Hi haz,
BTW, no I don't get your hints. Remember I already had discussions with your church colleague Epi with his ambiguous claims on sin, not abiding in Christ, making Christ harder to attain, condemnation, etc and his boasts of being one of the very few with the truth in spite of his not abiding in Christ.
Perhaps you can explain your church doctrine plainly.
I don't think we can be any plainer. Our doctrine is in scripture, where yours is too, if you are cleaving to the doctrine of Christ.
In quoting Ek, it would be helpful (to me) if you could post the link into this conversation, of the thread in which he replied, as that seems to have a bearing on your line of questioning. Thanks.
I would also like to assume that you've read the first five books of the Bible, and are vaguely familiar with the chronology of the OT's narrative, and that if you aren't, you're willing to do the necessary Bible study to follow the explanations which (at least) I will give? Is that fair?
Lastly, please read at least the first 16 verses of Ephesians 4, to see how I understand the structure which operates within the body of Christ. This is worked out in local assemblies of believers, or, between groups of smaller gatherings in homes, and, increasingly, through the meeting of Christians in other associations such as here on the internet, or wherever fellowship in Christ is found.
The instructions which Paul gave Timothy on how to determine who is qualified for a leadership role, the descriptions of spiritual gifts and other exhortations in the NT, all have a part to play in what Axehead, Episkopos and I understand as 'church'. I would expect the sheep to push forward the brother(s) in whom it is clear to them, God has vested His authority, their having shown themselves to be servants of the flock, already. If I were to meet face to face with true brethren in the Lord, my preferred form of gathering looks like this - Psa 22:22; Heb 2:12; Mark 14:22 - 25, 1 Cor 14:26 - 33 - and the rest of the time, Eph 5:15 - 21; and Col 3:16, 17; and Gal 5:16, all predicated upon the understanding of John 3 and John 15. This scratches the surface. The whole of the Bible is relevant to understanding what God wants of us as sons/friends from whom He is hiding nothing, and, the presence of the Holy Spirit
in the believer is essential, if we are to dwell in Him and He in us, that John 17:3 become our testimony.
Is this making any sense?
Another comment I might make, is that God blends His callings and gifts uniquely within each one of us. If we have Christ in us, then by His Spirit we can live out His life, including the exercise of spiritual gifts as God gives the unction at the time we need any gift to function. This makes it harder to pigeonhole anyone except in quite general terms. For instance, as far as I can tell Axehead's gifting, he is a teacher rather than a preacher, whereas I am more of an interpreter of the word for the purpose of preaching and evangelism. Evangelism causes us to face people outside the church, whereas every other calling is for the equipping of the saints and the edification of the body -
till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ - Eph 4:13.
I use the KJV for the way it brings the word into the present tense, but I also use TheWord.net and other translations like Young's Literal and Greek interlinears, to get more understanding. Hebrew has each letter packed with meaning, which can add depth to names and words.
When I asked you to compare the Old and New Covenants, I was hoping you'd notice there is a 'law' in the New Covenant, too, as well as that the NT mentions other laws - the law of sin and death, the law of the spirit of life in Christ Jesus, the law of faith, the law of works, and the law of Moses. If you've not considered the other laws (apart from Moses') then it's a worthy study, because the law of faith is what holds the universe together. There are other dynamics at work, such as the creative power of the word of God when it is spoken, as Paul noted its power to bring hearing in Rom 10:17; but that's not its only place, because it is fundamental to the efficacy of prayer, preaching and prophecy - when mixed with faith.
The Lord does not promise to grant our requests if we pray outside or against His will - except when His patience is exhausted. Rom 1:28. There is no point in believing less than scripture proclaims. But we know that we are reaching beyond what is naturally possible for us to apprehend of God, the more we study and find how little we actually 'know'. That's why we need His Spirit, and, we must
love truth.
Isaiah 55:8 - 13 For my thoughts [are] not your thoughts, neither [are] your ways my ways, saith the LORD.
For [as] the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.
For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth,
and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater
so shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void,
but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper [in the thing] whereto I sent it.
For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing,
and all the trees of the field shall clap [their] hands. Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier
shall come up the myrtle tree: and it shall be to the LORD for a name, for an everlasting sign [that] shall not be cut off.
PS
If there are things you didn't understand in my long post in this thread, #28, please bring them back here. Also, please confirm that you now do understand that Ah, Ek and I are not members of a denomination or a group which has a name, or which meets in a way other than described in scripture, or which subscribes to doctrines of men.
You've mentioned several times that 'law or grace' is problematic to you, suggesting Ek believes both. Well, the fact is, so does God. The whole of salvation is based on His laws, one of which is the law which,
if we agree to be bound by it, releases us from penalty for sin. 'Grace', by scriptural definition, may not be what you think it is. Please check that out?
Hi neophyte,
There is only one 'church' in New Covenant Israel, and that's the church to which believers in Jesus Christ are joined by faith.
Especially in posts# 25, 26, 27,31 you mentioned church, the question is which church...'
While you may like to disregard a large selection of allusions to members of the body of Jesus Christ in the writings of NT authors, it won't change the facts, and God is not partial. He is no respecter of persons or the wisdom of this world.
Psalm 127:1
Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it:
except the LORD keep the city, the watchman waketh in vain.