¶1This is needgod.net responding to Noah from I believe Jesus and whatnot. >> Noah from Jesus and whatnot asked me, why didn't I celebrate Joe Schmidt's conversion from being an agnostic to being a Catholic? Pretty much the entire internet was very excited about his conversion except for needgod.net who says that people need to be discerning about celebrating his conversion because he's going into bad theology in the Catholic Church. I was upset about this comment. >> What I had simply said is that we should be discerning about this because if he believes official Catholic teaching, he won't be putting his trust in Christ alone to save but as the Catholic Catechism says in 2068, he'll be putting his trust in also his obedience to commandments to save him.
¶2And that's not a gospel that can save according to the book of Galatians. Just because someone doesn't deny the existence of God anymore, doesn't mean he's right with God. And in fact, within days of his supposed conversion to Catholicism, he's gone on to big podcasts and said, "God has disproven Protestantism." Now, Protestantism is simply the belief that we go to heaven through faith alone in Christ alone and that the Bible is our standard we check everything with. And he's saying that's all false. What has he gone to then?
¶3He hasn't gone to biblical Christianity. And even a few days after that, he's now said that the easiest and best way to get to Jesus is through Mary. >> And a relationship with our blessed mother is the safest, easiest, shortest, and most perfect way of approaching Jesus. So, what >> show has gone to is not biblical Christianity. And so, I think we should keep him in our prayers but I think Christians, we need to be discerning.
¶4Truth is important and just because someone names the name of Christ, doesn't mean that they're in the faith. Let's go and check with people what they're trusting in to get to heaven and point them not to Mary but to Jesus Christ. >> All righty. What do you think about that, Ed? >> Oh Oh gosh.
¶5I'm like man, I'm somewhere in the between. I'm like yeah, those Catholics, that's crazy doctrine, but I'm also like >> Yeah, the marriage stuff's wild. >> What's that? >> The marriage stuff's wild, for sure. >> Yeah, yeah, even saying like they say to if you we we can pause that maybe on the screen, but we don't have to.
¶6Um to be saved, it's like faith, baptism, and obedience of the commandments. And then he gets into Galatians. >> I'm trying to find it, yeah. >> Um and so what he's getting at is in Galatians Paul's addressing a church from Galatia. Um it doesn't matter, Daryl.
¶7It's fine. I can click off of it. So it's just us on screen. It's earlier in the video, but it doesn't matter. All you need to know is that it's I have it on the screen anyways.
¶8It's just those three, the uh faith, baptism, and obedience to commandments. He mentions that contradicts Galatians. In Galatians, just a quick little Bible study for you guys here. Paul is writing to a church in Galatia, that's just a region of modern-day Turkey, and these guys were tricked by what Paul calls Judaizers to think that in order to be saved, you had to have faith in Jesus and keep the Old Testament law, keep the Torah. And so Paul's writing, and he's like, how like the first chapter kind of goes off on them.
¶9He's like, I'm astonished that you so quickly desert him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel. Um the different gospel being that to be saved, you have to obey Jesus and keep the Torah. You skip to the next uh chapter, and he says, we ourselves are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners. Yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law through faith in Christ Jesus. So we have also believed in Christ Jesus in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law because by works of the law no one will be justified.
¶10Pretty harsh language. No one's going to be justified by the works of the law. The next chapter, know then that it is those of faith who are sons of Abraham. And the scripture foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham saying, "In you shall all the nations be blessed." So, those who are of faith are blessed with Abraham, the man of faith. So, in context, all of that's about the Torah.
¶11So, the people here would be the problem with actually be the Hebrew Israelites or uh um Torah observant Christians. Plug our podcast with uh the I forget uh the doctor's name. I my apologies, but we had a uh professor or doctor on who his whole ministry Is his name Todd or is that Dr. Todd Phillips I'm thinking of? Um >> Oh, yeah.
¶12>> [laughter] >> The guy who loves Christianity. So many doctors are around this podcast. Um >> Drew. >> So, all in context, right? The people that that Paul's addressing are those who say you have to keep the Torah while we're in Christ.
¶13That is true. So, modern day uh Torah observant Christians could be the Judaizers who Paul might be saying are falling for a different gospel. Very scary. Now, the question would be are the commandments that the Catholic Church says in their catechism you have to follow the same on the same level as the law, the Torah? Because I would wonder if you ask a Catholic or ask a priest or a bishop what those commandments are, they're definitely not saying the Torah.
¶14They are probably saying the commandments of Christ. You know, love your neighbors, love your enemies, forgive, all the stuff Jesus taught. And that might be a fair statement that if you do not obey Christ, you are not saved because Jesus says, "Why do you say you love me and don't do what I say?" So, obedience is your you you showing God you love him. Why do you say you love me, but you don't do what I say? Mhm.
¶15And so, that's a big deal, right? Yeah, so like you do need to keep the commandments. Now, the problem with the Catholic Church is they go farther than the scriptures. They have things called mortal sins that they outline. So, if you commit a mortal sin, you're no longer saved.
¶16So, they do put too much emphasis the Catholics put way too much emphasis on the human side of things where if you miss a Sunday with like you know you're going to miss a Sunday, you want to miss a Sunday, you know you're supposed to go or or mass I should say or when you take the Eucharist cuz that's why they have so many masses throughout the week so you can have any of your opportunity to do that. >> Well, they do that because Jesus is our daily bread, but yeah. >> Sure, but also so you can at least take mass or the the Eucharist once a week. But, if you commit a mortal sin, right? You could theoretically commit a mortal sin Tuesday, go to confession Wednesday, and like be damned and then saved.
¶17And then Thursday, commit a mortal sin and be damned. And then Friday, go to confession and be saved. And like I think that's a terrible view. I think that's wrong. I don't believe in mortal sins.
¶18They're unbiblical. Only one sin is unforgivable and that's blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. So, I don't agree with the Catholics. >> Well, they don't say mortal sins are unforgivable. They just say that they're sins that lead to death.
¶19>> Well, do they send you to hell? >> They do, but you can repent of them like any other sin. You also don't have to go to a priest to be bap- to be forgiven. You can you can pray to the Lord be forgiven if you would then go to the priest afterwards. >> I don't know.
¶20I don't know if they they think you have to go to a priest. >> I uh read about it yesterday. >> Okay, well, >> You if you have knowledge that you can go to a priest um and you just don't have the availability, but you pray to the Lord, you can still be forgiven. >> Okay, so you have like an and to go to a priest? >> Yeah.
¶21>> But, what if you don't want to go to a priest and you just want to repent to God alone and you're like, "I'm not going to go to a priest." >> I don't know. They probably wouldn't like that very much. >> No, they would say, "No, you know, if you like if you're you're refusing to go to the priest, you're probably not going to forgive it." Is what they'd probably say. Then they'd have the caveat, "Well, if you're if you don't believe you have to go to a priest for forgiveness, then you're not culpable. So." >> No.
¶22>> It's more about the state of the rebellion of the heart. Anyways, okay, so I'll re-say my statement cuz maybe mortal sins cuz they can't even be forgiven and they're not unforgivable sins. I don't think you can commit a sin I can't commit a sin that would send you to hell without losing your salvation. Like it's not like a And they would say this too, mortal sins aren't like things you do by accident. Like you don't go out on Tuesday night and accidentally commit a mortal sin.
¶23I'll give them that. >> Yes. >> But if And I do believe you can lose your salvation, but it's very hard and I think it has to be like an intentional willful hatred of God and like not wanting anything to do for with him. And I I think >> your works, right? It's about your allegiance.
¶24>> Yeah, and I think but I think mortal sins are a little bit easier to commit than what I just described. A Catholic could push back. Maybe I'm wrong. So, it depends on what the Catholics mean by commandments cuz if they mean like holding to like like they believe Mariology is a dogma that you have to believe and so they would say if you not if you're not praying the rosary, maybe you're breaking a commandment. Like I don't want to agree with that.
¶25So, I'm kind of caught in the middle where I'm like you are not saved by works. Uh sorry, you're you're saved by faith and your works are part of your faith like we mentioned earlier. And so yeah, you're not saved by by your commandments, but you're kind of like your commandments validate your faith. So, if you have to keep the commandments, there's no options. But you I don't think he should bring Galatians up because it's just about that's about the Torah.
¶26So, what do you think? >> Um yeah. I agree. I agree. I think it's it's such a bad look to say that someone who was struggling with belief for so long and finally came to the belief that Jesus Christ saves, to say that he went from a bad position to a worse position is insane.
¶27And I don't know how you can come to that position, but the only way you can is because he doesn't think the Catholics are saved. He doesn't think most Protestants are saved. He doesn't think that most of people who think they're Christians are saved. Yeah. So, I just I don't agree with him on on most things, but this just has to be his position because he thinks anyone who believes that baptism, the Eucharist, or works is a part of salvation at all is going to happen.
¶28So, >> Again, I we got we maybe could have him on because I would love to just be like get some clarity where it's like, "Hey dude, like do Christians have to be baptized? Yes or no? Do Christians have to take the communion? >> He's going to say baptism is important, communion is important, works are important, but they're not necessary for salvation. And then you ask the question, "Well, what does important mean?" And he'd say, "Well, they're good things that we should do, but they're not they're not necessary for salvation." And you'd say, "Okay, well, what's the essence of a good thing to do?" And I don't think he'll be able to answer that question.