Why Theology and Church Attendance are crucial for growth.

[Neostarwcc]

It's frequently said by many Christians that "I don't need anything but the word of God" which, is a great proposition, because Sola Scriptura is a true and profound way to know the truth in the Protestant faith. However, one cannot have ONLY the word of God and get their theology ONLY from the Bible. Christians need the guidance of the great theologians of the ages and the guidance of a true biblical pastor. Why? Well for one when you only have the word of God and do not attend a Biblical church or get your theology from the fabulous theologians that have existed over the ages you miss scriptures deepest meanings.

Why? Well the main reason is that a theologian and Pastor can read from the original text while many of us can only read the Bible in English. Pastors and theologians are often and should be educated and equipped enough to handle and answer ANY question of the Bible. Not that the English translations are not great but more that, there's a lot of the deepest meanings to scripture that only can be deciphered by reading from the original text. If you can read and write ancient Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaiaic and can study the Bible in its original language this point is invalid but for the vast majority of the human population, we can't.

Two, a Pastor and Theologian is essential for the growth of a Christian because often times they can help a Christian identify and kill unrepentant sins in their lives. Yes, it's very important for a Child of God to kill sin and a Christian that lives in sin is not a Christian as John says in 1 John 1:6 for a quick example. When we rely on ourselves alone oftentimes there are sins that we don't know about that are in our lives and a good Pastor or Theologian can point those out to help us and correct us.

Three, relying solely on personal interpretation without the context of historical church practices can lead to misinterpretations and heresies. Throughout church history, the church has encountered and addressed various heresies and doctrinal errors through councils and creeds shaping orthodox Christian beliefs. The wisdom and insight from these historical discussions and decisions help guide our understanding of Scripture and prevent the repetition of past mistakes. Engaging with the broader historical and global church through its teachings and traditions helps us to interpret Scripture not in isolation but as part of a larger, ongoing conversation about faith, doctrine, and practice. This broader perspective guards against the individualism and cultural biases that can skew our understanding of God’s Word.

Four, if we were actually loyal to the scriptures we would be attending church because the Bible commands us to go to church and fellowship with other believers. When the apostles were alive they ensured that not only that the church as a whole was equipped back then with the words of God, but that all future genrations of the church would be equipped with the word of God as well.

I have more than four reasons but due to the length of this post i'll cut it here and add them in my comments.

 

[RandyPNW]

Excellent post! I'll only add this... We are born in Sin and have to grow and mature. In this there are dangers, and others, more mature than us, are able to guide us through dangerous places.

Lacking experience we can learn from the experiences of others. Pride is a danger that causes us to think we know better and don't need help from others.

We are here to serve others because they need help too. If we don't wish to serve God we won't grow in the Spirit. We won't be living by the Spirit. We are to humble ourselves and to serve one another, considering others better than ourselves. If we are to grow in love we must learn to love.

It is a danger when we have pastors or models who are inept and proud in their own leadership, lacking the essential skills and virtues necessary to help us when we ask questions. We need good role models like Jesus was himself. We have to learn to endure the weaknesses of others as they seek to grow and require correction in this.

Sage advice! Thanks.

 

[jas3]

Three, relying solely on personal interpretation without the context of historical church practices can lead to misinterpretations and heresies. Throughout church history, the church has encountered and addressed various heresies and doctrinal errors through councils and creeds shaping orthodox Christian beliefs. The wisdom and insight from these historical discussions and decisions help guide our understanding of Scripture and prevent the repetition of past mistakes.

Very true, I am reading through Price and Gaddis's translation of the acts of the council of Chalcedon, and it's very informative about how the bishops resolved theological controversies and how ancient councils were recorded. It and the letters of St. Cyril of Alexandria are often able to explain Christology more clearly and succinctly than modern authors do.

 

[bling]

It's frequently said by many Christians that "I don't need anything but the word of God" which, is a great proposition, because Sola Scriptura is a true and profound way to know the truth in the Protestant faith. However, one cannot have ONLY the word of God and get their theology ONLY from the Bible. Christians need the guidance of the great theologians of the ages and the guidance of a true biblical pastor. Why? Well for one when you only have the word of God and do not attend a Biblical church or get your theology from the fabulous theologians that have existed over the ages you miss scriptures deepest meanings.

Why? Well the main reason is that a theologian and Pastor can read from the original text while many of us can only read the Bible in English. Pastors and theologians are often and should be educated and equipped enough to handle and answer ANY question of the Bible. Not that the English translations are not great but more that, there's a lot of the deepest meanings to scripture that only can be deciphered by reading from the original text. If you can read and write ancient Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaiaic and can study the Bible in its original language this point is invalid but for the vast majority of the human population, we can't.

Two, a Pastor and Theologian is essential for the growth of a Christian because often times they can help a Christian identify and kill unrepentant sins in their lives. Yes, it's very important for a Child of God to kill sin and a Christian that lives in sin is not a Christian as John says in 1 John 1:6 for a quick example. When we rely on ourselves alone oftentimes there are sins that we don't know about that are in our lives and a good Pastor or Theologian can point those out to help us and correct us.

Three, relying solely on personal interpretation without the context of historical church practices can lead to misinterpretations and heresies. Throughout church history, the church has encountered and addressed various heresies and doctrinal errors through councils and creeds shaping orthodox Christian beliefs. The wisdom and insight from these historical discussions and decisions help guide our understanding of Scripture and prevent the repetition of past mistakes. Engaging with the broader historical and global church through its teachings and traditions helps us to interpret Scripture not in isolation but as part of a larger, ongoing conversation about faith, doctrine, and practice. This broader perspective guards against the individualism and cultural biases that can skew our understanding of God’s Word.

Four, if we were actually loyal to the scriptures we would be attending church because the Bible commands us to go to church and fellowship with other believers. When the apostles were alive they ensured that not only that the church as a whole was equipped back then with the words of God, but that all future genrations of the church would be equipped with the word of God as well.

I have more than four reasons but due to the length of this post i'll cut it here and add them in my comments.

First off: you are not looking at the method Christ established for evangelizing the world.

There was no “Bible” to begin with. After many years from Pentecost there were some letters circulating. Few gentiles in the first century were thought to read and there were few scrolls around.

Persecution of Christians in the first three centuries, did not allow for Christian Educational Centers, there were just house churches led by uneducated Christians and yet it grew rapidly both spiritually (many willing to die for the cause) and in number.

The big factor you are leaving out is the indwelling Holy Spirit and unselfish Godly type Love which all Christians should have.

Christians in the West do not use Christ’s method, but in countries under severe persecution like Communist China are following to different degrees Christ method without even realizing how the Spirit is leading them. I have been involved for years now with the unregistered churches in China.

God set up a system in which over a short period of time (maybe 40-50 years or so), at any time, with any one person getting it started, every individual on earth would have the opportunity to experience Christ physically and mentally: Loving them, teaching them, listening to them, spending time with them, showing them real Love, and thus providing the opportunity for every individual to accept or reject God’s Love.

This “system” was established and shown while Christ was on earth: takes little money, little previous education, and maybe only just part of the Bible, but the whole Bible would be nice.

The system works by you allowing the Holy Spirit (Christ) to work through you to mentor/disciple a small group (4-12). If you can just average one disciple per year (a person like yourself who will allow the Spirit to work through them to disciple other), you will run out of people on earth to disciple in 37 years.

The fact that we are not ceasing this opportunity and power before us, has and does result in some people never having the opportunity to accept or reject God’s Love, but God is totally fair and will judge their hearts.

The Church in China was thought to have vanished since all male leaders were removed and not seen again (being about 1 million protistans and 2 million Catholic) prior to the bamboo curtain going up. Today it is estimated at 175 million.

Would any other method do better?

 

[bbbbbbb]

First off: you are not looking at the method Christ established for evangelizing the world.

There was no “Bible” to begin with. After many years from Pentecost there were some letters circulating. Few gentiles in the first century were thought to read and there were few scrolls around.

Persecution of Christians in the first three centuries, did not allow for Christian Educational Centers, there were just house churches led by uneducated Christians and yet it grew rapidly both spiritually (many willing to die for the cause) and in number.

The big factor you are leaving out is the indwelling Holy Spirit and unselfish Godly type Love which all Christians should have.

Christians in the West do not use Christ’s method, but in countries under severe persecution like Communist China are following to different degrees Christ method without even realizing how the Spirit is leading them. I have been involved for years now with the unregistered churches in China.

God set up a system in which over a short period of time (maybe 40-50 years or so), at any time, with any one person getting it started, every individual on earth would have the opportunity to experience Christ physically and mentally: Loving them, teaching them, listening to them, spending time with them, showing them real Love, and thus providing the opportunity for every individual to accept or reject God’s Love.

This “system” was established and shown while Christ was on earth: takes little money, little previous education, and maybe only just part of the Bible, but the whole Bible would be nice.

The system works by you allowing the Holy Spirit (Christ) to work through you to mentor/disciple a small group (4-12). If you can just average one disciple per year (a person like yourself who will allow the Spirit to work through them to disciple other), you will run out of people on earth to disciple in 37 years.

The fact that we are not ceasing this opportunity and power before us, has and does result in some people never having the opportunity to accept or reject God’s Love, but God is totally fair and will judge their hearts.

The Church in China was thought to have vanished since all male leaders were removed and not seen again (being about 1 million protistans and 2 million Catholic) prior to the bamboo curtain going up. Today it is estimated at 175 million.

Would any other method do better?

I would definitely take any information about the church in China with a major grain of salt. The estimated numbers of Christian vary considerably and there is no means of verifying any of those numbers.

Having personally gone to China to teach the Bible to small house church schools, I offer the following for your consideration:

1. Not all professing Christians in China are Protestants nor are all in house churches nor are all persecuted, even among the house churches.

2. China is an immense country, about as big as the United States geographically with approximately 1.4 billion people. Thus, even the most optimistic number of Christians in China is an exceedingly small proportion of the overall population.

3. The Communist Party of China, which operates the government from Beijing, maintains a Bureau of Religion (aka Superstition, which is the same word as religion in Chinese). The Bureau is responsible for operating and staffing of all religious temples (aka churches and mosques as they are the same word in Chinese as temples). Thus, the government has a network of religious facilities throughout the country.

4. The government of China is particularly sensitive about anything or anyone which it perceives as criticizing it in any way. An example would be the Uyghurs in Mongolia who are overwhelmingly Muslim (there are far more known Muslims in China than Christians). The government is much more concerned about Muslims than Christians; hence, the government has herded a couple of million or so Uyghurs into "re-education" camps.

5. In the Bureau of Religious Affairs Christians are grouped into Catholics and the Three-Self Church. (Three-Self Patriotic Movement - Wikipedia.)

6. It is not difficult to find a government Catholic or Three-Self church and, contrary to popular belief in the United States, one can freely purchase a personal Bible at these churches. The Chinese government operates the largest printing business in the world. If you look closely at many of your books you may discover that they were printed in China. The Chinese government is more than happy to sell a wide variety of books, at a profit (or course) and they see Bibles as simply a book to sell. Thus, the Chinese people do have free access to Bibles. There are two Chinese translations, both predating the rise of the Communist party. Both translations have weaknesses, but that is another story.

7. The Chinese people are fascinated by all things American. For example, they think Wal-Mart is the greatest retailer on earth. They love KFC, but not so much McDonalds primarily because KFC has reinvented its menu offerings to appeal to Chinese customs, whereas McDonalds insists on doing things just like in America. It would be like going to a Chinese restaurant in the United States, ordering your food, and then finding out that the food is put in the center of the table for everyone at the table to eat. My point is that the Chinese interest in Christianity is not so much because of its theological content (sin is an extremely difficult concept for the Chinese mind to grasp) but because of its association with the United States of America. If the USA is such a great nation then its religion must also be good stuff.

8. The Chinese people are surprisingly pragmatic. Thus, if Buddhism or Taoism or Confucianism fails to deliver on their promises, then perhaps another religion might work better. Syncretism (following multiple religions) is fairly common in China so one might find an ancestor altar in a home, with a statue of Buddha, one of Ganesh, a crucifix, a madonna, etc. The expectation is that, if there is a god (or at least a god who can produce the desired results) it is best to hedge one's bets.

9. At this point in time the house church movement is taking its cues primarily from American prosperity gospel preachers. Benny Hinn is particularly popular because he holds out the sure and certain expectation that Jesus Christ will deliver you from poverty, provide a son to care for you in your old age, prevent you from getting sick, and heal you when you do get sick. The services at house churches range considerably from calm and conservative to straight-up imitation of flamboyant American Pentecostal preaching.

 

[Neostarwcc]

Excellent post! I'll only add this... We are born in Sin and have to grow and mature. In this there are dangers, and others, more mature than us, are able to guide us through dangerous places.

Lacking experience we can learn from the experiences of others. Pride is a danger that causes us to think we know better and don't need help from others.

We are here to serve others because they need help too. If we don't wish to serve God we won't grow in the Spirit. We won't be living by the Spirit. We are to humble ourselves and to serve one another, considering others better than ourselves. If we are to grow in love we must learn to love.

It is a danger when we have pastors or models who are inept and proud in their own leadership, lacking the essential skills and virtues necessary to help us when we ask questions. We need good role models like Jesus was himself. We have to learn to endure the weaknesses of others as they seek to grow and require correction in this.

Sage advice! Thanks.

That is great too! I didn't think of that one yesterday but more that only a Pastor, Theologian, or a fellow Christian can point out and help you with sin which would only be part of your point. I like your point far more better than the one i came up with.

 

[Neostarwcc]

First off: you are not looking at the method Christ established for evangelizing the world.

There was no “Bible” to begin with. After many years from Pentecost there were some letters circulating. Few gentiles in the first century were thought to read and there were few scrolls around.

Persecution of Christians in the first three centuries, did not allow for Christian Educational Centers, there were just house churches led by uneducated Christians and yet it grew rapidly both spiritually (many willing to die for the cause) and in number.

The big factor you are leaving out is the indwelling Holy Spirit and unselfish Godly type Love which all Christians should have.

Christians in the West do not use Christ’s method, but in countries under severe persecution like Communist China are following to different degrees Christ method without even realizing how the Spirit is leading them. I have been involved for years now with the unregistered churches in China.

God set up a system in which over a short period of time (maybe 40-50 years or so), at any time, with any one person getting it started, every individual on earth would have the opportunity to experience Christ physically and mentally: Loving them, teaching them, listening to them, spending time with them, showing them real Love, and thus providing the opportunity for every individual to accept or reject God’s Love.

This “system” was established and shown while Christ was on earth: takes little money, little previous education, and maybe only just part of the Bible, but the whole Bible would be nice.

The system works by you allowing the Holy Spirit (Christ) to work through you to mentor/disciple a small group (4-12). If you can just average one disciple per year (a person like yourself who will allow the Spirit to work through them to disciple other), you will run out of people on earth to disciple in 37 years.

The fact that we are not ceasing this opportunity and power before us, has and does result in some people never having the opportunity to accept or reject God’s Love, but God is totally fair and will judge their hearts.

The Church in China was thought to have vanished since all male leaders were removed and not seen again (being about 1 million protistans and 2 million Catholic) prior to the bamboo curtain going up. Today it is estimated at 175 million.

Would any other method do better?

I don't know anything about house Churches in China or about most of what you said but when you said there hasn't always been a Bible, you're right and one. You're right in the sense that Christians didn't start assembling the writings of the Apostles into the New Testament that we all love today until the end of the second century but, since the Time of Moses and the Prophets we've always had scripture and my first argument was definitely invalid then because almost everybody could read from the original text back then. It's only through the greatest of Theologians and Rabbis that we can understand scriptures deepest meanings. And while we didn't start assembling the writings of the Apostles until nearly the 3rd century we had the original letters of the apostles back then and theologians and Churches would have read from the originals and already had the complete Old Testament.

 

[bling]

I don't know anything about house Churches in China or about most of what you said but when you said there hasn't always been a Bible, you're right and one. You're right in the sense that Christians didn't start assembling the writings of the Apostles into the New Testament that we all love today until the end of the second century but, since the Time of Moses and the Prophets we've always had scripture and my first argument was definitely invalid then because almost everybody could read from the original text back then. It's only through the greatest of Theologians and Rabbis that we can understand scriptures deepest meanings. And while we didn't start assembling the writings of the Apostles until nearly the 3rd century we had the original letters of the apostles back then and theologians and Churches would have read from the originals and already had the complete Old Testament.

The big thing you are leaving out is the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit. He knows what we need to know and can work with us to know the truth. Most (like 99%) of the people until the printing press was invented did not own (very expensive and bulky) or even have access to a complete Bible. If history is correct Jewish boys during Christ's time by age ten, had the first five books of the OT memorized along with much of psalms and proverbs.
The Bible is just one tool the Christian has, to support for himself and others the truth the Spirit has led him to.
The individual "common" Christians during the first three centuries were allowing their indwelling holy Spirit to mentor them and the small group around them to become disciples and allow the Spirit in these new Disciples to lead others and so on.
The Christian "leaders" were often roundup and killed, but the Church kept growing through Spirit led members.