E.T., DARWIN AND THE POPE

The Lord has graciously given me a burden for the lost. And, I suppose because I used to be one, I have huge burden for even the sincerest of Roman Catholics. Not that they are more deserving of God's grace than others. It's just that I can easily relate with them.

The Lord opened my heart to the truth of the gospel ten years ago. That changed everything for me. Over the years my concern has increased for those who adhere to what the Vatican has self-proclaimed to be "The Mother Church".

So when I come across news articles relating to what comes out of the Vatican these days, I pay close attention. Wednesday's news story from the Associated Press got my attention...and ire.

The news article headlines the latest from Rome with : "The Vatican looks to heavens for signs of alien life".

The story reports that "the Vatican has called in experts to study the possiblility of extraterrestrial alien life and its implication for the Catholic Church.

"Thirty scientists, including non-Catholics, from the U.S., France, Britain, Switzerland, Italy and Chile, attended the conference, called to explore among other issues 'whether sentient life forms exist on other worlds'.

"Earlier this year, the Vatican also sponsored a conference on evolution to mark the 150th anniversary of Charles Darwin's 'The Origin of Species'."

Let me say first that I do not believe there is anything wrong with people wondering if extraterrestial aliens exist in unknown parts of the universe. We cannot be absolutely certain unless we see them or true signs of them. Only God knows for sure because if they do exist, it's because He would have created them.

I do wonder, however, why the Vatican is so concerned about the question that they would sponsor a conference bringing in scientists from all over the world to study the possibility of aliens existing and what the implications would be for the Catholic Church if they did exist.

Implications for the Catholic Church?? What about the whole world?

But even if it were discovered that aliens do exist, (and that would be an amazing discovery) how would that in any way change man's need for salvation? How would that change man's need to be born again? How would that change man's need to repent of their sins and trust in the Savior?

How would the existence of aliens change man's need for the unchangeable gospel of Jesus Christ and adherence to it?

Then again, the Catholic Church does preach a different gospel . So it should come as no surprise that they would spend all that money, time and energy on the unknown as they have in past times spent money, time and energy rejecting what had previously been known as truth from the Word of God until, that is, Charles Darwin happened along.

Last May the Vatican sponsored, yet, another conference to mark, celebrate and support the 150th anniversary of Charles Darwin's theory of evolution as published in "The Origin of Species". The Vatican has always been open about its acceptance of Darwin's theory being a plausible one right from the 'Big Bang' on.

By doing so, however, the Vatican openly rejects the literal Genesis account of creation, an account given directly to man by God through His Holy Word, the Bible. The Vatican has traded the truth of God's Word for a lie. A lie conceived by a mere man, a self proclaimed atheist, no less.

Then what of the gospel? If the Vatican chooses to teach heretical theories over the true Word of God regarding the Genesis account of creation, how can they be trusted to truthfully teach the saving gospel of Jesus Christ to their flock?

I have witnessed to a myriad of catholics over the years. And like I used to, they offer a great array of means by which they will make it into Heaven.

And not once did I ever hear that it would be solely by the grace of God through the substitutionary sacrifice of Christ on the cross, His death and His resurrection. No talk of the need to be born again. No talk of repentance and faith in Christ alone.

Their faith is based upon their own goodness through charitable works, religious rituals and tradtions, being free of 'mortal' sins, the interceding of the Virgin Mary, saints and, most of all, the false security in the unbiblical myth of Purgatory.

And now, as the Pope is busy trying to find aliens in space, the Mother Ship continues to distract and alienate their followers further from the truth of God's Word and, subsequently, God Himself. That has eternal consequences.

Neither adhering to becoming you, from goo, by way of the zoo or by actually finding E.T. in a distant galaxy, negates the fact that people here on earth need to hear the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ just as it is written the the Holy Word of God - the Bible!

That is why genuine Christians must always to be ready to lovingly, compassionately share the true gospel of Jesus to Roman Catholics. We must warn them that they cannot assume that just because they have been baptized into catholicism or that they faithfully practice their religion, that they are destined for Heaven.

Roman Catholics are very sincere people for the most part. But from my experience with them, I have found that they have almost no knowledge of the Bible. Most don't read it at all. They just get their weekly morsel of Scripture at their mass, go through their man-made rituals, traditions and prayers and that's that until the following week.

Please, pray that the Lord would bless you with opportunities to share the gospel truth with those of the Roman Catholic faith be they friend or family. With love and gentleness, reach out to those whom you know who are under the Pope and not under grace.

And should it be that some are drawn by God to true repentance and faith in Christ, they can later decide for themselves if everything else from Darwin to E.T. is really all that important afterall.