Results 121 - 140 of 749
|
||||||
Results from: Answers On or After: Thu 12/31/70 Author: mark d seyler Ordered by Verse |
||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
121 | Emergent Church question | Bible general Archive 3 | mark d seyler | 177216 | ||
Hi MJH, I fellowship in a congregation that is an offshoot of a congregation that shares a similar history as yours. The senior pastor stepped into a church of about 25 people, around 40 years ago. The attendance quickly numbered in the thousands, and now approximately 30,000 people call that congregation their home church. Somewhere between 1400 and 1500 congregations currently exist around the world, in nearly every country and corner of the planet, pastored by those that have come out of that congregation, or it's offshoots. There have been started numerous Bible colleges. Millions of Bibles have been distributed within "closed" countries, and I can't begin to imagine how many people have come to know Christ through this movement. I have heard much criticism of this senior pastor, of the movement, of the doctrines, and such. Much of it is vitriolic, and some of it is exceedingly vile. But no matter. Christianity is not a popularity contest. Remember, the one's who crucified Jesus did so on the claim that He spoke falsely. But you need to judge for yourself if your congregation and your pastor are correctly handling and teaching Scripture. It's really as simple as that. There is much about the "emergent church" that is simply revising the cultural trappings of Christianity. People like to do that from time to time. Some like to worship with organ music, some with chiors, and some with electric guitars. Far be it from us to judge and divide over whether we sing with instruments or not, or if we recite liturgy. The "emergent church", in many ways, is simply the pendulum swinging back the other way again for a while. Should the Lord tarry, I am certain it will swing yet again. Meanwhile, if it serves to draw more to Christ, praise to Him! But in many ways, the emergent church is changing the gospel, and exchanging the requirements of holiness for that of worldly, temporal pursuits. Not so much of blatant sinfulness, but in some of this movement, there is more of a concern for people's property, or stomachs, or bank accounts than there is for their salvation, and the doctrine of Christ Alone. I do not know where in the spectrum your church falls, but I know you are intelligent and well studied, and as you seek to do God's will, I do not doubt that He will reveal to you such as what you should know. Many times people will do just as you have postulated, resorting to insults when they are short on facts. This is very common. There was another post in which I believe you stated, correctly, something to the effect of that just because the claim is made by an impeachable source does not affect whether the claim is correct or not. I do not believe that we are to ever treat anyone with anything less than love, but we must be clear and strong on doctrine. The doctrinal issues within the emergent church vary greatly depending on who exactly we are talking about. Some of them trouble me greatly. I am not asking you to name names, I do not know that doing so would enhance the discussion. But I would like to ask you, are there particular doctrines being taught by your pastor that his detractors claim to be false? Are there doctrines that you yourself question? Love in Christ, Mark |
||||||
122 | tongues? | Bible general Archive 3 | mark d seyler | 177491 | ||
Hi Teresa, There is nothing in the Bible that I am aware of that speaks of a pagan version of the Gift of Tongues. There is a passage that occurs to me in this context, however: 1 Corinthians 12:1-3 But concerning the spiritual matters, brothers, I do not wish you to be ignorant. (2) You know that being led away, you nations were led to voiceless idols. (3) Because of this I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God says, Jesus is a curse. And no one is able to say Jesus is Lord, except by the Holy Spirit. This tells us a few things. One is that they're idols do not have a voice, and cannot speak. Another is that the one who speaks by the Holy Spirit does not call Jesus accursed. Also that the one who does call Jesus accursed is not speaking by the Holy Spirit. Now, can the Gift of Tongues actually be practiced by pagans? I don't think so. There could be a counterfeit practice of babbling, but not the actual speaking in tongues. 1Co 14:2 For the one speaking in a tongue does not speak to men, but to God, for no one hears, but in spirit he speaks mysteries. The one who speaks in tongues speaks to God, not to men, not to idols, nor demons, nor false gods. 1Co 14:14 For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my mind is unfruitful. To pray in tongues is for your spirit to pray. The pagan's spirit is dead, and cannot pray. There are two distinct types of the Gift of Tongues taught in the Scripture, one for evangalization and another for prayer (Acts 2 and 1 Cor 14). Both of these are gifts given to men by the Holy Spirit. Your first question is whether spiritual gifts are or are not for today. Some say they are not, because of I Cor 13:10 “But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part (these gifts) shall be done away.” They say “that which is perfect” is the finished Bible. The logic is that since now we have the complete word of God, we are no longer given spiritual gifts, that they were a weaker substitute. What are spiritual gifts for? 1 Cor 14:12 “Even so ye, forasmuch as ye are zealous of spiritual gifts, seek that ye may excel to the edifying of the church,” and Eph. 4:12-13 “For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:” This goes toward answering what “that which is perfect” is. The perfect (complete) man. The gifts are for us until we no longer need them, which will be when WE are completed. That hasn’t happened yet. Is there a pagan counterfeit of tongues? I have heard of such. Kalos posted a Wikipedia article describing what it called “some form of the gift of tongues”, practiced by non-Christians, but I strongly disagree with that description. It cannot be any relation to the gift of tongues, because it has no relation to the Holy Spirit. It can only be a cheap imitation. It would be like calling a cheap handbag knock-off a “type of Gucci”. Either it is, or it isn’t, and it isn’t. Now we know that the devil is a liar, and that he counterfeits what God does, but calling his works a form of God’s works is just not right in my book. So pagans may babble, and call it what you will, but the Bible teaches that the Holy Spirit enables some to speak in unknown languages that are known to others for the purpose of evangelizing, and some to speak in languages unknown to all for the purpose of prayer, and that this will continue until the church has reached the fulness of the stature of Christ. I hope this helps! Love in Christ, Mark |
||||||
123 | is drinking and dancing bad? | Bible general Archive 3 | mark d seyler | 177515 | ||
duplicate question | ||||||
124 | Anthology of Notes and StudyHelps?? | Bible general Archive 3 | mark d seyler | 177538 | ||
Hi Starfire, I use my downloads from e-sword.net a LOT. While not being a bound book, it does provide access to numerous commentarys and notes. Another source is blueletterbible.org. I hope this helps! Love in Christ, Mark |
||||||
125 | What does "Repent" mean? | Bible general Archive 3 | mark d seyler | 177787 | ||
Hi Rusty.com, In the Old Testament, the Hebrew word used of man's repentance is "shub" (shoob), and means to turn. This is to turn away from wrong actions, from sins. In the New Testament, the Greek work is "metanoia", and this means to change your mind. These are in keeping with the Old Testament giving a covenant of works, and is focused on actions, while the New Testament covenant brings an internal change. I hope this helps! Love in Christ, Mark |
||||||
126 | who heard Jesus when he was alone to rec | Bible general Archive 3 | mark d seyler | 177789 | ||
Hi oneratliff, The Holy Spirit heard Him. John 14:25-26 I have spoken these things to you, abiding with you; (26) but the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He shall teach you all things and shall remind you of all things that I said to you. Here Jesus tells the disciples that there are some things He has told them Himself, but when the Holy Spirit comes He will teach them all things, even those things that the disciples were not present for. And also the Holy Spirit would remind them of those things they did hear for themselves. I hope this helps! Love in Christ, Mark |
||||||
127 | Is it disrespectful to not use a title | Bible general Archive 3 | mark d seyler | 177790 | ||
Hi Bereanian, Jesus spoke against titles: Matthew 23:8-11 But do not you be called Rabbi, for One is your Leader, the Christ, and you are all brothers. (9) And call no one your father on earth, for One is your Father, the One in Heaven. (10) Nor be called leaders, for One is your Leader, the Christ. (11) But the greater of you shall be your servant. How do you address a servant? Using honorifics? Generally not. God is so far above us, any supposed differences between us are completely insignificant. The truth is, what do we have that we did not receive? My pastor's name is Mark, and I call him Mark, and I don't believe that he would have it any other way. I wonder if those who have taken such titles to themselves have truly understood: Matthew 20:25-28 But having called them, Jesus said, You know that the rulers of the nations exercise lordship over them, and the great ones exercise authority over them. (26) But it will not be so among you. But whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant. (27) And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your servant; (28) Even as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many. Love in Christ, Mark |
||||||
128 | What is the doctrin of election? | Bible general Archive 3 | mark d seyler | 177923 | ||
Hi Rusty, History has shown us that this question will generally result in 2 answers, yes, and no. It depends entirely on what you believe about the doctrine of election. On the one hand, many profess that God has preselected those who will be saved, and those not preselected will not be saved. On the other hand, many others profess that God gives the opportunity to all to be saved, and those who chose salvation will be saved. On the one hand, the "elect" are chosen to become "in Christ". On the other hand, the "elect" receive Christ's election along with receiving his sonship and inheritance and etc. when they become "in Christ". To easily partake of the many and involved discussions of this topic that have taken place on this forum, simply enter "election" into the Search Words box at the upper right. It will show you all posts that contain that word. If you click on the heading of a post, it will show you the thread. This will not only give you hours and hours of reading material, but will aquaint you with the arguments many have presented. I hope this helps! If you have further questions, please let me know. Love in Christ, Mark |
||||||
129 | my friend hears from her bestfriend | Bible general Archive 3 | mark d seyler | 179093 | ||
duplicate question | ||||||
130 | What say you? | Bible general Archive 3 | mark d seyler | 179207 | ||
answered because I don't like loose ends! If you are reading this, The LORD bless you! The LORD keep you! May the LORD lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace! |
||||||
131 | Passages about beleiving in God | Bible general Archive 3 | mark d seyler | 179706 | ||
Hi Denny, Is Jesus your Lord? Love in Christ, Mark |
||||||
132 | end times Who iwill stand? | Bible general Archive 3 | mark d seyler | 179708 | ||
Hi Foo62, On place this appears is in Zechariah: Zechariah 12 2 "Behold, I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that causes reeling to all the peoples around; and when the siege is against Jerusalem, it will also be against Judah. 3 "It will come about in that day that I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples; all who lift it will be severely injured. And all the nations of the earth will be gathered against it. Zech 12:9 "And in that day I will set about to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem. All the nations of the earth will be gathered against Israel, and all the nations that gather against Israel will be destroyed. So if the US of A exists as a nation at that time, it will be destroyed. Some infer this from Daniel's prophecies, since several political/military groups are mentioned, but none seem to fit the US, but I consider Zechariah's prophecy to be more specific. I hope this helps! Love in Christ, Mark |
||||||
133 | Adam first man or first man in Eden? | Bible general Archive 3 | mark d seyler | 182146 | ||
Hi Xina, I thing that there is a clear textual basis for the understanding that Adam was the first man, and Eve the first woman. Gen 2:7 Then the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being. Gen 2:8 The LORD God planted a garden toward the east, in Eden; and there He placed the man whom He had formed. Notice in verse 8 it says "THE man whom He had formed. This indicates that there was only a single man whom God formed, the one that was placed in the garden. Gen 2:21 So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; then He took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh at that place. Gen 2:22 The LORD God fashioned into a woman the rib which He had taken from the man, and brought her to the man. Still speaking of "the man", God took his "side" and fashioned it into a woman. Gen 3:20 Now the man called his wife's name Eve, because she was the mother of all the living. This woman is called "the mother of all living". So this presents a consistent train of thought that these were the first two people. 1 Cor 15:45 So also it is written, "The first MAN, Adam, BECAME A LIVING SOUL." Adam is called "the first man". I hope this helps! Love in Christ, Mark |
||||||
134 | Leadership roles and struggline with sin | Bible general Archive 3 | mark d seyler | 182150 | ||
Hi Lynnd, Something you said. . . While I cannot comment on a particular struggle in someone's life, someone whom I do not personally know, and who has not come to me for counsel, I can offer this. In Romans 14:23, we are told that which is not of faith is sin. We read such things as: Acts 24:16 "In view of this, I also do my best to maintain always a blameless conscience both before God and before men. 2 Cor 1:12 For our proud confidence is this: the testimony of our conscience, that in holiness and godly sincerity, not in fleshly wisdom but in the grace of God, we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially toward you. 1 Tim 1:19 keeping faith and a good conscience, 2 Tim 1:3 I thank God, whom I serve with a clear conscience Heb 13:18 Pray for us, for we are sure that we have a good conscience, desiring to conduct ourselves honorably in all things. (Now, allow me to be perfectly clear lest someone claim I am saying something I am not. I do not suggest that a man's conscience is the final authority on a matter.) If this person knows that they should step down, then that is exactly what they should do. So without any other information, or specific words for such a one, I could rightfully say to them, "You already know what the right thing to do is." There are passages that discuss leadership positions in the letters to Timothy and Titus. I suggest a careful reading of Titus, since it is the more concise, then Timothy. I hope this helps! Love in Christ, Mark |
||||||
135 | verse: wrong to cause another guilt? | Bible general Archive 3 | mark d seyler | 182152 | ||
Hi Irishsprite, Can we actually make someone feel anything? I understand our feelings to be our own responses. I, or someone else, might feel guilty in a number of different circumstances, including but not limited to being caught in a sin, or being condemned by someone I respect even though I've not done wrong. In the first example, my feelings of guilt are appropriate, in the second, they are not. Does this help at all? If not, can you re-phrase your question perhaps? Love in Christ, Mark |
||||||
136 | Church's response to stephen death | Bible general Archive 3 | mark d seyler | 182153 | ||
Hi Maryellen, There are two things that I know for certain happened in the church as a result of the death of Stephen. Acts 8:2 Some devout men buried Stephen, and made loud lamentation over him. He was mourned. 6 Acts 11:19 So then those who were scattered because of the persecution that occurred in connection with Stephen made their way to Phoenicia and Cyprus and Antioch, speaking the word to no one except to Jews alone. His death apparently began a domino effect leading to the scattering of the church. I hope this helps! Love in Christ, Mark |
||||||
137 | But what makes them the same creation? | Bible general Archive 3 | mark d seyler | 182155 | ||
Hi Xina, Perhaps this will help. The account of man's creation given in Genesis 2 speaks as God were creating the first man, then the first woman. Therefore, if God created man on the 6th day, as described in chapter 1, and then chapter 2 gives us a detailed accounting of the creation of the first man, it must be the creation that took place on the sixth day. This fits well with a Hebrew style of writing that gives a summary version of events first, then goes back in and gives additional details. Our newspapers do the same thing, giving a paragraph summary at the top of the column, then filling in the details. Love in Christ, Mark |
||||||
138 | significance of abraham bing 99 / circum | Bible general Archive 3 | mark d seyler | 182855 | ||
Hi visi1112, There is no special significance given in the Bible about Abraham's age at circumcision. All I could say to this is that no matter when God commands you, obey. I hope this helps! Love in Christ, Mark |
||||||
139 | Jacob fights with God | Bible general Archive 3 | mark d seyler | 182867 | ||
Hi Kudos, I can only really offer my opinions since this isn't spelled out in the Bible. Perhaps Jacob perceived himself as "strong in his flesh" and the LORD wanted to show him that physical strength would not prevail. The the LORD crippled him, forcing him to rely upon the LORD. Jacob may not have realized the full significance of what was happening at first. I hope this helps! Love in Christ, Mark |
||||||
140 | names of Hebrew months | Bible general Archive 3 | mark d seyler | 182969 | ||
This will direct you to numerous Hebrew calenders: http://www.hebrewresources.com/calendar.html I hope this helps! Love in Christ, Mark |
||||||
Result pages: << First < Prev [ 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 ] Next > Last [38] >> |