I find it "interesting" that MacArthur in his notes talks about Mary's humbleness despite the fact that she was carrying Jesus in her womb. I am assuming based on the text that he is talking about Catholicism, and the way they worship her as a saint??? I have a hard time with this issue. Is this even a place to discuss this?
Of course this is the place to discuss Mary and Catholicism. I also had a hard time with Mary because of Catholicism, and I believe the whole subject with Mary must be handled accurately. I believe Mary was special, but there have been many special people in the Bible.
MacArthur's treatment of her is accurate. She is given the honor she deserves. Remember this: it was Mary that God chose to bring forth the Messiah. This was the honor sought for by all women. It is right to give her credit in my opinion.
Great honor was given to Noah, whom God highly favored at a time when He was about to destroy the earth. God highly honored Job and said he was blaimless. God highly honored Abraham, Moses, Joshua, Daniel, David, Elijah, Enoch, other prophets, and many others. See Hebrews 11. But we never made gods out of these people as the Catholics have done with Mary.
We need to look at Mary correctly. She is a saint, but so are you and I. All Christians are called saints and priests. No where in the New Testament are believers called sinners, even though they are.
I believe the Catholics elevated her to deity, and this was wrong. It continues today. They worship her as an intercessor, as we do Christ, who is our intercessor with the Father.
Behind all this female worship is idolatry. It dates back to the mystery religions of Babylon, which would be a good study for everyone. Female worship is prevalent in many religions. Before the Spanish invaded South and Central America, the Incas worship a female goddess. When the Spanish came in, they substituted Mary for the female god to get them to convert to Catholicism. They are still the same today.
But that should not lead us to any kind of false conclusions about Mary. She was highly favored among women and we should repect her for that. However, she is not deity, and we should reject all suggestions of it.
2 comments:
I find it "interesting" that MacArthur in his notes talks about Mary's humbleness despite the fact that she was carrying Jesus in her womb. I am assuming based on the text that he is talking about Catholicism, and the way they worship her as a saint??? I have a hard time with this issue. Is this even a place to discuss this?
Of course this is the place to discuss Mary and Catholicism. I also had a hard time with Mary because of Catholicism, and I believe the whole subject with Mary must be handled accurately. I believe Mary was special, but there have been many special people in the Bible.
MacArthur's treatment of her is accurate. She is given the honor she deserves. Remember this: it was Mary that God chose to bring forth the Messiah. This was the honor sought for by all women. It is right to give her credit in my opinion.
Great honor was given to Noah, whom God highly favored at a time when He was about to destroy the earth. God highly honored Job and said he was blaimless. God highly honored Abraham, Moses, Joshua, Daniel, David, Elijah, Enoch, other prophets, and many others. See Hebrews 11. But we never made gods out of these people as the Catholics have done with Mary.
We need to look at Mary correctly. She is a saint, but so are you and I. All Christians are called saints and priests. No where in the New Testament are believers called sinners, even though they are.
I believe the Catholics elevated her to deity, and this was wrong. It continues today. They worship her as an intercessor, as we do Christ, who is our intercessor with the Father.
Behind all this female worship is idolatry. It dates back to the mystery religions of Babylon, which would be a good study for everyone. Female worship is prevalent in many religions. Before the Spanish invaded South and Central America, the Incas worship a female goddess. When the Spanish came in, they substituted Mary for the female god to get them to convert to Catholicism. They are still the same today.
But that should not lead us to any kind of false conclusions about Mary. She was highly favored among women and we should repect her for that. However, she is not deity, and we should reject all suggestions of it.
Good question.
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