Reformation Continues ... through Evangelism!

With an astonished look I read the Catholic News reporting this Wednesday morning that the Pope will end the Doctrine of Limbo this weekend. The process of doing away with Limbo had began under the late John Paul II and was backed by the then Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger - now Pope Benedict XVI. Now a 30-strong Vatican theologians concluded that there is no Limbo, no purgatory, no half-way house.
Some publications carried headings like Pope shrinking borders of hell. Since early 13^th century this teaching collected much money for the church on behalf of the souls awaiting liberation from purgatory. Now it has been declared “only a theological hypothesis” that has “no scriptural grounds” and had “never been a definitive truth of the faith”. Such a conclusion revokes the catechism published by Pope St Pius X in 1904. So much for infallibility.
Great! So what? Catholics are finally getting some things right! – you may think. Until you look at the bigger picture. The purpose for this and many other changes is – ecumenism, bringing all “daughter” churches together. Last year (2005) a leading evangelical theologian Mark Noll has co-authored a book Is the Reformation Over?: An Evangelical Assessment of Contemporary Roman Catholicism. In which he concludes: Yes! The Reformation is over. There is no point for Evangelicals to keep apart in isolation from the Catholic church –mother of all Christian churches.
Wow! First Lutherans signed the treaty, then Calvinists, now – evangelicals, Anabaptists and followers of Wesley… Who’s next? What’s the catch? Little concession calls for a great price, little compromise costs the truth.
We have been entrusted with the Message of Revelation, the Message of three Angels (Revelation 14:6-12). We have been called to call people out from Babylon of churches for the hour of Judgment that is upon all. How are we doing it? We also believe that we are carriers of the Fourth Angel’s message (Revelation 18:1-3) – the final call to all in confusion to come out of falsity and escape God’s wrath. I am talking about the angel from whose glory the earth was lightened. We proudly claim the Remnant status emphasizing our keeping of the Commandments (Revelation 12:17). Let’s remind each other that that is only first identifying sign. Another characteristic is “having the Testimony of Jesus, being in tune with the Spirit of Prophecy. Just a few verses above (Revelation 12:11) John saw that the last-day church was overcoming this world not only “by the blood of the Lamb” – which is given; but also “by the word of their testimony.” That’s yours & mine! Overcoming by our testimony to people in the world around us.
How’s your testimony? Who have you shared Jesus with this week? Who have you called out of Babylon in the past few days? Have you forsaken offers of this world for God?
Is the Reformation over? Not at all! It continues by our testimony…
Evangelism is our calling, our purpose, our life. Are you in?