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Five Ways You Can Identify A Good Church To Attend - Religion (5) - Nairaland

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Re: Five Ways You Can Identify A Good Church To Attend by Kobojunkie: 10:19pm On Aug 18, 2020
efficiencie:
The church of Christ will make you conform to the stature of Christ and the stature of Christ is characterized by the transformation of a natural man born after the flesh to a divine man born after the spirit. If your church does not build you into a spiritual giant in Christ run away from it.
But nowhere does Jesus Christ tell us that a church, any church can do that to anyone. Only the very Spirit of God living inside of each one of Jesus Christ's followers can do what you describe above... No group or persons can preach that to anyone's heart.
The choice to conform to Jesus Christ is a personal choice and it cannot be made by the teaching of any man. Only God Himself can provide one with teaching that is able to cause a person to conform to the stature of Jesus Christ.

Re: Five Ways You Can Identify A Good Church To Attend by FarmTech(m): 10:30pm On Aug 18, 2020
Kobojunkie:
But nowhere does Jesus Christ tell us that a church, any church can do that to anyone. Only the very Spirit of God living inside of each one of Jesus Christ's followers can do what you describe above... No group or persons can preach that to anyone's heart.
The choice to conform to Jesus Christ is a personal choice and it cannot be made by the teaching of any man. Only God Himself can provide one with teaching that is able to cause a person to conform to the stature of Jesus Christ.
.
What he is simply saying is that if ur church don't preach the truth that touches ur heart and influence u to live a godly life, run away from the church. We all know that conviction is the work of the Holy Spirit, but human voice is still needed to pass the message across. Faith comes by hearing the word of God - from the mouth of humans.
Re: Five Ways You Can Identify A Good Church To Attend by Kobojunkie: 10:41pm On Aug 18, 2020
FarmTech:
What he is simply saying is that if ur church don't preach the truth that touches ur heart and influence u to live a godly life, run away from the church.
What I am saying is it is not the job of any church to teach you that which will touch your heart and influence you to live a godly life. Only the Spirit of God can do that to anyone and He does not do that through a church.
FarmTech:
We all know that conviction is the work of the Holy Spirit, but human voice is still needed to pass the message across. Faith comes by hearing the word of God - from the mouth of humans.
When the Spirit of God convicts a person of sins, the wrong response is then run into a church, any church. Nowhere in Scripture are you told that the Spirit convicts men of sins so they can run into churches.
The correct response is for them, the convicted, to turn to their convictor and ask for help in learning about God and the ways of God, from God Himself.

John 16 vs 4-15 (ERV)
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4. “I did not tell you these things at the beginning, because I was with you then.
5. Now I am going back to the one who sent me. And none of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’
6. But you are filled with sadness because I have told you all this.
7. Let me assure you, it is better for you that I go away. I say this because when I go away I will send the Helper to you. But if I did not go, the Helper would not come.
8. “When the Helper comes, he will show the people of the world how wrong they are about sin, about being right with God, and about judgment.
9. He will prove that they are guilty of sin, because they don’t believe in me.
10. He will show them how wrong they are about how to be right with God. The Helper will do this, because I am going to the Father. You will not see me then.
11. And he will show them how wrong their judgment is, because their leader[a] has already been condemned.
12. “I have so much more to tell you, but it is too much for you to accept now.
13. But when the Spirit of truth comes, he will lead you into all truth. He will not speak his own words. He will speak only what he hears and will tell you what will happen in the future.
14. The Spirit of truth will bring glory to me by telling you what he receives from me.
15. All that the Father has is mine. That is why I said that the Spirit will tell you what he receives from me.
He, the Spirit of God, is the one who is meant to do all of the work, not your churches or men.
Re: Five Ways You Can Identify A Good Church To Attend by efficiencie(m): 8:48am On Aug 19, 2020
Kobojunkie:
But nowhere does Jesus Christ tell us that a church, any church can do that to anyone. Only the very Spirit of God living inside of each one of Jesus Christ's followers can do what you describe above... No group or persons can preach that to anyone's heart.
The choice to conform to Jesus Christ is a personal choice and it cannot be made by the teaching of any man. Only God Himself can provide one with teaching that is able to cause a person to conform to the stature of Jesus Christ.

And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:
Ephesians 4:11-13
Re: Five Ways You Can Identify A Good Church To Attend by BluntTheApostle(m): 9:18am On Aug 19, 2020
FarmTech:

.
.[Eph 1:4 Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes.
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The "us" here refers to all Christians. By the way, Ephesians were not Israelites but gentiles.
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From the ff passages, I'll see that both Jews and gentiles were predestined.
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Genesis 22:18
And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.
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Galatians 3:16
Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.
.
Galatians 3:14
Through Christ Jesus, God has blessed the Gentiles with the same blessing he promised to Abraham, so that we who are believers might receive the promised Holy Spirit through faith.
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So from the creation of the world, both Jews and gentiles have been predestined.
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Also see:
Acts 13:48
When the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and honored the word of the Lord; and all who were appointed for eternal life believed.
.
John 6:44
44 “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise them up at the last day.
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Revelation 13:8
8 All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast—all whose names have not been written in the Lamb’s book of life, the Lamb who was slain from the creation of the world.
.
Ephesians 1:11
11 In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will,
.
Romans 8:33
33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies.
.
Ephesians 2:8-9
8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.
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Ephesians 1:4-5
4 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5 he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—
.
Romans 8:28-30
28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. 29 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 30 And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.

You didn't read my post, otherwise you wouldn't have taken the trouble to type all this.

Ephesians were Gentiles that was why Paul wrote that Salvation originally meant for the Jews had also been extended to them, as long as they believed in the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

And now you Gentiles have also heard the truth, the Good News that God saves you. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago. (Ephesians 1:13)

Salvation had been predestined only for the Israelites.

Then Jesus said to the woman, “I was sent only to help God’s lost sheep—the people of Israel.” (Matthew 15:24)
Re: Five Ways You Can Identify A Good Church To Attend by perpeling22(f): 11:52am On Aug 19, 2020
FarmTech:

.
The bible is totally against such practice. It is part of witch craft.

Exactly! Reason why I don't wish to know anything pertaining to it.
Re: Five Ways You Can Identify A Good Church To Attend by sonmvayina(m): 12:01pm On Aug 19, 2020
What does being a good Christian actually mean?
Re: Five Ways You Can Identify A Good Church To Attend by Kobojunkie: 2:30pm On Aug 19, 2020
efficiencie:
And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:
Ephesians 4:11-13
This is what God said about the instruction of His people...

Jeremiah 31 vs 31-34 (ERV)
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31. “Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, 32. not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the Lord.
33. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
34. And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”
this is what Jesus Christ Himself Himself said...

John 6 vs 43- 46 (ESV)
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43. But Jesus said, “Stop complaining to each other.
44. The Father is the one who sent me, and he is the one who brings people to me. I will raise them up on the last day. Anyone the Father does not bring to me cannot come to me.
45. It is written in the prophets: ‘God will teach them all.’[d] People listen to the Father and learn from him. They are the ones who come to me.
46. I don’t mean that there is anyone who has seen the Father. The only one who has ever seen the Father is the one who came from God. He has seen the Father.
Here, Jesus Christ commands that no one set themselves up as Teachers over others


Matthew 23 vs 8-12
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8. But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers.[c]
9. And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven.
10. Neither be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Christ.
11. The greatest among you shall be your servant.
12. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.
And again, this is what Jesus Christ said on the issue of Teaching His followers...

John 14 vs 25-31 (ESV)
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15. “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.
16. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper,[f] to be with you forever,
17. even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be[g] in you.
18. “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.
19. Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live.
20. In that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you.
21. Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.”
22. Judas (not Iscariot) said to him, “Lord, how is it that you will manifest yourself to us, and not to the world?”
23. Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.
24. Whoever does not love me does not keep my words. And the word that you hear is not mine but the Father's who sent me.
25. “These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you.
26. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.
27. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.
28. You heard me say to you, ‘I am going away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I.
29. And now I have told you before it takes place, so that when it does take place you may believe.
30. I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming. He has no claim on me,
31. but I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father. Rise, let us go from here.
According to God's plan, our Teacher, Helper, Comforter, Guide, Counselor... is Jesus Christ Himself through His very Spirit, not through men, and since He is the head of the Church and all the parts are connected to Him, what use is there for others to teach the members of His church when He who lives inside of them, the Spirit of Truth, is more than fully Capable?
Re: Five Ways You Can Identify A Good Church To Attend by Makschinchin: 10:08pm On Aug 19, 2020
ZINIBANKS:

So what are you saying their devil right
You've forgotten that the same Jesus you call is the same they also call

That's your personal understanding to my comment.
Re: Five Ways You Can Identify A Good Church To Attend by FarmTech(m): 9:45pm On Aug 20, 2020
BluntTheApostle:


You didn't read my post, otherwise you wouldn't have taken the trouble to type all this.

Ephesians were Gentiles that was why Paul wrote that Salvation originally meant for the Jews had also been extended to them, as long as they believed in the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

And now you Gentiles have also heard the truth, the Good News that God saves you. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago. (Ephesians 1:13)

Salvation had been predestined only for the Israelites.

Then Jesus said to the woman, “I was sent only to help God’s lost sheep—the people of Israel.” (Matthew 15:24)
.
I read your post well. May be u made a mistake by referring to the "us" as Jews only. But it represent all Christians. God promised to bless Abraham's seed, and that seed (which is Christ), will bless the whole world - both Jews and gentiles. And that is what happened, Christ came to the Jews and blessed them. Then he sent some of his disciples to the gentiles and they were blessed. It was still Christ that was doing the blessing, not his disciples.
.
ROM 1:16:
For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.
.
Acts 13:46
Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: "It was necessary to speak the word of God to you first. But since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles.
.
Matthew 24:4-14
For this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world for a witness to all nations, and after that, the end shall come”
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It was God's original plan to use the gospel to save Jews and gentiles. Gentiles did not come in as an after thought.
I suggest u read more about predestination.
Re: Five Ways You Can Identify A Good Church To Attend by efficiencie(m): 9:18am On Aug 22, 2020
Kobojunkie:

This is what God said about the instruction of His people...

this is what Jesus Christ Himself Himself said...

Here, Jesus Christ commands that no one set themselves up as Teachers over others


And again, this is what Jesus Christ said on the issue of Teaching His followers...

According to God's plan, our Teacher, Helper, Comforter, Guide, Counselor... is Jesus Christ Himself through His very Spirit, not through men, and since He is the head of the Church and all the parts are connected to Him, what use is there for others to teach the members of His church when He who lives inside of them, the, Spirit of Truth, is more than fully Capable?

Really? So much to say so little! Why didn't Jesus Himself by the HolySpirit deliver the scriptures to us directly? Why did He do it through ordinary and sometimes sinful men? Why didnt Jesus send His prophecies to us directly through His Spirit? Why did He send the prophets? Aren't the prophets men and women? Or are the prophets the HolyGhost? Lol! Why did Jesus set up Apostles before He left? Couldn't Jesus minister directly via the HolyGhost and bypass the Apostles? Why did Jesus send Peter to teach Cornelius about the Gospel? Shouldn't Jesus have taught Cornelius by the HolySpirit alone and directly?

Those who know the LORD and His Word, not by research but by intimacy with the LORD, do not pit scripture against scripture as you have just done...instead they look for that hidden mystery explaining the bridge between what seems to be opposing scriptures.

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