What are your denominations? and a question I have...

[CallMeDave]

Im afraid your very wrong because God tells us NOT to forsake the gathering of ourselves in his Word. He doesnt believe in Lone Ranger Christians . Youre missing a very important part of being a Christian if you dont get into a Body of Believers . Maybe you need to weigh up WHY youve been disappointed with the last 3 churches ; the 3 key points to look for are : Genuine Praise and Worship to God and heartfelt, The preaching of Gods Word including The Gospel Message and Bible Studies for further growth in Ones Walk, and for you to use your spritual gifts , talents, and abilities to serve others and God within the Body. Everything else is secondary.

I appreciate your concern dave. I am not saying there is not a single good church out there, just saying that I have found the ones I went to as not genuine or going into the the denomination battle and getting derailing from scripture. I just do not know, its not just spirituality that matters but how the word is being preached. Fro example the assemblies of God in Pakistan assert that if you are not speaking tongues, not even as a sign, then you are not saved and you do not have the holy spirit. That is un-biblical. And I objected to this as I was the member of the church management, the result was that after a couple of months of my objections and demanding explanations and citing scripture, they told me to get out.

One church I attended was where the pastor got always personal during the sermon, he would even insult people from the stage by name for doing something wrong, I agree that a pastor should point out sin but I also believe that doesn't have to go ballistic to do that. Their teaching was as close to okay as I think I understand the Bible but I found no Christian love, all I found was discipline and hypocrisy.

One church I saw was where the two head pastors got into a fight over leadership and eventually went to court, one tried to even assassinate the other, the police got involved, the church was locked down for a year.

Another church I was a member of, was arranging Marilyn Hickey's crusade in Pakistan and they did fraud of Rs. 300,000 in the final settlement, o yes I know because the youth pastor was also the accountant and he left the church when they asked him to make fake accounts. So when I saw that I left the church too.

I could go on and on, but in the church all I ever got taught was, when to close your eyes, when and how to read the Bible, when to clap, when to speak loud when to stand and when to sit. And the places where I did find biblical teaching were too far busy in teaching that they forgot to actually apply that teaching to the church...so what more can I say?

Ive experienced some things that turned me off of a particular church and felt that the H.S> was calling me to leave , so i did and found a few more before finding some that were healthy and well balanced. Its up to US to take those steps in finding a suitable church to attend and to check out everything in accordance to scripture . Many of the same things that go on today in our churches were happening in the times of the Apostles too so it should not be a big surprise ; just keep on pushing forward and dont resign to apathy because thats exactly where Satan wants you to be. He wants us fragmented, dismayed at Christian Churches and CHristianity in general , and to be pessimistic and of a negative spirit. Its a shame for anyone to succumb to that . Go here to find a good well balanced church and follow thier recommendation -- theyve done the legwork at finding out if a particular local church is good or not : www.equip.org . Tell them your town and state and they will give you some churches to visit.

[1over137]

Church are people. Does it matter whether I go to a building where I can talk to people or whether I talk to people via emails or chat or forum?

[CallMeDave]

Church are people. Does it matter whether I go to a building where I can talk to people or whether I talk to people via emails or chat or forum?

As Christians we owe Scripture to be our final court of arbitration and ultimate truth, and it says dont forsake the GATHERING of yourself (in person) . Online contact is good, but, we are supposed to be a vital Community of Believers that come together and share in the joy of Christian fellowship, attend organized BIble Studies, get nourished by Sermons , ALLOW someone we call a Pastor to feed and care for the Flock which is US , and to emmulate the best we can what our Leader Jesus did for setting a precedence . We should be very willing to do this and not look for ways to justify our own feelings or let disappointments get in the way.

end.

[1over137]

I let one pastor to feed me. We exchange emails regularly. Concerning the gathering, well good. But as I am only baby Christian I am still considering which church to visit. My country is mostly Catholics, but I do not want to visit such church.

[PaulSacramento]

Church are people. Does it matter whether I go to a building where I can talk to people or whether I talk to people via emails or chat or forum?

As Christians we owe Scripture to be our final court of arbitration and ultimate truth, and it says dont forsake the GATHERING of yourself (in person) . Online contact is good, but, we are supposed to be a vital Community of Believers that come together and share in the joy of Christian fellowship, attend organized BIble Studies, get nourished by Sermons , ALLOW someone we call a Pastor to feed and care for the Flock which is US , and to emmulate the best we can what our Leader Jesus did for setting a precedence . We should be very willing to do this and not look for ways to justify our own feelings or let disappointments get in the way.

end.

I think it is always important to make the distinction between corporate church going and fellowship.
When Paul told his readers/listeners to not foresake gathering, who was he speaking to, why and under what context?
First off it was the "home churches" of the time, a time of persecution let us not forget and people that only have ONE way to learn about "The Way" (as it was called then).
While I am sure that Paul would have loved to envision a building filled with 100's of people ( perhaps 1000's), he was NOT doing that.
Paul knew the importance of "strength in numbers" and that the group is always stronger than the single.
He also knew that the faith of others strengthens our faith too and that being "one against the many" can be overwhelming and that is why he asked ( not told) for his readers to not foresake in meeting and strengthening themselves.
HOWEVER, it is important that people understand that Christ is NOT found in buildings or in groups but in the HS that guides us.
WE are the church, We are the Body Of Christ on Earth.
Every single believer.
It is wrong to give the impression that one MUST partake in "corporate" or "group worship" to be a Christian or that it was some sort of commandment from Christ.

[RickD]

Im afraid your very wrong because God tells us NOT to forsake the gathering of ourselves in his Word. He doesnt believe in Lone Ranger Christians . Youre missing a very important part of being a Christian if you dont get into a Body of Believers . Maybe you need to weigh up WHY youve been disappointed with the last 3 churches ; the 3 key points to look for are : Genuine Praise and Worship to God and heartfelt, The preaching of Gods Word including The Gospel Message and Bible Studies for further growth in Ones Walk, and for you to use your spritual gifts , talents, and abilities to serve others and God within the Body. Everything else is secondary.

I appreciate your concern dave. I am not saying there is not a single good church out there, just saying that I have found the ones I went to as not genuine or going into the the denomination battle and getting derailing from scripture. I just do not know, its not just spirituality that matters but how the word is being preached. Fro example the assemblies of God in Pakistan assert that if you are not speaking tongues, not even as a sign, then you are not saved and you do not have the holy spirit. That is un-biblical. And I objected to this as I was the member of the church management, the result was that after a couple of months of my objections and demanding explanations and citing scripture, they told me to get out.

One church I attended was where the pastor got always personal during the sermon, he would even insult people from the stage by name for doing something wrong, I agree that a pastor should point out sin but I also believe that doesn't have to go ballistic to do that. Their teaching was as close to okay as I think I understand the Bible but I found no Christian love, all I found was discipline and hypocrisy.

One church I saw was where the two head pastors got into a fight over leadership and eventually went to court, one tried to even assassinate the other, the police got involved, the church was locked down for a year.

Another church I was a member of, was arranging Marilyn Hickey's crusade in Pakistan and they did fraud of Rs. 300,000 in the final settlement, o yes I know because the youth pastor was also the accountant and he left the church when they asked him to make fake accounts. So when I saw that I left the church too.

I could go on and on, but in the church all I ever got taught was, when to close your eyes, when and how to read the Bible, when to clap, when to speak loud when to stand and when to sit. And the places where I did find biblical teaching were too far busy in teaching that they forgot to actually apply that teaching to the church...so what more can I say?

Ive experienced some things that turned me off of a particular church and felt that the H.S> was calling me to leave , so i did and found a few more before finding some that were healthy and well balanced. Its up to US to take those steps in finding a suitable church to attend and to check out everything in accordance to scripture . Many of the same things that go on today in our churches were happening in the times of the Apostles too so it should not be a big surprise ; just keep on pushing forward and dont resign to apathy because thats exactly where Satan wants you to be. He wants us fragmented, dismayed at Christian Churches and CHristianity in general , and to be pessimistic and of a negative spirit. Its a shame for anyone to succumb to that . Go here to find a good well balanced church and follow thier recommendation -- theyve done the legwork at finding out if a particular local church is good or not : http://www.equip.org . Tell them your town and state and they will give you some churches to visit.

Dave, I'm interested in seeing what churches they would recommend to me. Is there a section on the equip.org site, or do I have to email them?

[Seraph]

When I saw the title of this thread the first thing that came to my mind was denominations of money/currency. Clearly I've been too engrossed with numismatics lately .

The church I go to has roots in the "Church of God" denomination but is a pretty open ended non-denominational protestant church. I'd call myself a pretty generic non-denominational protestant.

[CallMeDave]

Im afraid your very wrong because God tells us NOT to forsake the gathering of ourselves in his Word. He doesnt believe in Lone Ranger Christians . Youre missing a very important part of being a Christian if you dont get into a Body of Believers . Maybe you need to weigh up WHY youve been disappointed with the last 3 churches ; the 3 key points to look for are : Genuine Praise and Worship to God and heartfelt, The preaching of Gods Word including The Gospel Message and Bible Studies for further growth in Ones Walk, and for you to use your spritual gifts , talents, and abilities to serve others and God within the Body. Everything else is secondary.

I appreciate your concern dave. I am not saying there is not a single good church out there, just saying that I have found the ones I went to as not genuine or going into the the denomination battle and getting derailing from scripture. I just do not know, its not just spirituality that matters but how the word is being preached. Fro example the assemblies of God in Pakistan assert that if you are not speaking tongues, not even as a sign, then you are not saved and you do not have the holy spirit. That is un-biblical. And I objected to this as I was the member of the church management, the result was that after a couple of months of my objections and demanding explanations and citing scripture, they told me to get out.

One church I attended was where the pastor got always personal during the sermon, he would even insult people from the stage by name for doing something wrong, I agree that a pastor should point out sin but I also believe that doesn't have to go ballistic to do that. Their teaching was as close to okay as I think I understand the Bible but I found no Christian love, all I found was discipline and hypocrisy.

One church I saw was where the two head pastors got into a fight over leadership and eventually went to court, one tried to even assassinate the other, the police got involved, the church was locked down for a year.

Another church I was a member of, was arranging Marilyn Hickey's crusade in Pakistan and they did fraud of Rs. 300,000 in the final settlement, o yes I know because the youth pastor was also the accountant and he left the church when they asked him to make fake accounts. So when I saw that I left the church too.

I could go on and on, but in the church all I ever got taught was, when to close your eyes, when and how to read the Bible, when to clap, when to speak loud when to stand and when to sit. And the places where I did find biblical teaching were too far busy in teaching that they forgot to actually apply that teaching to the church...so what more can I say?

Ive experienced some things that turned me off of a particular church and felt that the H.S> was calling me to leave , so i did and found a few more before finding some that were healthy and well balanced. Its up to US to take those steps in finding a suitable church to attend and to check out everything in accordance to scripture . Many of the same things that go on today in our churches were happening in the times of the Apostles too so it should not be a big surprise ; just keep on pushing forward and dont resign to apathy because thats exactly where Satan wants you to be. He wants us fragmented, dismayed at Christian Churches and CHristianity in general , and to be pessimistic and of a negative spirit. Its a shame for anyone to succumb to that . Go here to find a good well balanced church and follow thier recommendation -- theyve done the legwork at finding out if a particular local church is good or not : http://www.equip.org . Tell them your town and state and they will give you some churches to visit.

Dave, I'm interested in seeing what churches they would recommend to me. Is there a section on the equip.org site, or do I have to email them?

No, you just use their site contact and ask your question. I used to listen to their Radio Program and they would always tell people who were looking for a healthy well balanced local Church to contact them. Also, you can google ANY particular church and there will most likely be Reviews done on it by Others keeping in mind that some of the reviews might be subjective or with an unsubstantiated axe to grind but at least you can get a feel .

[1stjohn0666]

I am monotheist and a believer in Christ. I am considered by an admin on this site as "non-Christian" because I don't believe the way "everybody else" does. I attend a trinitarian church with my wife on Sundays, I believe it is a non-denominational Baptist church. The last I checked #816 has not been changed.

[Canuckster1127]

I am monotheist and a believer in Christ. I am considered by an admin on this site as "non-Christian" because I don't believe the way "everybody else" does. I attend a trinitarian church with my wife on Sundays, I believe it is a non-denominational Baptist church. The last I checked #816 has not been changed.

Have you read our Board Purpose, our Discussion Guidelines and the statement of faith from the main-site?

How did you come To your belief in monotheism and how can you be a "believer in Christ" when you deny His deity?

From our Statement of Belief from the Main Site:

God exists eternally (not created) as one being, having the attributes of being omnipotent (all powerful) omniscient (all knowing), omnipresent (present within all parts of the created universe simultaneously) and all loving. God is revealed to us in the form of three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Father God, the Father, is the Holy Presence of God in Heaven, a real place that exists outside of our physical universe.

Son Jesus Christ is the only begotten (not created) Son of God, born of the virgin Mary through the power of the Holy Spirit. The Son is the full representation of God in human form - both fully human and fully divine. Jesus Christ led a sinless life as the perfect lamb of God. He voluntarily died on the cross to take the punishment for our sins, thereby giving us redemption from death, so that we might have a personal relationship with the Father. Jesus Christ was resurrected from the dead, demonstrating the validity of His substitutionary death and the power of the Father in fulfilling His plan of redemption. Jesus will return to earth in glory as absolute Judge and King.

Gospel The gospel is the "good news" that God has loved us so much that He provided His son, Jesus Christ as the means by which we can be declared sinless, and so, live with God forever in heaven.

Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit is the power of God expressed to and through all who claim Jesus as Lord and Savior. The Holy Spirit convicts the world (and believers) of sin and encourages them to repent and turn to God. The Holy Spirit gives power to the believer to fulfill the perfect will of God and to be conformed to the image of Christ.

[1stjohn0666]

I don't want to change your faith, but the scriptures tell me that there is only one true God John 17:3. There are so many others, and even the great doctrines of the bible teach a one God idea. Monotheist, trinitarian..... they both say "one God" #816 in the RCC was my answer to the Catholic salvation question.

[bippy123]

Okay, to start I do not classify myself as a baptist. I clarify myself as a believer of Jesus Christ. Now that i'm done with that lol. What are your guys's denominations? I'm baptist.

Okay now to my question a lot has happened to the Catholic church. But the major one I have seen is their salvation plans have completely took a turn for the worse. From what people say at the Church I go to. Why is it they switched their salvation plans from Being saved by Grace and not by works to completely the opposite? I know they have a different Bible than protestant churches, but it still has the correct way to get saved in it. So can somebody clarify this for me please?

Sincerely,


Dallas.

Dallas to understand the Catholic Churches understanding of justification you need to know how the church defines works.
Here is a link that will help you to better understand the doctrine.
http://www.catholic.com/quickquestions/ ... -salvation

As far as the 7 books of the the old testament ( the deuterocanonicals), most Protestants believe that Catholics added
Them at the council of Trent , but that is incorrect. The original bible was ratified and canonized at the councils of hippo Carthage, and nicea between 393ad to 410ad (give or take a few years) all had the deuterocanonicals in the bible.

The Septuagint which the apostles preached from had these 7 books. In fact when the dead sea scrolls were found they had 6 of the 7 deuterocanonicals in them. Along came Martin Luther more than 800 years after the first bible was canonized and he decided that the deuteros weren't considered inspired scripture. In fact Luther wanted to take out the book of James and revelations from the bible but some of his more sober minded reformist friends convinced him not to.
If you can get a copy of the original book of James you will debrief it has the 7 deutero books. They were casually taken out later completely in the 1800's.

If Protestants have no problem with the authority of the catholic church to decide on the canon of the new testament why not the old? 393 was even way before the great schism of 1054 between Catholics and Orthodox.

Hope the first link helps to explain the catholic churches definition of works which is not what most Protestants think it is

[Sam1995]

Just to throw myself into the discussion

I am a Christian and attend an Elim Pentecostal church, I do feel called to lead a church by God and whether or not that Church will be independent, I'll leave that for God to tell me inHis own time!

SB

[zacchaeus]

I am a follower of Jesus Christ and I am part of His BODY!!!

[RickD]

I am a follower of Jesus Christ and I am part of His BODY!!!

Zacchaeus is "Christ's appendix".