Why are there so many luke warm Christians on this forum?

I'd rather be here with a few hypocrites than in hell with them all is a saying, and watch the self-serving bias. I agree there are some that don't listen to the Bible, they don't believe in it. But not all.

preacher_in_training said:

1 Corinthians 5.9 States we should not have anything to do them, in which i wont. But it's sad coming to a Christian forum to find many of the posters are luke warm.

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P_I_T

First, welcome to the forum. I'd encourage you to spend some time here, to share your thoughts and perspectives, and also learning for many here. I know I've learned a lot and been challenged a lot by those here. Many of us will tell it like it is - with a good heart and good intent.

So my $0.02. Get your head out of the sand. The last thing we need is another 'preaching in training' (yes I read your post that it's really 'christian in training') who are afraid of life and afraid of sin and sinners.

Here’s the current wisdom on evangelism: Don’t have any non-Christian friends. That’s a great way to keep the church empty. That’s real good wisdom. "Cause they’ll pull you away from the Lord."

I tell our young people, ‘Guys, now that you’ve come to Jesus, keep your non-Christian friends and go and make some more.’ Cause if they pull you away from the Lord, they’ve done you a huge favour. Because you haven’t got what you thought you had. So if that happens, come back, and I’ll make sure you get the right thing next time around.

‘Oh, you don’t want to be friends with that kind of people, they’re bad.’ Correct me if I’m wrong, but the Bible says that Jesus was a friend of publican and sinners. The friend, not just some ship that pass in the night – He was considered to be the friend of publicans and sinners. That’s interesting isn’t it.

Be sure to scratch people where they’re itching, and try to answer the questions that they’re asking. Cause the church has got a great skill of not doing any of that. We expect the world to itch where we’re scratching.

But Jesus looked at his world, and found all the little spots that were itching. It felt really good to those publicans and sinners. Cause here was a man not like the Pharisees who stood on a corner in his long robe demanding that they fit in with them. But here was a man that was prepared to fit in with their lives and come touch them; scratch them where they were itching, who was prepared to answer the questions that they were asking. He was willing to break convention to do it.

The last thing we need is another Christian who does not understand their role in the earth. How are you going to share the Gospel of the Kingdom of Heaven if you're not willing to go out into the world?

andry,

the above post is absolutely awesome !!!! We all need to be more like Jesus....a lot more.

ischus said:

oh- I see

I was asking because I am attending a school for ministry... just wondering, ya know?

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Cool! Another person attending school for ministry, was starting to feel alone! What is your Major? B.A. Theology then on to grad for Biblical Languages in a little over a year hopefully. I noticed you have the Brazil Flag, I was there in the fall of 2001. My wife is from RIO (had to meet her parents before the big day).

yeah- I am really from Texas but I was in Rio in 2003 on a mission trip -in Madureira....
But I lived with a family there and learned portuguese and rode the bus everywhere- you know... real life in Rio...

So I consider myself worthy of using the flag of Brasil.

Anyway, yeah- I am going to have a BA in theology, and then I will go on to a masters in missiology (which is half theology and half anthropology for those who don't know).

Nice to meet you, TSM ! I see you are pentacostal... I assume your wife is too? That is what is most prevalent in Rio from what I saw. Which Church(es) in Rio does your wife know or attend? I know there are a lot, but you never know- we have this much in common...so I wouldn't be suprised if we know some of the same people !!!!

oh yeah- TSM !

I almost forgot- what is the name of that fancy restaraunt on copa cobana that has the BEST meat in the world- you know what I am talking about? I can't remember the name and I was trying to tell someone about it....

Who are we to judge others? We are to point out their mistakes in a gentle manner. The most important aspects of being a Christian are to show love to others and to love God.
Homosexuals can't help being that way, and instead of indulging in the fact we happen to be straight and making ourselves feel all self righteous about that fact by singling them out in a judgemental or spiteful manner, we should respectfully tell them there is a way out of their sexual orientation if they desire-the Holy Spirit can change them.

The only "luke warm" Christians about on this planet are those who aren't trying their best to be as kind and accepting and loving as possible, just like Jesus was! That's FAR more important then anything else.

ischus said:

Nice to meet you, TSM ! I see you are pentacostal... I assume your wife is too? That is what is most prevalent in Rio from what I saw. Which Church(es) in Rio does your wife know or attend? I know there are a lot, but you never know- we have this much in common...so I wouldn't be suprised if we know some of the same people !!!!

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When I went to RIO in the fall of 2001 to see my then soon to be wife she was Catholic. As for the Church she attended, you know, I'm really not sure But i'll make sure to ask her! While I was down there (4 months) I only attended the Catholic Church her grandmother went to. From what I noticed about Pentecostalism while in RIO is alot of people looked at me very shaddy. The first response I ALWAYS received was that they thought I handled snakes orthat I wanted their money. Not a very good start. Brazil is the fastest growing spot of Pentecostalism in the world I believe but they have a few bad apples as does everyone. I spent most of time in Tijuca or Ipanema. Did you ever get over to Tijuca? If so, what did you think of it? I was robbed twice. The third time God gave me anointed legs to move faster then I ever thought possible! I could have beaten Forest Gump that day The food and the people are great! My wife and I are looking at moving their as soon as she finishes med school and I finish grad. I'll ask her about the steak place! I'm sure she will know!!!!

One last thing! I loved their buffets! You take as much as you want then they charge you by how much it weighs! haha I paid 5 Rios for a plate someone could have used for weight lifting

preacher_in_training said:

I just found Christian forums by accident and i am shocked by what i read in the open forums by posters with Christian identities by their name. They claim homosexuality is normal and blessed by God. They claim sexual activity is okay outside marriage, they scoff at most of Gods commandments and pervert scripture. What is going on? why is their faith so weak?

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Why is their faith so weak? There are realy 2 answers to that.

1. They just aren't as spiritualy mature as you are. This could be because they are reletivaly new in the faith or becaus they haven't recieved the same quality of teaching that you have or for a number of othe reasons. Remember, you yourself were once a babe in Chist. Don't judge those that are in that position today but rather try to help them to grow.

2. Their faith isn't weak at all. They just don't have their doctrines 100% correct like you do. This could also be because they are new Christians or because they haven't recieved good teaching. It could also be because their denomination teaches different doctrine than yours or they come from a different culture where things are accepted that in your culture are totaly rejected. Because of this they could find it hard to see things the same way you do.

If you have been a Christian more than a couple of years, then you will probably have changed your belief about something at least once. (For example, changed from a pre-trib to a mid-trib or post-trib view of Christ's return.) If this is the case, then you must admit that youre doctrines haven't always been 100% correct and probably aren't now either. So, don't judge those that have incorrect doctines, but rather, in a non-judgemental way, try to correct those doctrines. But be ready to have your own views corrected now and then. None of us knows it all and we can all learn from each other, even from those with weaker faith.

ischus said:

Didaskalos,

Amen, brother! Your post made my day!!!

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Amen! Amen!

TSM,

Yeah- I went to the Tijuca Forest for a day.. it was so beautiful... I did not get robbed per se, but someone stole my cell phone right off me in a crowd..it was kind of embarassing. MY friends fell prey to a classic beach scandal where they do some flashy things to sell you something while the others steal the stuff out of your bag... That was not good at all !!! But overall it was the best time of my life....

I did not ever go to Ipanema (especially not the beach !!!).

I went to three different churches there, one Assembly of God, one Catholic, and one Church of Christ (where we did our work from in madureira).

preacher_in_training said:

I just found Christian forums by accident and i am shocked by what i read in the open forums by posters with Christian identities by their name. They claim homosexuality is normal and blessed by God. They claim sexual activity is okay outside marriage, they scoff at most of Gods commandments and pervert scripture. What is going on? why is their faith so weak?

.

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as you may well know, i think that most christians are lukewarm. they may not neccessarily support homosexuality or sex outside marriage, but really they are not on fire with the holy ghost for jesus. why? because people way long back made christianity a religion like the rest of the others, " do this and this and dont do this and youll go to hevean when you die." i guess it started probably with constantine a bit and also the council of laodecia( which happens to be the lukewarm church) when they deemed carrying around signs of our sacred blood covenant a pagan superstition and deeming a bunch of other stuff like that, heathen. it just became more a political and religious establishment rather than a body of believers walking in their covenant winning the world for christ. sooner or later the holy ghost left, he didn't dwell in all that religious junk. hardly any people filled with power like the church of acts, and the people who were were deemed heretics and persecuted by the church. then luther came along and the whole protestant reformation, but i guess people still held on to a lot of the religious trash they were raised up with. so it just goes on from there, im no scholar or historian, but i took 9th grade world history!(hehe) but basically the majority of christian are dead in faith and are ignorant about the blood covenant that we have with God. yea, thats basically it. it grieves my heart to know that but its pretty much true.

Amen !!!

Lukewarmness implies a faulty connection to the source of power..

I agree w/Preacher and Shetland. It grieves me.. makes me so sad to see how many followers of Christ are blinded, thinking that sin is okay, when it says in the Bible that it is not. We aren't to be like the world, yet we have so many Christians who use profanity, get involved in same sex relationships, have premarital sex, and so on... but see nothing wrong with it because "God is LOVE"... Yes He is, but when He says no, HE MEANS NO. I am tired of people looking for loopholes in the Word... "Well nothing in the Bible is direct"... Come on now.. The enemy is so successful in leading Christians away from Christ and they don't even know it...

Jai___ said:

I agree w/Preacher and Shetland. It grieves me.. makes me so sad to see how many followers of Christ are blinded, thinking that sin is okay, when it says in the Bible that it is not. We aren't to be like the world, yet we have so many Christians who use profanity, get involved in same sex relationships, have premarital sex, and so on... but see nothing wrong with it because "God is LOVE"... Yes He is, but when He says no, HE MEANS NO. I am tired of people looking for loopholes in the Word... "Well nothing in the Bible is direct"... Come on now.. The enemy is so successful in leading Christians away from Christ and they don't even know it...

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Amen My sister! It grieves me too..I have family and close friends that lives the way they want too and if you say anything-ahhh theres nothing wrong with me doing this, God will forgive me or the Bible doesnt really mean that....or what does it say in the Greek? They always come up with an excuse...Lord help us..

nagwalk said:

Lukewarmness implies a faulty connection to the source of power..

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Yes it does, I've read through all of the posts and everyone has come up with some good thought out points. I don't have much time now, i will come back. But i have skipped through a lot of threads in the forum, and as some people said here, Many many Christians are saying God is love, God is love, love, love, God is sweet soft love. Don't try and say anything about sin or Judgement or else your consider intolerant or bigoted. And they'll make it clear for you to be quite. They cannot endure sound doctrine, as predicted.

God is kind and God is righteous.

I am not holy i am not righteous, I am a sinner like everyone else. I want to make it clear that I understand that not everyone is strong in faith. Everyone falls short and goes into a life of sin. that is understandable. What bothers me is that it is becoming a sin to call sin sin !!!. Christians do not want to hear about it, they want to be complacent and comfortable and think that God doesn't care, because after all, God is love.

I noticed alot as well in other threads that end times are scoffed at as well, alot of Christians are saying the world hasn't a bit and saying "Judgment is a long way off" they mock and scoff. I want to make it clear that it is coming very soon, the whole world is becoming more like a giant Sodom and Gomorra, And Christians are being deceived more and more Just as predicted. The end is indeed very near.

It is not okay to choose what we think is sin. God made it very clear what sin is. Very clear. God will not be mocked.

"Woe unto those who call evil good and good evil" (Isa.5:20)! !!!

Like others i think it's sad. I wish more people could stand up for the truth and not lies. It will effect them eventualy

God is a god of love, but of judgement as well. What kind of parent does not disipline his children when they need it ?