What is the church? What is the "true" church? What is the purpose of attending church?What if the church you attend it not fulling it's purpose?Do you stay/leave? why? why not?Just some thoughts to discuss.Grace,Doug
_________________a Jesus freak
Thanks to Br. Ron, I know the meaning of what is the church. The greek word translates, "called out." One might ask what does it mean to be called out? I believe this speaks of the grace of God that works in each individual to remove the affections one has for this world. By faith, one will be led to grab hold of God as He removes the world from us. The true church is the body of believers that have experienced the grace that leads to the ongoing breaking of the bondage of this world. It is hard to know the true church where the affections for this world still are held onto by those who profess Jesus Christ. Paul exhorts the church:16 And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: I will dwell in them And walk among them. I will be their God, And they shall be My people.17 Therefore Come out from among them And be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, And I will receive you.18 I will be a Father to you, And you shall be My sons and daughters, Says the LORD Almighty.I have quit the church I once was deeply involved with, and we as a family have conducted home church. Yet this is not sufficient. If we say we follow Christ, He will always lead us to speak of the Good News. So I must conclude that God will open my blind eyes and restore my heart, and place my family and I in some kind of fellowship. It might be an expanded house church, like the church that exists in China.In ChristJeff
_________________Jeff Marshalek
This is good. What if the people you fellowship are still in love with the world? What if their affections are still towards the world? But what if they do both " go to church and do all the 'christian' things " and also " enjoy watching football, listening to bad music" or whatever that is "worldly". What if they are so inward focused and going the business of the church and forgetting the church's mission? How do you know you are "called out" to a specific church body?
How do you know you are "called out" to a specific church body?
_________________Josh Parsley
If you are not satisfied with your church, there is nothing stopping you from visiting others. Are you unhappy with just your church or your denomination? Find a church/denomination that follows the true word of God and one in which you feel comfortable. It may take several visits and research, but it will be worth it. Going to church is not just about fellowship. It is also about learning. A person can never learn enough about Jesus. It is also about praising the Lord. Pray, ask others to pray for you, and don't be afraid to go where the Lord leads you.
_________________Kim
Since leaving the church I once attended, I have visited others. This is an observation and not something that is cast in stone. There are two types of churches. The first will have a fellowship that is made up of similiar groups of people. They seem to have the same socio-economic backgrounds and therefore similiar interests. The interests of this kind of fellowship which I have been apart of for much of my church life has centered on extracurricular activities. Things like home improvement, hunting, children's programs, investment and legal advice dominate the conversations during fellowship. The second type of church is one that has diverse socio-economic backgrounds. In this church there is no overwhelmling shared interests in the things held in common by the people that make up the fellowship. I have found brothers here and there who only have a desire to share the things that we have in common in Christ. The fellowship is dominated by testimony, praise, and the Word of God. I don't believe that these two types of fellowship can coexist in one congregation without division. In ChristJeff
That was brilliant. What a true observation.
Jeff,I like your description. There are definitely two types of churches.The first one is like a social organization. "We love God but he better have us out of here for football (or whatever)." Once the service is over, life goes on as usual. I want Jesus and my life (my idols, my agenda, etc.). We define who Jesus is, rather than allow the Holy Spirit to reveal Jesus in the Word.The second type of church is simply all about Jesus. What does He want, what is He doing in each other's life? What is the agenda of Jesus? This church centers around Him. There's no talk of outside things unless it's something like Does Jesus want me to do this? There's no hidden agenda.In the second church, one doesn't know or care if they would otherwise be friends or not but they care only what Jesus wants. The people are brought together solely by this love of Jesus.I cannot begin to proclaim how happy I am to be in the second type of church. All I can say is thank you Jesus.
_________________Ed Pugh
I cannot begin to proclaim how happy I am to be in the second type of church. All I can say is thank you Jesus.
Kire wrote:
If you are searching with all you heart God will show you and bring you even with no human labours to the right people and right place for you and your spiritual growth!
