Y do U believe what U believe, and do U have good reasons 4 those beliefs? - let's find out.

[CharismaticLady]

Ok, so, do you gather with a congregation, and is that congregation associated with a greater world-wide body, and is the body also represented by such an council as found in Acts 15?

The question is attempting to ascertain whether you are individually independent (isolated), or held accountable in a wider circle with council, as we see with Acts 15, and so also with Paul, in Acts 9, "... Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do." and so Paul was "baptized" into the body.

Actually, I live 2000 miles away from my congregation, and 1200 miles from another before I moved again to Tennessee. As a single older woman in a sea of couples, I am isolated. For the "Bible Belt" full of churches, this is a wilderness, and dry as the desert. But I am where God has directed me to be. I find that the relationships I've got on the internet forums is comparable to assembling yourself together. I also have the telephone for my distant Christians old friends.

But according to Acts 15, " 20 but that we write to them to abstain from things polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from things strangled, and from blood. I do. My husband who left me for the wife of his best friend is still the last man I kissed. I don't date, as he is still alive.

 

[CharismaticLady]

Joh_1:12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:

Joh_6:29 Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.

Joh_7:39 (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)

So, do we have to believe in the right Jesus Christ, or just any ol' "Christ"?

Mat_24:24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.
Mar_13:22 For false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect.

So, does it matter ('kingdom'-wise) what we believe about "Christ", and ought we to have it correct by Biblical standard?

I agree. Before I was filled with the Spirit I had no power over sin, and not one of my prayers were answered for 30 years. But after being filled with the Spirit, I had no desire for sin, and started truly abiding in Him, and all my prayers have been answered for over 40 years. 1 John 3:21-24

Are you finding all your prayers are answered as God's word says will happen for those abiding in Him, and not just knowing about Him?

 

[Helen]

I agree we do not yet know "everything", such as the day and hour of Jesus' coming, but would you agree we can indeed know "something", as in for 'sure' or 'tightly' and not as 'lightly'? A for instance, would be the death, burial, resurrection and ascension of Jesus. Can we hold this 'tightly', or ought we hold it 'lightly'?

Yes agree ...the life, walk , death , and resurrection and coming kingdom are the foundations of our faith. Solid.

The rapture-theory is something I do NOT hold tightly , neither is it a foundation of our faith. ( not how it is taught re bodies flying out of planes, trains, and automobiles ) I believe it is a spiritual thing a catching up in the Spirit to Him..which will be rapture of glory upon glory.
Well you did ask

And a few other things , that if you stay on the boards long you may well see me 'argue the point' on.

One thing for sure...I am not a legalist and I will fight against the bondage of it with those who try to make black and white which is not proved so...the bondage of man is suffocating.

 

[Helen]

I believed the same thing 40 years ago... I was wrong.. Now I don't believe he will return soon. But then I read; "Be ye therefore ready also: for the Son of man cometh at an hour when ye think not." (Luke 12:40). So since I don't think he'll come, I reckon there's a chance he will?

I like that, me too. When I was 30 I knew and understood it all. I had all my doctrine safe in neat little boxes. But God came in the 80's and tipped over my boxes.

I am not afraid to say- " I don't know" something I could never do when I was young!
There are so many thing that people say they know for sure, which is impossible...we just 'pick one' and stick with it until God shows us Himself.

I believe this creation that we know it is six thousand years old....I believe that dinosaurs are pre creation of 'this' earth...but really who knows for sure. Many things get argued about , but the bottom line...does it matter! LOL

As for return of the Lord...I have no idea...I used to 'know.'
I hope it is soon....
I just know that when the time is - God will say... " Ready or not, here We come." We just better be ready.

 

[Helen]

My own denomination was, and still is by some, accused of being legalistic and too focused on OT law...

Yep, you got it!! Very true ...but you are a good guy and I am sure God is big enough to love you anyway. You just need those blinkers removed.
xx

 

[Helen]

What "incorrect beliefs" have you "laid aside"? Would you list your top 5 (if there are 5)?

Not to me...but I will give a few...for me not 'laid aside' but thrown out violently and trampled underfoot.

1) That God is angry all the time , and just waiting to smite people who don't toe His line. ( His angry against sin itself was poured out upon the spotless Last Lamb, Jesus Christ upon the cross. 'While we were yet sinners Christ died for the ungodly..' )

Some other things too...but...I see what you are doing here...you get our responses so you can box us into our beliefs ...then when you are on other threads you have an idea where we are coming from...clever!!

But then again...by your response to Charismatic Lady ( re nondenominational ) I noted you are somewhat of a legalist ...I notched that one up!!

 

[Helen]

Sounds very 'relative', as if 'truth' doesn't really exist. .

You have asked lots of questions here...
Now one for you...

Did you receive the Holy Spirit as a separate encounter after you were born again...

Acts 19:2 " Paul unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed?"

Thanks...

 

[faithfulness]

But according to Acts 15, " 20 but that we write to them to abstain from things polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from things strangled, and from blood. I do.

I would be interested in understanding how you "abstain from the above mentioned (other than sexual immorality, of course). What is your understanding/meaning? Thank you.

 

[CharismaticLady]

I would be interested in understanding how you "abstain from the above mentioned (other than sexual immorality, of course). What is your understanding/meaning? Thank you.

We don't have to worry about that here as there are no meat factories that strangle, or first present to idols.

 

[amadeus]

@ReChoired
Welcome to the forum!

...what I have found is that false doctrines have been around for so long and infected so many denominations, that the false has become truth in many minds, and truth has become foolishness and impossible...

@CharismaticLady I trimmed your post to leave only the part which applied to me precisely.

One thing I learned a long time ago, is that no matter how certain I am on a thing, I may still be wrong on it although sometimes only partly wrong. Like @Helen I hold to a number of things only 'lightly'. Lightly because as I continue to commune with God and read the scriptures, I might be unwilling to let go of something I need to let go of...

Give God the glory!

 

[amadeus]

Interested in what you might hold 'lightly' vs what you might hold 'tightly', would you give 2 small personal examples?

I agree we do not yet know "everything", such as the day and hour of Jesus' coming, but would you agree we can indeed know "something", as in for 'sure' or 'tightly' and not as 'lightly'? A for instance, would be the death, burial, resurrection and ascension of Jesus. Can we hold this 'tightly', or ought we hold it 'lightly'?

Hold onto effectively nothing but Him when you meet with Him alone. Usually little of nothing of what you have held will go permanently away, but sometimes you may be surprised when He presents something new, that is not really new at all. I use as my own reference for this one of the parables of Jesus:

"When thou art bidden of any man to a wedding, sit not down in the highest room; lest a more honourable man than thou be bidden of him;
And he that bade thee and him come and say to thee, Give this man place; and thou begin with shame to take the lowest room.
But when thou art bidden, go and sit down in the lowest room; that when he that bade thee cometh, he may say unto thee, Friend, go up higher: then shalt thou have worship in the presence of them that sit at meat with thee.
For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted." Luke 14:8-11

For my own reference I call it 'bottom starting'. I try to make this bottom starting in the lowest room a daily thing for me.

 

[amadeus]

What aren't I talking about that you think I am compelled to talk about? I think we differ in our pre-suppositions.

Easy Farouk.

She/he simply wants to see how solid a person is in what he already holds as being essential to his walk with God. Has the person ever changed and would he even consider the possibility that God might correct him in any of his beliefs at any time. If a person is already exactly where God wants him to be, what is the problem in discussing it? If he is not, then by all means we need to look further. Of course, if a person for some unstated reason does not want to discuss it, then he should just read and not eve post to the thread. Maybe the OP has already explained it better... but that is what I understand.

 

[ReChoired]

...But according to Acts 15, " 20 but that we write to them to abstain from things polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from things strangled, and from blood. I do. My husband who left me for the wife of his best friend is still the last man I kissed. I don't date, as he is still alive.

Is the person who left you, now divorced from you? If so, since that person committed adultery, and is divorced, you are free to marry whom you will, only in the Lord. If you are not divorced, you are hoping for the return of this person to the marriage? If not, you are binding yourself and Acts 15 has nothing to say about that, only speaks to 'fornication'. You can choose to remain single, but that is your choice, for there is no scripture binding you to that position.

 

[ReChoired]

Easy Farouk.

She/he simply wants to see how solid a person is in what he already holds as being essential to his walk with God. Has the person ever changed and would he even consider the possibility that God might correct him in any of his beliefs at any time. If a person is already exactly where God wants him to be, what is the problem in discussing it? If he is not, then by all means we need to look further. Of course, if a person for some unstated reason does not want to discuss it, then he should just read and not eve post to the thread. Maybe the OP has already explained it better... but that is what I understand.

You have understood correctly.

 

[Nancy]

Y do U believe what U believe, and do U have good reasons 4 those beliefs? - let's find out together.

I haven't always believed what I currently believe, and it took some time to really think and pray about what I believe, and why, and whether those beliefs were true, had any rationality to them, and were biblically sound. In that searching, I found some of the things I believed were untrue, not rational, and incoherent, even dangerous, but was willing to consider what I believed anyway, and in so doing, was willing to change where needful.

So this thread is for that purpose, that we may all consider what we believe, why we believe it, by some searching, studying, thinking and praying.

For instance, I believe Jesus is returning very soon, yet I did not always used to believe that, or even think on it.

Welcome to the forum Re Choired! Good post and, even though believing in a God all my life...my faith has grown so much over the decades and my beliefs about certain doctrines have shifted, many times!

 

[ReChoired]

Hold onto effectively nothing but Him...
For my own reference I call it 'bottom starting'. I try to make this bottom starting in the lowest room a daily thing for me.

Ok, but how do we determine the real or true "Him"? There are many calling themselves "Jesus", "Christ", "Lord", and even "God" and "I AM" these days.

I may not understand everything about "Him" (doctrinally), yet surely, we must hold to the real and 'true' "Him", otherwise what we hold to is false, even very dangerous to us. For instance, the new-age movement speaks of the 'I AM', and 'God', even the inner 'Christ' consciousness. If I hold to this, am I safe or in complete and total danger of eternal loss?

 

[ReChoired]

Welcome to the forum Re Choired! Good post and, even though believing in a God all my life...my faith has grown so much over the decades and my beliefs about certain doctrines have shifted, many times!

Hi sister! Thank you for the welcome.

Would you be interested to share with me 2 major things that you have changed in belief in, in regards to God and His doctrine? What was it that brought about this change of belief? Doesn't have to be detailed.

 

[ReChoired]

We don't have to worry about that here as there are no meat factories that strangle, or first present to idols.

Have you seen "Dominion"?

Trailer:

Full (warning, not for the faint of heart, mentally weak):

Acts 15 (citing, OT) is not the end-all, be-all of the instruction, but merely a summary, and quick-list for 'newbs' in the faith, and there is a lot more to be learned in regards God's instruction on diet. Acts 15:21,18-19 shows that the repentant Gentiles would learn more from the word of God when they studied with the church.

 

[ScottA]

Y do U believe what U believe, and do U have good reasons 4 those beliefs? - let's find out together.

I haven't always believed what I currently believe, and it took some time to really think and pray about what I believe, and why, and whether those beliefs were true, had any rationality to them, and were biblically sound. In that searching, I found some of the things I believed were untrue, not rational, and incoherent, even dangerous, but was willing to consider what I believed anyway, and in so doing, was willing to change where needful.

So this thread is for that purpose, that we may all consider what we believe, why we believe it, by some searching, studying, thinking and praying.

For instance, I believe Jesus is returning very soon, yet I did not always used to believe that, or even think on it.

I have to say that I came to "know" before I came to "believe."

My personal experience and my witness is much like Paul's road to Damascus experience. I had a wonderful but godless childhood, love, marriage, children, my own business, and then was a victim of crime and it all came tumbling down. After turning every which way to no avail, near suicidal I called out to God as a last resort, and lo and behold--He answered. I instantly was caught up in the spirit above the earth and shown many things, and then returned to the physical, changed. Shortly thereafter I came to be staying in a room at my brothers house and found a bible. I seemed to be drawn to it, and didn't put it down except to eat and sleep, but read it through from cover to cover. To my further surprise, the Author of the bible was unmistakable the same as the Author of my experience, as each confirmed the other.

As for "Jesus returning soon", if He is with you--He has already returned, for He went to the Father as He said. Having first come in the flesh, He has ascended, and all who confess that He is in them and them in Him, are witnesses--He has returned.

On the other hand, if He is not with you--He has not returned to you personally, according to what is written, saying: "Each in his own order."

 

[Nancy]

Hi sister! Thank you for the welcome.

Would you be interested to share with me 2 major things that you have changed in belief in, in regards to God and His doctrine? What was it that brought about this change of belief? Doesn't have to be detailed.

Okay, Hmm...
First of all, The Rapture (Pre-Trib) was something I subscribed to for decades. What changed my mind was not just one particular reason but several. Re-reading the scriptures pertaing to said rapture, listening to people on here and especially that at my local body, we are in the middle of this very subject!

This one will be tougher to give you a detailed "why"...I do not believe the Church will "go to Heaven" but, I believe we will be in the "New Earth"...again, scriptures...I believe God will come and live with humanity forever...Rev. 21-22. As well as others like John 21...? I think we will be living on the Earth AS it is in Heaven I'll think of more I'm sure