Any other Christians in here?

[redneckmedic]

I believe the answer is no...
Matthew 7:21-25
The moral of the story is that both men did hear, both men took actions, one did not have the faith.

Matthew 15:8-9 (New International Version)


8" 'These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
9They worship me in vain;
their teachings are but rules taught by men.'

 

[haldir]

I am a Christian. I am a member (and elder) of a Presbyterian Church. I tend to be a bit more conservative theologically than my denomination. But that is okay. I have always figured that God let's all the different denominations flourish because different people need different things from their faith.

 

[colt45er]

I am a Christian. I am a member (and elder) of a Presbyterian Church. I tend to be a bit more conservative theologically than my denomination. But that is okay. I have always figured that God let's all the different denominations flourish because different people need different things from their faith.

I think you are correct. I think the problem comes in when denominations start saying that they are the only one and that the others are wrong. If you worship a certain way because you prefer it, by all means do it. If you worship a certain way because you say it is the only way, you have to be very very carefull that scriptures are all taken in context and what you are preaching and doing is infact Biblical.

 

[jontheturboguy]

Thank you all for replying. Any one want to share their interesting experiences while walking with Christ?

I'll start the ball rolling. Recently I found a long lost childhood friend that I haven't seen since I was 10. I have been looking for him for years since we lost touch.
Long story short, the guy has done every drug and thing possible on the face of the planet. About 2 years ago he found God, and did a complete u-turn on his sinful life.

No, he's not perfect, but 2 years ago is when I found his mom through an email search. I have been searching far and wide for this guy, with him always on my mind.

Why could I not find him? I think I would have hindered his path that God had him on. God's timing wasn't about me finding him until God wanted me to.

Any body else have any thing of the sort to share? Ever met an angel?

 

[Fletch]

I've encountered God in a very personal, immediate, and overwhelming way. Kind of like Saul on the road to Damascus. I don't know if I can explain it.

 

[HandK]

I am Saved by grace!! Thur the Lord Jesus. Every knee shall bend every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, you can either do it now when it will do you some good, or do it in front of the judgment thrown where it will be to late.

 

[hardtrailz400]

I know a couple Angels.

My Mom is one...she gave up nursing school because of the blood and then gave my brother her kidney when he was 2 and took care of every dressing, pump, line, needle that has kept him alive since.

My Brother--25 yr old graduated college, gives speeches on organ donation and currently has 5 kidneys in him with only one working, but always too sick to remove others. He doesnt bitch about his situation or that he spent a couple years in the hospital, that he cant do what alot of people do. he is happy to be alive and tries to help others. He donates his frre time to childrens hospital in cinci so they can study him and poke and prod and learn about how his 3 transpplants affected him so they can help others and he does it for nothing. he is an incredible person and I believe God saved him several times..including when he told my sister that he just wanted to die so it would be easier. God has him here to help others and make me realize some of the things I take for granted are gifts.

Those are ANGELS.

Me not so much.

 

[deer hunter]

It is a shame that so many people think that they have to do something to get to heaven.
As Paul shared, we are not under law any more we are under grace. Christ died for all sin, past, present, and future. Our sins have been forgiven if only you will except His gift to us.
When churches say you have to do this or that in order to be saved they are still operating under the law. Paul revealed the mystery of grace that had been hidden from the Jews while they were under the law. I am so thankful that I don't have to live by the law but am covered by grace.
This doesn't give me a license to sin, but as a human I know that I will. Thankfully, the blood of Christ has already washed these sins away.

 

[AllenM]

I believe what i believe and most of it is Christian, but I do not believe in organized religion. I think it is on the level of the mob. pay for protection. Not what God would want.

Tha said...My girlfriend has started back to church and has been saved. She is looking for a modern service with comtemporary service. We live in Avon, anyone know of a comtemporary christain service nearby?

Jesus the Messiah - The Blended Church

I also live in Avon, this is where I attend

 

[hornadylnl]

I'm a Christian and in no way perfect. I struggle like many others. I think everyone has doubts about their faith at times. Every time I do, I think about the complexities of this world and I realize they can't be by accident.

Most Christians have lead pretty normal lives until accepting Christ and I believe that is the most difficult way to accept Christ. Those who were literally lifted out of the gutter of drugs or other vices have an easier time remembering that moment in time when God touches their hearts and is an event they will never forget. How could Saul ever forget his transformation to Paul?

In case someone posts that churches are full of hypocrits, they always have room for a few more.

 

[Indy_Guy_77]

Colt45er:

See also the parable of the 10 virgins. There are also a few other, much shorter parables that are associated closely with this one.

In the above referenced parable, it is noted that all 10 know what's going on (members of a wedding party...allegory in and of itself), but only 5 are truly prepared when the time comes for the bridegroom's arrival.

A few of the smaller parables relate to the 2nd coming of Christ: 2 people working on the threshing room floor; both are doing the same exact work. Only one of these people were "taken", one was not. Next parable, two people are working in the fields gathering grain. Again, both are doing the exact same work. One was taken, one was left.

Each of these three parables sets the ratio at 50/50. In my own personal opinion, one in which I hope is wrong, actually, I believe that it's rather safe (And probably conservative) to apply this ratio to Christians vs church-goers.

I do hope I'm wrong.

-J-

 

[luvall]

I am a flawed follower and Pastor trying to be faithful.

 

[henktermaat]

I'm a Christian too. It's real to me and my life is changing daily because of it. My walk with Christ is long and rocky one, full of legalism and attempts to pull myself up by my own bootstraps, so to speak. Of course that way is failure. No one can be saved by anything they do. That concept is hard to grasp.

He told me once via a prophesy that He gave me a kayak to navigate the rough waters of life - instead of a canoe. That way He can roll me back over when I capsize...

 

[hotfarmboy1]

I am a Christian. I believe that Christ died for my sins, was crucified, and on the 3rd day rose from the grave, having victory over death. Now, all anyone has to do is accept this gift of His grace to be saved. It is not by anything that we can do, but what Christ has done for us.

I couldn't of said it better myself.

 

[AFA1CY]

Thank you all for replying. Any one want to share their interesting experiences while walking with Christ?

<<< snip >>>

Not my story but my wife's.

She witnessed to her nephews when they were young children and the eldest made a profession. She never was really sure if he had accepted Christ until just a couple of years ago. He sent a letter to his Grandmother (my wife's mother) telling her that she needed to be saved. He said he had been saved as a young child thanks to my wife.

 

[theweakerbrother]

I am sort of hesitant in replying to this because faith, religion and ethics are all such sticky questions. Growing up, I was sort of Pentecostal. My parents aren't very interested in religion but made me to go to church because my grandfather is a preacher. I did the Sunday school thing for a long time and came to the conclusion that God existed and Jesus sounds like a pretty interesting person even if the story itself doesn't make a lot of sense. I starting believing in the Pentecostal doctrines when I was around 12. I read the whole Bible from cover to cover several times. No dancing, no drugs, and no shorts. I asked to be baptised, which is a big deal in their faith community, and I expected to receive "the Holy Ghost" which sounds scary. In the baptism waiting area, someone told me that I was going to come up out of the water and I would start speaking in tongues (whatever that is). I was baptized by my grandpa and I felt nothing other than a bit colder and a bit more wet. The conclusion to the church community is that because either my heart wasn't right or I wasn't prayed up enough or sincere that I didn't receive the Holy Ghost. Shortly after, I came to all sorts of conclusions as to why the Pentecostal didn't mesh with everything I was reading about in the Bible. Jesus turned water into wine (sorry guys, not grape juice.. its in the Greek), I could be modest and wear shorts, and there were worse things in the world than rock and roll and dancing.

I started going to a non-denominational church. This, in my opinion, is another way of saying you go to a denominational church that has the name of non-denominational. Anyway, there was a great man who worked at that church who was patient with my seemingly unending assault of questions. I appreciated him because he wasn't shocked when I asked tough questions you aren't supposed to ask in typical church discussions. This probably made my parents upset that I was going to a different church and probably my grandpa as well but I figured that truth was ultimately more important than feelings and hitched a ride from a neighbor friend. I attended that church throughout high school.

I thought about going to Seminary and spoke with Jerry about it (the youth minister at the church). He took me to Cincinnati Bible College on one my college days. I should also interject, for a purpose, to comment that I was really into the punk music scene. I had a few piercings, tattoos, and bright red dyed hair at the time of my CBC visit. I didn't think it mattered but would soon realize how some people think appearances are important. I show up for my college visit and I'm waiting for my admissions officer to show up. I dressed relatively normal that day. This girl who couldn't have been much older than me walked in and in one breath said this, "If you're going to consider coming to school here, you're going to need to dye that back to its original color, cover up those tattoos and remove your piercings."

I promise I'm not an exceptionally brash person, but I think I gave her the finger and said a few un-INGO-friendly words. Two wrongs don't make a right. Ironically, I'm sort of big into manners and introducing herself may have been a bit more prudent than a speech on changing my appearance. This is ironic because if I claim to be into manners, I shouldn't have given her the finger. I walked out of the interview excepting Jerry to be pretty mad about the whole thing... after all, it is his alma matter. He knew the right things to say and apologized to me for what happened. He gave me a tour of the school and I swore to him that I'd never go there.

I ended up moving to Texas for a while after that and that was a bad experience. I moved back home and the week that I did, a girl from my old youth group called me. To this day, I have no idea how she figured out how I was home. She called and asked if I wanted to go to CBC with her ona short trip while it was closed so she could get her retainer. I made a lame excuse and she said... "Well, I'm in your driveway." So I went out and as it turns out, she got a job at the admissions office. She gave me an official tour after she picked up her retainer. God makes men liars sometimes and I ended up signing up to go Seminary and I had two weeks to get ready for it.

It took me a little longer than most to graduate. I ended up getting my BS in Biblical Studies (or a BS in BS... hahah). I ran out of classes to take and had to take graduate classes.

I really haven't done much with the degree. I was an interim youth minister for a summer. I don't think that the paid ministry deal is for me. Why get paid for something that should mostly be done for free? Paul wasn't paid. He made tents and used those to foot his bill while teaching the Gospel.

That's the very short and edited version of my religious biography.

I now attend a non-traditional church that sounds like a cult but I swear it isn't. It is called The Living Room.

the [living] room | columbus, indiana | church

We have a lot of varying people who attend. It is mostly young couples. I believe we are the only couple who does not have kids. We have addicts and LEO attending. We have upper class drug company salesmen and recovering alcoholics. The church seems to attract a sort of artsy crowd. Disclaimer: I am NOT artsy. I've recently had a few friends start attending church with me which is nice. One is a disabled war veteran and the other is a guy who used to date my sister but I ended up becoming great friends with.

I try not and advertise this too much but I'm currently undergoing treatments for stage III cancer. I'm going on chemo round number two and I've had a surgery to completely alter my guts. I'm waiting to have another surgery once I finish with the second round of chemo. I think that if God exists, this church was a perfect match for me to attend while I am going through such a thing. They've done nothing but showered us with prayers and love throughout this entire experience. We've had phone calls, cards, food and even an offer of having bills paid for us while I undergo treatments. The church makes the kingdom of God real in that dumpy part of Columbus. Doug was one of the speakers at our church. His wife just found out she has breast cancer a few weeks ago. We've felt really connected to them because of this experience. He has helped us out a lot and now we're trying to help his family out as much as we can. Doug now speaks at a church in Trafalgar called Samaria Christian Church.

If any of you want to go to the living room, let me know and I'll gladly sit with you. I hate going to a church where you don't know anyone. People are pretty good at introducing themselves.

This post is wayyyy too long.

 

[Joe Williams]

I'm a Christian, part of the Christian Missionary Alliance. Glad you said perfection not required LOL.

Most interesting thing for me was how I got saved, a story much to long to put here. Short version: I kept thinking "I really should go to church, really should pay more attention to God, etc." But never did. Things kept happening, nothing going right, I kept saying "really should go to church." Things got worse, found myself in the hospital looking at my boy as they wheeled me into the ER wondering if I was going to see him again. Took the hint from that kick in the butt, and went to church. The blessings that followed, from the education, fellowship, strengthening of faith, being baptized, and secular blessings were all incredible.

Haven't been to church but a couple times since we moved here. I need to get to church.

 

[jtmarine1911]

I assume I am a Christian. I am a man made of God's will and I am a Believer and Follower of Jesus Christ. I am not a church goer by any means and feel that I don't need to be any place specific to speak to God and to see his beauty, but I do prefer to be in the peace of nature when I do. I believe in what the Bible tells me and try to live by it the best I can but am no where close to perfect and find myself passing judgement quite often. I do not believe in Organized Religion, by that I mean the seperate groups that name themselves, Christian, Methodists, Baptists, etc.. I personally don't see how segragating myself from others brings me closer to God and Christ. I do not attempt to press my religion on anyone and do to the Cultural Diversity of my work place enjoy hearing stories of different peoples religious beliefs and comparing the moral values of the two. I believe and that is all that matters to me! I am a man that attempts to live how God would want me to, to see things, to help people, to stand for the weak, and stand against those that would take that away from others. I have Faith, and I believe that is the point, whether God really exsists or not, I have faith that he does and everything happens for a certain reason only he can concieve.

 

[Griffeycom]

I am a Christian. I do not associate myself with a domination and am a "member" of a small church in rural Monroe County. Still looking for a church to attend in Indy while in school, rmcrob I will stop by yours sometime, I promise and this Harvest church seems like one I'd like too!

 

[colt45er]

Colt45er:

See also the parable of the 10 virgins. There are also a few other, much shorter parables that are associated closely with this one.

In the above referenced parable, it is noted that all 10 know what's going on (members of a wedding party...allegory in and of itself), but only 5 are truly prepared when the time comes for the bridegroom's arrival.

A few of the smaller parables relate to the 2nd coming of Christ: 2 people working on the threshing room floor; both are doing the same exact work. Only one of these people were "taken", one was not. Next parable, two people are working in the fields gathering grain. Again, both are doing the exact same work. One was taken, one was left.

Each of these three parables sets the ratio at 50/50. In my own personal opinion, one in which I hope is wrong, actually, I believe that it's rather safe (And probably conservative) to apply this ratio to Christians vs church-goers.

I do hope I'm wrong.

-J-

Some view these passages as proof that there will be a pre-tribulation rapture. Jesus will come back, Christians are taken from Earth only to leave the non believers here. I, as well as a lot of more qualified scholars, believe this to not be the case at all.

I believe that the shorter parables that are shorter are saying the same thing as the parable for the 10 virgins. When Jesus comes back, not everyone will be prepared, for some it may be to late. I also believe that according to Scripture there will be some non-believers that begin to believe and some believers that walk away from Christ.