Femi, on spiritual things...

Earthly kingdom mindset always fosters a strange perspective on the Gospel that terminates in insidious degradation of spiritual bearing and a pecking away at the fundamentals of faith  “Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another?” John, in prison asked after his ears had been fed with the miraculous works of Christ, Mat 11:2-3. About this same John, Jesus testifies: Matthew 11:9-11 (9)  But what went ye out for to see? A prophet? yea, I say unto you, and more than a prophet. (10)  For this is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee. (11)  Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. John’s own testimonies about Christ will help bear out the import of his question: Matthew 3:11 (11)  I indeed baptize you with water u...

Here is the story, and why I think the Church is back to where it was before the Martin Luther Reformation exactly 500 years ago. 1. Before 1517, everyone belonged to the Roman Catholic Church which was the official religion, with the Pope as the head. The Pope had the final say on all issues concerning religion. 2. Pope Leo X wanted to build a fanciful Church building called St. Peters Basilica in Rome. The building was going to cost him so much. Hence, he decided to raise money from the sale of purgatory. 3. Purgatory was invented by the Catholic Pope during the Crusades in order to get more men into the army. The Pope claimed he could buy souls back from hell. His soldiers believed him and the practice continued. 4.The manipulation of the people through the sale of purgatory (Offering God money in order to get God's favor) infuriated Martin Luther. The same idea of purgatory was why mandatory tithes and offerings got established in the early Church. 'God get...