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Is the problem with you or the church? Is the church preaching the Scriptures? Are they working towards growing in the knowledge and love of God? If the answer is yes, then the problem may lie within your heart. Church is the people of God meeting together to encourage each other and bring glory to God. So there is a heavy emphasis there on you to do the encouraging.
Is church a place where you go to build up others? Is church a place you go to encourage people in their Christian life? Is church a place you go to serve? If you're not doing these things, then it doesn't matter where you go to church- the problems will follow you.
Be the encourager. Be an example. And then see, over time, if church is a place where you feel encouraged as well. -
Sure. There's the Serpent in Genesis 2-3. Satan in passages such as Job 1. Beelzebul in Matthew 12. Prince of the Power of the Air in Ephesians 2. The Evil One in Ephesians 6. The Dragon in Revelation 12. And I'm sure there are many more.
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The language of calling to specific roles or directions is not something we find in the Bible. What we do find is a calling to godliness. "But we ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the firstfruits to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth. To this he called you through our gospel, so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ." (2 Thessalonians 2:13-14) God calls you to live a life that brings glory to God. And because we believe that God is in complete control over this world, we know there is nothing we can do to disrupt his plans for salvation in this world. So what decisions should we
Make in life? Well, in some respects, it doesn't matter. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, strength and soul. In everything you do, bring glory to God. So make decisions that honour God. If both your choices bring glory to God, then choose the one you like best. Because God will use you no matter what. We are free to choose.
Because God has freed us to choose, we should be careful when it comes to "listening" for God's call. He doesn't promise us he will speak to us and direct us in this way. What he has promised is that if we listen to his Word, the Bible, we will know how to be one of his people and how to live like one of his people. As long as we follow this direction, we are free to live and make decisions as we choose. -
I was unaware of the New Apostolic Church until this question was posted. There's a New Apostolic Church not far from where I live, but I haven't had any interaction with them. So I did some research. The following is based on my understanding of their beliefs published on their website http://www.newapostolic.org.au (specifically in the document Faith in Life – A Life of Faith: Portrait of a Living Denomination http://www.newapostolic.org.au/admin/uploads/FaithinLifealifeafaith.pdf ) with a little bit of Wikipedia to fill in the gaps. If I've misrepresented their beliefs, I would encourage correction and discussion.
The New Apostolic Church are focussed on the triune God (Father, Son, Holy Spirit) who is revealed in God's Word, the Bible. That's a pretty good start. Though even here some uncertainty creeps in for me, as the Holy Spirit appears to be less a person of the trinity and more an abstract power from God. Therefore as Christians, if we follow this view, we have not God living inside us but merely his power. That makes me a fair bit uneasy.
The document goes on to talk about the three sacraments: baptism, holy communion and holy sealing. I'm fine with the first two but I have significant problems with the third. Holy sealing is the practice of having one of their "apostles" give you the Holy Spirit. This is a form of second blessing. Not only are they saying that you receive the Holy Spirit separate from your conversion (whereas the Bible tells us that you can't become a Christian without the Holy Spirit working within you) but that you have to receive it from a human agent, called an apostle. As this is a salvation issue, this is a significant difference to evangelical Christianity.
The New Apostolic Church reserves the office of apostle for a limited number of people. Only the chief apostle can appoint other apostles and at this point in time only around 360 apostles world-wide have been appointed. They see these apostles as essential for salvation because they alone can forgive sin (this claim seems a bit far out. I really hope I have misunderstood and someone can correct me. If not, big problem).
The apostles also have a rule in giving holy communion to the dead. The opportunities for the dead seem to be welcomed into the kingdom are very much in play here. The New Apostolic Church believes that post-rapture (a concept that I don't believe in, but that's another matter) everyone in the world who has ever died will have an opportunity to turn to Christ for forgiveness and be forgiven. The Bible emphasizes the need to commit to Christ in this life and that there are no second chances after death (see the story of Lazarus in Hell in Luke 16:19-31).
While there may appear to be some similarities between the New Apostolic Church and evangelical beliefs, the differences are significant and noteworthy. I would be cautious of their teaching and their practices as they are dangerous and wrong. -
I was unaware of the New Apostolic Church until this question was posted. There's a New Apostolic Church not far from where I live, but I haven't had any interaction with them. So I did some research. The following is based on my understanding of their beliefs published on their website http://www.newapostolic.org.au (specifically in the document Faith in Life – A Life of Faith: Portrait of a Living Denomination http://www.newapostolic.org.au/admin/uploads/FaithinLifealifeafaith.pdf ) with a little bit of Wikipedia to fill in the gaps. If I've misrepresented their beliefs, I would encourage correction and discussion.
The New Apostolic Church are focussed on the triune God (Father, Son, Holy Spirit) who is revealed in God's Word, the Bible. That's a pretty good start. Though even here some uncertainty creeps in for me, as the Holy Spirit appears to be less a person of the trinity and more an abstract power from God. Therefore as Christians, if we follow this view, we have not God living inside us but merely his power. That makes me a fair bit uneasy.
The document goes on to talk about the three sacraments: baptism, holy communion and holy sealing. I'm fine with the first two but I have significant problems with the third. Holy sealing is the practice of having one of their "apostles" give you the Holy Spirit. This is a form of second blessing. Not only are they saying that you receive the Holy Spirit separate from your conversion (whereas the Bible tells us that you can't become a Christian without the Holy Spirit working within you) but that you have to receive it from a human agent, called an apostle. As this is a salvation issue, this is a significant difference to evangelical Christianity.
The New Apostolic Church reserves the office of apostle for a limited number of people. Only the chief apostle can appoint other apostles and at this point in time only around 360 apostles world-wide have been appointed. They see these apostles as essential for salvation because they alone can forgive sin (this claim seems a bit far out. I really hope I have misunderstood and someone can correct me. If not, big problem).
The apostles also have a rule in giving holy communion to the dead. The opportunities for the dead seem to be welcomed into the kingdom are very much in play here. The New Apostolic Church believes that post-rapture (a concept that I don't believe in, but that's another matter) everyone in the world who has ever died will have an opportunity to turn to Christ for forgiveness and be forgiven. The Bible emphasizes the need to commit to Christ in this life and that there are no second chances after death (see the story of Lazarus in Hell in Luke 16:19-31).
While there may appear to be some similarities between the New Apostolic Church and evangelical beliefs, the differences are significant and noteworthy. I would be cautious of their teaching and their practices as they are dangerous and wrong. -
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Playing with He-Man and the Masters of the Universe toys at Christmas time when I was 4
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I love it hear in Sydney. Though if I had to live overseas, I do have a fondness for Berlin
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A carefully marketed spotlight hound. Everything she does is to draw attention to herself, regardless or message or intent. For Gaga, all publicity is good publicity. Even if it is devoid of statement
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Fishing is most definitely found in the Bible. Several of Jesus' disciples were fishermen. On more than one occasion, Jesus encouraged them to fish, most noteably in Luke 5:1-11 where Jesus demonstrates his power to the future disciples by causing them to catch an impressive load of fish when they hadn't caught any all night.
We also know that Jesus shared in many a fish based meal, such as the feeding of the five thousand, demonstrating that Jesus supported the catching and eating of fish.
I personally don't fish. Not because I disagree with the practice, but because I don't enjoy eating fish. I don't see any point in hunting and killing any animal that I don't intend on eating.
Fishing in and of itself is fine. Though like any good thing, it can be twisted and used in a wrong way. Above all, we have a God given responsibility to look after this planet and not abuse the privelege. -
The Bible tells us that because of the death and resurrection of Jesus, we are free to do many things. We're not stuck following the law. Placing money on a horse race is not something that is going to stop a Christian from being saved.
However, there are several wisdom issues involved. Is it wise to support an industry (such as gambling) that results in a large number of people losing all they have because of problems with addiction? Is it wise to through away money, in the hope that you might beat the odds and obtain money that you haven't earnt? Isn't that greed? Could that money be better spent on something else, something that brings glory to God?
I question Australia's obsession with a horse race. Is a bunch of horses running around a track really worth all the time and money we devote to it? Melbourne gets a public holiday for Melbourne Cup Day. Is this really the Australian culture?
So while it is permissible for a Christian to bet on the Cup, I really don't think it should be something a Christian should be getting behind. -
There's a song by the Clash that somes up your options. "Should I stay or should I go now?"
You're two options are staying or going.
You have to consider how serious these differences are. Are they over core issues that the Bible is black and white on, or are they over smaller things that the Bible is less clear on?
If your church is teaching, for example, that Jesus is not God and that he did not rise from the dead, then you should consider leaving. If the issue is over something smaller, such as whether or not to baptise babies, you should really consider staying.
The Bible places a high priority on unity and being a participating member of the church. Leaving a church should not be done lightly.
If you do have issues with what your church is teaching, you need to speak to the pastor(s). Ask them questions, find out why they're saying the things they are. It may be that you've misunderstood either them or the Bible. It may be that they haven't realised what they've said and now you've given them an opportunity to repent.
If however, you can't agree, and for you the issue is too significant to just suck it up and deal with the differences, then you should consider leaving.
Whatever you do, if you leave, don't do it on bad terms. Don't poison your church leaders to your friends. Don't bad mouth them in public. Leave as a brother or sister in Christ who disagrees. -
If you believe the paintings, Jesus is a blonde haired, blue eyed white guy who runs around in white dresses and has probably never done a days labour in his life. This is not the Jesus of the Bible.
The Jesus of the Bible is a Jewish man who was born and raised in the Middle East. There was nothing special about the way he looked. Except for one time where he was seen with Moses and Elijah, he most likely didn't wear white. After all, he spent a lot of time wandering around the desert. And it's very likely he spent most of his life working as a carpenter, so he knew a thing or too about hard work.
Truth is, we don't know alot about how Jesus looked. They didn't have cameras back then. And really, it's not important to us what he looked like. What is important are the words he spoke - the things he taught us about God, the Kingdom, and salvation.
Why did they draw pictures of him? Sometimes it's to tell a story. Sometimes it's to tell people about Jesus who can't read. And sometimes it's because people are looking for something visual to worship. With that last one, it becomes idolatry. They end up worshipping the picture of Jesus rather than the real Jesus. That's why in the Reformation, some churches got rid of every picture they could get their hands on. I think that's a bit extreme. But it does show you that worshipping a picture is a bad idea.
Any picture of Jesus isn't going to do him justice. Because it's just a guess. What's more important is that if you're really keen to know what he looks like, you'll find out when he returns. -
Yes, Jesus is God. He is in very essence exactly the same as God the Father. Yet while he is 100% God, he is also 100% human. He was born of a human mother as a human himself. It is important that Jesus is human. Otherwise he wouldn't be able to take our place on the cross as the object of God's wrath.
Romans 5:18-19 Consequently, just as the result of one trespass was condemnation for all men, so also the result of one act of righteousness was justification that brings life for all men. For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.
Jesus needed food to survive because people need food to survive. -
I'm not much of a car guy. I got my license when I was 25. For me, the dream car is one where I can carry people and gear. I loved my first car, which was a station wagon. I'd easily get a station wagon again. Or a ute. Or a van. The practical nature is what makes it the dream car for me. But if I can't plug in my ipod, no deal.
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I'm not sure where this question is coming from. What did Mary need to survive on earth? Same as everyone else. She was a normal human being who was selected by God for a special job. She needed to eat, breath, drink, sleep etc just like everyone else.
Jesus, while being the son of God and in very nature God, was also 100% human. So he had the same needs to survive that we do. He got hungry, cold, tired, etc.
I'm pretty sure there's something to this question I'm missing, so please hit me up again. -
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I love my wife. We were friends for 3 years before we started dating. Was it love at first sight? No, it wasn't. Did we grow to love each over time? Yes!
While I'm sure that love at first sight can happen, generally speaking, it's a cruel deception. Those romantic comedies you see at the movies? They're a lie. They want to condition you to think of love in a certain way. That there's just one special someone out there for you. That every moment with that someone will involve fireworks. That it's not possible to be in love unless you have that moment.
That's a lie. Love comes from service. Love comes from putting someone else before you. Love comes from accepting them for who they are, faults and all. And love is something that takes a lot of hard work to grow.
The Biblical idea of love between a man and woman is one of sacrifice. Ephesians 5:25-33 tells husbands to love their lives like Christ loves the church. To love your wife like you love yourself. That takes time and sacrifice. You don't get that from a momentary glance. A brief glimpse through a fish tank might be good enough for Romeo and Juliet, but that's not real life.
Don't look for love at first site. Take a longer look. -
I think this is a question that needs a bit more information. The bigger question is What did they believe about Jesus before his death. I'm pretty sure the people of the time were pretty sure he existed. They would have been pretty certain he was a real, historical figure. Did they know he was the Christ, the son of God? Peter, in Mark 8, certainly thinks so. Did he understand what that meant? I don't think he properly got his head around it until the resurrection. So did people believe that Jesus was the Christ before his death? Some did. Did they properly understand it? Not until after the resurrection and the coming of the Holy Spirit.
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When we look at Jesus in the Gospels, we see the kind of people he was friends with: prostitutes, tax collectors, undesirable people. I don't think there would be anyone Jesus wouldn't try and be friends with. If he was around today, I'm sure he'd head straight to Kings Cross to spend time with the strippers and drug dealers. Because these are people who need to hear about the salvation that Jesus offers. Can a Christian be friends with a openly homosexual person? Of course!
How do you explain the gospel to them? Starting with a guns blazing attack on homosexuality probably isn't your best bet. What they need to hear is the message of love. That Jesus loves them, no matter who they are or what they have done. Once they have heard the message of Jesus, once they recognise their need for salvation, once they have acknowledged Jesus as their saviour, then they need to make some hard choices. Only once they have accepted that Jesus has a say in how we run our lives will they be able to start thinking about how Christianity and the homosexual lifestyle do not mix.
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Joel A Moroney’s Bio
Theological student and Christian blogger
