"You [Pharisees] leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men...thus making void the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And many such things you do." (Mark 7:8,13, ESV)

"See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of this world, and not according to Christ. For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority." (Col. 2:8-10, ESV)

B. Are There Any Traditions That Are Binding on Christians?

"I commend you because you remember me and maintain the traditions even as I delivered them unto you... For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, broke it, and said, 'This is my body…'" (1 Cor. 11:2, 23-24, ESV)

"Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve..." (1 Cor. 15:1-5, ESV ['received' refers to a tradition handed down])

"...if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed...if anyone is preaching...a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed" (Gal. 1:8-9, ESV)

"So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the traditions that you were taught by us, either by our spoken word or by our letter... Now we command you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us." (2 Thess. 2:15, 3:6, ESV ['traditions' here include moral teachings, as well as doctrines and liturgical practices])

"What you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also." (2 Tim. 2:2, ESV [note 4 generations of elders mentioned—Paul, Timothy, 'faithful men', 'others'])

"Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching of Christ does not have God. Whoever abides in the teaching has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house or give him any greeting, for whoever greets him takes part in his wicked works." (2 John 9-11, ESV [St. Athanasius saw this as forbidding communion with 'orthodox' clergy who tolerate heresy])

"I...write...appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints." (Jude 3, ESV)

C. But Can't Scripture Be Interpreted Adequately By Itself, Without Reference to Holy Tradition?

"Philip ran to [the Ethiopian eunuch] and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and asked, 'Do you understand what you are reading?' And he said, 'How can I, unless someone guides me?'" (Acts 8:30-31, ESV)

"So we have the prophetic word [made] more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts. But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is [a matter] of one's own interpretation, for no prophecy was every made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God… in [Paul's letters] are some things hard to understand, which the untaught and unstable distort, as [they do] also the rest of the Scriptures, to their own destruction." (2 Peter 1:19-21, 3:16, NASB-U [the words in brackets here are not in the original Greek])
 

"I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven... [If a brother who sins] refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Truly, I say to you [plural], whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." (Matt. 16:18-19, 18:17-18, ESV)

"I am with you always, to the end of the age." (Matt. 28:20, ESV [the promise following the Great Commission])

"I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you... When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth." (John 14:16-17, 16:13, ESV)

B. Should We Expect the Authentic Church to Be One?

"And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, 'This is the statute of the Passover:  no foreigner shall eat of it... It shall be eaten in one house..." (Exod. 12:43,46, ESV [Christ is referred to as the Passover in 1 Cor. 5:7-8, and the Church Fathers understood the 'one house' as referring to the unity of the Church in one Eucharist])

"If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.  And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand." (Mark 3:24-25, ESV)

"I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd." (John 10:16, ESV [cf. John 10:11, 21:15-17, 1 Peter 5:1-4--while Peter and other apostles are shepherds, Christ Himself is the "chief shepherd"])

"I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father are in me, and I in you, that they also may be one in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one." (John 17:20-22, ESV)

"When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they took his garments...  But [his] tunic was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom, so they said to one another, 'Let us not tear it...'" (John 19:23-24, ESV [contrast with the garment torn by the prophet Ahijah to show the division of the kingdom of Israel, 1 Kings 11:29-36])

"Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore, full of large fish, 153 of them. And although there were so many, the net was not torn." (John 21:11, ESV [the phrase 'children of God' has a numerical value of 153; also compare with the Parable of the Dragnet in Matt. 13:47-50])

"I appeal to you brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and same judgment. For it has been reported to me by Chloe's people that there is quarreling among you, my brothers. What I mean is that each one of you says, 'I follow Paul,' or 'I follow Apollos,' or 'I follow Cephas,' or 'I follow Christ.' Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? ...For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way? ...when you come together as a church, I hear that there are divisions among you.  And I believe it in part, for their must be factions among you in order that those who are genuine among you may be recognized." (1 Cor. 1:10-13, 3:3, 11:18-19, ESV ['factions'='heresies'])

"There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call—one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all." (Eph. 4:4-6, ESV)

"As for a person who stirs up division, after warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him, knowing that such a person is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned." (Titus 3:10-11, ESV [cf. Matt. 18:15-18])

C. What Sort of Authority Does the Church Have?

"The one who hears you hears me, and the one who rejects you rejects me, and the one who rejects me rejects him who sent me." (Luke 10:16, ESV [spoken to the Seventy, but the Augsburg Confession, A.D. 1530, applied this to the bishops])

"Jesus said to [his disciples], 'Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.' And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, 'Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of anyone, they are forgiven; if you withhold forgiveness from anyone, it is withheld.'" (John 20:21-23, ESV)

"[I write] so that you will know how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth." (1 Tim. 3:15, NASB-U [Paul said this of Timothy's church])

"Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning..." (Heb. 13:17, ESV [we need to obey and submit to those leaders who are of the "Church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth"])

A. Is Our Salvation by Grace Alone (Monergy), or Must Free Will Cooperate with Grace (Synergy)?

"...sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you, but you must rule over it." (Gen. 4:7, ESV [spoken to Cain])

"Cast away from you all the transgressions that you have committed, and make yourselves a new heart and a new spirit! ...For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the LORD, so turn, and live." (Eze. 18:31,32, ESV)

"Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling." (Matt. 23:37, NASB-U)

"...the Pharisees... rejected the purpose of God for themselves, not having been baptized." (Luke 7:30, ESV)

"Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only in my presence but in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure." (Phil. 2:12-13, ESV)

B. Is Our Salvation through Faith Alone, or are Good Works Also Necessary?

"Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven." (Matt. 7:21, ESV [v. 22-23 indicate that even performers of miracles can go to Hell])

"...a man came up to [Jesus], saying, 'Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?'  And [Jesus] said to him, '...If you would enter life, keep the commandments.'" (Matthew 19:16-17, ESV)

"I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in me, he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned." (John 15:5-6, ESV [on 'fruit', see Gal. 5:22-23])

"[God] will render to each one according to his works: to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life; but for those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury... For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but the doers of the law who will be justified." (Rom. 2:6-8,13, ESV ['law' here refers to the moral law])

"Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God?  Do not be deceived:  neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.  And such were some of you.  But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God." (1 Cor. 6:9-11)

"...if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing." (1 Cor. 13:2, ESV)

"For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love... Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you... that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God." (Gal. 5:6,19-21, ESV)

"...a person is justified by works and not by faith alone... faith apart from works is dead." (James 2:24,26, ESV)

C. Can Anyone Who Is Justified and Sanctified Know for Sure That He Will Never Be Lost Eternally?

"[Some,] when they hear the word, receive it with joy.  But these have no root; they believe for a while, and in time of testing fall away." (Luke 8:13, ESV)

"[Jews] were broken off for their unbelief, but you stand by your faith. Do not be conceited, but fear; for if God did not spare the natural branches, He will not spare you, either. Behold then the kindness and severity of God; to those who fell, severity, but to you, God's kindness, if you continue in His kindness." (Rom. 11:20-22, NASB-U)

"This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.  Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found trustworthy.  But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by your or by any human court.  In fact, I do not even judge myself.  I am not aware of anything against myself, but I am not thereby acquited.  It is the Lord who judges me.  Therefore, do not pronounce judgment before the time, before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and disclose the purposes of the heart.  Then each one will receive his commendation from God." (1 Cor. 4:1-5, ESV)

"I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some.  I do it all for the sake of the gospel, that I may share with them in its blessings. Do you not know that in a race all the runners compete, but only one receives the prize?  So run that you may obtain it.  Every athlete exercises self-control in all things.  They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable.  So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air.  But I discipline my body and keep in under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified." (1 Cor. 9:22-27, ESV)

"If we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins... one who has set aside the law of Moses dies without mercy on the evidence of two of three witnesses. How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by one who has spurned the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace?" (Heb. 10:28-29, ESV)

"For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first. For it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than after knowing it to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them." (2 Peter 2:20-21, ESV)

A. Is Baptism Only a Symbol, or Does It Communicate New Life to Us?

"Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God... Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God." (John 3:3,5, ESV)

"And now why do you wait? Rise and be baptized and wash away your sins, calling on his name." (Acts 22:16, ESV)

"Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life." (Rom. 6:3-4, ESV)

"In Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ." (Gal. 3:26-27, ESV [the second verse is part of a baptismal hymn still sung in the Orthodox Church today])

"...he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit." (Titus 3:5, ESV [St. Justin wrote of Baptism being regenerative])

"...in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, …a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water. Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ." (1 Peter 3:30-31, ESV)

B. Is the Eucharist Only a Symbol, or Is It the True Body and Blood of Christ?

"...unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life..." (John 6:53-54, ESV [Ignatius wrote of the 'medicine of immortality'])

"The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the same bread… Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of profaning the body and blood of the Lord. Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died." (1 Cor. 10:16-17, 11:27-30, ESV)

C. Are There Any Other Rites That Should be Described as Sacraments [Latin] or Mysteries [Greek]?

"Now when the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent to them Peter and John, who came down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit, for he had not yet fallen on any of them, but they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then they laid their hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit." (Acts 8:14-17, ESV [Chrismation with oil has replaced the laying on of hands])

"'Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.' [Gen. 2:24] This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church." (Eph. 5:31-32, ESV)

"Fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands." (2 Tim. 2:6, ESV [ordination])

"Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed." (James 5:14-16, ESV ['to one another' implies the sick person confessing to an elder/presbyter])

A. Should Worship Be Free of Fixed Forms, or Structured and Liturgical?

"As was His custom, [Jesus] entered the synagogue on the Sabbath, and stood up to read." (Luke 4:16, NASB-U)

"So those who received [Peter's] word were baptized... And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers." (Acts 2:41,42, ESV ['breaking of bread'=the Eucharist])

"While they [those at Antioch] were ministering ['liturgizing'] to the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, 'Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.'" (Acts 13:2, NASB-U)

"We sailed from Philippi after the days of Unleavened Bread... On the first day of the week...we... gathered together to break bread... [Paul] was hurrying to be in Jerusalem...on the day of Pentecost." (Acts 20:6,7,16, NASB-U)

"I was in the Spirit on the Lord's Day... And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders I saw a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain..." (Rev. 1:10, 5:6, ESV [Orthodox call the Host 'the Lamb'])

B. Should Worship Be a Reflection of Contemporary Culture or of Heaven?

"I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted... Seraphim stood above Him, each having six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called out to another and said, 'Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD of hosts, the whole earth is full of His glory.' And the foundations of the thresholds trembled at the voice of him who called out, while the temple was filling with smoke. Then I said, 'Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.' Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a burning coal in his hand, which he had taken from the altar with tongs. He touched my mouth with it and said, 'Behold, this has touched your lips; and your iniquity is taken away and your sin is forgiven.' Then I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, 'Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?' Then I said, 'Here am I. Send me!'" (Isaiah 6:1-8, NASB-U)

"There are those who offer the gifts according to the Law; who serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things, just as Moses was warned by God when he was about to erect the tabernacle; for, 'See,' He says, 'That you make all things according to the pattern which was shown to you on the mountain.' [Ex. 25:40] But now He has obtained a more excellent ministry [liturgy], by as much as He is...the mediator of a better covenant" (Heb. 8:4-6, NASB-U)

"And the four living creatures, each one of them having six wings, are full of eyes around and within; and day and night they do not cease to say, 'Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God, the Almighty, Who was and Who is and Who is to come.'" (Rev. 4:8, NASB-U [the Sanctus is part of all liturgies that have been received from the early Church])

C. What is the Role of the Angels and Saints in Our Worship?

"Bless the LORD, O you his angels, you mighty ones who do his word, obeying the voice of his word!  Bless the LORD, all his hosts, his ministers, who do his will!  Bless the LORD, all this works, in all places of his dominion..." (Psalm 103:20-22, ESV [see also Psalm 148:1-2])

"...their angels in heaven continually see the face of My Father who is in heaven." (Matt. 18:10, NASB-U)

"...there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents." (Luke 15:10, ESV)

"...we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us... you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the Judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant..." (Hebrews 12:1,22-24, NASB-U)

"When He had taken the book, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each one holding a harp and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints [Ps. 141:2, Mal. 1:11]... An ...angel came and stood at the altar, holding a golden censer...much incense was given to him, so that he might add it to the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar which was before the throne." (Rev. 5:8, 8:3, NASB-U)

A. Isn't It "Vain Repetition" To Say the Same Prayers Again and Again?

"...when you are praying, do not use meaningless repetition as the Gentiles do, for they suppose that they will be heard for their many words. So do not be like them; for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him. Pray, then, in this way: 'Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name...'" (Matthew 6:7-9, NASB-U)

"[Jesus told] a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart..." (Luke 18:1, NASB-U)

"Two men went up into the temple to pray... The Pharisee stood and was praying... 'God, I thank You that I am not like other people... I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.' But the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me, the sinner!' I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted." (Luke 18:10-14, NASB-U [cf. the Jesus Prayer])

"Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks" (1 Thess. 5:16-18, NASB-U ['prayer of the heart'])

B. Is Fasting Really a Helpful Discipline for Christians?

"Consecrate a fast... sanctify the congregation, assemble the elders, gather the children and the nursing infants. Let the bridegroom come out of his room and the bride out of her bridal chamber." (Joel 2:15-16, NASB-U)

"Whenever you fast, do not put on a gloomy face as the hypocrites do, for they neglect their appearance so that they will be noticed by men when they are fasting. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full. But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face so that your fasting will not be noticed by men, but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you." (Matt. 6:16-18, NASB-U)

"Then the disciples of John came to Him, asking, 'Why do we and the Pharisees fast, but Your disciples do not fast?' And Jesus said to them, 'The attendants of the bridegroom cannot mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them, can they? But the days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.'" (Matt. 9:14-15, NASB-U [Since the 1st Century, Orthodox Christians have fasted on most Wednesday and Fridays, and prior to Easter/Pascha])

"While they [those at Antioch] were ministering to the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, 'Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.'" (Acts 13:2, NASB-U)

C. Is the Existence of Monasticism Consistent with the Gospel of Christ?

"For there are eunuchs who have been so from birth, and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Let the one who is able to receive this [teaching] receive it... If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me." (Matthew 19:12, 21 ESV [the 'evangelical counsels'])

"Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, who will not receive many times more in this time, and in the age to come eternal life." (Luke 18:29-30, ESV)

"[He who] marries his betrothed does well, and he who refrains... will do even better." (1 Cor. 7:38, NASB-U)

"But refuse to put younger widows on the list, for when they feel sensual desires in disregard of Christ, they want to get married, thus incurring condemnation, because they have set aside their previous pledge." (1 Tim. 5:11-12, NASB-U [the Orthodox Church also forbids marriage following ordination, see 1 Tim.3:2,12, Titus 1:6])

"...they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, ill-treated (men of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in deserts and mountains and caves and holes in the ground." (Heb. 11:38, NASB-U)

A. Is the Making and Veneration of Religious Images Always Idolatry?

"Then God spoke all these words, saying, 'I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. You shall have no other gods before [or besides] Me. You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing lovingkindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.'" (Exodus 20:1-6, NASB-U [cf. Deut. 4:15-18, but see John 1:1-14, 2 Cor.  4:4, Col. 1:15, 1 John 1:1-4])

"Then the LORD said to Moses... 'And you shall make two cherubim of gold... on the two ends of the mercy seat... And you shall put the mercy seat on top of the ark, and in the ark you shall put the testimony that I shall give you. There I will meet you, and from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim that are on the ark of the testimony... Moreover, you shall make the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine twined linen and blue and purple and scarlet yarns; you shall make them with cherubim skillfully worked into them." (Exodus 25:1,18,21-22, 26:1, ESV)

"[The LORD] struck down some of the men of Beth-shemesh because they had looked into the ark of the LORD... and the people mourned because the LORD had struck the people with a great slaughter." (1 Sam. 6:19, NASB-U)

"Around all the walls of the [temple Solomon] carved engraved figures of cherubim and palm trees and open flowers, in the inner and outer rooms. The floor of the house he overlaid with gold..." (1 Kings 6:29-30, ESV)

"I will bow down toward your holy temple in the fear of you." (Psalm 5:7, ESV [see also Psalm 138:2])

B. Is It Idolatry to Honor Sacred Relics and Images of the Saints?

"...as a man was being buried, behold, a marauding band was seen and the man was thrown into the grave of Elisha, and as soon as the man touched the bones of Elisha, he revived and stood on his feet." (2 Kings 13:21, ESV)

"Now many signs and wonders were regularly done among the people by the hands of the apostles... [believers] even carried out the sick into the streets and laid them on cots and mats, that as Peter came by at least his shadow might fall on some of them. The people also gathered from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing the sick and those afflicted with unclean spirits, and they were all healed... And God was doing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul, so that even handkerchiefs or aprons that had touched his skin were carried away to the sick, and their diseases left them and the evil spirits came out of them." (Acts 5:12,15-16, 19:11-12, ESV [shadows=icons?])

"Behind the second curtain was a second section called the Most Holy Place, having the golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, in which was a golden urn holding the manna, and Aaron's staff that had budded, and the tables of the covenant. And above it were the cherubim of glory." (Heb. 9:3-5, ESV)

C. Is It Idolatry to Give Special Honor to the Virgin Mary as the 'Ever-Virgin Mother of God'?

"[Elizabeth] exclaimed... 'Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me?'" (Luke 1:42-43, ESV [cf. the Ark in 2 Sam. 6:9])

"For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed." (Luke 1:48, ESV [cf. Psalm 45:9-17])

"Behold, your mother!" (John 19:27, ESV [cf. 1 Tim. 5:3-8—suggests that Mary had no other children of her own])

"Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus." (Rev. 12:17, ESV [see also 11:19-12:16])