As a child my parents raised me outside of religion. That doesn't mean I was raised a non-believer, what that means is that I was raised without a pre-cast (or pre-formed) foundation of what a "church" or faith was. I'll address 'why' in a moment, but for now I wish to fill in some other blanks.
My father was a firm believer in truth. He didn't believe in any churches, he said they were just men following other men who could scream louder or more effectively than anyone else, but he did believe in God. He always taught me to seek the truth. He said it was o.k. to be wrong, as long as one learned from it; but not o.k. to believe that wrong was o.k.
When I began to read the Bible at age eight, my Mom said if there was something I didn't understand, to ask God and He would explain it to me. so, that's what I did, and found out that the bible explains itself IF one allows it to do so. That is not to say that one does not require a guide or minister to under stand the deeper Spiritual knowledge, but for the basics, the Word does an excellent job of explaining itself....IF one permits it to do so. When I came to something I didn't understand, I'd ask my Mom, who would tell me not to worry bout it, that it would be explained in due time.
When I was seventeen i wrote a term paper for English Comp concerning Revelations. The paper recieved an 'A+' for the work, but an 'A-' for content because some of the things I wrote did not fit in with any current (of the time) understanding of theology, (and Yes, this was in a public school. I successfully argued my right to write it on the basis that papers concerning the occult were allowed and the occult fit the definition of 'religion', and yes, I also successfully argued that 'religion' was the creation of men).
What does this have to do with looking for a church? I'll explain in a bit.
My Father didn't follow any religion nor church because he viewed them all as hypocritical in view of Bible teaching. He said that it stood to reason that an entity of superior intellect and knowledge would hold to the truth 100%, and as the religions and churches of men CHOSE what they wanted to hold to and not hold to that he could not logically nor morally give them any credit.
So what does truth have to do with seeking a church? Well, that depends upon one's perspective. If one is seeking socialization, community, and the solace of being part of 'a bigger work' , then probably not much. But if one is truly seeking communion with God, one should start at the source. Find out what God teaches about his congregation, (look it up in the concordence), find out how God describes His church, its attributes and how it is identified, and above all ask God for His guidence.
How many times does the word truth, or words related to it appear in the Bible? Truth: 234, Truth's:2, Truly:41, True:81, Verily:111; for an overall total of 469 tmes. ONCE is enough for the arguement to be made that 'truth' is an important part of anyone's quest for God ... He does state that 'not one jot, nor tittle, nor word of his teaching shall pass away...' He also states that He is to be worshipped and sought in Truth, and that His Spirit is Truth.
It would seem that truth IS, or should be, an important part of anyone's quest for a congregation. That's my point of view. Do I recomend a church? Not at all; as my Mom said, its best to allow God to guide one in the direction He may, therefore God's purpose is served; not man's. Do I know where God's congregation is? Again, its best left to God to dothe guiding or calling, as its HIS plan and purpose. As I stated, God's Word definies itself IF men allow it to do so.
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My father was a firm believer in truth. He didn't believe in any churches, he said they were just men following other men who could scream louder or more effectively than anyone else, but he did believe in God. He always taught me to seek the truth. He said it was o.k. to be wrong, as long as one learned from it; but not o.k. to believe that wrong was o.k.
When I began to read the Bible at age eight, my Mom said if there was something I didn't understand, to ask God and He would explain it to me. so, that's what I did, and found out that the bible explains itself IF one allows it to do so. That is not to say that one does not require a guide or minister to under stand the deeper Spiritual knowledge, but for the basics, the Word does an excellent job of explaining itself....IF one permits it to do so. When I came to something I didn't understand, I'd ask my Mom, who would tell me not to worry bout it, that it would be explained in due time.
When I was seventeen i wrote a term paper for English Comp concerning Revelations. The paper recieved an 'A+' for the work, but an 'A-' for content because some of the things I wrote did not fit in with any current (of the time) understanding of theology, (and Yes, this was in a public school. I successfully argued my right to write it on the basis that papers concerning the occult were allowed and the occult fit the definition of 'religion', and yes, I also successfully argued that 'religion' was the creation of men).
What does this have to do with looking for a church? I'll explain in a bit.
My Father didn't follow any religion nor church because he viewed them all as hypocritical in view of Bible teaching. He said that it stood to reason that an entity of superior intellect and knowledge would hold to the truth 100%, and as the religions and churches of men CHOSE what they wanted to hold to and not hold to that he could not logically nor morally give them any credit.
So what does truth have to do with seeking a church? Well, that depends upon one's perspective. If one is seeking socialization, community, and the solace of being part of 'a bigger work' , then probably not much. But if one is truly seeking communion with God, one should start at the source. Find out what God teaches about his congregation, (look it up in the concordence), find out how God describes His church, its attributes and how it is identified, and above all ask God for His guidence.
How many times does the word truth, or words related to it appear in the Bible? Truth: 234, Truth's:2, Truly:41, True:81, Verily:111; for an overall total of 469 tmes. ONCE is enough for the arguement to be made that 'truth' is an important part of anyone's quest for God ... He does state that 'not one jot, nor tittle, nor word of his teaching shall pass away...' He also states that He is to be worshipped and sought in Truth, and that His Spirit is Truth.
It would seem that truth IS, or should be, an important part of anyone's quest for a congregation. That's my point of view. Do I recomend a church? Not at all; as my Mom said, its best to allow God to guide one in the direction He may, therefore God's purpose is served; not man's. Do I know where God's congregation is? Again, its best left to God to dothe guiding or calling, as its HIS plan and purpose. As I stated, God's Word definies itself IF men allow it to do so.
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