1. THE PERSON OF GOD

   A Christian boy in a secular school was being given a 
difficult time by his non-Christian teacher. One day she 
asked him, "Johnny, how many gods are there?
"There is only one God", Johnny replied.
She sneered at him, "And how do YOU know that?"
Johnny replied, "That's all there is room for."

   2. INFINITY

   We all know that God is the One Infinite Being in the 
world. However, sometimes we mis-use the word "infinite" to 
include those who are not truly worthy of this designation. 
There may be a Sunday school teacher in our church who has 
great patience with the children. In fact, she is so loving 
that we might say, "She has infinite patience."

   However, when she gets home from church she might find 
that her husband had dropped his dirty socks on the bedroom 
floor that morning, and she loses her patience.
She had a lot of patience, but it was not infinite.

   Another way we mis-use words like "infinite" that have 
an absolute meaning is the way it is common to use the word 
"permanent". We sometimes say a lady goes down to the 
beauty shop to get a permanent. However, what she really 
gets is a "temporary", because she must go down again 
several months later and get another one.

   Regarding God's salvation's being infinite, we have a 
beautiful verse in Psalm 103:12 that illustrates this.

   "As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he 
removed our transgressions from us."

   If this Psalm had been merely the product of a human 
being, the author (David) might have thought about what he 
could use as a good geographic contrast to give us the idea 
of distance. Many would have thought of north and south, 
because the difference between them is obvious - it is cold 
up North and it is hot down South.

   However, if David had written these words, we would have 
known that the Psalm was not inspired. From any part of the 
world, you can only go a measurable distance North. Once 
you've reached the North Pole, any step you take will be in 
a southerly direction. Therefore, "as far as the north is 
from the south" would have indicated that which was finite. 

   God inspired David to write "as far as the east is from 
the west", and even though David might not have understood 
it fully, he was describing a span which is infinite, for 
no one can measure that distance.

   Note too that the Psalmist goes on to say, "so far hath 
he removed our transgressions from us." God has put our 
sins so far away that no finite being (Satan included) will 
ever be able to find them. They are completely and 
infinitely removed.

   The only Person who could find your sins is God Himself, 
and the Bible gives us God's promise that He would not 
remember them (Hebrews 10:17).

   The only reason Satan can remind you of your sins is 
that you keep them harbored in your mind. If you believe 
God's Word that they are removed, and reckon them so, Satan 
can not bother you over sins that have been forgiven.

   Isaiah 53:5,6 clearly tell of the substitutionary work 
of Christ. The concept of substitution is an infinite 
concept. Let me explain.

   Your church might have a softball team, and on this team 
is a pitcher so good he always strikes out each opponent. 
As you begin the game, the pitcher throwns the first pitch 
in, and the batter hits a home run.

   Now, that's not a good way to start, but you figure it 
is just a fluke and don't really worry about it. When the 
second batter hits a home run, you start to get concerned, 
and when the third batter likewise homers, your manager 
decides your pitcher doesn't have his "stuff", so he elects 
to take him out of the game.

   A substitute pitcher comes on, and the old pitcher goes 
off the field and sits dejectedly on the bench.

   The substitute pitcher throwns the first ball in, and 
the batter hits a little foul fly over by your bench. The 
old pitcher sees the ball coming, jumps up, and catches it. 
The question is, "Is the batter out?"

   The answer is, "Of course not". "Why," you might ask, 
"Don't the rules state that if the ball is caught before it 
hits the ground, the batter is out?"Yes, they do, but the 
old pitcher is no longer in the game. He is out of the game 
because a substitute has taken his place.

   When Jesus Christ became my Substitute, He said, "Bill, 
get off the field; you have no further part in your 
salvation. I have taken your place."

   When people think of giving a gift, they usually make 
sure they have enough money to pay for it. If you men would 
like the best December ever, promise your wife a mink coat 
(or something else she would really like) for Christmas. 
She is going to treat you like a King all month.

   However, if you don't come up with the coat, you are in 
for a pretty miserable January.

   God, in His eternal Word, has promised the gift of 
everlasting life to whosoever will. One might have thought 
that, after making this promise, God could wonder how He 
could ever pay enough for this gift to be man's.

   We know God owns the cattle on a thousand hills, and the 
wealth in every mine, so perhaps he could make a heap of 
all that He has and purchase salvation out of this grand 
total of wealth. 

   Let us say that God, having ascertained all His wealth, 
came to the conclusion that He could offer $1,000,000 worth 
of salvation to each man. Every single human being who 
trusted Christ was given $1,000,000 worth of salvation.

   Now, $1,000,000 is a lot of money. We might wonder how 
much it would buy. Well, it would buy $1,000,000 worth and 
no more. If you had just a million dollars, and you went to 
the grocery store, filled cart after cart with groceries, 

   and then proceeded to the check-out where the checker, 
after tallying up your order, says to you, "That will be 
$1,000,000.25" you would have to put something back. You 
see, there is a limit to what $1,000,000 will buy.

   That is why Jesus Christ, when talking about the payment 
that would be made for sin, said specifically in Matthew 
20:28, "he would give his life a ransom for many." That is 
why Peter, when looking back on this glorious payment, by 
the inspiration of the Holy Spirit said, "You were not 
redeemed with corruptible things, such as silver and gold 
(imagine calling silver and gold corruptible) . . .but with 
the precious blood of Christ."

   A finite payment procures finite results, and if you had 
been redeemed with a finite payment, after you were in 
Heaven about 10,000 years an angel might come, tap you on 
the shoulder, and say, "Sorry, you time's up. $1,000,00 
buys 10,000 years in Heaven; you will have to spend the 
rest of eternity in Hell."

   If an evangelist came to a city and there proclaimed 
that he had a message about a mighty, powerful God. "This 
glorious God", he said, "is so mighty that He can forgive 
you for 1,543 sins." Many heard his word, gladly listened 
and trusted this great and powerful God Who is able to save 
from 1,543 sins.

   After a few years, however, one of the disciples came 
timidly to the great evangelist. "Sir", he said, "I am glad 
that God can forgive 1,543 sins. My problem is that 
yesterday I committed sin number 1,542 and it appears I 
only have one to go. What will happen if I commit sin 
number 1,544?

   The evangelist replied, "I am afraid, my friend, as the 
English say, 'You've had your chips.' You see God only has 
the power to forgive 1,543 sins; if you pass that limit, 
you are without hope."

   What a sad message that would be, but what a glorious 
truth that this is not the case. "Wherefore he is able also 
to save to the uttermost all that come unto God by Him... " 

   (Hebrews 7:25). There is no limit to His salvation.

   3. THE "CHRIST" OF THE UNSAVED

   On Saturday, May 12, 1979, in St. Brigid's Roman 
Catholic Church, Las Vegas, Nevada, Rev. Despars was giving 
his homily (sermon). He was talking about the death of 
Jesus Christ on the Cross. He stated, "When Jesus died on 
the Cross, He did almost all of the work for our salvation, 
I would say about 90%."

   I have had several Catholic commentators who object to 
my using Rev. Despars as an illustration because, they say, 
"He is only one priest; he cannot speak for the official 
Roman Catholic Church." However, these same men that object 
to my using Priest Despars have admitted that, while they 
do not preach any specific percentage, it is basically true 
that Christ did almost everything for our salvation. 

   St. Peter's Roman Catholic Catechism puts it this way, 
"It is the sin of presumption to believe that we can be 
saved by God alone without our own efforts."

   At the Fair Grounds in San Jose, California, we were 
passing out tracts and witnessing one day. A Mormon and I 
began a conversation which centered on the work of Christ 
on the Cross.

   I made the statement, "When Jesus died on the Cross, He 
did a perfect work for our salvation."

   "Yes", the Mormon said, "Jesus did a perfect work. But 
we have to do our part."

   I thought of this possibility. If Jesus Christ is our 
infinite Saviour, and He did a perfect work, how can 
anything a finite being like myself does supplement that 
completed work. You cannot add to that which is perfect.

   One day in San Jose I was witnessing to a Jehovah's 
Witness lady. She had her two well-groomed sons with her, 
and she was trying to make an impression about the kind of 
life she lead. As she talked about her good living and her 
hoping to get to the New Earth, I told her about the 
perfect work of our infinite Saviour.

   Finally she said to me, "Mr. Jackson, I would like to 
put my life down alongside your life to see which one of us 
lives a better life."

   "That would be interesting", I said, "But I'll tell you 
what I would rather do. I would rather put my Saviour down 
alongsdide your Saviour to see which one of us has a 
perfect Saviour."

   From SCIENCE AND HEALTH WITH KEY TO THE SCRIPTURES by 
Mary Baker Eddy. "One sacrifice, however great, is 
insufficient to pay for the debt of sin. The atonement 
requires constant self-immolation on the sinner's part."

   The late Fulton Sheen, in a prayer to God in THE SEVEN 
LAST WORDS OF CHRIST, "Reconciliation is Thy work; 
atonement is mine."

   John Taylor, in the Mormon publication THE MEDIATION AND 
ATONEMENT, "In the first place, according to justice, men 
could not have been redeemed from temporal death except 
through the atonement of Jesus Christ; and in the second 
place, they could not be redeemed from spiritual death, 
only through obedience to the law."

   Ellen G. White, THE GREAT CONTROVERSY, "We dissent from 
the view that the atonement was made upon the cross, as is 
generally reckoned."

   Also, "The blood of Christ, pleaded in behalf of the 
penitent believers, secured their pardon and acceptance 
with the Father, yet their sins still remained on the books 
of record."

   Priest Bertrand Conway, THE QUESTION BOX, "Some well 
meaning but unscholarly preachers of the Gospel have 
suggested that Christ allowed Himself to experience the 
torments of hell as if he were alienated for a time from 
His Father. Such a view is utterly alien to Catholic 
teaching. The guilt of actual sin cannot be transferred 
from one soul to another. To assert that the guilt of men's 
sins was transferred to our Lord dying on the Cross is 
absurd and blasphemous."

   Jehovah's Witnesses, LET GOD BE TRUE, "The 'ransom for 
all' does not give or guarantee everlasting life or 
blessing to any man; but it does give to every man another 
opportunity or trial for everlasting life."

   Also, "One unforfeited life could redeem one forfeited 
life and no more."

   Rev. Vedder, FUNDAMENTALS OF CHRISTIANITY, p 191, "We in-
sist that the guilt of the guilt cannot be expiated, just-
ice cannot be satisfied by the punishment of the innocent."

   4. COUNTERFEITING

   I was in Wilkes-Barre, PA one day and actually heard 
this report. Authorities were warning fast food restaurants 
not to take $10 bills with a picture of Washington on them. 
A counterfeiter was actually super-imposing a 10 over the l 
of a one dollar bill and passing some of them.

   Most counterfeiters, however, are more careful to make 
their bogus money look like the real thing. I might decide 
to make some counterfeit $20 bills; the first thing I would 
be sure to do was to call themn twenty dollars, not twenty 
shillings or twenty pesos. Every counterfeiter calls his 
sham product by the same name as the genuine.

   I might have a problem, however, as Andrew Jackson (no 
relative), who is pictured on a $20 bill is really rather 
homely. When I see a $20 bill I think, Why did they put 
Andrew's picture there? Why could they not have found a 
better looking Jackson? When I make my $20 bill, I'll put a 
picture of Iaian Jackson, one of my good-looking grandsons. 
Then I'll take this bill to the store to buy groceries.

   When I give this bill to the checker, she'll immediately 
say, "That's not a genuine $20 bill." I will reply, "Well, 
maybe it isn't, but I'll tell you what to do. You get one 
of your 20s and compare it with my 20, and you will have to 
admit that mine is a better looking $20 bill, simply 
because Iaian is a lot better looking than Andrew. But of 
course that would not work. I would have to sacrifice my 
Jackson pride and put Andrew's mug on my $20 bill.

   The only worth of counterfeit money is the degree of 
gullibility of those who accept bogus bills. Of course few 
of us know what real money looks like. (Without getting out 
your wallet, do you know what building is pictured on the 
back of a $20 bill?) 

   Let us look at Joe, who has five $20 bills - but all of 
them, unknown to him, are counterfeit. He thinks he has 
$100, but in reality he is broke.

   Joe wants to pay a bill, and he wants to have a 
cancelled check as a receipt, so he desides to put the $100 
in the bank. On his way to the bank, he is as happy as a 
sand boy, whistling as he walks along. When he gets to the 
bank, he fills out a deposit slip, indicating that he is 
depositing $200 in his account.

   When he gives the money to the teller, even though she 
is not a No. 1 expert in counterfeit bills, even the feel 
of the bills tells her there may be something wrong. So she 
asks Joe to wait a moment while she consults with one of 
the bank officers.

   When she returns, she has the bad news for Joe, "Your 
money is all counterfeit."

   "But," Joe protests, "I live a good life. Why just on 
the way over here I helped an old lady cross the street. I 
am a fine moral person."

   Of course that makes no difference. His sincerity does 
not make his money genuine, for even though he sincerely 
thought he had $100, Joe was broke. And he didn't find it 
our until he came to the authority - to the bank.

   Satan is counterfeiting God's true religion. He makes it 
look as much like the genuine as possible, and even calls 
it "Christianity" Some sincere folks embrace this false 
religion, but their sincerity does not make it genuine. And 
many of them will not find out until they stand before the 
Authority - before God.

   A pocketful of counterfeit money could land you in the 
poor house; if you have a heartful of counterfeit religion, 
you will spend eternity without Christ.

   Suppose the government established an agency where they 
would change counterfeit money into real money. You heard 
about the agency, and you found out your friend Joe has 5 
bogus bills. You'd go out of your way to tell Joe about 
this agency so you could save him from the poor house.

   The government is not going to start such an agency, but 
God has already opened one where He will change counterfeit 
religion into real Christianity. You know some friends who 
have counterfeit religion. Do you ever go out of your way 
to tell them the good news so they can be saved from Hell?

   How can we tell the difference between the Christ of the 
Bible and the counterfeit "Christs" of other religions?

   1. The finite concept of Christ will always give man 
something to do; the infinite Christ of the Bible has 
already done the work.

   2. The finite "Christ" says, "Try a little harder; do 
your best, sacrifice, do penance" The Christ of the Bible 
says, "Trust me as your Saviour."

   3.Satan's "Christ" says "DO"; God's Christ says "DONE".

   5. MARY

   In 1890, Pope Leo XIII said, "As no man can come to the 
Most High Father except through the Son, so, generally, no 
man can come to Christ except through Mary."

   On March 22, 1918, Pope Benedict XV said, "She suffered 
so much for us, almost to the point of dying with her 
suffering and dying Son. Therefore we may rightfully say 
that she has, with Christ, redeemed the human race."

   In 1954, Pope Pius XII said, "Mary is indeed worthy to 
receive honor and might and glory. She is exalted to 
hypostatic union with the Blessed Trinity."

   On St. Stanislaus' Roman Catholic Church, 524 W Mitchell 
St., Milwaukee, Wisconsin: "Ascend mortals to this mountain 
top for here through Mary all shall receivve salvation.

   Louis de Montford, TRUE DEVOTION TO MARY, commenting 
upon Genesis 3:15, "God has never made and formed but one 
emnity; but it is an irreconcilable one. It is between 
Mary, His worthy Mother and the devil. He has inspired her 
with so much hatred against that cursed enemy of God, with 
so much power to crush that proud and impious rebel that he 
fears her, in a sense, more than God Himself."

   Catholics think we dishonor Mary if we don't pray to 
her. We can say, "I felt very sick last week. In fact, I 
was so sick that I went down to see the doctor's mother."

   6. ROMAN CATHOLIC QUOTES

   Karl Adam, THE SPIRIT OF CATHOLICISM (1928), "A 
religious historian of the fifth millennium A.D. will, 
without difficulty, discover in Catholicism conceptions and 
practices which will derive from India, China and Japan."

   Also, "We Catholics acknowledge readily without shame, 
nay, with pride, that Catholicism cannot be identified 
simply and wholly with primitive Christianity."

   Vatican II Council, "Those also can attain to 
everlasting salvation who through no fault of their own do 
not know the Gospel of Christ or his church, yet sincerely 
seek God and, moved by grace, strive by their deeds to do 
His will as it is known to them through the dictates of 
conscience."

   Priest _________, Appleton, WI, (date),(commenting on 
Jimmy Bakker), "The Roman Catholic Church does not 
excommunicate anyone for immorality, but just for making 
dumb intellectual statements."

   Dr. Ludwig Ott, FUNDAMENTALS OF CATHOLIC DOGMA, 
"Theology, like faith, accepts as its source of knowledge 
Holy Writ and Tradition (remote rules of faith) and also 
the doctrinal assertions of the Church (proximate rule of 
faith) - this latter means the day by day teaching ministry 
of the Church through the magisterium. The magisterium is 
the teaching authority of the Church in the pope and the 
bishops united with the pope. It is designed to take things 
from scripture and trradition and apply them in a living 
way, hence its being called the proximate rule of faith."

   Richard McBrien, Notre Dame theologian, "The conversion 
of Constantine also allowed the Church to be less defensive 
about pagan culture, to learn from it and be enriched by 
it."

   7. QUOTES FROM UNSAVED MEN

   Professor Toynbee, "The Western world must produce a new 
religion, a universal cult, and it must be made up of 
Christianity, Islam, Hinduism and Buddhism. (See next 
quote, from John Paul II)

   Speaking over Radio Veritas, Manila, pope John Paul II 
said that the Roman Catholic Church accepted the truth and 
goodness found in Islam, Hinduism and Buddhism. Paying warm 
tribute to the many moral values enshrined in the three non-
Christian religions, the leader of the Roman Catholic 
Church invited their adherents to common prayer that mutual 
understanding may grow and moral values may be strenghened.

   Rahmah Azzam Pasha, Secretary-General of the Arab 
League, quoted by AP on 1/15/61, "A spiritual alliance of 
the Moslem and Christian world would group more than one-
half of the men of the earth against a common enemy. The 
two religions are founded upon an exquisite high 
spirituality and are menaced by the same enemy, athiestic 
materialism."

   Elton Trueblood, "The chasm between a merely secular 
conception of the world and any conception in which (God) 
is recognized is so great and so crucial that those who 
believe in the latter are foolish to let any particular 
difference divide them. Moslems and Christians and Jews and 
many more need to know that they have the greatest things 
in common. The question of a particular banner is 
secondary."

   Madame Blavatsky, "All world religions have a common 
truth that transcends potential differences."

   Dean Inge wrote,"There is a cardinal affinity between 
Buddhism and Christianity. There are differences but the 
historical foundation of both is the same."

   8. CHRISTIAN QUOTES

   Chester Tulga, THE CASE AGAINST MODERNISM, 1950. "A 
world religion is on the way, which will be religious 
rather than Christian; it will be human rather than divine; 
it will be natural rather than supernatural. Its God will 
be its servant and not its sovereign; its Christ will be 
its leader not its King; its political economy will be a 
democracy not a theocracy; its saints will be its 
socialists, not its seers; its goal will be a human utopia, 
not the kingdom of the coming King. The coming world 
religion is envisioned by liberals as the harbinger of the 
'Kingdom', but by biblical writers as the fore-runner of 
the Anti-Christ."

   J.A. Wylie, HISTORY OF PROTESTANTISM, p 417, "If Luther 
had not come, said a German [priest], the Pope by this time 
would have persuaded men to feed themselves on dust."

   Dr. Bart Brewer, MISSION TO CATHOLICS, "No farmer plows, 
sows and reaps in 20 minutes.

   Dave Breese, in KNOW THE MARKS OF CULTS. They are given 
as: "Extra Biblical Revelation, False Basis of Salvation, 
Uncertain Hope, Presumptuous Messianic Leadership, Doctrin-
al Ambiguity, Claim of 'Special Discoveries', Defective 
Christology, Segmented Biblical Attention, Enslaving Organ-
izational Structures, Financial Exploitation, Denunciation 
of Others, Syncretism." Note that Roman Catholicism has all 
12 marks; Fundamentalism has three, perhaps four.

   9. SAVED ROMAN CATHOLICS?

   First we must ask, Are all Roman Catholics lost? The 
answer to this is easy when we define what a Roman Catholic 
is and what a Christian is.

   A Roman Catholic is a person, by dictionary and priestly 
definition, who adheres to the Catholic system of religion. 
He believes there is propitiation in the Mass, absolution 
in confession, cleansing in purgatory. Even if he doesn't 
understand or believe all that the Roman Church teaches, he 
adheres to this system of religion.

   A Christian is one who has ceased trusting his good 
works, or the ceremonies of his Church. He has trusted 
Christ. Therefore, by definition, a Roman Catholic cannot 
be a Christian and a Christian cannot be a Roman Catholic.

   Sometimes when a Roman Catholic is truly saved (and God 
alone knows that), he might, because of his background or 
insufficient teaching, go back to attend a Catholic Church.

   We might ask if he would lose his salvation by his going 
back to the Church. The answer, of course, is no. If he is 
truly saved, he will not lose his salvation.

   Does going back to the Roman Catholic Church make him a 
Roman Catholic? Again the answer is no. If he has ceased to 
adhere to the Roman Catholic system for salvation and has 
truly trusted Christ, he is no longer a Roman Catholic. He 
might still think he is, or others might think he is. But 
attending a Roman Catholic Church does not make one, by 
definition, a Roman Catholic.

   We can easily prove this by spending the night in the 
garage and see if we become a car, or spending a week in 
the zoo to see if we become a giraffe. You see, you are not 
what you are because of where you are. You can live in a 
fundamental church building and not even be a Christian.

   Years ago, when the late Alex Dunlap, founder of THE 
CONVERSION CENTER, was speaking in a church, he made the 
statement that all Roman Catholics were lost and needed to 
be evangelized. 

   After the service a lady came up to him and said, "Mr. 
Dunlap, you made a mistake. You said all Roman Catholics 
were lost and I have a Roman Catholic neighbor, and I know 
she is a born again Christioan.

   Alex said, "How do you know she is a Christian?"

   The lady replied, "Some time ago I was very sick, and I 
had six weeks of convalescence in my home. During that six 
week period, every night my Roman Catholic neighbor came 
over to my house and made me a bowl of soup. Just think, a 
bowl of soup every night! She must be a Christian!"

   "I guess I must have made a mistake," Alex replied. 
"Apparently your neighbor is a Christian IF the Bible says, 
"God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, 
that whosoever bringeth soup to his neighbor shall not 
perish but have everlasting life."

   One big problem is terminologies. Your Catholic friend 
can use thew same words you use and mean something entirely 
different than you mean. Here is a list of terminologies 
and the Catholic definition to these:

   1. Born again. Baptism is the new birth and it makes a 
person a child of God. Some charismatic RCs have post-
baptismal experiences they refer to as new births.

   2. Saved by Grace. God gives you the ability to do the 
works that are necessary for salvation.

   3. Jesus died for me. Jesus opened the gate to Heaven to 
make it possible for me to get to God.

   4. Justification by Faith. By faith in the operation of 
God in the Sacraments (especially Baptism), we are brought 
to a position in which we are able to accomplish the works 
necessary for our salvation.

   5. Heaven is a Gift. Not only does God give Heaven as a 
free gift to man, He also gives man the extra blessing of 
allowing him to work for it.

   6. Saved. We were saved by our Baptism and the Roman 
Catholic sacraments. We are being saved by our taking 
advantage of the graces offered by the Church. We hope to 
be saved in the future when we stand before God in the last 
Judgment.

   7. Assurance of salvation. (a) Because God is doing so 
many wonderful things in my life (Charismatic priest Larry 
Quilici). (b) God is too loving to send anyone to Hell. 
(c) I'll get to Heaven via Purgatory. (d) It is not really 
possible to commit a mortal sin, because for the sin to be 
mortal you must realize the consequences and have full 
consent of your will. If you knew the sin could send you to 
Hell for eternity, you wouldn't consent to it.

   8. Trusting Christ. We trust Him to help us to do 
whatever is necessary for us to get to Heaven.

   9. Receive Christ. Take the Host into your mouth at 
Mass.

   10. Real Presence of Christ. He abides with you for 10-
15 minutes after you have received the Host at Communion.

   10. TESTIMONY METHOD

   When we were missionmaries in Ireland, we asked the Lord 
for a method whereby, without getting in to an argument, we 
could present the Gospel the very first time we visited a 
home. Often we would be welcomed the first time, but after 
the priest found out about our visit, they were not as open 
the second time.

   The Lord gave us the Testimony Method. We'd go door-to-
door, and would not start by saying, "I'm from the Baptist 
Church." That would give them the oppor-tunity to say, "I'm 
a Catholic" and close the door. We would merely say, "We're 
Bible-believing Christians and we'd like to ask you a few 
questions about the Holy Word of God."

   Before they had a chance to say if they wanted the 
questions, we'd ask the first - "Do you have a Bible?"

   They would breathe a sigh of relief, for they were 
expecting a difficult theological question. Most Catholics 
will say that they have a Bible.

   The second question is, "Do you read your Bible?" They 
would say that they do, even though they might read only a 
few verses a month.

   Then we would ask, "Do you believe the Bible?" We would 
not ask, "Do you believe the Bible or Tradition, as that 
would get us into an argument, and we are going to get into 
an argument soon enough without starting one ourselves. 
When simply asked that question, I have yet to meet a Roman 
Catholic who would answer "No". They believe that they do 
believe the Bible.

   We would then tell them that the blessed and holy 
Apostle St. John wrote five books of the Bible; one is 
called his first Epistle, and in I John 5:13 it says, 
"These things have I written unto you that believe on the 
name of the Son of God, that ye may know that you have 
eternal life."

   We would explain to our Catholic friend that "eternal 
life" means a life that will never end. Then we will ask, 
"Do you believe on the name of the Son of God?"

   "Don't you know that we are all good Catholics here in 
Ireland? We all believe on His Name."

   "Good", we would reply. "Therefore we can put your name 
in this verse, 'These things have I written unto Mr. Murphy 
who believes on the name of the Son of God, that Mr. Murphy 
might know that he has eternal life.' Now, Mr. Murphy, do 
you know that you have eternal life?"

   He might say, "I hope so" or "I think so", or perhaps he 
has recently been to Confession, hasn't committed a mortal 
sin since, and feels he is in a state of grace, which he 
equates with eternal life.

   "All right, Mr. Murphy. Let me ask you a question. If 
you were to die three years from tonight, would you be 
absolutely sure of going straight to Heaven?"

   (We never ask, "If you were to die tonight" for two 
reasons. First, our friend might feel very sick that day, 
and our abruptly asking that question might trigger a heart 
attack. More important, our friend might feel very holy 
that day, having just prayed a long prayer, and might 
think, "If I died tonight, I would probably make it to 
Heaven.")

   When we ask about his assurance in three years, he will 
think if not say, "That is the stupidest question that 
anyone ever asked anyone else. I might commit a mortal sin 
and go to Hell; I might commit a venial sin and go to 
purgatory. No one knows that."

   And, indeed, no Roman Catholic can know that. If he 
speaks of assurance, ask him about three years from now, 
and you will find that if he knows what his church teaches 
about the sin of presumption, he cannot now be certain. If 
he proclaims a definite certainty, he has committed a 
mortal sin and is a candidate for hell.

   We start right there and give our testimony, hence the 
name of the method. This does not mean that we take 45 
minutes to tell him about all the wicked things we did, 
like taking dope and pushing our grandmother down the 
cellar stairs. We simply give him a testimony regarding our 
blessed Saviour, Who is our assurance. It is quite simnple 
to do this using any Bible verse the Lord has blessed you 
with; the very context of this passage, I John 5:11,12 are 
extremely good.

   That doesn't mean that he will automatically get saved 
then, but you have been used by God to draw his attention 
to a truth about salvatiuon in God's Word, and have been 
able to give him a positive testimnony that this glorious 
message worked for you.

   11. THE POWER IN THE WORD OF GOD

   God wants to use both the testimony of scripture and our 
regenerate, enlightened minds to proclaim the Gospel. We 
might be tempted to use one without the other.

   We could go to university, take courses in logic, 
psychology, and argumentation so that we could win any 
argument (a husband would pass the course by proving he 
could win an argument with his wife). Then, based on that 
superior ability to argue, we set forth in evangelism.

   Another option would be to buy a parrot, teach that 
parrot how to quote John 3:16, and set him in a shopping 
mall, where he could recite that verse all day. In actual 
fact, the parrot would do more for evangelism than you 
would, but God wants to get our regenerate, enlightened 
minds used to using the Bible in our evangelism.

   I might pull what looks to be a toy pistol from my 
pocket, aim it at your head and threaten to pull the 
trigger. You would probably think that it is just a toy, 
and you wouldn't be too worried. However, it is possible 
for a toy pistol to look like a real pistol, and a real 
pistol to look like a toy. It wouldn't be until after I 
pulled the trigger that you would find out if it were real.

   In fact, your opinion of the pistol did not matter in 
the slightest. The ONLY thing that mattered is the power 
that was in the pistol,

   You might be in the Army, fighting for your country in 
the trenches. One day an officer comes to you and tells you 
that he is giving you a new rifle, with an unconditional 
guarantee that it will shoot 16 rounds every 15 seconds, 
the bullet will go for a mile and then be honed in by radar 
to hit the enemy between the eyes.

   When you get the rifle, you jump on the top of the 
trench and shout to the enemy, "Hey, you guys, I have bad 
news for you. My new rifle has a written guarantee that it 
will shoot 16 rounds every 15 seconds, the bullets will go 
for a mile and they will hit you right between the eyes."

   Before you got half this sentence out, you would be shot 
dead. You see, you don't have to convinve the enemy how 
good your rifle is; you have to use it.

   Perhaps you have been given a treasure, and you pile it 
up in your front yard. There are beautiful diamonds and 
other gems, and you realize that someone might steal your 
treasure, so you build a fence around it.

   You know that someone could climb the fence, and have 
heard about a guard dog, but your treasure is special, so 
you go and buy a guard lion from the zoo. Then one day you 
see a man climbing your fence and approaching the treasure.

   "Wait a minute, mister," you call out as you run into 
the front yard, "I wouldn't steal that treasure if I were 
you, because I have a guard lion in my house."

   Now who do you think will believe that? No one has a 
guard lion, so he thinks you are bluffing and starts to put 
your treasure in his pockets.

   "Look here, mister," you say. "Here is a receipt from 
the zoo saying that on May 19 I bought a guard lion."

   "Receipt for a guard lion", mutters the man. "What kind 
of a nut is this?" And he continues to take your treasure.

   "I wouldn't touch any more of that treasure if I were 
you; here is a certificate from a vet saying my guard lion 
is very healthy. He has four paws; each one has five claws; 
that's 20 claws to rip you limb from limb."

   The man is unimpressed. He has never met such a kook as 
you, so he continues taking your treasure, even after you 
show him the paper from the bureau of weights and measures 
that says your guard lion weighs 300 pounds.

   "Right inside that door", you threaten, "is a guard lion 
who weighs 300 pounds and is very healthy. You'd better 
stop taking my treasure."

   By this time he has taken it all and it going back over 
your fence.

   Now, of course, what you would actually do is as soon as 
you saw the man starting to cross your fence, you would 
just open the front door and let your guard lion loose. A 
guard lion is much better able to prove his power than you 
are. 

   Hebrews 4:12 says, "For the word of God is quick 
(alive), and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged 
sword." Many people might not believe the Word of God is 
powerful, but God did not say, "When 51% of the people in 
the world believe the Word of God is powerful, it will be." 
The power of the Word of God doesn't depend on what people 
believe about the Word of God.

   Therefore you don't have to go out and prove that the 
Bible is powerful; that it is indeed the Word of God. All 
you have to do is to use the Word of God, and God Himself 
will prove what power there is in His Word.

   Psalm 119:130 says, "The entrance of thy words giveth 
light." We know that unsaved people are blinded by Satan, 
and we should understand the plight of a blind person - he 
cannot see.

   You could hold a pencil in front of a blind man and he 
could not see the pencil. You could bring him outside to 
see the most dazzling sunset and he could not see. Blind 
people do not need something more spectacular to look at; 
they need some sight with which they can see.

   We sometimes think, "If we could only make the Gospel 
message more spectacular. Maybe we could get a converted 
murderer or someone really exciting."

   In fact, the only power to save from sin that is in the 
testimony of a converted murderer is the Word of God that 
he uses. Sometimes, the more spectacular the person is, the 
more we look at the excitement of his past life and are not 
as diligent to listen to the Word of God.

   We see two truths coming out boldly here:
(1) Everyone is as saved as everyone else, for every saved 
person was brought from infinite loss to infinite life.
(2) Every testimony has as much power as any other 
testimony, for the only power in the testimony is the power 
of the Word of God which is used.

   12-DO OR DONE
(for more, write for DO/DONE: THE ULTIMATE CONTRAST)

   The contrast between DO and DONE is probably one of the 
most complete contrasts in the English language.

   If you're doing, you're not done.
If you're done, you're not doing.
You do until you are done.
When you are done you cannot do.

   This truth is brought out in Romans 10:3,4 when God 
shows us the difference between one who is trusting the 
completed work of Christ (verse 4) and one who, because he 
is ignorant of what Christ has done, is trying to perform 
his own salvation (verse 3).

   This truth is likewise contained in many other parts of 
the Bible. As far away as the Garden of Eden, we were 
taught that man tried to do (cover himself with fig 
leaves), but it was God who did a complete work of clothing 
him with skins. The verses which we use to apply salvation 
truths contain this glorious contrast.

   Not only is this in the Bible; we find the DO/DONE 
principle at work in every one's life every day. Therefore 
it becomes one of the easiest principles to work with in 
illustrating the truth of Christ's finished work.

   How long do we eat our breakfast? Until we are done.
How long do we drive to church? Until we arrive
How long do we tie our shoes? Until they are tied.

   Even so simple a thing as sitting can be illustrated as 
a DO/DONE principle. We start to sit, and we keep at it 
until we are seated, and then we can't get more seated.

   Mr. Jones has his appendix removed on Monday. On 
Tuesday, the doctor comes in and says, "How are we today, 
Mr. Jones? We have planned to take out that nasty appendix 
of yours today."

   Mr. Jones replies, "But I thouyght you took it out 
yesterday."

   "Yes, we did, but we have you scheduled for an operation 
every day this week to take that appendix out."

   Ridiculous? Of course. But it illustrates the DO/DONE 
principle at work in our lives.

   My students in a Roman Catholic evangelism course were 
asked to do a term paper on this glorious truth. Their 
illustrations were excellent; one used an example which I 
had never thought of.

   The paper was on Romans 10:3 and Romans 10:4, the 
DO/DONE PRINCIPLE. He closed his paper,

   "Even in citizens band radio, when the message is 
complete, the sender will say "10.4". We also as Christians 
can say "Romans 10:4, over and out. The work is done."

   13. ROMAN CATHOLIC EVANGELISM

   Years ago, when I was ministering in Coleraine, Northern 
Ireland, a young lady accosted me after the message.

   "Why", she asked, "do you go around picking on Roman 
Catholics?

   As is so often the case, I could not come up with a 
ready answer, but as I felt this question might be asked of 
me quite a bit, in a few days I thought of one.

   It was, "Why does an eye-doctor pick on near-sighted 
people?" Of course he does because they have a need, and we 
"pick on" Roman Catholics because they need to hear the 
Gospel.

   Can we use things we and Roman Catholics agree on as a 
basis for evangelism? While there are many who advocate 
this, in actual fact there is NOTHING we agree on.

   The Roman Catholic will profess to believe in the Deity 
of Christ, but still holds to a concept of Christ to which 
he must add his works and merits to complete salvation.

   The Roman Catholic will profess to hold to the 
inspiration of scripture, and yet freely add Tradition and 
the magisterial teachings of the Church.

   All Roman Catholics would profess to believe the 
Trinity, yet to most, God the Father is so far off no one 
can contact Him; God the Son is either a baby in his 
mother's arms or a dead Christ on the Cross; the Holy 
Spirit might be a dove floating around in a charismatic 
church, but they have no biblical concept of the Trinity.

   In the 1932 Eucharistic Congress in Dublin, Ireland, 
there was a big sign over the GPO building. It said, "GOD 
BLESS THE TRINITY."

   What we must work on are contrasts, especially the 
greatest contrast of all - DO/DONE, Romans 10:3 and 4 (see 
Number 12, above)

   What should we do in case the Roman Catholic to whom we 
are witnessing gets mad?

   First, we should not be surprised. Few Catholics get 
saved without getting mad first.

   If he gets mad, we should honestly ask ourselves the 
question, "Why did he get mad?"

   He might be mad because of something stupid that we 
said. Perhaps we told him what we thought was a very funny 
"pope joke", and he got mad. That wasn'y really very smart, 
and, when we realize it was our stupidity that made him 
mad, we go back and apologize. He will not say, "I accept 
your apology and want to get saved", but your sincerely 
admitting you made a mistake will help to build a bridge 
back to him so that you can witness.

   If he got mad simply because you gave him the Word of 
God, don't worry about. There is no wisdom in pursuing him 
further until he calms down, but them go back and give 
another witness, perhaps from a different angle.

   Even if he gets mad, when he cools off, the Word that 
you gave him will be implanted in his heart, and God can 
use that to bring conviction and conversion.

   We who are sure of salvation wonder how a Roman Catholic 
can exist without having this blessed assurance. It really 
is easy to understand.

   No one misses that which they do not know they could 
have. If you were born with only one arm, and everyone in 
your town only had one arm, you would feel very happy about 
the one arm that you had. Your Mom has only one arm, as 
does your Dad, your teacher and all your acquaintances. You 
would often think what a blessing it is to have an arm.

   Then one day a one-armed bus driver drives you to a town 
200 miles away where everyone has two arms. Immediately you 
would say, "I only have one arm."

   Your Roman Catholic friend does not know he could have 
assurance of salvation. In fact, his church consistently 
teaches him that absolute assurance is a mortal sin. 
Therefore he does not naturally desire it, but when you 
give him a Bible-based message about assurance, he can 
begin to realize that God has something for him that he 
does not yet have.

   There are four important rules for Roman Catholic 
evangelism. They will be helpful in any kind of evangelism.

   1. Be Clear. Make sure he knows what you are talking 
about. He will often use terminologies that sound like 
yours; make sure he knows what you mean (see page 15).

   2. Be Biblical. The Bible is the ONLY weapon the Holy 
Spirit uses in evangelism (see #11, page 18).

   3. Be Loving. The tragedy of Roman Catholicism is that 
so many good moral people are hopelessly lost.

   4. Be Patient. No farmer plows, sows and reaps in twenty 
minutes. If all you have to spend in Roman Catholic 
evangeism is 20 minutes, stay home and pray. You will do 
more good.

   In evangelism, we are workers together with the Holy 
Spirit. He it is Who is the expert; we are the learners. 
Therefore it is good if we use the same instrument He uses, 
and His only weapon is the Word of God (Ephesians 6:17).

   You might ask me to help you paint your house, and I 
might know nothing about house-painting. In fact, let us 
say I don't even know how to get the paint on the house. 
After much thought, I come up with a solution. I can get a 
ladle from the kitchen, reach down into the paint can, and 
slap the paint on the house. Since I thought of it, it 
seems like a good idea.

   Armed with the paint can and ladle, I approach your 
house. You have already started, and are using a paint 
brush to apply the paint. I can think one of two things:

   1. My ladle is faster than your paint brush. It is true. 
I can get more paint on the house faster with a ladle than 
you can with a paint brush.

   2. You are the expert and you probably know the best way 
to paint a house. So I would hide my ladle behind my back 
and get a brush to help you paint.

   Sometimes it might seems that our exciting gimmicks do 
the work even faster than the sometimes slow process of 
conviction of sins, testifying of Christ, and the complete 
administration accomplished by the Holy Spirit when the 
sinner has responded to Him. However, if we are really 
interested in working with Him, lets use the one weapon He 
wants to use - the Word of God.

   While the Holy Spirit is God, He has chosen to limit 
Himself during this dispensation of grace. He has no feet, 
so if He is to travel to where a sinner is, He needs to use 
your feet. He has no vocal chords or voice, so He must use 
your voice. But if your voice speaks the Word of God, He 
will come alongside with His mighty power to apply that 
Word to the heart of the unregenerate. What a glorious 
working-together a Christian is invited to share.

   You might want to use a simple word to remind you of 
Roman Catholic evangelism. The word is car. Next time you 
drive in a car, or get run over by a car, think of these 
three letters.

   C stands for capability. The Bible says, "I can do all 
things through Christ which strengtheneth me."

   A stands for availability. Isaiah said, "Lord, here am 
I; send me." We must be available and ready to go for Him.

   R stands for responsibility. Jesus said, "As the Father 
sent me, so send I you." Therefore we have a responsibility 
to be His representative in this wicked world.

   It is not ours to feel capable, but to rely on Him for 
the power needed to do the job.

   I often think of the availability of my finger-nail 
clipper. It waits, sometimes for days, for me to use it. It 
doesn't complain because it does a menial task, unlike the 
scissors, which seems to have a more exciting life. It only 
waits, ready at any time for me to use it for the purpose 
for which I bought it.

   You are bought with a price. Be available for whatever 
the task your Master has for you.

   A responsible representative is one like an Ambassador 
who represents his country overseas. The first thing he 
does is to fly an American flag on his lawn; he wants all 
to know he represents his country.

   If disparaging things are said about his country, he 
will fly to his nation's defense. He will be eager to 
disseminate information about his native land, for his 
purpose in being an Ambassador is to represent his nation 
well. "Ye are ambassadors for Christ..."

   A young man, walking along the beach at dawn, noticed an 
old man ahead of him picking up starfish and flinging them 
into the sea. Catching up with the man, the youth asked 
what he was doing. The answer was that the stranded 
starfish would die if left until the sun got hot.

   "But the beach goes on for miles, and there are millions 
of starfish", countered the young man. "How can your effort 
make any difference?"

   The old man looked at the starfish in his hand and threw 
it to safety in the waves. "It made a difference to that 
one", he said. (Hugh Duncan)

   One of the biggest obstacles I face in the ministry is 
that there are many people who feel too untalented and 
insignificant to make any difference. The above 
illustration and the one that follows are used to help 
people realize that their life can make a difference, and 
that they must patiently learn how to evangelize Catholics.

   Many defer Roman Catholic evangelism because they do not 
know how. Yet learning to evangelize Catholics is much like 
learning to walk.

   To understand the process of learning to walk, we will 
prop a child against the wall. This child has never 
walked, but we want to teach him how.

   The first thing we will do is to read him a few books 
about the mechanics of walking. Then we will bring in a few 
other children who can give their personal testimonies 
about how they learned to walk. Most helpful, however, will 
be the plate of cookies we place on the table and promise 
the child a cookie if he can walk there.

   This child is all geared to walk. He wants to walk more 
than anything in the world. Then we tell him, "I absolutely 
forbid you to take your first step until you are able to 
walk all the way across the room."

   Given those instructions, that child would NEVER walk. 
He would be 21 years old, leaning against the wall, because 
the ONLY way children learn to walk is to take a couple of 
steps, fall down, get up and take a few more steps, fall 
again, etc. (That's why children are built so close to the 
ground and have such thick diapers - so they won't hurt 
themselves when they fall)

   This is the only way you will learn to evangelize 
Catholics. You will try, then you will make a mistake. And 
you'll think, "I'm so embarrassed; I made a mistake. I'll 
never do that again.

   What if the child thought that. He takes one step and 
then falls down. He thinks, "Everyone is looking at me. I 
feel so embarrassed. I'm never going to try to walk again."

   But of course children are not smart enough to think 
that. They walk, they fall, and they go right on trying. We 
have to be more child-like in our evangelistic efforts. You 
will try, and you'll probably fall flat on your face. Don't 
worry about making a mistake - "He who never made a mistake 
never made anything" (Sergeant). Next week you'll make 
fewer mistakes, and although you'll probably never be 
perfect, you will learn to evangelize Catholics.

   14. ROMAN CATHOLIC QUOTATIONS ON THE MASS

   From THE WHAT AND WHY OF CATHOLICISM with the Imprimatur 
of the late Cardinal Spellman. "The Sacrifice of the Mass 
forms a pivot upon which all else turns. If it is what 
Catholics believe it is, then here is the greatest external 
manifestation of the love of God for man and the most 
magnificent testimonial to the validity of Catholicism; but 
if it be false, it is the worse farce and blasphemy every 
perpitrated upon God or man, and the Catholic faith 
collapses into nothingness."

   From ST. PETER'S CATECHISM, (1972),page 48. "The Mass is 
a real sacrifice because in it a Victim is offered by a 
priest for the purpose of reconciling man with God."

   From THE CATHOLIC CATECHISM, John Hardin (1975). "The 
sacrifice on the altar is no mere commemoration of Calvary, 
but a true and proper act of sacrifice whereby Christ, the 
high priest, by an unbloody immolation offers himself a 
most acceptable victim to the eternal father, as he did on 
the cross."

   From A CATHOLIC DICTIONARY OF THEOLOGY, Volume I, page 
9. "Let any crumb of the Holy Body which falls to the 
ground be searched for and if it be found, let the place be 
scraped should it be of earth and the dust therefrom mixed 
with water and given to the faithful as a draught of 
blessing."

   15. ROMAN CATHOLIC QUOTES ON THE PAPACY

   In commenting on Matthew 16:18, Dr. Murray of Maynooth 
Seminary, Ireland, said, "Christ thereby appointed Peter 
the supreme head of His Church, and gave him full authority 
to legislate for it; to teach, inspect and judge; to reject 
and denounce all false doctrine, and to declare what is the 
true faith; to appoint all its clergy and teachers and to 
arrange their work; in short, the whole Church, its 
officers, its constitution, its work, were entrusted to 
Peter."

   Title of the Pope: "Bishop of Rome, Vicar of Jesus 
Christ, Successor of the Prince of the Apostles, Supreme 
Pontiff of the Universal Church, Patriarch of the West, 
Primate of Italy, Archbishop and Metropolitan of the Roman -
Province, Sovereign of the State of the Vatican City, now 
Gloriously Reigning." (Sometimes the last phrase is "Ser-
vant of the Servants of God.") - see I Pe 5:1; II Pe 1:1.

   16. MISCELLANEOUS

   If only a few prophecies had been given about the coming 
Messiah, it would have been easier to envision all the 
prophecies coming to pass in one man. The more stipulations 
are given, the more difficult it is to meet them.

   I could ask you to wait on the sidewalk until a Mercury 
came down the road and you might not have long to wait. If 
I sent you back to wait for a brown Mercury, you would wait 
longer. If finally I sent you to look for a two-toned brown 
1986 Mercury Marquis with a Florida license plate 656 FJG, 
you would say, "That is impossible"

   And yet there is a car with all those stipulations, but 
only one. It is my car. So we can understand that some of 
those who were looking for the Messiah were overawed at the 
vast number of prophecies that all had to be minutely 
fulfilled. Yet they all were in the matchless Person of 
Jesus Christ of Nazareth.

   17 THE DROWNING MAN
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