What is the greatest threat to the church in our generation?

[tdidymas]

It is not. I'm not interested in "repentence" or "justification". I literally don't care what some church thinks of my moral state.

Nope. Not in the slightest. The church is selling a bill of unbelievable goods. Why should I want any of it?

Manning was specifically talking about people who left the church. We are very aware of what "Jesus provides". We just don't buy it.

That completely misreads the quote. It is *Manning* that claims that "Christian hypocrites" are what drive away members and make us into atheists. It is not atheists claiming that. (And as an atheist I would never "blame" my non-belief on anyone. If anything I'd be grateful for the trigger.)

I don't care if the salesman is perfectly honest. I care if the product is defective.

Your response proves my words true.

 

[dlamberth]

We must be open to admitting our mistakes. That is how we get more people into our Christian faith.

I totally disagree with this. The way to get more people into your Christian faith is through Love and service to those in need. That's an image of Christ that even non-Christians hold. And that's how those first Christian in Rome won over the people. It was so important to those Romans that those Christian gave all they owned to help and to be of loving service to the poor and those in need.

 

[Hans Blaster]

Your response proves my words true.

Hardly. You gave a fairly bog standard set of incorrect assumptions about non-believers and our motivations that illustrate you do not actually understand us in the slightest.

 

[Offline4Better.]

I totally disagree with this. The way to get more people into your Christian faith is through Love and service to those in need. That's an image of Christ that even non-Christians hold. And that's how those first Christian in Rome won over the people. It was so important to those Romans that those Christian gave all they owned to help and to be of loving service to the poor and those in need.

I'd say, do both. Showing kindness to others, and helping people in need could be the first and most important prong, while admitting our own mistakes could be the second prong. We need to go back to the Roman days, minus the Roman Empire, corruption, gladiators and diseases.

Acts 2:44-47 (NIV): "All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved."

James 5:16 (NIV): "Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective."

 

[tdidymas]

Hardly. You gave a fairly bog standard set of incorrect assumptions about non-believers and our motivations that illustrate you do not actually understand us in the slightest.

Could you please inform me of your motivation to not become a Christian, beyond the superficial blame game that they are hypocrites?

 

[Hans Blaster]

Could you please inform me of your motivation to not become a Christian, beyond the superficial blame game that they are hypocrites?

I learned stuff about the Bible, history, etc., and the notion that it was as had been claimed fell apart. Hypocrisy had nothing to do with it.

 

[Servus]

The greatest threat to church in our generation?

Going woke.

 

[tdidymas]

I learned stuff about the Bible, history, etc., and the notion that it was as had been claimed fell apart. Hypocrisy had nothing to do with it.

Get specific, what stuff, what claims?

 

[Hans Blaster]

Get specific, what stuff, what claims?

By the rules I can not make arguments against your religion, and such "details" could be seen as such. The really short version would be regarding the story of Jesus, the history of the early church, the writing and compiling of the Bible, and its story of Jewish history became increasingly obvious to the the product of regular human activities and not supernatural action or devine intervention.

 

[tdidymas]

By the rules I can not make arguments against your religion, and such "details" could be seen as such. The really short version would be regarding the story of Jesus, the history of the early church, the writing and compiling of the Bible, and its story of Jewish history became increasingly obvious to the the product of regular human activities and not supernatural action or devine intervention.

So because of those historical things, you have decided that there is no divine intervention. I see.

 

[Hans Blaster]

So because of those historical things, you have decided that there is no divine intervention. I see.

Never seen any divine interventions and understanding the origins of those texts certainly leaves me no reason to think they describe actual divine interventions.

 

[Robban]

767K views · 37K reactions | What is the greatest threat to the church in our generation? “Pastors. Honestly, pastors.” – Paul Washer #paulwasher #gospel #scripture #reformed #creedsconfessions #christ #salvation #christian #theologian #preacher #

What is the greatest threat to the church in our generation? “Pastors. Honestly, pastors.” – Paul Washer #paulwasher #gospel #scripture #reformed #creedsconfessions #christ #salvation #christian...

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Heard a story about 14 years ago, from a Lutheran Pastor, Norway has a Lutheran tradition,

he likened the meeting with a house full of children, there came a visitor to the house and was surprised to see so many gathered there.

So the visitor asked the house owner if they were all his children, no, the house owner replied,

some are just friends, they willl be leaving soon.

Not a threat, just the way it is.

Fruit is plucked when it is mogen for plucking one by one.

Lewi Pethrus, the founder of the Pentecostal church in Sweden said,

A sudden rush to churches is not revival, it is windfallen fruit, and often bruised.

 

[FireDragon76]

Progressivism. More and more churches are viewing the Bible as a living document, and I don't mean living as in it can give you life, but as a document that can be updated periodically to support whatever worldview is popular at the time. Given enough time, you will eventually see the vast majority of churches adopt the same theology as Unitarian Universalists.

I can count the number of genuinely progressive churches in the town I live in, on less than a hand. On the other hand, there are dozens and dozens of churches preaching religious fundamentalism and a naive view of the Bible.

 

[SavedByGrace3]

The greatest threat is becoming irrelevant and normalized. We are headed to the place where the secular society will declare Christianity a cult because it is no longer "normal" and accepted. Do you see how Mormons and the JW are treated? Get ready for that. Eventually, it will become more like Heaven's Gate and Jonesville. We "drink blood, eat human flesh," and consider ourselves as an exceptional race. You will be laughed at and ridiculed by our culture. Eventually, our pluralistic and tolerant friends will be looking for ways to declare the church racist, haters, and non-inclusive. People will lose their jobs, families will be threatened, and churches will be shut down. All this is part of the antichrist spirit and the false prophet.

 

[Jermayn]

I can count the number of genuinely progressive churches in the town I live in, on less than a hand. On the other hand, there are dozens and dozens of churches preaching religious fundamentalism and a naive view of the Bible.

Not judging but, usually people who complain of religious fundamentalism are member of progressive Christian churches and therefore can't seem to find any. So, I'm interested in what your definition of progressive and fundamentalism are if you wouldn't mind taking a minute to type it out.

 

[Yarddog]

767K views · 37K reactions | What is the greatest threat to the church in our generation? “Pastors. Honestly, pastors.” – Paul Washer #paulwasher #gospel #scripture #reformed #creedsconfessions #christ #salvation #christian #theologian #preacher #

What is the greatest threat to the church in our generation? “Pastors. Honestly, pastors.” – Paul Washer #paulwasher #gospel #scripture #reformed #creedsconfessions #christ #salvation #christian...

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I feel it is the "me" generation.

 

[Astrid]

A Biblical worldview is one in which decisions are made based on what the Bible says.

Going by how little agreement there is on what the bible says
what is / isn't biblical worldview is just opinion
.

 

[timothyu]

Going by how little agreement there is on what the bible says
what is / isn't biblical worldview is just opinion

Man says every man for themselves. God says care for each other. Its rather simple.

 

[Astrid]

Man says every man for themselves. God says care for each other. Its rather simple.

Each for self may be a western malady but it's not remotely our Chinrse way.



My point that you ignored is that what God's word is or means has very little agreement.

Your quote isn't even in the Bible, nicely illustrating my point.

Perhaps you are confusing
" rather simple" with reductio.ad absurdum.

 

[timothyu]

Each for self may be a western malady but it's not remotely our Chinrse way.

EVERYONE is selfish