Results 21 - 31 of 31
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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Author: mouse2 Ordered by Date |
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Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
21 | need for a bible-anyone | Bible general Archive 1 | mouse2 | 50457 | ||
Funny how Paul, John and other apostles did not see it that way. Gal 1:8-9 explicitly states false teaching will grant you condemnation. If belonging to a particluar denomination doesn't matter, why the tiff with the Gnostics, and other false teachers? Why the many many warnings in learning to discern good from evil, truth from falsehood? Heb 2:1, 1 John 4:1 Why the warn against following after those who wish to have their ears tickled? 2 Tim 4:2-3 Why the warning of "Many will say to Me in that day Lord, Lord..." (Matt 7:21-23) You wrote: It seems that the Church of Christ's position is an example of the worst of denominationalism - we are right and everyone else is wrong! ;-) That would be God's position that you take issue with, since you refuse to read the Scriptures. Many believe Jesus was a "good man, a great prophet, but the Son of God?" Would they be your siblings too? “You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder.” James 2:19 People in Noah's day would echo that, but, oops!, they were washed away. Noah, God only spoke to you? (And no-God did not speak audibly to me, just making a point here) God would not destroy us all!? Why do we feel we are above heeding what God commanded? I'm not inventing this; we can all read the Scriptures for ourselves. Have a great one. Mouse2 |
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22 | need for a bible-anyone | Bible general Archive 1 | mouse2 | 50439 | ||
You wrote: So the Church of Christ's solution to not being identified as a "part" of Christianity is suggesting that they encompass the whole of Christianity. You still have the same "invisible/visible church" issue within the Churches of Christ, however. You are not a member of a Church of Christ congregation in the city where I live, but rather in a Church of Christ congregation where you live. If the Church of Christ where I live is the true church, how can it also be where you live? One needs to understand the universal church and the local church. The universal church is the whole body of believers, canvassing the entire globe. Its only officer is Jesus Christ. (Eph 1:22-23) No other organizational structure to be found in the universal church. The local church is just that, local. Jesus is also the head of the each local congregation (Eph 1:22-23; Rev 3:19). Elders and deacons are offices for the local congregations (Acts 14:23, 1 Pet 5:2 – how would elders and deacons fulfill this command if at a universal level?) There is no provision anywhere in Scripture for an organizational structure under Christ on earth. You say rightly that I am not a member of the congregation that meets in your city because I do not live there. If I were, I could ask to place membership with that local group of Christians doing God’s will, obeying His commands and still be right with God. Christ is the head of the Universal church, He will determine who is and isn’t a faithful Christian. Each local congregation will have to determine whether someone may place membership or not (Acts 9:19-31). Becoming a Christian does not grant me automatic membership into each local congregation, the opposite is also true; being withdrawn from does not automatically exclude me either (3 John 9-10). Basically, if all the Bible has said concerning the church only applies to the church universal, we could not abide by God’s commands (1 Cor 5:1-5 “when you are assembled” – only done locally, Heb 10:25 “not forsaking our own assembling together” - only done locally, etc). There are many points to be made concerning the differences, but this will suffice for now. You wrote: Interesting that you compare the church of the Lord Jesus to a game that consists entirely of rules, as if that is all the church is. Can we be real? You completely missed the point or chose to miss it. Obviously the church is not a game nor does it consist entirely of rules! The point is: it is ridiculous to claim the church we read in the NT is “new” because you believe it is new to this age and time. Take note: “the Word of God is the seed of the kingdom (Luke 8:11; Matthew 13:18-23). It is also affirmed that this Word of God is incorruptible and abides forever (1 Peter 1:23-25). In addition, seed always produces after its kind (Genesis 1:11-12). When the apostles planted the seed of the kingdom in the First Century, churches of Christ resulted (Acts 2:47; 1 Corinthians 1:2; Romans 16:16). Seeing that we have the same seed today, when we simply preach the same gospel, churches of Christ will be produced today as well. It should be observed that to get something else, some other seed must be planted. To get the Mormon church, one must plant the book of Mormon. To get the Catholic church, a catechism is needed. For Jehovah Witnesses, the writings of the Watchtower Society, for Muslims, the Koran must be preached, and so on.” You wrote: Does this quote mean that you do indeed believe the church disappeared off the face of the earth between the first century and it's "restoration" by the likes of Stone and Campbell? Please answer directly. We can take it. And if so, can you point out exactly when it vanished without a trace? No, I don’t believe the church disappeared off the face of the earth. “God assured us that this kingdom to be established ‘will never be destroyed…but it will itself endure forever’ (Daniel 2:44)” In the letter to the Ephesians, Paul wrote, “To Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen” (Ephesians 3:21). “If God is glorified in the church to all generations, then the church is a relationship that will exist in all generations.” Read 2 Kings 22:8-13. What did you learn? The book of the law had been FOUND. They recognized their failure in heeding God’s word and the wrath that burned against them. They need to restore worship acceptable to God! Read Jeremiah 36:20-28. The scroll Jeremiah had written was burned by King Jehoiakim, what happened? Did it frustrate God’s plan? By no means, another copy was made. The OT was written for our learning and instruction (Romans 15:4, 1 Cor 10:11). So again, NO, the church did not vanish without a trace. Mouse2 |
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23 | need for a bible-anyone | Bible general Archive 1 | mouse2 | 50407 | ||
You wrote: Do you actually believe that the Church of Christ is the only true Christian Church? No - I don’t believe every group that meets wearing the title - church of Christ – is true to Christ’s command for the church. That seems evident in Rev 2 and 3 with the churches in Asia. “What a congregation is presently doing or not doing determines whether or not it is the Lord’s church.” Yes – I do believe that the church of Christ is the only true church. When I speak of the church of Christ I am speaking of the church that Jesus established (Matthew 16:18). Follow me? You wrote: I sincerely fail to see how it differs from any other denomination. It began at a certain point in history and has divided and merged several times (see http://www.mun.ca/rels/restmov/who.html) for a brief history. The church was begun in the 1st century on the day of Pentecost and false teachers quickly splintered off. Around AD 150, infant baptism was advocated (Roman Catholics). It was from Roman Catholicism that many more denominations sprung up: Lutheran (1530), American Episcopal (1609), Methodist (1739), etc. There are many respects in which the church of Christ differs from denominations. Perhaps I will be able to shed some light. Would you agree that when you are looking for something specific, you are looking for something with particular characteristics? Those characteristics are the specific items of distinction. So then, what would be those items of distinction? 1. Founded by Christ: Matt 16:18 states that Jesus would build His church. Not Joseph Smith, Mary Baker Eddy, Ellen G. White, etc. 2. Christ as the Head: Eph 1:22-23 “And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and have Him as head over all things to the church.” Not any human heads (i.e. the Pope), associations, committees, etc. 3. Bible as only creed: 2 Tim 3:16-17. No need for anything else, i.e. Book of Mormon, Koran, Watchtower, etc. 4. No human names: 1 Pet 4:16 “…but if anyone suffers as a Christian, he is not to be ashamed, but is to glorify God in this name.” Where will you find Baptist, Catholic, Methodist, etc in the Scriptures. More could be listed, but I think this gives pause for thought. You wrote: Every denomination ever begun felt that they too were 'restoring' the true spirit of the first century church. Usually, all they were doing was overemphasizing one particular point of doctrine. I am not interested in what anyone felt they were doing. I am interested in the truth. Certainly, many people felt they were right with God in the days of Noah, yet only 8 people made it onto the ark (2 Peter 2:5) Jesus has made it clear the way is narrow (Matt 7:13-14), narrow indeed. Scripture predicts the apostasy to come (2 Peter 3:16; 1 Tim 4:1-3 – is that not Catholicism’s doctrine?; 2 Tim 4:2-4; Matt 7:22). Do you still fail to see any differences? Mouse2 |
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24 | need for a bible-anyone | Bible general Archive 1 | mouse2 | 50349 | ||
Just wanted to make some points that you might find helpful. You wrote: I subscribe to the doctrine found in the 'Baptist Faith and Message.' Why make that statement? Why do you need to subscribe to any committee prescribed statement? I went to the website and clicked around here and there. What does the book of Acts mean when it says: Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Brethren, what shall we do?" Peter said to them, "Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." SBC holds "It is an act of obedience symbolizing the believer's faith in a crucified, buried, and risen Saviour, the believer's death to sin, the burial of the old life, and the resurrection to walk in newness of life in Christ Jesus. It is a testimony to his faith in the final resurrection of the dead. Being a church ordinance, it is prerequisite to the privileges of church membership and to the Lord's Supper. " It says nothing of baptism for the remission of sins. Baptism is something someone else does to you, not that you do to yourself. It is not a work you do, it is done to you. The book of Acts is church history, with numerous examples of various people becoming Christians. All taking th same route: Hearing God's word, believing that Word, Confessing Christ, Repenting, and submitting to baptism. All taking place before they are added to the Lord's church. You wrote: I challenge anyone to prove that this statement of faith has been, to use your terminology, added to or subtracted from the teaching of the Bible. So I submit to you, one item in the 2 mins I spent on the site. Mouse2 |
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25 | need for a bible-anyone | Bible general Archive 1 | mouse2 | 50348 | ||
This is as good a place to jump in as any. I applaud your efforts Raven in trying to make your points. Good job. I would like to address points made throughout this dialogue. 1. Denominationalism defined: "Please note that our motives are pure. We have no desire to become isolationists or exclude ourselves from everyone else. We like people. But we cannot defend or embrace the denominational world, because first of all it is based upon an unbiblical philosophy: One writer notes 'a denomination is by definition a part of the whole, hence a party among parties. The theory of denominationalism is that one may be a Christian and a member of the universal and "invisible" church, but by choice may be also a member of a particular segment of "Christianity". That segment will have certain features which distinguishes it from other "Christian" segments. These distinguishing features are what denominate that segment, making it a denomination.' (Pharr p. 8) " Source:www.beavertonchurchofchrist.net/Not_Denomination_1.html 2. Question was basically something like this: Where was the church from the 1st century to the 19th century? "Some have recently tried to argue that the churches of Christ have only existed for approximately three hundred years, and that they are simply an American denomination. Yet someone noted that if the game of baseball were wiped off the face of the earth, and someone discovered the rule book a thousand years from now and restored the game of baseball, would it be a new game? No, people would proclaim, “This game is over a thousand years old” (Spiritual Sword p. 2). The fact of the matter is that churches of Christ are spoken of as being in existence in the first century (Romans 16:16). In addition, all the practices that are associated with the church of Christ (see the identifying marks above) are not practices or doctrines that are 300 years old, rather they are all found in the New Testament! Thus the challenge to someone who makes the above claim would be, “Which doctrine or practice in the churches of Christ is only three hundred years old?” Finally, the church of Christ may be 300 years old in America from the fact that the country itself is only that old! To argue that the church of Christ is only three hundred years old is about as silly as arguing that the marriage relationship based on the Scriptures is only three hundred years old." Source:www.beavertonchurchofchrist.net/The_church_of_Christ.htm Now perhaps someone will be all up in arms about quoting someone else, but why must I reinvent the wheel. I believe these thoughts precisely echo my thougts and I could not have worded it any better. Thank you for your patience in getting this far. Mouse2 |
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26 | bible reference to support remarrying | NT general Archive 1 | mouse2 | 50234 | ||
I believe Matthew 5:32 answers your question. There is an innocent party and a guilty party. The innocent party may remarry. The guilty party cannot. If a man's wife commits adultery, he may put her away, and remarry. If a man marries a put away woman, he commits adultery. Matthew 19:9 also echoes the Scriptural grounds for divorce. I hope I have presented God's requirements clearly. Mouse2 |
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27 | Pastors same as preachers?. | 1 Cor 14:40 | mouse2 | 43407 | ||
I notice the words "preacher" and "pastor" are used interchangeably. I can't find that in Scripture. I understand "preacher" to be synonymous with "evangelist". I understand "pastor" to be synonymous with, "bishop, elder, overseer". Eph 4:11 uses pastor separate and apart from evangelist or preacher. Note also: From beavertonchurchofchrist.net "Commonly Asked Questions" The title 'Pastor' applies to the same group of men referred to as elders or bishops (Acts 20:17,28; 1 Peter 5:1-3). 2. There was always a plurality of "pastors" in every congregation (Acts 14:23; 20:17; Phil. 1:1). 3. We never find a congregation which is be shepherded by just one pastor. We never find pastors overseeing more than one congregation (1 Peter 5:2). We never find 'youth' pastors or 'senior' pastors. And we never find women serving as pastors. The qualifications are specific and include the qualification of being a man, who is the husband of one wife, having children who are believers (1 Timothy 3:1-4; Titus 1:5-9). My hope is that this would add some clarity. |
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28 | AA agnostic wants practical proof of God | Rom 10:17 | mouse2 | 37938 | ||
I don't know of any "simple" methods or steps, but the Gospel of John is an excellent starting point. I also know of a website that has "sermons for the skeptical" if you are interested. I don't know if you are allowed to post website addresses. I could not find anything in the TOU prohibiting it though. | ||||||
29 | Need To find Scripture | Rom 10:9 | mouse2 | 37572 | ||
We change our lives to align to God's Holy word. Acts is an excellent book to read and study about salvation. Acts describes what God expects from us, the conditions for our salvation. The gospel is simple indeed, but there is more than believing. James 2:19 tells us "the demons also believe, and shudder." Read the conversions of Acts, in it we see the need to 1. hear the Word 2. believe the Word 3. confess that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God 4. Repent of our sins 5. Be baptized for the remission of those sins. You are right. God is not confusing, nor a God of confusion, Satan is. Things we use to accept are no longer acceptable. God gave the Great Commission Matt 28:18-20 or Mark 16:15-16. Sincerely, Mouse2 |
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30 | uses of drugs | 1 Cor 6:19 | mouse2 | 37569 | ||
As far as I know there isn't any scripture that says don't use dangerous drugs. I'm not sure what you mean by soft drugs. But I believe from 1 Cor 6:19-20, we can infer we are not to pollute our bodies. In fact 1 Cor 6:12-20 makes excellent points. Let me clarify that I am in no way including medications to make us well. I am speaking about illicit/illegal drugs. | ||||||
31 | Need To find Scripture | Rom 10:9 | mouse2 | 37557 | ||
Hello, I believe the passage to which you may be referring is 2 Peter 2:20-22. | ||||||
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