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NOTE: This article or series has not been updated recently. As such, it may possibly contain some outdated information, and/or ideas and beliefs which I no longer embrace, or which have changed to some degree.



If there is one thing which we learn from the Books of the Torah -- that is, the five Books of Moses -- it is that our God is a very jealous God who refuses to have any other gods -- real or imagined -- before Him. Over and over again we are informed of His displeasure with idolatry; and as I point out in the series "The Fruits of Disobedience", the Old Testament is full of stories regarding how God punished the Israelites when they fell into deep apostasy and idolatrous worship of the false gods of the heathen nations around them. It just is not wise to provoke our jealous God to wrath. Consider these verses:

"Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;"


"For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God:"


"For the LORD thy God is a consuming fire, even a jealous God."


"Thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me,"


"(For the LORD thy God is a jealous God among you) lest the anger of the LORD thy God be kindled against thee, and destroy thee from off the face of the earth."


Anything which takes our attention away from God is an idol, and should be removed from our lives. This certainly includes statues and figurines which are made in the likeness of Mary and the Roman Catholic saints. Misguided Roman Catholics can try to justify their wayward actions with all of the clever excuses in the world. They can even try to distort the true meaning of God's Word so that it appears to lend support to their idolatrous practices, as some of them already do. But regardless of what they say or do, it still does not change the truth of God's Word, and what it clearly says regarding such things. God's Word is Eternal, and He does not change. Therefore, if God condemned idolatry thousands of years ago, it is still a sin today as well. Consider these verses:

"For I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed."


"LAMED. For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven."


"Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path."


Once we receive the Light of God's Word, there is no longer any need for us to walk in darkness. However, if we willingly choose to remain in darkness after having received the Light, then we must also understand that we condemn ourselves, and that someday we will be judged accordingly. I am reminded of the following verses which are found in the Gospel of John:

"And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God."


"If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin: but now they have no cloke for their sin."


So my question to Roman Catholic idolaters is this: Do you truly believe that the Scriptures are the inspired Word of God? If so, are you willing to accept the Light of their truth regarding what they teach us concerning idolatry and placing any humans -- living or dead -- between us and our Heavenly Father? If you choose to ignore the Bible-based truth which has been revealed to you in this series, then please realize that similar to the stubborn Scribes and Pharisees of old, by foolishly continuing to embrace your misguided Roman Catholic practices and traditions, you will be make the law of God of none effect. Consider these two verses:

". . . Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition."


"Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye."


While I have taken a very strong stand in this series against Mary worship and other idolatrous Roman Catholic traditions and practices, I trust that my readers understand that for my part, I have utmost respect for the woman herself. No one can deny that Mary was indeed greatly blessed by God, because He chose her to be the special vessel who would bear His Son in human flesh. This was a wonderful work of God's Holy Spirit. However, beyond recognizing that Precious Gift, and realizing what a wonderful mother Mary must have been, and how much she must have silently suffered when He was rejected by His own race, and then cruelly tortured and murdered by His enemies, she should not be worshipped or venerated. This is where we Christians should draw the line.

Mary -- as well as the true Saints of generations past -- have already received their rewards in Heaven. As such, they have no need for us to pray to them, or to honor them in any special way. However, we should acknowledge and be thankful for the fact that they yielded their lives to God, and paid the price through persecution and martyrdom, so that we can hear the Gospel and be saved two thousand years later today. Just as Paul looked back at the Saints of the Old Testament with respect and admiration in the famous chapter of Hebrews eleven, we can also quote that same verse and look back with admiration at our First Century brothers and sisters and say with Paul:

"God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect."


All of us -- from the opening chapters of the Bible until our current time -- look forward to something better. The Apostle Paul tells us exactly what that is in the following verses which are also found in that very same chapter:

"For he [Abraham] looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God . . . These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country. And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned. But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city."


For an amazing description of that wonderful Celestial City, please consider reading the final two chapters of the Book of Revelation. In conclusion, please be very careful that you do not become sidetracked by concrete church buildings, deaf and dumb statues, meaningless traditions and rituals, or any other thing which may cause you to take your eyes off of God. These are all temporal things which will someday disappear. Stay focused on Jesus, who is the Author and the Finisher of your faith, your Mediator and Intercessor, the Captain of your Salvation, and the Bishop of your soul, as we see by the following verses:

"Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God."


"For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings."


"For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls."


With these thoughts, I will bring this article to a close. It is my hope that you have found it informative, enlightening, and I pray that it has been a blessing in your life as well. If you have an account with Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr or with any other social network, I would really appreciate if you'd take the time to click or tap on the corresponding link that is found on this page. Thanks so much, and may God bless you abundantly!

For additional information and further study, you may want to refer to the list of reading resources below which were either mentioned in this article, or which contain topics which are related to this article. All of these articles are likewise located on the Bill's Bible Basics web server. To read these articles, simply click or tap on any link you see below.

A Treasure in Earthen Vessels: God's Promise of the Spirit
All Are Give a Chance, But . . .
Biblical Cafeteria, or the Whole Course?
Birth of Jesus and the Star of Bethlehem
Cardinal Ratzinger's Rebellion
Civil Disobedience and Christian Persecution
Christian Witnessing: Winning the Sheep and Waging the Warfare
Halloween and Samhain: No Room for Compromise!
Happy Hanukkah and Merry Christmas?
Have You Read the New Scriptures Yet?
Humility in Our Understanding of God's Word
Is Jesus the Only Begotten Son of God?
Is the Message of Salvation Meant for All Men?
Lies and Deceptions of the Roman Catholic Church
Lying Wonders of the Endtime
Message to the World
Money-Making Bible Hucksters and Mammon
Not Everyone Is a Child of God
Our Pagan World: The Easter Myth Exposed
Pontifex Maximus: Pagan High Priest to Roman Catholic Pope
Rightly Dividing the Word of Truth
Roman Catholicism, Water Baptism and the Trinity
The Family Life of Jesus Christ
The Fruits of Disobedience
The Mystery of Cornelius the Centurion
To Pray or Not to Pray, That is the Question

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