Revelife is a great place to chat about life with Christians, but how many of you meet or work together with Christians from other churches and denominations?
Possible problems with going to just one church and fellowshipping only with them (in no particular order):
- Likely only one school of theology being taught leads to less spiritual muscles being exercised through the variety of interpretation, styles, etc. We need to be open to others and how God can speak to us through them.
- Our generation is the most "single" Christian generation in history. When you don't meet new brothers and sisters in Christ because everyone in your church is not your type, then we are promoting the fact that we are one generation from dying and not being faithful to God's command of being fruitful.
- Good testimony to all. If we can't fellowship and love, support, help, or encourage each other for our differences, then we are a bad testimony to the world and each other of Christ's Love which bonds us together! How are we going to preach a gospel of love when we can't even express love to those closest to us?
- One body, many parts. We are to help each other because we all have strengths and weaknesses. Small churches especially need the most help where 10% of the people are doing 90% of the work. They are burned out and their walk with God suffers. Churches shouldn't be in a popularity contest with one another! That's not edifying.
I'm going to an inter-church retreat this Labor Day weekend, and I'm excited to meet all different people. I hope wherever you guys are, you have inter-church events as well!
What are other reasons to spend time with churches other than your own?
Comments (45)
@Pashe@xanga - I love them. Just today, I had premarital sex, disrespected my dad, and stole a car. But my Bishop sold me an indulgence for just $75 and I am all good. Wooooooo!
@scrambledmegzntoast@hardestlevel - Well I hope the sex was good. So how do you go to a church whose theology is not perfect, like say the Catholic church?
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@Pashe@xanga - It is perfect. Don't you read the Bible?
I thought premarital sex was perfect, but the Catholic church, not so much.
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@Pashe@xanga - Well, since the gates of Hades will not prevail against the Church, I supposed neither will "One More EDUCATED black man". But if you want to think that the Holy Father spends his time worrying about what you think, go right ahead.
I am not the one claiming the Catholic church is perfect. U are, which btw Jesus never claimed his bride was perfect because well it's not. None of us are, and since institutions are made up of imperfect people that would make the Roman Catholic church fallible. The Catholic or universal church's perfection came from him and that includes all that believe in him not just the Roman Catholic church. I am glad I worship a God that does care for what I think, just like he cares for what you think.
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@Ancient_Scribe@xanga - So let's stay segregated? Great...
@Pashe@xanga - When speaking to doctrine, the Church, i.e., the Holy Father and the Magisterium are perfect because they are guided by the Holy Spirit. Jesus promised that whatever was bound and loosed by those who succeed Peter and the Apostles on earth will be bound and loosed in Heaven. Nothing imperfect enters into or happens in Heaven.
Nothing is perfect at all. There is no right or wrong for someone staying with the same church until the end of day or shifting from church A to church B, C, D. Maybe it's just a matter of time. We are all in different spritual stages and we are all pursuing different ideals and assumptions when interpreting the concept of church or Christ himself.
Somehow it's like you are looking for the one you gonna spend your life with. When you're having yr 1st boyfriend/girlfriend, you keep thinking about "Oh, I'm gonna stay with him/her forever and forever! I will never turn away from this love!" But when time passes, when you two are experiencing more and more, and there may be some good or bad changes happening on you or your partner, then one day, you may suudenly figure out than you need to leave and find another love. So when you come to the 2nd or 3rd love, you may be carrying an attitude that"I will keep observing this guy to see if we can really go on..." And deep in your heart, you are always well-prepared to leave cause you won't give all of your love until you find out yr partner "satisfies" your ideal.
I believe a true follower of Christ will finally need a "home" even though we're always changing our mind and pursuing the perfect christian fellows, perfect church and the perfect interpretation of Christianity. In my view, a true follower can always discover GOD'S IMAGES in every occasion and among different groups of people, no matter how different their theologies are. In the end, only God is perfect and not those theologies endeavored by human.
@scrambledmegzntoast@hardestlevel -
So somehow a verse referring to relationship to your fellow man orbeliever becomes a verse that explains apostolic authority? You sure do spin much. Those verses have nothing to do w/ papal authority, nothing.True nothing imperfect enters heaven but heaven comes through us now.But our flesh or basic human nature is still imperfect and that exists for all and not just laymen. Peter was imperfect and made mistakes even after he became a leader w/n the Church and so has many of the "popes" in history even when making doctrine or for that matter even when they were being chosen. How many popes were bribed and created doctrine from criminals or were even appointed by the sword or...? At least be honest, I know the protestant church is imperfect and has made somepretty huge mistakes beginning w/ Luther's antisemitism and hatred of the poor. That became a policy for many protestants and their churches to persecute the Jews and hate the poor and even led to the African slave trade. Can you own up to any mistakes the Roman Catholic Church has made in the last 1700 years?
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@Pashe@xanga - I AM NOT SAYING THE CHURCH IS PERFECT!!! TAKE A FREAKING READING COMPREHENSION COURSE, OK? I am sorry, but communicating with you is like hitting my head against a wall. You know what, I don't care. I give up. You don't care what I have to say and I don't care what you have to say and this is just some pathetic little exercise to you. The verse about binding and loosing means what it means, and it appears twice, by the way. This is why Protestantism is a complete wasteland, because everyone with a Bible gets to claim personal authority with no basis to do so. Believe what you want. Why do you even care what I think. That's right, you don't this is all just fun for you. It's not for me. Bye.
@scrambledmegzntoast@hardestlevel - Please this has been a pathetic exercise for you from the beginning. You have shown no respect to your fellow protestant brothers and sisters even though I did try to show respect to the Catholic church and many of its doctrines. You could not even do the same thing for me. When people play the same game you started then you get all huffy. You're wrong, I actually did care about what you thought up, up until you stopped caring about what I thought. You know what and this is why many Catholics like you worship the institution over Jesus. Enjoy the Roman Catholic church, I know I do. Bye and be blessed.
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@Pashe@xanga - Whatever. You are just another Catholic hating bigot, Revelife is full of them. As someone who claims to be black, it's funny how you are still a complete bigot. You started this discussion, I didn't. I have been around Revelife enough to know it is 90% hatred for anything that is not completely protestant. I have been called any numbers of names here and getting my faith rudely condemned is a normal occurrance by the self-important, condescending jerks who account for most of the posters here. You are just another one. Don't give me your fake little be blessed crap, either. I don't want your patronizing passive agressive garbage. Bye and go to hell, bigot.
@scrambledmegzntoast@hardestlevel - Shut up!! You are a fool. Please, if I hated the Roman Catholic church I would not be studying their mystics. I would not be part of contemplative outreach and I would not go and worship God in Roman Catholic churches. I have done nothing but stand up for a whole host of theological issues that are in accordance w/ the Roman Catholic church. People that hate the Roman Catholic church don't do that. So again your points about me are ridiculous. I love the church, Catholic or otherwise. But unlike you I am not brainwashed enough to think that the Roman Catholic church is perfect, doctrine or otherwise, but I don't let that stop me from worshiping God from that pont of view. It's actually strengthened my relationship w/ him.
The only bigot here is you. You despise protestantism and all protestants and when people call you out on your bias you throw a temper tantrum, grow up.
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@Pashe@xanga - Haha. Go cry a little more, you baby. I knew you would snap at some point.
I agree with the Catholics that there is only one Way and the Lord died to make that Way possible. Unfortunately, it was the perversion of the ancient Way that led to Roman Catholicism and the desire of man to correct that error which has led to denominationalism. There is only one church (Eph 4) and through His Word it is possible to discern the will of God for how we live and worship Him. You must accept His Word as a little child, without all of your personal bias, traditions and pride.
The earliest writings of the first Christians uphold that although they may have differed in opinion about some things, they were extraordinarily in harmony on the Gospel of Christ and His church, the actual body of Christ. As you read their letters a clear path away from the scriptures’ is evident from a plurality of pastors/ elders/ shepherds/overseers (all the same) to several hundred years later the institution of a hierarchy of priests’. A clearly unbiblical path became so perverted that when some priests learned the truth and tried to reform their religion they were killed by their church (not the Lords church).
With the wide spread publication of the Holy Scriptures the Truth could no longer be suppressed, but the road back to worshiping the Lord in truth and spirit and obeying His will has been long and fractured. The Reformation did much but it is clear they had Romanist baggage and swung so hard against that error to completely go into error in extreme opposition. For instance; the scriptures hold that only believers were baptized into Christ by immersion, the Catholics sprinkled water on infants, and the reformists mostly held baptism is not necessary. Baptism went from immersing believers as the Lord commanded, perverted to insure everyone born fell under the political power of Popery, to believers not obeying the gospel of Christ.
If the game of baseball was forgotten for a thousand years and someone discovered a book of rules, regulations and how to play the game, the game could be played as it was a thousand years prior. We have the scriptures telling us all God wills for us concerning our life for Him and our worship to Him. All we must do is follow His instructions and the church is restored to its ancient form and practice prior to its perversion by politics, power, greed and the well intentioned desire of the reformers.
It should be unthinkable for a disciple of Christ to worship with a congregation that wears a name other than Christ's, or doesn't obey the Lord by taking the Lord's supper every first day of the week, or has introduced things in the worship of God for the sake of tradition that God has not commanded, or has fellowship with unrepentant sinners against the direct teaching of the Word. I could go on, but I think I made my point.
All churches are not equal in their compliance to God just because they love God and one another. There is not more than one Way to salvation and two congregations can not both have the truth if they teach different ways. God said it is those who obey His commands that love him.
@scrambledmegzntoast@hardestlevel - God bless you.
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@hippiechristian73102@xanga - I think you have an ideal family situation in which to be "iron sharpening iron" because there are little subtile differences in the three movements.@Ancient_Scribe@xanga - I appreciate seeing you here on the topic. I agree with your first comment about being devoted in one congregation so as to not get all mixed up in doctrine. But I think I see that you are willing to dialogue (as I see above on this page that you entered at least two comments).
If the motive of this post is to encourage us to dialogue and think about "why" we believe what we do, then it is very healthy. But if it is to discourage being completely faithful to one local congregation, while living in an area, then I cannot see validity. But I'm going back over comments, to see.
I completely disagree with all of your statements. Infact the Bible tells us not to go "Church hopping" as some call it. I advise you to go to the source for instruction on which church to choose as yours.
@scrambledmegzntoast@hardestlevel - Thank you for posting this sort of response, I can appreciate it. I'm Catholic as well, and naturally I attend only Catholic Masses because that is where I can experience recieving the Holy Eucharist. My family belongs to a parish, we've been attending that particular Church since 1983 and would never fathom leaving, there is no reason to do so. We're dedicated parishoners who enjoy our Church.
Being Catholic, I know that we're not permitted to take part in other denominations' holy communion, and I respect that, and the same holds true for the other way around, and hopefully the others can respect it as well.
I have attended a service at a Lutheran church b/c my husband's niece was confirmed years ago. I know that the Lutheran church is so very close to Catholic, it was nice to see just how close we are.