Christology is made up of doctrine. We cannot suppress doctrine for the sake of unity. Well, was the Reformation a mistake? Tragically, there are some evangelicals that believe it was. And this one, this quote really grieves me because it's a graduate of Dallas Theological Seminary. He graduated about the same time I did. He's now pastor at one of the largest churches in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. When John Paul II died in 2005, in his church magazine, he made this quote that was very upsetting. The rift that occurred between Catholics and Protestants 500 years ago is theological pettiness. In other words, this pastor is saying that the reformers who were burned at the stake and brutally tortured did it because of theological pettiness. He said, we'll have plenty of time in heaven to figure out who was right about Purgatory and Mary, Pope John Paul was a man of God whom all Christians should admire and emulate. Pastor Andy McQuitty of Irving Bible Church. Shortly after this, they invited a Roman Catholic apologist down to instruct their congregation on Roman Catholic theology. Once again, my wife and I heard about it, we went, we listened. We asked if we could come back the next week and say why we should not have unity with a Roman Catholic church. They said, no, we know about Mike Jenner's ministry and we don't want him in our group either. The lines have been drawn. Consider Hugh Latimer's last words to his companion as they were being barred at the stake. Be of good comfort, Master Ridley, and play the man. We shall this day light such a candle by God's grace as I trust flickering today, we need to keep it burning. That's why this is so important, this conference this weekend. Reformation fire, it's got to burn in our hearts to contend for the faith, to witness to those who are being deceived. I hope by now you can see that we can never have unity with Catholics. We are divided on so many things, but if you leave here not sure about what we're divided on, let me just reiterate, we're divided on the essentials of the gospel. The Roman Catholic gospel is diametrically opposed to the gospel of Jesus Christ. I lived it for over 35 years. I was lost and didn't even know it. I thought I was in the one true church. I looked at all of you guys as the Johnny-come-latelys. to be born as a Catholic. We're divided on how one is born again. For the Word of God says it's the sovereign work of the Holy Spirit. The Catholic Church says it's through the efficacious water of baptism. We're divided on how one is justified. You've seen how the Catholic Church corrupts the doctrine of justification. We're divided on who mediates between God and man. The Bible says there is only one God's perfect man and man's perfect God, the Lord Jesus Christ. Rome said, no, no, there's other mediators. You can go through Mary, who is the mediatrix of all grace, or you can go through the priesthood who continues to offer sin offering every day so that the work of redemption is carried out on an altar, even though Jesus finished the work on a cross. We are divided on the efficacy, the sufficiency, and the necessity of Jesus Christ. There can never, ever be unity with the apostate Church of Rome. We need to instruct our Evangelical and Protestant friends When the Lord Jesus spoke of two paths to eternity, my uncle was a priest for over 60 years. He spent 30 years in the jungles of Burma converting the Burmese from Hinduism to Catholicism. He was a big New York Yankee fan. He'd occasionally come to Texas and we'd take him out to see the Texas Rangers beat up on the New York Yankees. That left him in a pretty bad mood. But it always left us with an opportunity to open the And I remember one night, he was so frustrated, he could not answer the word of God. He threw up his hands and he said, Mike, how can one billion Catholics be wrong? I said, can I let Jesus answer that for you? And I turn to Matthew 7, where Jesus speaks of the narrow road that leads to life and very few find it, and the broad road that leads to destruction, and many are on it. So I shared with him how Jesus said you must strive to enter the narrow gate. Wait a minute, aren't we saved by grace? What did Jesus mean we must strive to enter the narrow gate? Well in the context, many false teachers are standing in front of the narrow gate saying it's not here, it's the broad way. So if you really want to know the true way, what do you have to do? Well, when we look at the two paths to eternity, once again, point-counterpoint, we can see what a major difference there is. One is guided by pure truth, the other by truth mixed with error. One is directed by the word of God, the other by the traditions of men. One follows Jesus, the true shepherd, the other follows wolves in sheep's clothing. In fact, do you want to be on the narrow road? The only one you can follow is Jesus. If you want to be on the broad road, follow anyone else other than Jesus. One is by grace and totally undeserved. The other is by trying to merit God's favor. You know, the way I explain it to Roman Catholics, the gate is so narrow that the only thing you can bring through the gate is your sin. You've got to leave everything else behind. You must come to the cross with empty hands. I mean, I gotta leave everything behind, all my good works, my indulgences, my sacraments, my law keeping. Yeah, you gotta leave it all behind. Put all of your trust, all of your hope, all of your confidence in one mediator between God and man, the Lord Jesus Christ. One is entered because of divine accomplishment, the other through human achievement. I know most of you know that there are only two faiths in the world. One is trusting divine accomplishment, that Jesus Christ is our all-sufficient Savior. The other is saying, no thanks, I'm going with human achievement. If you want to go that route, you've got a thousand different religions that you can join if you want to go the works of righteousness path. But divine accomplishment is the only one that guarantees heaven. The other one will assure you of an eternity in hell. One is traveled by the humble and merciful who know they deserve hell. The other is traveled by the proud and self-righteous who think they deserve heaven. One group will arrive expectantly because of God's promises. The other will be surprised when they arrive at their final destination. And that's why I'm an evangelist. That's why I have dedicated and devoted my life I was once so deceived, but I didn't know it. And the only way people who are deceived will know they're deceived is if you and I, who have been entrusted with the truth, will confront that in love. That's their only hope. So more than ever, I hope you all leave here with a greater compassion, not only for Roman Catholics, but anyone who is deceived by a works righteousness salvation. In our Red Gospel tract, I put these two paths to eternity, and this is so profound because every Roman Catholic I've shared this with says, yes, this is the path I'm on, the Roman Catholic path to eternity. And they believe that they're born destined to hell as we are, but water baptism puts them on the road to hell. When they commit these little venial sins, they lose some of their right standing before God, but when they commit a mortal sin, get back on the road to heaven. But if they deny the gospel, reject the gospel, or if they never hear the gospel, they will stand before the Lord Jesus at the great white throne, and he will say, depart from me, I never knew you, and will cast them to the eternal lake of fire. But then there's the biblical path. Boy, this picture really shows just how far off Roman Catholics are. It's not water baptism, but it's faith in Christ, That very moment of justification begins the process of sanctification through the power of the Holy Spirit, putting to death the evil deeds of the flesh and conforming our life to the life of Christ. There's that great promise in Romans 8.1, there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. So at the end of a believer's life, we'll stand before the Lord Jesus at the Vena seat and hopefully there hear the words Well done, my good and faithful servant." Pope Francis has attributed the work of Christ to Satan. This is serious. This is his quote, "...the vision among evangelicals and Catholics is the work of the Father of Lies, who does everything possible to keep us in the Bible." See, if the Pope could only read his Bible and study the Lord Jesus with a sword. He came to divide unbelievers from believers, mother against daughter, father against son. And yet the Pope says, no, it wasn't Christ that did that, it's the devil that's keeping evangelicals and Catholics divided. I'm sure all of you are familiar with 2 Corinthians 6, 14-16. By the authority of God's word, we cannot be unequally yoked with unbelievers. Or what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? Did you ever stop to consider that light and darkness cannot exist together mutually at the same time? Because light will always dispel darkness. I mean, that's how vivid this picture is. What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? What agreement has the temple of God with idols? But we are the temple of the living God. And I share this with you because, once again, I have to ask, how can our evangelical leaders sign unity of Lords with unbelievers? It just goes directly against Scripture. We must contend for the purity and the exclusivity of the Gospel against all opposition. We may one day have to stand as Martin Luther did, because ecumenism is an outright rejection of our Lord's desire for His Church to be sanctified by the truth. What's the application for this message? We need to remain sanctified by the truth. We can never ever compromise God's word. We need to enlist in the Lord's army to fight the good fight of faith. And I know I'm preaching to the choir here. You guys are here because this is what you believe. But there are so many people out there that are AWOL. We need to encourage them to report back to the commander in chief. Put on the armor of God. Fight the good fight of faith. We need to stand firm and contend earnestly for the faith, not passively, not whenever we feel like it. There is a battle going on between God's truth and the devil's lies. And what's at stake? The eternal destiny of precious souls. Never let a lie of the devil go unabated. Exhort and recruit with all authority. That's what Paul wrote to Titus in 2.15. By the authority of God's word, we can tell people You are to see what you believe is wrong. Trust God. Believe His word. Lastly, we need to evangelize victims of deception. Amen? Amen. Well, don't forget our resources. We've come to equip you and encourage you. We've got wonderful gospel tracts devoted to reaching people lost in religion. need to recognize that the only way a Roman Catholic can be saved is to do the very same thing the Apostle Paul did. If anyone had reason to trust in his religion, to boast in his religious activities, it was the Apostle Paul. Read Philippians 3. He lists his resume, but in the end, what did he consider? All dumb rubbish for knowing Christ Jesus. Paul exchanged his religion or relationship with a savior. That's what every Roman Catholic must do. You cannot get to heaven on your religion. You must trust Christ alone. Amen? Amen. Thank you for the privilege of sharing with you this evening. And all good people said, amen. Amen. What a joy to have a reformer in our midst. And there's no one I'd rather have We have a great mission field out there, and we have the Word of God, the sword of the Spirit. It is dunamis, it is almighty, it is powerful to save. And all those who the Lord is calling himself, they'll come out of Rome, they'll come out of death, but we need to be bold. faithful, beautiful ministry. I encourage you to visit their table. There's love on them. Get to know them this week.