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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Ordered by Verse | ||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | Question on Hymn of Invitation tradition | Bible general Archive 4 | BMyers | 232117 | ||
If I understand your question correctly, you have more than one issue. The first is you don't like the use of 'invite' or 'invitation' to describe the act of accepting Christ's salvation by grace. The second issue is the ceremony that the church uses. Acts 4:12 explains that there is only one name we can be saved under. So how do we become ‘saved’? Ephesians 2:1-9 explains we have very little to do in our own salvation, it is totally up to God’s saving grace. Romans 10:9 explains how we accept God’s gift of salvation. We do two things, confess and believe. Does the church ceremony save some one? No, but it does provide a means for the message of salvation to be communicated to an individual. So does the ceremony have value? Only in the aspect it is a means of delivering the message of the Good News. Is the word ‘invite’ the best word? I looked up the definition of 'invite' which is to request the presence or participation of; formal request. In my mind, using the word 'invite' doesn't cross any Scriptural boundaries. Are there better words, it truly depends on your audience. If you start talking to someone about justification or sanctification that has just walked in off the street, you may quickly lose them using ‘biblical’ terms on concepts that are foreign to them. Does that mean we dummy down everything? Only to a point of having the time to bring the new believe up and only as far as not compromising the Gospel. When you start teaching your child to read, you don’t hand him a copy of War and Peace, but you start out with See Spot Run. As you teach and train the child you introduce the deeper concepts based on the simple basic principles. As our culture has become more Scripturally illiterate, some of the concepts have to be simplified until we can educate them (Sunday School, small groups, etc.). Do we have to be careful with the terms we use? Yes! Do we have to be careful about placing to much value on a ‘ceremony’ or particular action? Yes! As a church, if all we ever do is offer a Sunday ‘invitation’ to accept Christ and then send the new believer out the door, we are greatly failing in our charge. Matthew 28:19 Brad |
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2 | Question on Hymn of Invitation tradition | Bible general Archive 4 | rustic1959 | 232121 | ||
Brad, I do .like the fact that you gave some scriptures to you reply, and I can see where your thinking is, in reply, we need to remember that we dont invite Jesus in to our heart, it is a simple matter of the church ( which I hope your place of worship does not practice this, ) Jesus draws us near to him, ( no one can come to the Father, unless he draw them near, and draw nigh unto me and I will draw nigh unto you. ) the multitudes that followed him, were drawing nigh unto him. the two men that persued him and kept asking them to save them, until he turned and asked them what would you have of me, and they implored him to save them, they received salvation, ????? see the church today has this wrong, ( I invite you in, ) clearly this needs to be turned the opposite way and people are to be preached to or made aware of the truth. Now it is this word truth, that means the most, you stated that not many people coming in off the street would listen if we used the words justification or sanctification to someone off the street, they would turn away, ?? what is it of us to be concerned if they turn away, offer them the truth, the Lord will call them back to surrender their heart, and when we committ to the phrase Lord and savior, he is our savior, but so many do not make him Lord, which means to have dominion over their life. that is where the salvation is a walk comes into work. you see Brad, the tradition is wrong, the wrong meaning is what is brought from that alter call, it is the Lord calling us, not us saying oh, save me I invite you in, and that is just what is taking place. I know you may think I am silly, but I ask you to look really hard at this ceremony that takes place all the time, and examine how it is truly done, are they being called, or is it about someone telling them the good news and they react by saying, yeah I like that, and lets do that, and then nothing in their life changes, remember John told the Zealots, you must bear witness of this forgiveness, all they wanted to do was to go thru the act of John save us from our sins, purely to no end. Your last few sentences in your reply answered your question, yes we need to be careful of the words we speak, and the actions of the so-called alter calls. And to be aware of the great failing, but the failing is already here and has been here for a long time, there is help, to repent and stop this act that avails nothing, I have seen this wrong hundreds of times, and when I began to draw closer to the truth, my conscience told me that there is something wrong with this part of the worship service. I cried out and it was revealed to me that the Lord is saying thru his word, I am not in this.............. it was very clear and moving to me, i was shaken by it for a long time, but now I know and encourage many who are seeing themselves in despair, to cry out and fall upon their face and surrender their hearts, and to not only ask him but to implore him to save their lives, see............draw nigh and he will draw nigh unto you. no invitation, just sincereity, with a pure conscience, that is what is to be brought to them, even to the one comin gin off the street, have faith that the Lord will reveal to them, even the most wretched, what is the truth, and they will feel the calling to repentance, dont worry what to say, ( For with God all things are possible ) see it is his salvation, we just offer them the truth, no little sinners prayer, these are just pre-printed words on a piece of paper. you mentioned as our culture becomes more illiterate, some concepts have to be simplified, we dare not change our offering of encouragement, and to educate them with the truth, never simplify the way you bring the truth, just tell them, and have faith that our Lord will take them and educate them, you can do nothing, I mean you do nothing, you can plant another water, but the Father cause the increase, without this light, nothing happens, they remain in darkness. I will leave you with this, all thru Ezekiel, Jeremiah, Isiah, you will read of this raising up, do a word study on this, I think once you fully grasp the meaning of this raising up, it will come clear about this question, of practice, by so many churches, in that the Hymn of Invitation will be a part that you will look at differently, only by being raised up in a newness of life, and being born again, which is part of this raising up, can we enter in the Kingdom of Heaven . that is your goal, if you wish to call it that, but we must first get down this teaching then follow the correct way to observe people being called into the fold. thanks |
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