Immaculate Conception

[Extraneous]

I'm sorry to read this, considering that Christ said "Do this" and the church has done so since the very beginning. Regardless of all else--denominations, correct or errant preaching, etc.--this is a function/sacrament/ordinance that appears to be valid, beneficial, commanded, and impossible apart from the organized church.

I have had to do without it. I never rejected it, but i had to do without it because i had no Church. Im doing good so i must not need it.

 

[Albion]

This scripture is about using the Church to judge disputes between people.

In fact, it isn't even that. The reference to "church" in this case is to the people of God collectively, not to the institutional church.

This is not a command to go to Church.

]
That's right. It's not. However, we're not at a loss for other verses that teach the importance of doing what we these days call "going to church."

 

[Thursday]

That's not referring to bread and wine

According to you.

John 6
35Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.

Paul confirms this here:

1 Cor 10
6Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ?

and here:

1 Cor 11
27So then, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. 28Everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup. 29For those who eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves.

 

[Extraneous]

The scripture makes it clear that there is a single Church and that the Church has authority.

We also see this in Acts 15, when Paul and other Christians had a dispute regarding requirements for gentile converts. They didn't make a decision there, rather they consulted the Church leaders for a resolution.

Jesus and his word has Authority. I have Jesus and His word.

 

[Albion]

I have had to do without it. I never rejected it, but i had to do without it because i had no Church. Im doing good so i must not need it.

I've made do without my usual flu shot this year, but the question remains--would I be better off if I'd gotten one??

That's not referring to bread and wine

That's true; it's not.

 

[Thursday]

Jesus and his word has Authority. I have Jesus and His word.

Here's what Jesus said:

Luke 10:16
"Whoever listens to you listens to me; whoever rejects you rejects me; but whoever rejects me rejects him who sent me."

John 20:21
Again Jesus said, "Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you."

 

[Extraneous]

According to you.

John 6
35Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.

Paul confirms this here:

1 Cor 10
6Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ?

and here:

1 Cor 11
27So then, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. 28Everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup. 29For those who eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves.

Bread from heaven is the Holy Spirit who teaches us, comforts us, and seals us. The body and blood of Christ can be eaten by accepting the Gospel, living by Grace, and following the Spirit.

 

[Thursday]

Bread from heaven is the Holy Spirit who teaches us, comforts us, and seals us. The body and blood of Christ can be eaten by accepting the Gospel, living by Grace, and following the Spirit.

You are just making things up.

Can you find a single Christian in the first 1000 years of Christianity who agreed with you?

 

[Extraneous]

I've made do without my usual flu shot this year, but the question remains--would I be better off if I'd gotten one??


That's true; it's not.

I believe my faith can sustain me. If i ever again go to Church, i will gladly partake of it. Till then, faith sustains me.

 

[BobRyan]

Yes, its written right there. Mary is Josephs wife, and if Mary is Gods Mother then Joseph must be his father...????

Indeed and Mary was the instructor of the infant Jesus - the provider, the one wiser and more experienced - the protector -- and so also Joseph.

So then "stronger than God -- Joseph"??
"wiser than God - Mary"??
"instructor of God - Joseph"??
"Mother of God - Mary ??

Not ONE of those titles ever used by ANY NT writer.

And can we figure out - why they did not do that?

I think we can.

 

[Extraneous]

Here's what Jesus said:

Luke 10:16
"Whoever listens to you listens to me; whoever rejects you rejects me; but whoever rejects me rejects him who sent me."

John 20:21
Again Jesus said, "Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you."

Yes and he wasn't talking to the Pope

 

[Thursday]

Yes and he wasn't talking to the Pope

Yes he was. Peter is the first pope.

Jesus started a single Church and gave the Church leaders with his authority to teach and to forgive sins.

In your opinion, when did it become permissible to reject the teachings of the Church Jesus started?

 

[Albion]

Bread from heaven is the Holy Spirit who teaches us, comforts us, and seals us. The body and blood of Christ can be eaten by accepting the Gospel, living by Grace, and following the Spirit.

The second sentence there is sensible, but as for the first...

Jesus did say (in John 6) that is was HIS body and blood that he was referring to, so it can't be that of the Holy Spirit instead.

 

[Albion]

I believe my faith can sustain me. If i ever again go to Church, i will gladly partake of it. Till then, faith sustains me.

Sure. I'm simply suggesting something. The Scriptures--with which you are familiar--teach not only that Jesus commanded the continued observance of what we've come to call the Lord's Supper, but also that the Supper is beneficial to us, and also that the Christian community has observed it from the earliest days forward.

All of that makes a powerful case for an ordinance, or whatever you'd prefer to call it, that is not to be done without...except in emergencies.

 

[Extraneous]

The second sentence there is sensible, but as for the first...

Jesus did say (in John 6) that is was HIS body and blood that he was referring to, so it can't be that of the Holy Spirit instead.

I don't claim to understand fully what bread and wine may mean specifically. However the holy spirit gives us all things, if i'm not mistaken. He seals us, he gives us comfort, teaches us, he inspired the scripture, and he even prays for us. We cant do anything without the spirit. So if i need this blood and flesh to keep me alive, what else could it be?

What does your Church teach?

 

[Extraneous]

Sure. I'm simply suggesting something. The Scriptures--with which you are familiar--teach not only that Jesus commanded the continued observance of what we've come to call the Lord's Supper, but also that the Supper is beneficial to us, and also that the Christian community has observed it from the earliest days forward.

All of that makes a powerful case for an ordinance, or whatever you'd prefer to call it, that is not to be done without...except in emergencies.

I wouldnt suggest doing away with it.

 

[Albion]

I don't claim to understand fully what bread and wine may mean specifically. However the holy spirit gives us all things, if i'm not mistaken. He seals us, he gives us comfort, teaches us, he inspired the scripture, and he even prays for us. We cant do anything without the spirit. So if i need this blood and flesh to keep me alive, what else could it be?

What does your Church teach?

John 6 does not appear to refer to Holy Communion but to the reception of Christ by the Jews in a more general sense. For one thing, the Lord's Supper hadn't been instituted at the time he was speaking to these Jews in John 6, so it would be hard to imagine how he could have been expecting them to relate his words to that particular ceremony.

But that aside, my church does teach that the Lord's Supper/Holy Communion is a sacrament, meaning that it was instituted by Christ for the imparting of the Holy Spirit and as a reassurance of the forgiveness of our sins.

We consider the bread and wine to be Christ's flesh and blood in a supernatural, heavenly sense, but not in a literal or carnal sense as goes the idea that was introduced into the Medieval Church a few centuries before the Reformation. Yes, you can be saved without Communion, but think of what you're missing if you avoid it, not to mention all the other benefits of having some connection to a local church.

 

[Extraneous]

John 6 does not appear to refer to Holy Communion but to the reception of Christ by the Jews in a more general sense. For one thing, the Lord's Supper hadn't been instituted at the time he was speaking to these Jews in John 6, so it would be hard to imagine how he could have been expecting them to relate his words to that particular ceremony.

But that aside, my church does teach that the Lord's Supper/Holy Communion is a sacrament, meaning that it was instituted by Christ for the imparting of the Holy Spirit and as a reassurance of the forgiveness of our sins.

We consider the bread and wine to be Christ's flesh and blood in a supernatural, heavenly sense, but not in a literal or carnal sense as goes the idea that was introduced into the Medieval Church a few centuries before the Reformation. Yes, you can be saved without Communion, but think of what you're missing if you avoid it, not to mention all the other benefits of having some connection to a local church.

I believe in salvation by faith alone. I believe in love above all things. Not only is it the greatest command, but its taught throughout the NT above all else. I believe in the concept of right and wrong. I try to always to do right, but i'm not perfect. I believe in humility. Not only have i experienced the power of humility, but the Lord says that without it we cant enter the kingdom, and James says God resists pride and gives grace to the humble. I believe in enduring suffering if need be, as much as our ability can sustain.

If i do these things, i believe i will do well and the Lord will be pleased.

 

[Thursday]

Jesus said if you will be perfect sell all you own an


I believe in salvation by faith alone

Romans 2
6God “will repay each person according to what they have done.”7To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life.

James 2:24
You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone.

 

[Extraneous]

Romans 2
6God “will repay each person according to what they have done.”7To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life.

James 2:24
You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone.

I don't worry about being justified, i only worry about following the Lord. That's what it means to live by faith alone. Because i have faith, i naturally desire to do what the Lord has taught me. Not that it comes easy necessarily, but its my desire to please him.

I believe in the fruit of the holy spirit. That's my goal. I want to persevere and endure, hope in Christ instead of my own righteousness, and to be gentle, kind, humble minded, meek, compassionate, merciful, a doer of justice, patient, quiet and even empathetic. That's what i desire. I don't always meet that standard but i will keep trying always.

If im missing something, how could i be lead to desire these things and to understand them? To me this is evidence of the Lord working in me.