The Mass: Established by God or Man?

The Mass: Established by God or Man?

by David Scott

Every time I read the book of Hebrews, I'm reminded of what it says about the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ compared to what the Vatican says about the mass. The teachings of Rome on this important subject are in such conflict with the Bible that I must try to restore the truth to the church. Hence, this essay.

The Roman Catholic doctrine states that each time a mass is performed, it is a fresh sacrifice of the body and blood of the Lord Jesus. The idea that Jesus must be sacrificed daily in the mass is based upon the O.T. sacrifices, which were also made daily. However, the book of Hebrews makes it very clear that Jesus established not only a new covenant (ch. 8:7-13), but also a better covenant (ch. 8:6). Now that we are living under a new covenant, many things that were done under the old were changed. These changes are what make it better.

One of the main changes was the way God did away with animal sacrifices and replaced them with the sacrifice of His Son (ch. 9:12-14). Ch. 9:23 clearly states that O.T. animal blood was able to cleanse earthly things, which were only copies (symbolic) of heavenly things. However, only Jesus' blood was able to cleanse the heavenly things themselves. That is why His blood is called a better sacrifice in this verse.

Ch. 9:25 points out how O.T. sacrifices had to be made often, and vs. 26 indicates that Jesus would have been required to suffer often if His death was no better than an animal sacrifice. But vs. 26 clearly says that Jesus came only once to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. Vs. 28 stresses this by repeating the fact that He was offered only once to bear our sins. This is because, as vs. 27 says, it is appointed for men to die only once.

It is explained in ch. 10:1-4 that the reason O.T. sacrifices had to be made often was because those sacrifices could not make the worshippers perfect. The blood of O.T. animals was not able to purge sin. It could only atone (cover) for it until the sacrifice of Jesus' blood was performed once to fulfill what it symbolized. Thus, there is a great difference between atonement and remission. Jesus' blood does not merely cover our sin. His blood is able to thoroughly cleanse us from sin and purge our conscience (ch. 9:14).

Ch. 10:5-9 further points out that Jesus came to take away the first covenant in order to establish the second covenant. Vs. 10 clearly states that Jesus only had to offer His body once to accomplish this. And if that still does not convince you, vss. 11-12 summarize everything by stating, "And every (O.T.) priest stands ministering daily and offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But this Man (Jesus), after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God." Because His one-time sacrifice has the efficacy to last forever, it does not need to be done daily in a mass.

Vs. 14 continues to emphasize this by saying, "For by one offering He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified." Vs. 18 concludes by saying, "Now where there is remission of these, there is no longer an offering for sin." In other words, once God has forgiven you because of the one-time sacrifice of Jesus, there does not need to be any more sacrifices on a daily basis. Once was enough. While the mass has a great show of piety and religiosity, it essentially denies everything explained above. By treating Jesus' death the same as an O.T. animal sacrifice, Rome has subverted the truth of God's word. They have influenced millions of very sincere people to put their faith in lies instead of the truth. The truth can break the bondage of sin over your life so that you need not frequently confess the same sins over and over again. Our freedom from the bondage to sin is one of the main topics discussed by Paul in the book of Romans.

Unfortunately, the mass not only obfuscates the purpose of Jesus' one-time sacrifice, but also misinterprets what Jesus said about His body and blood when He instituted the sacrament of communion as a memorial to His redemptive sacrifice. Jesus was speaking metaphorically when He broke bread and said, "this is My body." He was likewise speaking metaphorically when He took the cup and said, "this is My blood." He said this to show how bread and vine juice could be used symbolically as a substitution for His body and blood. Thus, He was teaching substitution, not transubstantiation. Since Jesus only needed to die once (Heb. 8-10), there is no further need for His literal body and blood to be sacrificed daily. The sacrament of communion is only intended to be a memorial (1 Cor. 11:24-26) because we do it in remembrance of Him. Because this is a memorial, we partake of Jesus' body and blood in a spiritual way, not literally (John 6:32-63).

The N.T. not only changed the system of sacrifice, but also the priesthood (Heb. 5-7). All of the O.T. priests were from the tribe of Levi. That is why they were called the Levitical priesthood (ch. 7:11). However, Jesus came from the tribe of Judah (ch. 7:14), and God appointed Him to be the High Priest over the order of Melchizedek (ch. 5:6; 6:20; 7:11-20). Since Roman Catholic priests attempt to sacrifice Jesus daily in the mass, they have patterned themselves after the Levitical priesthood. If they patterned themselves after the Melchizedek priesthood, they would acknowledge that Jesus only needed to sacrifice Himself once, and partaking of the Lord's supper is only a memorial to that event. Roman Catholic priests have, therefore, placed themselves under the O.T. law instead of N.T. grace. True salvation does not come that way. Manmade traditions nullify the word of God (Mark 7:9-13). Jesus said that only the truth can set you free (John 8:32). Thus, they offer a counterfeit salvation.

Even the Roman Catholic hierarchy is not scriptural. They place the Pope at the top and even dare to call him the head of the church. However, the Bible acknowledges no one but Jesus Christ as the head of the church (Eph. 1:22; 4:15; 5:23; Col. 1:18). The R.C. hierarchy then places cardinals under the Pope, followed by arch bishops, bishops, and then priests. However, the Bible hierarchy has apostles under Christ, then prophets, teachers, miracle workers, healers, helpers, administrators, and those who speak with tongues and interpret them (1 Cor. 12:28-30). The Bible also encourages ministers to marry (1 Tim. 3:2; Titus 1:6). The apostle Paul even warned that a time was coming when some would depart from the faith as a result of heeding seducing spirits and doctrines of demons. Forbidding marriage was one demonic doctrine he specifically listed (1 Tim. 4:1-3). The reason why forbidding marriage is a demonic doctrine has been publicly exposed by all the sex scandals of R.C. priests. They have not only yielded to the temptation of pedophilia, but also adultery and fornication. There is such a stark difference between these two hierarchies that it should be obvious the R.C. system is manmade.

Another way the R.C. system detracts from the preeminence of Jesus Christ is the way their priests usurp His office as the only Mediator of the new covenant. There are three verses in Hebrews, which identify Jesus as our Mediator (ch. 8:6; 9:15; 12:24). If that does not convince you, see what Paul said about this in 1 Tim. 2:5 – "For there is one God and one Mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus." The reason Jesus is our Mediator is because He is also our High Priest. The main purpose of an O.T. high priest was to represent the people to God (Heb. 5:1-2) by offering sacrifices on their behalf to atone for their sins. Jesus not only represented us to God by providing for our forgiveness by the sacrifice of Himself, but also represents us to God by interceding for us (Heb. 7:25; Rom. 8:34). Thus, we should be confessing our sins to Jesus Christ, not to priests.

Nor is it scriptural for us to direct our prayers to anyone but God. If you read every Bible verse about prayer, you will discover that prayer is a form of worship. No one should ever be worshipped but God. When the apostle John was caught up to heaven to receive the book of Revelation, he was twice tempted to worship beings, who were created by God. Both times John was admonished to stop it and worship God alone (Rev. 19:10; 22:8-9). We should only worship the Creator, not anyone of His creation. Since prayer is a form of worship, praying to anyone other than to God is a violation of the 1st and 2nd Commandments (Exo. 20:3-4). Thus, praying to Mary or other dead saints is idolatry.

This raises another issue -- the true definition of what it means to be a saint. The R.C. system only recognizes a select few as being saints. This acknowledgment is only given after they are dead. However, the Bible teaches that everyone, who has saving faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, is already a saint while they are still alive. To understand the truth of this, you should study every Bible verse, which mentions saints. It would also be helpful to do a word study on what it means to be elected. To help you get started, I suggest prayerfully reading the following references: Acts 9:13,32,41; Rom. 1:7; 1 Cor. 1:2; 2 Cor. 1:1; Eph. 1:1; 6:18; Phil. 1:1; Col. 1:1; 3:12; 1 Thes. 1:4; 1 Pet. 1:2.

In view of all the above, one must ask why a church, which claims to serve God would establish a system, which functions so contrary to His word. It seems to me that everything they do is designed to control the people. They lose control when people pray to God for forgiveness instead of confessing to them. One way confession is used to control others was exposed by Father Chinaquay in his book, The Priest, The Woman, and The Confessional, which was written in the early 1900's after he had been a priest for about 50 years. They lose control when people realize that Jesus does not need to be sacrificed daily through the transubstantiation of bread and vine juice. They lose control when people realize they need to focus their faith on God and His Son instead of depending upon them.

Both Paul and Peter made important declarations as to how God's ministers should relate to His people. In 2 Cor. 1:24, Paul said that he did not have dominion over the church, but was merely a helper to their relationship with God. In 1 Pet. 5:3, Peter said he had no right to act as a lord over God's flock, but was to be an example to them. While it is true that N.T. leaders have a God-given authority, which believers ought to obey, it is also true in view of what Paul and Peter said that leaders must be careful how they exercise that authority. Jesus taught His apostles to be servants (John 13:3-16), not lords over God's people (Mark 10:42-44).

Walter Martin wrote a book entitled The Kingdom of the Cults, in which he explained how the religion invented by Herbert and Garner Ted Armstrong was really a cult. After the Armstrongs died, those who inherited the leadership of their organization came to a realization that what Walter Martin said was true. The new leaders repented and turned to the Lord Jesus Christ in a way that brought genuine salvation to them. They were so well-respected that most members of their church followed their example and were also born again. I'd like to see God do the same for those in the Roman Catholic Church. However, in view of the Pope's recent dialogues with the Dali Lama and other pagan leaders to syncretize a world religion, I'm concerned that most Roman Catholics will continue to follow this path to perdition. The coming world religion will be the fulfillment of Rev. 13, and no one who becomes part of that will ever be saved (Rev. 14:9-11). Only those, who reject the beast religion, will be saved (Rev. 20:4).

In conclusion, I would like to describe what I learned from Juan Carlos Baptista, a nephew of Pope John XXIII. Juan had no inner peace after he attempted to serve God for several years as a priest. He asked his uncle, Pope John, what he must do to find peace from God. The Pope suggested that he become a missionary because God is most pleased with those who make the greatest sacrifices to serve Him. Juan promptly went to South America as a missionary, but he still found no peace. When he asked his uncle about it again, Pope John admitted that even he did not have peace. Juan was amazed that after all John had done to become the Pope, even that brought no peace. Juan returned to S.A. rather discouraged and disillusioned. Then he met some Indians in the Andes Mts., who found God's saving grace through some Protestant missionaries. After spending some time with those Indian saints to observe their ways and examine their teachings, Juan opened his heart to Jesus Christ and experienced genuine regeneration. Juan gave his testimony at a convention at Elim Bible Institute in the early 1970's. While his testimony created an appreciation to God for His grace in Juan's life, it also gave his listeners a loving concern for those, who are still trapped in the darkness of the R.C. system. Thus, I haven't written these things to condemn Roman Catholic leaders, but to enlighten them to the truth that can bring them to genuine salvation. I also hope that lay Catholic members will check out what I've written and compare it to God's word.