What changes would you like to see take place with church?

medieval_lady83 · #1 25th May 2012, 07:39 AM

If you could encourage reform in church (or the churches), what kinds of things would you like to see changed?

ALoveDivine · #2 25th May 2012, 01:00 PM

Keep in mind these do not apply to all churches, there are many godly churches out there.

1. Get rid of every last shred of the apostate "prosperity gospel".

2. Stop using carnal means to attract carnal people, just preach the gospel of Jesus Christ.

3. Break away from politics. I'm sick of seeing so many churches acting like underlings of the Republican party.

4. Stop making Jesus a life-accessory that only takes five minutes of your time. End this easy-believism and teach repentance and faith in Christ for salvation.

5. Use the tithes of the congregation to help the poor and the hurting, rather that buying fancy new toys for the church.

6. Do not water down biblical truth to appeal to carnal people. Preach the truth of God's word at all times.

7. Stop breading hostility to science and reason in defense of doctrines of men (e.g YEC) that have nothing to do with the Gospel.

8. Exercise biblical church discipline and focus on discipling believers.

Just a partial list, there are many problems I see in modern American evangelicalism.

miamited · #3 25th May 2012, 01:02 PM

hi lady,

Getting rid of denominations. Tearing down the buildings. Let the 'church' meet in public places and homes. It would be a much stronger witness to the lost. For me, what I want of the 'church' is that it return to the days that Paul, Peter, John, et.al., walked the earth.

God bless you.
In Christ, Ted

God bless you.
IN Christ, Ted

InfinityandBeyond · #4 25th May 2012, 01:15 PM

Well....

I think more church activities and chances for people to get involved in their faith would be good. I'm talking about groups, family events, bible studies, support groups, get togethers, fundraisers, and volunteer work in and outside the church.

Also, as a child I was sometimes intimidated by church, so making Sunday school more child friendly in some churches, so that when kids are older they want to come back to church.

Finally, better Pastor/Family relationships. I think a positive relationship with a pastor can make a huge difference in your church experience.

Edit: Also the tithes going to the poor.

But overall, a closer knit group of people sharing their faith and the word of God.

medieval_lady83 · #5 27th May 2012, 12:01 AM

Originally Posted by ALoveDivine

7. Stop breading hostility to science and reason in defense of doctrines of men (e.g YEC) that have nothing to do with the Gospel.

That's interesting. I've never heard anyone say that young earth creationism is a doctrine of men. It's usually the scientific community criticizing Christians for believing the creation story given in Genesis.

ALoveDivine · #6 27th May 2012, 12:49 PM

What I mean is this. There are a variety of views within Christianity regarding creation. For example my own position is somewhere between old-earth creationism and theistic evolution, based on my understanding of the scientific evidence and the scriptures.

For a church to present one particular view (young-earth) as the only true view is divisive to believers and off-putting to knowledgeable unbelievers. We should preach that God created, rules, and sustains the universe. We ought not to spend time arguing for a young earth or bashing scientific theories of geology and biology.

RINO 72 · #7 27th May 2012, 03:07 PM

Good post. I agree with ALD, even if Im a YEC it serves no purpose to major on the minors. It's like arguing over weather or not the KJV is the only true version of the bible. Rather the true BOC needs to stand together against apostasy and insist that the Word of God do ALL the heavy lifting in the church.

gideons300 · #8 27th May 2012, 05:54 PM

Originally Posted by ALoveDivine

Keep in mind these do not apply to all churches, there are many godly churches out there.

1. Get rid of every last shred of the apostate "prosperity gospel".

2. Stop using carnal means to attract carnal people, just preach the gospel of Jesus Christ.

3. Break away from politics. I'm sick of seeing so many churches acting like underlings of the Republican party.

4. Stop making Jesus a life-accessory that only takes five minutes of your time. End this easy-believism and teach repentance and faith in Christ for salvation.

5. Use the tithes of the congregation to help the poor and the hurting, rather that buying fancy new toys for the church.

6. Do not water down biblical truth to appeal to carnal people. Preach the truth of God's word at all times.

7. Stop breading hostility to science and reason in defense of doctrines of men (e.g YEC) that have nothing to do with the Gospel.

8. Exercise biblical church discipline and focus on discipling believers.

Just a partial list, there are many problems I see in modern American evangelicalism.

A great list. Kudos. May I add one?

9. Teach men and women how to fight the good fight of faith, to put off the old man, reckon themselves dead indeed unto sin and how to truly walk in the new man, and start with the pastors that have led us into this mess we have tried to pass off as biblical Christianity.

Or we could just follow God's recipe. Take sack cloth, Add ashes. Stir in tears. Mix thoroughly and bake at any temperature except lukewarm. Then let God lead us into all truth and set us free indeed as He has promised all along.

Blessings,

Gideon