This Sunday’s Readings include clear instructions that, if followed, lead us to The Only Church Jesus Founded. Amazingly, these passages are provided to Protestants who read them and utterly ignore the clear meaning: “Be Catholic!”
Eph 4:17, 20-24 “Brothers and sisters: I declare and testify in the Lord that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds;” Now, that does not only describe Protestants, but also those even farther beyond the pale, where thinking about thinking becomes a circling around the drain.
St. Paul tells us very clearly that we must get beyond thinking and move to obedience: “that is not how you learned Christ, assuming that you have heard of him and were taught in him, as truth is in Jesus, that you should put away the old self of your former way of life, corrupted through deceitful desires, (in the futility of thinking about the gratification of deceitful desires), and be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and put on the new self, created in God’s way in righteousness and holiness of truth.”
We are clearly told “put away the old self of our former way of life,” Why? What was wrong with it? “(It has been) corrupted by deceitful desires”. One thing we must put away is the vanity that we could think our way to salvation.
We are told: just as you get rid of things that are broken or stained, get rid of your old self. We don’t think about it. We just do it. Then, we may be strengthened by the only food that gives us lasting sustenance. Not coincidentally, that is the subject of Today’s Response, Mt 4:4
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
One does not live on bread alone, but by every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.
R. Alleluia, alleluia
The difference between Protestant and Catholic is made clear in that very short passage: Catholics we must strive to believe and obey “every word that comes forth from the mouth of God”. Among “every word” is “If you do not eat My Body and drink My Blood you do not have life in you.”
Protestants do not “put on the new self” enough to believe and obey “every word”. The poor Protestants pick and choose, believing some of Jesus’ words, but not “every word”. It is a big mistake to pick and choose. Those who are saved must replace “I believe some words of Jesus with “I believe ‘every word’ of Jesus.”
The only way Protestants can rid of that vain, old self is to become Catholics, receive Communion, and “have life in” them. Time is running out. It is only by obedience, and not be thinking, that may receive the Mercy we must have to get into Heaven. The prudent will move toward “the Holiness of Truth.” and get rid of the vanity that prompts them to think they should choose for themselves what they will believe.
