.

Tigger45 · Mar 19, 2016

Many AoG churches lately, other then the name on there sign (which AoG is frequently being removed from) once inside it would be hard to be distinguished from other Spirit-filled, Charistmatic, nondenominational and even many Baptist congregations for that matter.

sunlover1 · Mar 19, 2016

Extraneous said:
The Pope seems to agree with them.

I'm sure hater's gonna hate but
this blesses my heart.

sunlover1 · Mar 19, 2016

Righttruth said:
What is important is not the gifts of the Spirit but the fruit that fetches salvation

Both are important or God wouldn't have given them.

jimmyjimmy · Mar 19, 2016

seashale76 said:
but the fact that anyone that left for a non-Pentecostal church was looked on as leaving the faith gave away the real teaching.

That is telling, and cult-like.

seashale76 said:
'The initial evidence of the baptism of the Holy Spirit is speaking in tongues.' It was considered so important that you had to seek out this experience.

I've come across that kind of thinking myself. IMO, people go astray when seeking experiences, and I also think that it's a weak faith that seeks them, in the first place. Faith without sight is far more blessed than faith with sight.

Tigger45 · Mar 19, 2016

Tigger45 said:
I often hear in their personal testimony experiences, particularly coming from a traditional church, that they've now been baptized by the HS as opposed to just water baptism.

thatbrian said:
I guess that makes the rest of us second class Christians. Are we even Christians in their eyes, if we have not the Holy Spirit?

Righttruth said:
A delusion. Normally, the Holy Spirit baptism is administered by Jesus after water baptism for the faithful. Speaking gibberish after baptism is not that one.

And I've been to pretty much every type of Spirit-filled, Pentecostal, Full Gosple & charismatic form of Christianity out there and would testify that my Lutheran church is one of the most prophetic congregations I've attended. (Of course I can't prove this it's only my experience) But many times the sermons are so spot on it defies me to call it a coincidence.

Further more it was in an EO parish that I experienced the most tangible in filling of the HS. They would refer to this as the uncreated energies of God.

In the most honest, transparent & humble way. Don't seek the gift, seek the Giver.

Righttruth · Mar 20, 2016

sunlover1 said:
Both are important or God wouldn't have given them.

What is important? Your salvation or exalting in gifts?

Righttruth · Mar 20, 2016

Tigger45 said:
And I've been to pretty much every type of Spirit-filled, Pentecostal, Full Gosple & charismatic form of Christianity out there and would testify that my Lutheran church is one of the most prophetic congregations I've attended. (Of course I can't prove this it's only my experience) But many times the sermons are so spot on it defies me to call it a coincidence.

Further more it was in an EO parish that I experienced the most tangible in filling of the HS. They would refer to this as the uncreated energies of God.

In the most honest, transparent & humble way. Don't seek the gift, seek the Giver.

I agree, we need to seek the Giver and cultivate the fruit, not to be satisfied with gifts.

godsgoond · Mar 20, 2016

thatbrian said:
What does it mean when someone says that he belongs to a, "Spirit-filled" church? Is he claiming that other churches or Christians are not "filled" with God's Spirit? Is it all about falling on the ground and "holy laughter"?

Don't all of God's elect have His Spirit indwelling?

I grew up in a traditional church until I got into a car accident and fractured C3 and C4 neck bones. I was miraculously healed by people whom laid hands on me. These people attended spirit filled church. One of the girls (yes, she was only 16 years old at time) had one of her leg grew in front of her dad's eyes in a healing conference. Her dad was a surgical doctor. I can go on and on with miracles and wonders I saw and heard since I switched to spirit filled church. Spirit filled church believes in healing, miracles, prophets, visions, dreams which traditional church only talk about them during Bible study or Sunday sermons, no personal experience, not even the pastors had experienced themselves; traditional church pastors most of them have lots of head knowledges. The spirit filled church I attend, the entire service lasts about 2 and half hours. The worship time takes more than an hour waiting for the Holy Spirit and God's presence. After each Sunday service I feel refreshed, burden lifted, spiritually uplifted, faith strengthened....etc, versus attending 1 hour Sunday service which I used to at traditional church and felt no difference after the service but done my job of showing up at church each Sunday.

Extraneous · Mar 20, 2016

godsgoond said:
I grew up in a traditional church until I got into a car accident and fractured C3 and C4 neck bones. I was miraculously healed by people whom laid hands on me. These people attended spirit filled church. One of the girls (yes, she was only 16 years old at time) had one of her leg grew in front of her dad's eyes in a healing conference. Her dad was a surgical doctor. I can go on and on with miracles and wonders I saw and heard since I switched to spirit filled church. Spirit filled church believes in healing, miracles, prophets, visions, dreams which traditional church only talk about them during Bible study or Sunday sermons, no personal experience, not even the pastors had experienced themselves; traditional church pastors most of them have lots of head knowledges. The spirit filled church I attend, the entire service lasts about 2 and half hours. The worship time takes more than an hour waiting for the Holy Spirit and God's presence. After each Sunday service I feel refreshed, burden lifted, spiritually uplifted, faith strengthened....etc, versus attending 1 hour Sunday service which I used to at traditional church and felt no difference after the service but done my job of showing up at church each Sunday.

If that's true why don't they go out to hospitals and heal the sick. I bet they would convert many people if they did.

Extraneous · Mar 20, 2016

I believe alot of this healing stuff is wishful thinking. I have heard people say they were healed, only to have a relapse later. People want to believe in miracles, so when they get well they declare a miracle, but in truth it was doctors who most likely healed them. The absence of miraculous healing doesn't take away Glory from God however because to praise God even in the worst of circumstances is to give him glory i believe. Our citizenship is in heaven not America, and we died and our life is hidden in Christ , in heaven. We dont need miracles, we just need to be holy, separate from the world, and to love each other. That would shine plenty of light in this dark world.

jimmyjimmy · Mar 20, 2016

This is the leg lengthening trick and how it's done.

godsgoond said:
I got into a car accident and fractured C3 and C4 neck bones. I was miraculously healed by people whom laid hands on me.

Were you treated at a hospital, or did you go straight to a healer with a broken neck?

Extraneous · Mar 20, 2016

This is how the world will know we belong to Christ, if we love each other. Politics however and denominations only cause us to become unfruitful however, because those things are about division and contention. See Galatians 5, see also 1 Corinthians 3. I cant see any Church claiming to be spirit filled when they are filled with political strife, and when they fail to live as the Church of Acts 4. They didn't need politics because the kingdom was their nation, and the King was their president. They didnt need to debate economics nor prosperity doctrine because they shared everything they had. THey proved they were disciples because they loved each other in these ways. He who gathered much had nothing left over, and he who gathered little had no lack. People need to wake from their sleep and focus on heaven, and the kingdom, rather than on earthly things.

John 13:35 By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

sunlover1 · Mar 20, 2016

Righttruth said:
What is important? Your salvation or exalting in gifts?

I never said "exalting" in anything.
Since God gives both, I'll say both are important

ViaCrucis · Mar 20, 2016

thatbrian said:
Thank you. Yes, that's my take as well, but is it not also a slight, or backhanded way to say that the rest of us are lacking in God's Spirit? Have you ever been accused of attending a "dead" church, for instance?

That's certainly how I used it back in the day. I don't quite think anyone in my church explicitly said "other churches are dead" or would point to this or that specific church as "dead"; but the implication was that we had the Holy Spirit active in our midst where other churches are lacking something. Personally, I did judge other churches, and I judged Christians as belonging to other churches as having an incomplete (at least) form of Christianity. Lutherans, Baptists, Presbyterians, Methodists, these were spiritually dead churches, and don't even get me started with how bad "those Catholics" were.

In fact, while I considered Baptists to be basically spiritually dead, they at least were still "real" Christians. I wasn't so generous with "stained glass" Christians--Lutherans, Methodists, Presbyterians, Episcopalians, et al--they probably weren't Christians at all, seeing as they were all "basically Catholic".

Let's just say that I consider myself fortunate to have had my world turned upside down.

-CryptoLutheran

Extraneous · Mar 20, 2016

I will get some stained glass windows for my home, if that helps.

(Just a bit of harmless humor)

ViaCrucis · Mar 20, 2016

Tigger45 said:
I used to attend a little AoG church and the pastor would occasionally preach on scriptures making distinctions on verses where it refers to the HS being 'in' us i.e. (The qualifier for salvation) and the HS being 'on' us i.e. (The HS anointing/empowering us).

So 'he' not 'me' would summarize by saying a person is 'saved' by the initial indwelling of the HS but that there is a higher level of calling and relationship with God that is available to the believer.

At my old Foursquare church our pastor frequently would try and explain that "getting saved" was like being an empty cup filled with water (the Holy Spirit) but that "baptism of the Holy Spirit" was like more Spirit poured in and starting to over flow outward--and this always included a visual example of a glass being over filled with water.

-CryptoLutheran

Extraneous · Mar 21, 2016

Jeremiah 13:12 “Therefore you shall speak to them this word: ‘Thus says the Lord God of Israel: “Every bottle shall be filled with wine.”’

And they will say to you, ‘Do we not certainly know that every bottle will be filled with wine?’

Extraneous · Mar 21, 2016

1 Corinthians 8:2 Those who think they know something do not yet know as they ought to know. 3 But whoever loves God is known by God.[a]

Jeremiah 9:23 Thus says the Lord:

“Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom,
Let not the mighty man glory in his might,
Nor let the rich man glory in his riches;
24 But let him who glories glory in this,
That he understands and knows Me,
That I am the Lord, exercising lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth.
For in these I delight,” says the Lord.

Extraneous · Mar 21, 2016

katerinah1947 · Mar 21, 2016

Tigger45 said:
And I've been to pretty much every type of Spirit-filled, Pentecostal, Full Gosple & charismatic form of Christianity out there and would testify that my Lutheran church is one of the most prophetic congregations I've attended. (Of course I can't prove this it's only my experience) But many times the sermons are so spot on it defies me to call it a coincidence.

Further more it was in an EO parish that I experienced the most tangible in filling of the HS. They would refer to this as the uncreated energies of God.

In the most honest, transparent & humble way. Don't seek the gift, seek the Giver.

Hi,

I have seen this kind of church, and it seems to be pastor specific.

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