What is the one true Church?

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Jim B

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The Gospel came from the Catholic Church. The first members of Christ's Church, the Catholic Church, wrote the Gospels. The Catholic Church in the late 4th century declared the Gospels to be Scripture.

Where, in your supposition, do you propose that the Catholic Church changed any of the teachings of Christ, and suddenly, 16 centuries later the Protestant Reformation happened and one of the literally thousands of man-made, different-believing denominations has it all right? Did Jesus make a quick trip back and hand one of the founders of these man-made denominations a list of corrections? Or maybe an angel (as the Mormons seem to claim)? How exactly do you propose this "correction" happened?
Oh boy, here we go again!

The Gospel came from those to whom Jesus gave authority -- and there wasn't a single Catholic among them. The entire Bible (with one exception -- Luke -- was written by Jews. God brought about Protestantism to correct the false teachings and cruel practices of the Catholic denomination. Throughout history, your denomination has practiced cruelty and murdered those who opposed them (as well as innocent indigenous people). PROTESTANTISM SAVED CHRISTIANITY!!!

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Let's compare Catholicism to Old Testament Judaism...

OT Jews were the "chosen" people. Catholics believe that they are the "chosen" people and other believers -- God's adopted children -- are not.

OT Jews had a single person mediating between themselves and God. Catholics need the Pope mediating between themselves and God.

There was a separate priesthood in the OT. Catholics have a similar separate priesthood. Protestants have no need for intermediaries between themselves and the heavenly Father.

Forgiveness was accomplished by works (sacrifices) in the OT. Forgiveness for Catholics requires works: penance, prayers, etc.

OT Judaism was centered in one city: Jerusalem. Catholicism is centered in one city: Rome.

The OT Jews conquered indigenous people via warfare. Catholics also conquered indigenous people via warfare.

OT Judaism had, as its center, the temple in Jerusalem. Catholicism has its center as the Vatican in Rome.

OT priests dressed in ornate costumes. Catholic clergy dress in ornate costumes.

Jews confessed their sins to priests, then had to atone by works. Catholics confess their sins to priests, then have to atone by works.

The OT Jews erected a golden calf as an idol to worship. Catholics have many statues (idols) to worship.

The OT Jews worshipped Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Catholics worship "saints" (even though all believers are saints).

Jews have the Bar/Bas Mitzvah ritual to declare children as "adults". Catholics have confirmation for the same purpose.

The Jews, until recently, had an all-male "clergy". Catholics have, even today, an all-male clergy.

Jews practice infant circumcision. Catholics practice infant baptism.

The Jews burned incense in the temple. Catholics burn incense in church.

The Jews were divided in 12 tribes. The Catholics revere 12 apostles.

And there are undoubtedly more similarities between the old covenant Jews and the Catholics, but these were just "off the top of my head".

Protestants believe in Biblically-based, New Testament theology, not a reconstruction of Old Testament Judaism.
 
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Grailhunter

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I get the gist of what you are saying but even in the "biblical era" The Church had issues with false prophets and division when the Apostles were alive. That is the purpose of some of the letters in the NT, to address that division amongst the faithful. Around the year 107AD, just a few short years after the Apostle John died, Ignatius (a student of John) wrote letters to various Churches telling them to listen to their bishop and wherever the bishop is, there is the catholic church. Sooooo there was division is 107AD also!

So to answer your question: Which one (denomination) has authority over me?

Five hundred years ago the Protestant Revolution started MAJOR divisions in Christianity. Sure, there was some division before that but historically I think we can agree it grew quickly/faster after Martin Luther. Some men broke off from Luther and the faithful started following/believing the teachings/writings/doctrines of those Revolutionaries and how THEY interpreted Scripture. Those Revolutionaries all disagreed with each other on that interpretation which caused further divisions in Christianity and created more....what you call....denominations.

Logically/historically we know that there was only One Church with One Teaching and One Doctrine that all those denominations split off from. That One Church/Teaching/Doctrine came from the Apostles. So one needs to look back at our Christian history and find out what the earliest Christians wrote OUTSIDE the bible on how they interpreted Scripture. When one goes back to Clement, Ignatius and Polycarp (all of whom were STUDENTS of the Apostles) and look at their writings/teachings one can see that The Catholic Churches teachings mirror their teachings. As one progresses thru Christian history timeline one can see that The Church continues to adhere to those teachings, traditions in the year 2023.

You choose to follow the teachings (interpretation of Scripture) of the men from the Protestant Revolution who were NOT Students of the Apostles. Your "denominations" timeline begins 500 years ago? I am not sure of this since you, to the best of my knowledge, have not told me what denomination you belong to!!

I have found The Church that Jesus said he would start. Have you?

How can we find a biblical church?

The first Christians were the twelve Apostles, do we want to find a church that follows their examples? The twelve Apostles were Jewish Christians, they still considered themselves Jewish and Christianity was the messianic revelation to Judaism. From what we know of them….some still observed the Saturday Jewish Sabbath. Worshipped at the Temple and sacrificed animals to God. If they did not sacrifice animal to God on the Jewish Sabbath they would have been run out of the Temple, maybe with stones being thrown at them.

As time went on some Gentile-Christians went to the Temple…they were not allowed to go in, but they had a place to gather outside the Temple.

The four Gospels tell us what Christ taught. The authors of the Gospels, Matthew and John were among the twelve chosen Apostles. Mark and Luke were disciples of Peter and Paul respectively. Of the twelve John and Peter were the most prolific writers. So we know a little of what they taught…but we do not know too much about rest.

It appears that some or most of Jewish-Christian Apostles were juggling the Mosaic Law with Christ’s teachings. Polygamy was still being practiced and or tolerated….history proves this to be the case because we know that for a fact, and we have no evidence that Jewish men that converted to Christianity were forced to divorce some of their wives. How would that work? And Paul had to stipulate that to be a leader in a church, a man had to be a husband of one wife.

Slavery was an integral part of the culture and economics of that period, which is probably why Christ and the Apostles did not condemn it. The scriptures did not condemn polygamy and the Jews were still practicing it, so Christ and the Apostles did not condemn it either.

Even before the end of the biblical period the Gentile-Christians gained prominence in Christianity and after 70 AD the Jewish-Christians were dwindling and Gentile-Christians were taking over the helm of the Church. The familiar early Christian writers, some even disciples of the Apostles would fall into the category of Gentile-Christians. But even today there are Christians that try to juggle Judaism with Christianity.

So today most Christians are not going to sacrifice animals to God…most Christians do not observe the Saturday Jewish Sabbath or go to Jewish synagogues. We do not tolerate slavery or polygamy. We require Wedding ceremonies to be married, which was introduced by the Gentile-Christians and made a requirement by the Protestants.

So would the correct Christian church follow the examples of the Jewish-Christian Apostles? NO. As it turns out there was a really good reason why Christ selected Paul and then Peter to lead Christianity.

Today the Christian church-congregations are descendants of the Gentile-Christians. So where do we go from here? So to the question… How can we find a biblical church? As it turns out, it is really not the question. How do we find a true Christian church is a more accurate question? To know how to do that you have to look at the Spirit of Christ, the Spirit of Christianity, the Spirit of Paul and Peter. Not just in words, but also the examples they set and in their vision.

So what are we looking for? Well the basics would be good. Does the Church love God and love one another? Well some fail the love part, there is a lot of hate between the Protestants and Catholics, so you are looking for a Church that does not go along with that. If you hate other Christians, you have not grasped the basics of Christ or Christianity, not even the basics. You are treading water theologically speaking.

Be good and do good the best you can. That is Christ’s example and one that I believe in fully. Some Protestants have turned good deeds into a negative, saying that, the belief that doing good deeds is part of being a Christian, means you do not have faith in Christ. Even though the moral of the parable of the Sheep and Goats showed that if you do not do good deeds, you are going to Hell! The fact is, good deeds do not save you, but not doing good deeds can send you to Hell. So you are looking for a church that believes in good deeds and actually does good deeds….Christianity in motion. If we are not suppose to follow Christ’s example, whose example are we suppose to follow?

Worshipping God. That is matter of faith and the heart. You are looking for a church that enthusiastically worships God from the heart. Is that any one denomination? No. In this, every church is independent. In nearly any denomination there can be a church or churches that have the Spirit of Christ and Christianity. A Spirit that you can feel, a love that you can feel, an enthusiasm that you can feel. A congregation that loves God and each other. A church that does not have a condemning nature and does not gossip about one another. A congregation that comes together to worship God with love and from the heart.

The key words being “comes together” If you do not go to church, you are just a spectator of Christianity….not participating. What is the alternative? A church of one? Christians should “hang” with Christians and Christians that take Christianity seriously should assemble and worship the Lord.

So the bottom line, you are not looking for a perfect church with a perfect theology or perfect people. You are looking for a good church with a Christian Spirit that worships the Lord with all their heart and you go to church while you looking for a good church and you worship the Lord with Christians.
 
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Brakelite

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The Gospel is expressed in many ways in many encyclicals, here is a recent one:
And still you cannot declare openly your faith in the blood of Christ that is an atonement for sin. I could find quotes from your Jesuit masters that declare that Jesus death was not a propitiation, but merely an example.
KJV Revelation 5:9
9 And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation.
Because the Seventh Day Adventists are, in fact, a false cult,
An accusation of this manner coming from catholicism is by no means surprising. It is more an affirmation that they have the truth and teach the true gospel as did so many before them, but were likewise condemned by Rome as cultists and heretics, and had slander and lies spoken against them. . We are in very good company.
accusing the CC as the "Whore of Babylon", and all of Protestantism as being the daughters of the whore.
What a whore does, is commit formication and adultery. The Babylonian whore,a spiritual entity, committed spiritual adultery. This means that a once faithful church has fallen, had fallen, and forsaking her true Master and Husband in heaven, began to rely on the kings of this world for her support...
KJV Revelation 17:3-6
3 So he carried me( away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, [/I][/B][COLOR=rgb(251, 160, 38)](look up scripture to discover what blasphemy actually is...I can help you if you need it.)[/COLOR][B][I][COLOR=rgb(84, 172, 210)][/COLOR] having seven heads and ten horns.
4 And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, (immensely wealthy)having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication: (again, look up scripture to discover what God calls an abomination... False doctrines that this woman teaches all nations. Again, happy to help if needed.).
5 And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.
6 And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, (even your own church admits of a less than exemplary record when it comes to persecution. And yes, the Protestant churches had their issues as well, having learnt that craft from their mothers knee) and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.

How can the above not be the Catholic Church? By the way, Seventh Day adventists weren't the first to recognize this.
 

Brakelite

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I apologize. You never called the church "invisible". What you said was the true church was a remnant (small), always in the minority (smallest part of a group), Hidden away (can't be found) in the wilderness.
They were persecuted in the wilderness. Therefore they could be found. But for the most part they had peace and quiet, and it was there that God fed them.

KJV Revelation 12:6
6 And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days.

KJV Revelation 12:13-17
13 And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child.
14 And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.
15 And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood.
16 And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth.
17 And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.
.
 

Brakelite

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Do you believe that the Waldenses was the remnant/minority/hidden church that Jesus started?
They were a part of it yes, but there were Christians before them who had no connection to Rome whatever. Do you know of the "silent cities" of Syria, their antiquity and character? Do you know why they were abandoned, and for 13 centuries have lain empty? Do you know where that vast population went to? And who many of them were, and their history? Christianity never, ever, was all about Rome.
 

Brakelite

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, I'm not sure if you know this or not, but the majority of Christians in the world are Catholic.
Nominally so yes. But I would hesitate to declare categorically that the millions of inhabitants of South America whose current mixture of occult and Christian superstitions which they inherited from forbears forced to convert at the end of a sword, could be called Christian.
 

Brakelite

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Your "essentials list are pretty easy salvific doctrines for all to believe. They don't require much interpretation
Except they have been interpreted in a startling way by many, as you so eloquently pointed out.
But the most startling interpretation comes from Rome itself, being a corruption of the principle gospel message itself, turning a message of faith and grace into something one must earn and work for. As I have pointed out to , @Illuminator , the Catholic gospel is devoid of the very thing that saves... Faith in the precious blood of the Lamb as propitiation for the sins of man. Christ's death instead of ours.
The Catholic gospel is a social gospel, whereby man earns his salvation through copying Christ as an example, and earning merit points which shorten his stay in purgatory. The focal point of the Catholic gospel, as pointed out and quoted by your friend, is the incarnation with Christmas being the center feature. Christ's death is merely an example to follow... It is to the Catholic, never the central core focus of ones salvation. The Catholic gospel is false and does not teach those eternal truths essential for man's salvation.
 

Marymog

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How can we find a biblical church?

The first Christians were the twelve Apostles, do we want to find a church that follows their examples? The twelve Apostles were Jewish Christians, they still considered themselves Jewish and Christianity was the messianic revelation to Judaism. From what we know of them….some still observed the Saturday Jewish Sabbath. Worshipped at the Temple and sacrificed animals to God. If they did not sacrifice animal to God on the Jewish Sabbath they would have been run out of the Temple, maybe with stones being thrown at them.

As time went on some Gentile-Christians went to the Temple…they were not allowed to go in, but they had a place to gather outside the Temple.

The four Gospels tell us what Christ taught. The authors of the Gospels, Matthew and John were among the twelve chosen Apostles. Mark and Luke were disciples of Peter and Paul respectively. Of the twelve John and Peter were the most prolific writers. So we know a little of what they taught…but we do not know too much about rest.

It appears that some or most of Jewish-Christian Apostles were juggling the Mosaic Law with Christ’s teachings. Polygamy was still being practiced and or tolerated….history proves this to be the case because we know that for a fact, and we have no evidence that Jewish men that converted to Christianity were forced to divorce some of their wives. How would that work? And Paul had to stipulate that to be a leader in a church, a man had to be a husband of one wife.

Slavery was an integral part of the culture and economics of that period, which is probably why Christ and the Apostles did not condemn it. The scriptures did not condemn polygamy and the Jews were still practicing it, so Christ and the Apostles did not condemn it either.

Even before the end of the biblical period the Gentile-Christians gained prominence in Christianity and after 70 AD the Jewish-Christians were dwindling and Gentile-Christians were taking over the helm of the Church. The familiar early Christian writers, some even disciples of the Apostles would fall into the category of Gentile-Christians. But even today there are Christians that try to juggle Judaism with Christianity.

So today most Christians are not going to sacrifice animals to God…most Christians do not observe the Saturday Jewish Sabbath or go to Jewish synagogues. We do not tolerate slavery or polygamy. We require Wedding ceremonies to be married, which was introduced by the Gentile-Christians and made a requirement by the Protestants.

So would the correct Christian church follow the examples of the Jewish-Christian Apostles? NO. As it turns out there was a really good reason why Christ selected Paul and then Peter to lead Christianity.

Today the Christian church-congregations are descendants of the Gentile-Christians. So where do we go from here? So to the question… How can we find a biblical church? As it turns out, it is really not the question. How do we find a true Christian church is a more accurate question? To know how to do that you have to look at the Spirit of Christ, the Spirit of Christianity, the Spirit of Paul and Peter. Not just in words, but also the examples they set and in their vision.

So what are we looking for? Well the basics would be good. Does the Church love God and love one another? Well some fail the love part, there is a lot of hate between the Protestants and Catholics, so you are looking for a Church that does not go along with that. If you hate other Christians, you have not grasped the basics of Christ or Christianity, not even the basics. You are treading water theologically speaking.

Be good and do good the best you can. That is Christ’s example and one that I believe in fully. Some Protestants have turned good deeds into a negative, saying that, the belief that doing good deeds is part of being a Christian, means you do not have faith in Christ. Even though the moral of the parable of the Sheep and Goats showed that if you do not do good deeds, you are going to Hell! The fact is, good deeds do not save you, but not doing good deeds can send you to Hell. So you are looking for a church that believes in good deeds and actually does good deeds….Christianity in motion. If we are not suppose to follow Christ’s example, whose example are we suppose to follow?

Worshipping God. That is matter of faith and the heart. You are looking for a church that enthusiastically worships God from the heart. Is that any one denomination? No. In this, every church is independent. In nearly any denomination there can be a church or churches that have the Spirit of Christ and Christianity. A Spirit that you can feel, a love that you can feel, an enthusiasm that you can feel. A congregation that loves God and each other. A church that does not have a condemning nature and does not gossip about one another. A congregation that comes together to worship God with love and from the heart.

The key words being “comes together” If you do not go to church, you are just a spectator of Christianity….not participating. What is the alternative? A church of one? Christians should “hang” with Christians and Christians that take Christianity seriously should assemble and worship the Lord.

So the bottom line, you are not looking for a perfect church with a perfect theology or perfect people. You are looking for a good church with a Christian Spirit that worships the Lord with all their heart and you go to church while you looking for a good church and you worship the Lord with Christians.
Nope, that is not the “bottom line”. What your men have taught you is false.

The bottom line is what Scripture says and it says that there is a “perfect church”. The Church is the pillar and foundation of truth (1 Timothy 3:15)…..that sounds perfect to me. The Church makes the final decision on if your brother has sinned against you or not (Matthew 18:17) and how they are to be treated (as a pagan or tax collector) if they don’t repent for that sin. The Church is perfect because it was started by the perfect person. Your theory suggest The Church was perfect when He and the Apostles were alive but fell out of perfection after they died. Scripture doesn’t teach that, but your men do.
 

Marymog

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Correct....but was the alternative?
Unity under One Church with One doctrine: 20 “I ask not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word, 21 that they may all be one. As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us,[a] so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 The glory that you have given me I have given them, so that they may be one, as we are one, 23 I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.
 

Marymog

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I have an essay that I wrote back in the 80's, I need to find that.....it was about what to look for in a church. When I find it I will post it.
I found your essay:

1. Does the church have ministers who can forgive sins in the name of Jesus (John 20:21-23)?

2. Does the church have a healing rite for the dying that forgives the sins of the person who is dying (James 5:14-15)?

3. Does the church meet daily for the breaking of the bread ( Matthew 6:11, Acts 2:42-46)?

4. Does the church teach that you must physically eat the flesh of Jesus and drink His blood to have life in you (John 6:53)?

5. Does the church history date back to the time of the Apostles (Acts 1:20-26)?

6. Does the church teach that individuals can suffer for the sake of the church, because Christ’s sufferings were lacking (Colossians 1:24)?

7. Does the church teach that salvation isn't a sure thing (Matthew 10:22, 2 Peter 2:20)?

8. Does the church teach that prayers in heaven go through heavenly intercessors before reaching God (Revelation 5:8, Revelation 8:3)?

9. Does the church teach that saints in heaven are alive and can appear to humans? (Mark 9:4-5, Matthew 27:52-53)

10. Does the church teach that one must physically suffer to keep from losing one’s salvation (1 Corinthians 9:27, 1 Peter 2:19-21)?

11. Does the Church preach Christian unity, or division (1 Corinthians 1:10-13)?

12. Are the church's decisions ratified in heaven as well as on earth (Matthew 18:18)?

13. Is the Mother of Jesus considered to be the most blessed Woman, and do they call her blessed (Luke 1:42-48)?

14. Does the church teach that the church itself (rather than the Bible) is the pillar and bulwark of truth? (1 Timothy 3:15)

15. Does the church teach that the whore of Babylon is a "great city" where Jesus Christ was crucified? (Revelation 11:8 and Revelation 17:18).

16. Does the Church teach that celibacy is a good thing? (Matthew 9:12, Luke 18:29-30, 1 Corinthians 7: 25-27, 1 Corinthians 7:32-38, Revelation 14:3-5).

17. Does the Church teach that life begins at conception? (Deuteronomy 30:19, Jeremiah 1:5, Psalm 139:13, Luke 1:43-44,Luke 23: 2).

18. Does the Church teach that contraception is intrinsically evil? (Genesis 1:28, Psalm 127:3-5, Genesis 38:8-10).

19. Does the Church teach that divorce and remarriage is adulterous? (Matthew 5:3, Mark 10:11-12, Luke 16:18)

20. Does the Church teach that good works are a very necessary component of our faith? (Matthew 25:31-46, James 2:26, Colossians 1:10, Matthew 7:21, Revelation 20:12-13, Romans 2:6.

21. Does the Church teach that Jesus Christ established his earthly Kingdom on earth before He was crucified? (Matthew 3:2, Matthew 16:19).

22. Does the Church teach sexual sins are transgressions that will keep one from gaining entry into heaven, or do they now say that they are no longer sinful? (Romans 1:24-32, 1 Timothy 1:9-10, Ephesians 5:19-21, Colossians 3:5).
 

Marymog

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That’s not the biblical way.

Follow the example set forth by Jesus our Lord:

“…I will also ask of you one question, and answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things.” (Mark 11:29)
You crack me up….
 

Marymog

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Great post!
It would be great, if it was complete. Showing a person agape love with no judgement Is not a Christian only commandment. AND there are multiple other things Scripture says that one must do to be saved. Dont cherry pick His words to fit your belief.
 

Marymog

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No that is just a claim you say its been written to all of us. @Marymog

But you cant quote a scripture that proves it.


Was mainly wanting to know the answer to this question.

Do you need a deacon or bishop to confide in and trust?
Scripture is written to and for all Christians. That is not MY claim…..that is THE claim of Christianity for 2,000 years.

Yes, We should confide in and trust our deacons and bishops: Acts 20:28, 1 Peter 5:1-3, 1 Timothy 3 etc etc

I could go on and on but scripture was not written to me….was it Matthew? So why waste my time quoting scripture. I should do like you do and give my opinion.
 

MatthewG

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Scripture is written to and for all Christians. That is not MY claim…..that is THE claim of Christianity for 2,000 years.

Yes, We should confide in and trust our deacons and bishops: Acts 20:28, 1 Peter 5:1-3, 1 Timothy 3 etc etc

I could go on and on but scripture was not written to me….was it Matthew? So why waste my time quoting scripture. I should do like you do and give my opinion.


sometimes I wonder why I even comment so, may people learn and may we digress towards the spirit and say



hey


I love you


and all we know is God will judge our heart.



If you are in need of encouragement hit me up, ill do what I can.
 

Grailhunter

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Nope, that is not the “bottom line”. What your men have taught you is false.

The bottom line is what Scripture says and it says that there is a “perfect church”. The Church is the pillar and foundation of truth (1 Timothy 3:15)…..that sounds perfect to me. The Church makes the final decision on if your brother has sinned against you or not (Matthew 18:17) and how they are to be treated (as a pagan or tax collector) if they don’t repent for that sin. The Church is perfect because it was started by the perfect person. Your theory suggest The Church was perfect when He and the Apostles were alive but fell out of perfection after they died. Scripture doesn’t teach that, but your men do.
Of course as you might suspect we will disagree on this.....
30,000 denominations which one will make the final decision....LOL
And most have equal authority....and have equal connection to Christ and the Apostles.
And considering the history of the Catholic Church, the last thing it has is authority over any other denomination.

And the topic of the perfect congregation or religion in the biblical era is still a discussion...Is the Jewish Christian religion the correct religion or the Gentile Christian religion the correct religion?
 

Grailhunter

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Unity under One Church with One doctrine: 20 “I ask not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word, 21 that they may all be one. As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us,[a] so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 The glory that you have given me I have given them, so that they may be one, as we are one, 23 I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.
In response to what is the alternative?
The key words being “comes together” If you do not go to church, you are just spectator of Christianity….not participating. What is the alternative? A church of one? Christians should “hang” with Christians and Christians that take Christianity seriously should assemble and worship the Lord.

How do you think your response is relevant?