Welcome to this week’s “Throwback Thursday” installment. Today, we’re going to revisit a post that was originally published back on July 26th, 2015 and has been revised.
On the Wings of Grace Alone: The Testimonies of Thirty Converted Roman Catholics
Edited by Richard Bennett and Glenn Diehl
Solid Ground Christian Books, 2015, 301 pp.
In “On the Wings of Grace Alone,” ex-priest, Richard Bennett (bereanbeacon.org), presents another collection of testimonies from ex-Catholics who left their works-righteousness religion and accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior by faith alone. In two previous books, Bennett culled together the testimonies of ex-priests (“Far From Rome, Near to God: Testimonies of Fifty Converted Catholic Priests”) and ex-nuns (“The Truth Set Us Free: Twenty Former Nuns Tell Their Stories”), but in “On the Wings of Grace Alone: The Testimonies of Thirty Converted Roman Catholics” he presents the stories of ex-Catholic laypersons.
Each contributor speaks of being born into a Catholic family and being indoctrinated into the Catholic religion of sacramental grace and merit. Catholicism is a religious treadmill of constantly striving to live in a “state of grace” by participating in the sacraments and adhering to church rules. In Catholicism, tradition is given much greater emphasis over God’s Word. Few Catholics read the Bible. When they finally did examine the Bible, the contributors were surprised to find that salvation is by the grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ alone. They all repented of their sin and accepted Christ as their Savior by faith alone and left their works-righteousness religion.
This is a valuable collection that will bless Catholics who are searching for Christ, ex-Catholic Christians who have already come out of Rome, and Christians who are interested in the irreconcilable differences between Roman Catholicism and Gospel Christianity. The theology doesn’t get too deep, but the contrast between Catholicism’s salvation system of sacraments and merit and Biblical salvation by God’s grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone is the overriding message.
A couple of the contributors were familiar to me. The late Jim Tetlow wrote a couple of books on Romanism (“Messages from Heaven” and “Queen Rome, Queen of Islam, Queen of All”). Joe Mizzi’s website (justforcatholics.org) is devoted to reaching Catholics with the Gospel. A few of the testimonies get a bit tangled up in the weeds and could have used some more stringent editing. One person goes into detail arguing for the doctrine of predestination while a couple of others promote the “KJV 1611-only” viewpoint. This is the wrong book for delving into arguments on tertiary beliefs. Those few criticisms aside, this is an excellent collection that will bless the reader.
These days, many evangelical pastors and para-church leaders are jostling in line to embrace the pope and works-righteousness Catholics as fellow Christians so it’s a blessing to see that there are still faithful witnesses, like Richard Bennett,* who distinguish between the Gospel of grace and Catholicism’s false gospel of sacramental grace and merit. As the accommodation of error within evangelicalism continues, with pastors praising the pope and Catholic theologians from their pulpits, those who take a stand against Rome will be increasingly marginalized. In addition to the three books mentioned, Bennett also wrote “Catholicism: East of Eden, Insights into Catholicism for the 21st Century.”
I was able to purchase a copy of “On the Wings of Grace Alone” directly from the publisher, Solid Ground Christian Books, at a very favorable, new-book discount. See here.
*Addendum: After fighting the good fight of faith for so many years, Richard Bennett went home to the Lord on September 23, 2019.
Thank you for sharing this, Tom!
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Thank you for the encouragement, Beth! I’m grateful for Richard Bennett’s sacrificial ministry and happy for him that he’s now in the Lord’s very presence.
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Yes! Amen!
A man Of God! For sure!!!
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I am in AZ where my mom in law comes in the winter months… RC everywhere and there is no telling her any different! So thankful for Gods Word’s to plant seeds PRAYERFULLY on good ground! It’s hard to believe sometimes though that there are people that will never turn away from the lies of the RC! What’s even sadder is those that are “joining hands” with them. God knew it would be this way… we MUST stay planted in the fertile ground the Good Lord has given us 🙏🏻❤️
His way is the ONLY WAY! Jesus says so!!!
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Hope you’re having a nice visit and that you have some opportunities to share the Gospel. Right, we mustn’t be discouraged because the Bible foretold this betrayal of the Gospel that we see by so-called evangelical churches.
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Thank you it’s been nice! We aren’t driving straight back like we did getting here! Ugh! We will stop somewhere and stay the night! 🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻 I’m not as young as I use to be!!! 😁
I prayed before our dinner we had with her one night-always a great way to slip the gospel in 🙏🏻👍🏻
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My husband almost had to take her to her church-I was a little miffed at first I’ll admit-but then I thought if he goes in their building he will be reminded why it oh so wrong!
By the grace of God He worked it out so someone else was able to take her 🙏🏻❤️
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Amen! If I never set foot in a Catholic church again it will be too soon.
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👍🏻
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Reblogged this on I ONCE WAS LOST and commented:
Shared with love for God’s Truth!
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🙏🏻
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👍🏻🙏🏻
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Great throwback, brother!
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Thanks, sister! I really appreciated this book and Richard Bennett’s ministry in general. I pray at least one questioning Catholic soul will read this post and order this book.
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I’m joining you in that prayer, brother!
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TY 🙏🏻
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Thank you.
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Thanks for stopping by, Bonnie!
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You are welcome.
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Wow is it already Thursday?
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⏳
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I know right??
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Glad you reviewed this. I miss the ministry of Richard Bennett
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Thanks. Yup, I definitely miss the witness of Richard Bennett as the church increasingly caves to ecumenism with Rome.
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May God raise more Richards for His glory
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Amen!
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And amen!
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Reblogged this on Reformed Calvinist..
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Hey Tom,
I was wondering what you thought of this article?:
https://rationalchristiandiscernment.blogspot.com/2020/06/refuting-trent-horn-on-justification-by.html
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Thanks, Jesse. Excellent rebuttal. I appreciate your alerting me to it. The natural man just does not understand the relationship between saving faith and works. He cannot conceive of a salvation that he did not merit.
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