Once a year in the month of December, billions of people throughout the world, gather to celebrate the holiday that is known as Christmas. One can study the history of this holiday, by reading different books and encyclopedias or by watching videos. As you study this holiday you will learn how it was a totally pagan holiday,which eventually became embraced by the “Christian church” as a way of celebrating the birth of the “Christ child.”
This is the time of year that you will find “Santa Claus” sitting on the throne in shopping malls across the world. The people line up for hours to wait in line as the parents plop their precious children onto the lap of a man who they do not even know. That man will play the Santa game and promise them things and the children will believe that LIE until they are old enough to realize that it was all a sham. Take the name SANTA and move the “N” to the end of the word and you will find out who is behind that whole thing!
During this holiday season billions upon billions of dollars will be spent on items and gifts, and many parties will be held throughout the world. Many greeting cards will be mailed out, some with a religious motif, and others just saying “Merry Christmas.” Many of the religious cards will have a Nativity scene on the front of the card, or it will show “Mother Mary” cuddling the “infant Jesus” in her arms. That image of the grown up Mary with the little baby Jesus is very popular within the Roman Catholic circles. I can remember reading about the visions of Mary in Medugorje, Yugoslavia, while I was still a Roman Catholic. I became very interested in those apparitions, and I even purchased books and videos, and showed them to others. Here is an excerpt from the Wikipedia Encyclopedia regarding the apparitions at Medugorje:
A Marian apparition is an event in which the Mary, the mother of Jesus is believed to have supernaturally appeared to one or more persons regardless of their religious faith. They are often given names based on the town in which they were reported, or on the sobriquet which was given to Mary on the occasion of the apparition. They have been interpreted in psychological terms as pareidolia, and in religious terms as theophanies. Apparitions sometimes recur at the same site over an extended period of time. In the majority of Marian apparitions only a few people can see Mary.
On June 24, 1981, while on the hill of Podbrdo in Medjugorje, six teenagers—two boys and four girls—saw a vision of Jesus’ Mother, Mary, holding the infant Jesus. The following day, four of those six children felt drawn to return to the site, where they again saw the Mother, this time with her arms empty. Word quickly spread and hundreds, then thousands, began gathering daily at the site. This prompted the communist authorities to declare the situation dangerous, and they began harassing the children in an attempt to prevent their return to the site.[1]
I will not go into the Marian apparitions too much here other than to say, that there is absolutely no question in my mind, that all of them are totally DEMONIC in origin. Satan is ever so clever in how he takes the mind of the people off of the eternal Son of God, and puts it on the Jewish virgin Mary. If you study the Bible you will always see Jesus giving glory to His father in Heaven who sent Him to this Earth to die for our sins. Mary is not a part of the equation when it comes to the salvation of the soul. During the ministry of Jesus Christ on earth, there was an instance when Jesus was preaching the Word, inside a building and his very own mother, and His brothers and sisters were outside. Somebody informed Jesus about this and it is recorded in the Bible.
While he yet talked to the people, behold, his mother and his brethren stood without, desiring to speak with him. Then one said unto him, Behold, thy mother and thy brethren stand without, desiring to speak with thee. But he answered and said unto him that told him, Who is my mother? and who are my brethren? And he stretched forth his hand toward his disciples, and said, Behold my mother and my brethren! For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother. (Matthew 12:46-50)
You see Jesus Christ was more interested in His spiritual family, then he was with His “natural and physical” family, and that is exactly the point that He was making there. You see Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God, meaning that He came down from above and He has always existed. The images of the little baby Jesus in a manger abound during this time of year. Why do we need to put Jesus back in the manger, considering the fact that He is the Alpha and Omega, the First and the Last, and the Almighty! (Revelation 1:8, 11, 17,18) Can you imagine if your friend Charlie invited you to a birthday party, and when you arrived you saw a little bassinet with statues of adults surrounding it? Out of curiosity you asked Charlie what it was all about, and he told you that he took some old photos, and tried to recreate the whole scene of when he was born. Would you not think that Charlie was a bit odd? So why do people find it necessary to put Jesus back in a little crib once a year? When I got saved, I had absolutely no desire to remember Jesus as a little baby. Yes, I can read about His birth, but I now know Him as the King of Kings, and Lord of Lords and I glorify Him that way.
The prophet Micah prophesied of His birth in Bethlehem hundreds of years before the event actually happened. Here is what the scriptures teach us:
But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting. (Micah 5:2)
That prophecy was totally fulfilled when Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem.
When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born. And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet, And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel. (Matthew 2:3-6)
The Jewish religious leaders went to the scriptures (as they should have) and they came up with the correct answer to that evil King Herod who sought to KILL Jesus. They quoted from the very same prophecy which was given by the prophet Micah.
But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins. Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, (Matthew 1:20-22)
The very purpose of the coming of Jesus Christ into this world was to save wretches like me and you from our sins. That includes all people in the world (Jewish and Gentile) with no ifs, ands or buts. The real Mary understood that concept very well, and she acknowledged her own status as a sinner by referring to God as Saviour.
And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. (Luke 1:46-47)
The real Mary continued to give ALL the glory to God, in what has become known as the “Magnificat” passage of scripture. In the Roman Catholic Church there has always been a great emphasis on “Mother Mary” and you will find “Mary” being honored with her own medals such as the Miraculous Medal. The late pope John Paul II even included the letter “M” in his Papal coat of arms. In fact Pope John Paul II had the saying “Totus Tuus Sum Maria” sewed inside his Papal vestments. Those words mean: “Mary I Am Totally Yours”
I have spoken in the past about how the Popes (past and present) declare the Roman Catholic Church to be the ONLY TRUE CHURCH, and that is part of their official doctrine. Whenever people speak out against them and their false doctrines, they are tagged as “Catholic Bashers” or “Anti-Catholics.” but don’t you fall for that tactic. The Roman Catholic Church to this very day still has over 100 anathemas (curses) in their official church doctrines, against people (true Christians) who disagree with their false doctrines. You will find them in the Council of Trent and officially upheld by the Council of Vatican II. They still teach that their Catholic Mass satisfies the justice of God for sins committed against Him. They still teach about a place called Purgatory. They still teach about indulgences for both the living and the dead (to help them out of Purgatory), but very little is said about these things. The bottom line is this. The Roman Catholic Gospel is a false Gospel, and it is NOT the Gospel which the original disciples preached. The focus on Mary is of their own origin, and one of their own man-made traditions. When Jesus was asked by His disciples to teach them how to pray he taught them to pray “Our Father” not “Our Mother”! You will NOT find Mary asking any people to pray to her (or through her) at all. In fact Mary was just one of the crowd of true believers praying to God in the book of Acts.
And when they were come in, they went up into an upper room, where abode both Peter, and James, and John, and Andrew, Philip, and Thomas, Bartholomew, and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon Zelotes, and Judas the brother of James. These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren. (Acts 1:13-14)
This whole Gospel is about Jesus Christ and the truth that he came to bring salvation to souls. The apostle Paul put it this way:
Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated unto the gospel of God, (Which he had promised afore by his prophets in the holy scriptures,) Concerning his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh; And declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead: (Romans 1:1-4)
It was Christ whom the prophets of old spoke about, and it is Christ the Son of the living God whom God the Father has exalted. I have known the Lord for over 21 years and I can testify to you today that Jesus is the ONLY mediator that I need. In fact I would be in disobedience to the Lord, had I continued to intercede to Mary after the Lord opened up my eyes.
For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; (1 Timothy 2:5)
Why is it that Jesus should be the ONLY mediator between God and mankind? Because Jesus ALONE is the eternal Son of God, who became flesh, and shed His SINLESS blood for SINFUL mankind. There is not another human being that can make that claim. Considering the fact that it is only the BLOOD which atones for sin (Leviticus 17:11), it was ONLY Jesus who had the power to save us all. Jesus Christ alone REDEEMED (Galatians 3:13, 1 Peter 1:18-19) us from our sins, without any help from “Mother Mary” and we need to give Him ALONE all the glory! Many will read this article and still refuse to turn from their worship of Mary, as I once did, but I encourage you to search the scriptures for yourself, and totally rely on Christ alone.
As I close I must mention the Roman Catholic Charismatic movement and the influence that it has had on the modern day church. I participated in the Catholic Charismatic movement for close to three years before the Lord opened my spiritual eyes to the great deception within that movement. First of all I do believe that there was a mixture of biblical truth, along with the traditions of Rome. Whenever the Bible is preached, and believed there is always the potential for people to get saved and come to know Jesus Christ. Many did get SAVED and they came out of that FALSE religious system. Many do not realize that the Catholic charismatics still hold all the doctrines of the Catholic church, including the Mass, Purgatory and prayers to Mary. When you bring this up to “Christian” Pastors they usually brush you off, and give you a little “spiritual” pat on the head and they go on with their business. They have no idea how dangerous false doctrines can be. I remember attending a very large church in the middle of Manhattan (NYC) and my wife Cathy and I met a lady who had been a Christian for many years. I cannot remember the conversation exactly, but I do believe that we shared part of our testimonies of how we got saved. We never saw that lady until about a year later, in the same lobby of that church and we struck up another conversation with her. She told us that she had met some Catholic Charismatic ladies and that they were praying regularly together. A large red flag went up in my spirit, and I told the “sister” (in Christ) to be careful because the “Charismatic Catholics” still prayed the Rosary (mainly Hail Mary prayers) to Mary, and they might influence her. The woman turned pale and told us that she felt sick. She then told us that they had already convinced her to pray the Rosary, and that is what she was doing. I know a DIVINE appointment when I see one, and I knew that my faithful Lord had come through once again. It still simply AMAZES me how the shepherds of our modern day, never speak out against Rome, but simply accept them as “brothers and sisters” in the faith. That is why I continue to speak out against the system of Roman Catholicism. People you do NOT need to go THROUGH Mary to get to Jesus, but you DO need to go through Jesus to get to the Father.
Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. (Romans 8:34)
Take heart people and do not be afraid to let go of your attachment to “Mary.” The scriptures tell us that it is CHRIST that died (not Mary), and it is Christ that has risen (not Mary), and it is Christ who is interceding for us (not Mary) right now, and HE is all you will ever need! It is the name of Jesus Christ , and His name alone that describes the ONLY person that can SAVE your soul. Your decision must take place before you die and not after.
Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole. This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved. (Acts 4:10-12)
