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Thank you brinny. I agree.How valuable is online fellowship?
Both.
Both in life, and on here. The Holy Spirit is not constricted by boundaries or any constructs, but DELIGHTS in being smack in the midst of where two or more are gathered in the name of the living God. He's been POWERFULLY present right here on CF. Especially when praises are pouring forth...why it's like He can hardly contain Himself hahaaaa
DELIGHTFUL.
He DELIGHTS in being present right here on CF or where ANY believers are gathered with our glorious and precious God being the focus, regardless of the means of communication or the distance: phone, internet, etc.
In that regard, the internet, and CF is a BLESSING and can be mightily used by God.
For sure, we should clean up our act, and treat this online fellowship[ with more respect.I'm new to this forum stuff.
Maybe I'm cynical, but I can't take it too seriously and I believe it has limited value.
I just wonder how many are involved just to antagonize and how many are not what they claim to be.
Thank you for your thoughts.I think online fellowship, if possible, should be in addition to church and not taking the place of. I think that will always be the best scenario.
Now there are people who cannot attend for whatever reason and of course they make the best of things and if they have support in their walk online, that is good.
The only thing I might say is that it is harder to have a friendship online.
Thank you. Good points. I agree.I think it can be very important depending on how its used and yes I think the spirit can be present.
I'm going to say this was much more a 'quantity' falling short, than it was a 'quality' falling short. We moved in things I never saw 'IN church' on Sunday compared to when we gathered as 'THE church' in the home.QUOTE="Hillsage, post: 71117570, member: 244594"]1CO 14:26 What then, brethren? When you come together, each one has a hymn, a lesson, a revelation, a tongue, or an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification.
I know we fell short of living up to this, but, for the most part, we were blessed beyond any local 'organized church' membership setting I've ever experienced.[/QUOTE
Okay, if joyfully ready for this - how, or why, did you fall short as posted above ?
I'm not quite sure how to answer you. What you describe doesn't' sound like a 'church service'. It sounds like a 'playground experience' which was handled in a very Christlike way, which sounds very good to me.Realizing when I've seen 3 to 100 children joyously together getting along without any fighting, no lying, no violence, no guns, no knives, no cussing, no one hurting another (instead - AMAZING GRACE - when one falls and skins their knee, 3 or 5 or 10 others run right to them , if needed, to see if they're okay/ to help them up/ to drag them back to PLAYING RIGHT AWAY (if they're not bleeding and not hurt too bad) ......
(this is both literal/physicla happening(s) seen and enjoyed in life daily, and
may be seen as an illustration of a wider range of agape in action whenever God's people have gathered together
with no thought for themselves (honestly - no one self-conscience, no one selfish, no one seeking their own; everyone without thought of sharing giving right in the open what ever they have to others spontaneously and not even remembering it 3 minutes later (as if they had any self-importance at all) -- freely flowing , all things)
A little awkward to describe.... when so many have never seen this ...
ok, thanks paul.I suspect those cases were when it was more than just quotes they received from the Bible.
(If this thread is in the wrong forum, please let me know and i'll ask staff to move it, thank you.)
How valuable is online fellowship?
Is Gods Spirit present while we fellowship online?
.
I don't know if it is correct to call online communication, "fellowship". I think the communication is valuable and I know God uses the communication for his glory. As for God's Spirit being present while online, that is misleading. If you are born again, God's Spirit is always present because he said that he would never leave us or forsake us. I partake in house church fellowships and this community likes to quote Matthew 18 to justify the small gathering when Jesus said when two or more gather in my name I am present. Even though I meet in homes, that is a misuse of the Lord's statement. If you read the context of chapter 18 you can see the Lord is talking about reconciliation. Therefore when two or more gather to reconcile, he is there. In other words, he is there to facilitate the reconciliation. His presence is always with us.
So why do we say that the Lord is present in fellowship gatherings? Simply because we are paying attention to the Lord. We become aware of his presence when we are thinking about him. This is important because there are times when we are praying or thinking about him and his presence is not evident. This is a matter of faith. Whether we are aware of his presence or not does not change his promise that he is there.
Finally, getting back to your first question about online communication, the Bible says that God watches over his Word to perform it and that the Word of the Lord never returns void. Anyone who speaks the Word of the Lord is bringing ministry to those who need to hear it. If John the Baptist can proclaim the coming of the Messiah in the wilderness where there was no one, yet God brought the people to John to hear the proclamation, then God will do the same through online communication. I have prayed over the telephone for a person to be healed, and they were healed. Aren't computers still fancy telephones?
Aren't computers still fancy telephones?
Where is God's Spirit NOT present?
I've seen witnessing done by shut-ins who ministered to others from their own beds using the telephone, tech device, mail, or talked to their visitors/loved ones(If this thread is in the wrong forum, please let me know and i'll ask staff to move it, thank you.)
How valuable is online fellowship?
It is of value but it's not to be the only way a believer is to be in relationship, fellowship or koinonia with other believers.
Communicating the gospel online and or doing chat with others is meaningful but it falls short of what the Lord demonstrated for His followers to be doing...the main thing with fellowship/koinonia is that we are to be doing that in person, studying the Word of God, praying for one another/laying on of hands, investing/growing in relationship not only with the Lord but with other believers...we are to be the hands/arms, feet, mouth etc of the Lord... hands/arms provide, touch, embrace, show care...with our feet we travel about, bring others the good news of the gospel and demonstrate it, we walk beside them and so on and so forth...us who are able bodied/capable should be about the Lord's business.
I spent over two decades doing caregiving and believe you me, the shut-ins I saw on day to day basis thrived on real human interaction in their own homes.
Even though many of my patients had internet and Cable TV, it was the in person involvements that impacted the people who were unable to move themselves.
I've heard many speak of having wonderful online friends and having a wonderful online church to attend...but attending church means to to be personally involved...what I would ask is how are you involved with your online church beyond typing messages back and forth and praying? who are you connected with from the online church...like who is personally visiting/spending time with you from that church and who are you visiting/spending time with from the online church? How are you partaking in the Lord's Supper/taking communion? How are
you using/sharing your gifts/talents that be given to you?
Importantly, are you able to be personally counseled/advised/shepherded by the online minister/church leader?
You see, attending church isn't just typing messages back and forth through cyberspace. Fellowship/koinonia involves humans coming together/serving one another, there's accountability, showing agape, showing hospitality to one another and to others right where you live.
Being a witness, reaching out to the lost in your area/neighborhood.
Is Gods Spirit present while we fellowship online?
The Holy Spirit indwells believers, so his presence is there with believers;
hopefully, the believer isn't grieving the Holy Spirit by refusing to submit
to Him and or the Word of God.
.
1CO 14:26 What then, brethren? When you come together, each one has a hymn, a lesson, a revelation, a tongue, or an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification.
He said God told him to then call anyone in the congregation to the altar who needed 'ministry' of any kind. He did, and they came...and these 'kids' moved in supernatural power with healings and words of wisdom etc. He said it was one of the most powerful services they'd ever had. He then said the Lord spoke to him again for the last time saying; "The church needs to quit pulling the children away from the corporate body to babysit them in milk-toast Sunday school classes. It's time to give them spiritual Christian responsibilities"Wow, what a word!
Second testimony came from a brother I met at a men's retreat in Colorado. He told me he had also just come from a weekend conference at Morningstar ministries. He said at the end of the conference, which he thought was good, Rick Joyner had about a half dozen 'kids' come to the pulpit to 'share' whatever God had put on their heart. He said; "It was unbelievable. Words of knowledge, prophetic words. Spiritual wisdom and insights" He said it gave him a hope for the spiritual future he honestly hadn't had before.
Thank you for your comments.I've seen witnessing done by shut-ins who ministered to others from their own beds using the telephone, tech device, mail, or talked to their visitors/loved ones
about the Lord.
I've known many shut-ins who invited believers to have bible studies, hold prayer meetings in their homes so they could be in fellowship; some shut-ins ministered to others by way of greeting cards/letters, phone calls, or speaking/witnessing to those who walked passed their window or were on their front porch in their wheelchairs and they'd strike up conversations with they neighbor or whomever
happened by.
Unless you in a coma or something like that, then you should make every effort to be in fellowship/koinonia with other believers and reaching out to the lost that live in your neighbor/community.
Before i found online fellowship, I was at the mercy of TV prosperity preachers. I knew their doctrine didn't sound right to me, because of my own understanding of scripture, but still I needed good doctrine. I found it as I debated scriptures online with others. I found my way, and I found hope.
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