A mere profession of godliness is worthless

A mere profession of godliness is worthless. It is he that abideth in Christ that is a Christian. For “every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.” In every clime, in every nation, our youth should cooperate with God. The only way a person can be pure is to become like-minded with God. How can we know God?—By studying his word. “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent.”     

Of what profit is it to say pleasant things, to deplore the works of Satan, and yet at the same time to enter into the fulfillment of all his devices? This is being double-minded. “Wash ye, make you clean: put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes, cease to do evil; learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow. Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land: but if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.”  

There must be a cleansing of the hands, and a purifying of the double mind. “Be afflicted, and weep and mourn: let your laughter be turned into mourning, and your joy into heaviness.” It is right to be cheerful, and even joyful. It is right to cultivate cheerfulness of spirit through sanctification of the truth; but it is not right to indulge in foolish jesting and joking, in lightness and trifling, in words of criticism and condemnation of others. Those who observe such persons who make a profession of religion, know that they are deceived. They know that the hands of such professors need to be cleansed, their hearts need to be purified. They need to experience genuine repentance for sin. What have they to mourn over? They should mourn over their inclination to sin, over the danger they are in from inward corruption and from outward temptation. They should be afraid because they have so feeble a sense of the sinfulness of sin, and so little idea of what constitutes sin.  

When you truly repent of sin, you will not be satisfied to acknowledge simply that you are sinful, and let the matter rest there. Do you intend to remain sinful while life shall last? Do you mean to violate your conscience? Do you mean to do evil always? What does the Lord say to those who have had light, and yet have failed to live in accordance with it? “Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.” “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.” There is a repentance of sin that needeth not to be repented of. “And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.”  

Does this text mean that the human agent can remove one stain of sin from his soul?—No. Then what does it mean to purify himself?—It means to look upon the Lord's great moral standard of righteousness, the holy law of God, and see that he is a sinner in the light of that law. “Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law. And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sin; and in him is no sin.” It is through faith in Jesus Christ that the truth is accepted in the heart and the human agent is purified and cleansed. Jesus was “wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.” Is it possible to be healed, while knowingly committing sin?—No; it is genuine faith that says, I know that I have committed sin, but that Jesus has pardoned my sin; and hereafter I will resist temptation in and through his might. “Every man that hath this hope in him [abiding in him] purifieth himself, even as he is pure.” He has an abiding principle in the soul, that enables him to overcome temptation. “Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not.” God has power to keep the soul who is in Christ, when that soul is under temptation. “Whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him.” That is, every one who is a true believer is sanctified through the truth, in life and character. “Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth [not professeth to do] righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous.” “Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; ... because he is born of God. In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil.” Now mark where the distinction is made: “Whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither is he that loveth not his brother.” “My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue, but in deed and in truth.”    The Youth's Instructor, February 15, 1894

Israel does not know the Lord

The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.

² Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth: for the Lord hath spoken, I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against me.

³ The ox knoweth his owner, and the ass his master's crib: but Israel doth not know, my people doth not consider.

⁴ Ah sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a seed of evildoers, children that are corrupters: they have forsaken the Lord, they have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger, they are gone away backward.

⁵ Why should ye be stricken any more? ye will revolt more and more: the whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint.

⁶ From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores: they have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment.

⁷ Your country is desolate, your cities are burned with fire: your land, strangers devour it in your presence, and it is desolate, as overthrown by strangers.

⁸ And the daughter of Zion is left as a cottage in a vineyard, as a lodge in a garden of cucumbers, as a besieged city.

⁹ Except the Lord of hosts had left unto us a very small remnant, we should have been as Sodom, and we should have been like unto Gomorrah.

¹⁰ Hear the word of the Lord, ye rulers of Sodom; give ear unto the law of our God, ye people of Gomorrah.

¹¹ To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me? saith the Lord: I am full of the burnt offerings of rams, and the fat of fed beasts; and I delight not in the blood of bullocks, or of lambs, or of he goats.

¹² When ye come to appear before me, who hath required this at your hand, to tread my courts?

¹³ Bring no more vain oblations; incense is an abomination unto me; the new moons and sabbaths, the calling of assemblies, I cannot away with; it is iniquity, even the solemn meeting.

¹⁴ Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hateth: they are a trouble unto me; I am weary to bear them.

¹⁵ And when ye spread forth your hands, I will hide mine eyes from you: yea, when ye make many prayers, I will not hear: your hands are full of blood.

¹⁶ Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil;

¹⁷ Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow.

¹⁸ Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.

¹⁹ If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land:

²⁰ But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.                Isaiah 1:1-20

Pope Francis: Atheists And Homosexuals Welcome In Heaven

Pope Francis’ progressive attitude toward non-Catholics and non-believers has shocked many followers of God since he took on the papal position. His inane desire to accept everyone for who they are, and not reject them for the label they carry, has drawn attention toward him in both positive and negative lights. He has openly declared that Catholic individuals who partake in a homosexual lifestyle are welcome in heaven and should be treated no different than their heterosexual counterparts. Now, in an announcement that has surprised many in the Catholic community, Pope Francis has declared that even Atheists are welcome into heaven, regardless of their non belief in god or religion as a whole.

Founder of La Repubblica, Eugenio Scalfari, wrote an article for his newspaper, openly asking Pope Francis whether the Christian God would openly accept a non-believer into his heaven, according to the Independent. Rather than ignore the article written from the non-Roman Catholic newspaper founder, Pope Francis chose to respond with an open letter to the paper and its founder, explaining what he believes God would say if asked the same question.

Rather than respond defensively, Pope Francis chose to keep his tone friendly and open for further discussion, claiming that those that do not believe in God are simply ignoring their conscience and that disbelief in something does not discount its existence.

“You ask me if the God of the Christians forgives those who don’t believe and who don’t seek the faith. I start by saying – and this is the fundamental thing – that God’s mercy has no limits if you go to him with a sincere and contrite heart. The issue for those who do not believe in God is to obey their conscience.”

Pope Francis continued by stating that sin exists in all beliefs.

“Sin, even for those who have no faith, exists when people disobey their conscience.”

Bustle summed up Pope Francis’ comments and stated that the existence of God is not a matter of belief or disbelief, but a matter of following one’s conscience.

“[Y]ou should at least follow your heart, if you’re not going to become Catholic, and that God will be cool with that.”

In other words, it seems as though Pope Francis is saying that one’s faith, or lack thereof, should not be the basis on which an individual is judged. Instead, his or her moral character, behaviors, and attitudes toward others, should be how an individual is judged. However, Pope Francis’ comments are not limited to religion alone, but also spread into an individual’s lifestyle.

Scalfari noted that Pope Francis’ comments further advance his position to unite everyone and open the world to real conversations that will hopefully lead to love and acceptance of all fellow men and women.

“… further evidence of his ability and desire to overcome barriers in dialogue with all…”

The dialogue Scalfari references goes back to July when Pope Francis openly accepted homosexuals into the Catholic church, advising that God loves and accepts them in the same manner as one with a devout heterosexual faith.

“If someone is gay and is looking for the Lord, who am I to judge him?”

His new remarks lend one to believe that it doesn’t matter whether an individual is a devout Catholic, homosexual, atheist, a member of ISIS, or any other living man or woman on the Earth. In the end, it all comes down to following one’s conscience. If God opens the doors of heaven to everyone, their earthly belief does not matter, he will still welcome them into his home.

Pope Francis has created an upheaval of the Catholic church since taking on the moniker. However, his openness to acceptance has opened dialogue that previously was suppressed. What are your thoughts on the Pope and his comments?     Inquisitor

Note: The only thing the pope forgot to mention was true repentance. Yes, God loves the sinner but hates sin. We can not live contemplating sin once God's grace has reached us. We need to come closer to God, let go self and begin to have a real experience with Him. But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.   Matthew 9:13  KJV
By the way, the word "repentance" is missing in the new bible translations.