There have been, and yet are, members of the Catholic Church who are true Christians. But the institution itself along with the other Christian institutions does not know the Lord and has no part in the Lord. It all is Babylon—the mother of prostitutes and abominations of the earth.

Babylon is a prostitute. A prostitute is one who refuses to be faithful to a husband, preferring to sell her beauty and graces to whoever will pay for them.

Whenever the Christian religious systems reach out to attract the world, either to gain members or to acquire some other kind of profit for themselves, the Spirit of God leaves them. The cry of the churches to "go out and save souls" often is not coming from the Spirit of God but from the desire of the institutions to be successful. They compass land and sea, as Jesus said, to make one proselyte, and then make the proselyte twice the child of Hell that the institutions are.

God has given gifts of grace to His Bride, and the beauty of holiness. None of these are to be used apart from the Presence of the Lord. They are only to be employed under the direct supervision of the Holy Spirit.

The world has nothing of value to offer and it is spiritually blind. It is willing to come to the churches when they have something it perceives to be of benefit to itself—such as the Christmas shopping season.

Christians who love the Lord have been instrumental in numerous works of social value, such as the education of children, prison and hospital reform, and the abolition of slavery. But it remains true that the churches are to remain separate from the world—holy in the Presence of God's holiness.

We are to assist the widows and orphans while keeping ourselves unspotted by the world.

God has not charged the churches to "save souls." Rather, the responsibility of the churches is to practice and teach righteousness of behavior and holiness of personality. When the churches do this, the Lord will raise up evangelists and others who are able to bring the Word of Life to sinners.

The pressure to "save souls" proceeds, more often than not, from the personal ambition of the religious leaders. A church of many people brings money and status to the leadership. The emphasis of the Epistles to the churches is not on going forth and saving souls nor is it on building assemblies of numerous people. Rather, the emphasis is on righteousness, in view of the coming of the Lord and His Kingdom. One has only to read the Epistles of the Apostles to see that this is so.

The Christian Church is to be the prophet of God among men. As such its gatherings are to be holy convocations in which God is worshiped and the mysteries of the faith are practiced. The Christian assembly is not for the purpose of attracting members of the community nor is it for the purpose of healing the ills of the local community.

To be continued.