Many seem to believe that church is a building, denomination name or organized worship. However the church is none of these things. When it comes to worship, God is not interested in how or where we do it. He is concerned with whether or not our worship is with our whole heart toward Him and lead by His Spirit. God is not going to judge us on whether or not we went to church every time the doors open. He is going to judge us on our relationship with Him through His Son. So, if church is not what it has been made in this world; then what is it?
What has church become that it has turned so many hearts away from church, worship and even Christ as their Lord and Savior? Well i think to get the answer to this then we need to first realize a few of the problems with churches today. There are quite a few pastors that are going to read this and probably will not like it and that is fine. But I hope that if you find error in it that you will share them with the community. But above all i hope that you all pray for Gods truth and not by the head knowledge you think is right because you went to a school. I also hope that there can be scripture to back up what we are stating. So what is the issues with the churches today?
First of all i would like to point out that people going to a building to worship is not the problem. The way that church is taught is a huge issue. This is the truth of the problems of church. Often times if we claim to know Christ and do not go to a church building we are automatically judged as being unsaved, unholy or on the path to hell, as if it is the church that saves us rather than Christ. Or if we are not a part or do not display faith in a man or a denomination then we are unsaved. This is not found in the Bible anywhere as a prerequisite of salvation. Nor is it stated as a showing of our faith or a work to honor the Lord.
Unfortunately week after week people are put on guilt trips of one kind or another for not showing up to church. If you do decide to go to church then the leaders of the church act as though they own you. This making people feel as though they are supposed to be lead by the leaders of the church and the denomination and the congregation rather than Christ. I am not talking about when you go to a real spiritual leader that gives you true Godly advice. Worship is freedom in Christ, the moving of His Holy Spirit moving with in us and it is not for us to judge ones heart on how they worship or where they worship.
The Bible does not state that we have to worship in any specific place or in any specific way. The Bible does state that we should not forsake the gathering of the brethren. That could be done anywhere at any given time with 3 people or 25 people. Acts 7:48- How be it that the most High does not dwell in temples made with hands as said the prophets. If God does not dwell in temples made with hands then where is he dwelling? The Bible does not lie nor does it mislead us.
But I think the one thing that personally disturbs me the most is how many act as though we are to be more faithful to pastors, denominations and congregations than we are to Christ. We are often ridiculed or told that we are wicked because we actually have a desire to move as the Holy Spirit leads us. It is not for me or anyone else to be the Holy Spirit to others. Nor can we honestly say that we know where the Holy Spirit is leading others. If i do not serve the way the pastor or others think i should that is between me and God and more than likely God is not leading me to do those things.
Serving a church building, denomination or congregation is not always serving the Lord. As a matter of fact I am willing to state that it is not even of the Lord most of the time. Getting people to recognize us is not the work of the Lord through men. It men making the church a business, rather than salvation. To often in today's world we have to many people worried about how many members they have or can have. This causing them to preach contrary to the word of God. It also causes Christ to be put on the back burner and ministries more about feeding the flesh than feeding the soul.
One of the most destructive statements used in today's Christianity is " Find a Bible believing church and grow in it." Why is this statement so destructive, because even the pharisees and the Sadducee's believed in the Bible and Jesus told many of them that they are not saved. this statement leaves salvation to knowledge of Gods word, rather than a personnel relationship with Jesus Christ as Lord. Not to mention that their are a whole lot of false teachings coming out of the churches today. Even Satan believes the Bible and knows it to be true and still sets out to twist it even to us if he is able. Knowledge of the word does not give us salvation.
Salvation is not what we can do to obtain holiness. It is only through Christ that it is obtained and that not of ourselves but of the drawing of the father to his son. Then us accepting the gift. There is no meaning in a peace of paper that states that we are a minister, nor in a suit is there a showing of holiness. We are also not showing Christ in us by how we wear our hair or whether or not we shave or anything like that either. These are things that have been taught in many different churches around the world. However they are also not found in the Bible either.
The teaching of faith in men is not wise at all. There is not one man on this earth that has saved a soul. Yet many pastors talk more about faith in a man or what a man wrote or what a man did than Christ. They often talk about founders of their church denomination or church. Menno Simmons, John Wesley, Thomas Road with Jerry Falwell, Joseph Smith and the list goes on. I m not saying that we should never discuss some things about them.However I do think that we need to be careful that we are not giving them the glory and not Christ. This is what i have seen in many churches and from many pastors. They always talk about what the man has done as if they did it all by themselves. Therefore taking Christ out of the equation and placing man in the seat of authority.
Church as a business is very destructive. It has taken faith from Christ and put it on many members. This being a big reason that there are so many false teachings in the churches today. Church has been made more about money and popularity than it is about our Lord and Savior. Being a pastor is a calling not a career opportunity. It has also brought out many of the teachings about prosperity and being popular in the world. While the Bible states very clearly that we will not be liked because the world can not accept light and will hate because we are not of this world. Now many pastors are taking a look at how popular they can be and how great their church can be more than they are looking at the better for the man soul. How selfish can we as men be?
False freedom and seducing spirits, controlling the minds of mankind. If you have to tell people to feel happy or to feel the Holy Spirit, The Holy Spirit is probably not there to begin with. More than likely because you are only playing church and not a part of the church. That being the Body of Christ not you unholy institution that you call holy. A rhetoric taught to those that wish to know how to capture the minds of mankind rather that the soul for Christ. believing that what they have been taught is the truth of the gospel of our Lord Jesus. Rather it is a profaning of his great name. Denying Him as Lord and King of all things. Ignoring or manipulating His power.
This confusing the people as if we have the power. There is only one name by which miracles are done. It is the power in the name of Jesus Christ, You do not see all of this long drawn out garbage healing sessions that you see in many of the churches today. When peter healed the lame man outside of the temple, he did not pull some hocas pocas garbage that people have made it today. He simply stated in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth get up and walk. That was the huge power that he used. Because the power is not ours to begin with. If we have any power of such move through us know that it is the power of the Lord and not of us. These teachings giving people testimonies of people and churches rather than Christ. I heard a testimony given in church this past Sunday, It was amazing how much honor there was given to the church and the people of the church. Yet not one thing mentioned of a thank you to the Lord as if the Lord had nothing to do with it.
That bringing me to another point. How many pastors do you hear give an actual testimony of how Christ has moved through their lives? Seldom do i actually hear honor or glory going to Christ for anything. I am not sure the last time I actually heard a testimony that was a true movement of Christ in the hearts of men. The same testimonies were given to the church and the leaders of the church over the new year celebration. Not one thanks to Christ,i wonder if they actually know Christ to be honest. However it is not for me to say.But i do have the right to be weary of the leaders and their faith.
However there are a few things that God is not going to care about on the day we meet Him. He is not going to care whether or not we have a peace of paper stating that we are a minister. He is not going to care about our Business look or attitude. Nor is He going to ask us how many people we have in our church building, denomination or congregation. The degrees that we see many get from these schools about the bible is not going to matter to God either. It is not going to matter how many people we have fed or given to. The bottom line is not going to be how much money we have or much property we obtain.
God cares about where our hearts are. Did we have to try to charge people up to try to get them to feel the Spirit of God. Are we feeding the flesh of people making them feel as though God does not care about our sins? Is the Spirit of God moving through as we minister to people giving them what they need or just telling them what they want to hear? Are building a business or trying to build up the body of Christ? We should definitely invite the Lord and His Spirit. However we as individuals should already be filled with the Spirit and recognizing it within the church building, if in fact the Spirit of God is in the worship there and not just a man made show.
This is what I am sending as of right now to everyone. However this is an unfinished work. The rest is coming. Any and all comments are welcome. Scripture is always welcome.
What has church become that it has turned so many hearts away from church, worship and even Christ as their Lord and Savior? Well i think to get the answer to this then we need to first realize a few of the problems with churches today. There are quite a few pastors that are going to read this and probably will not like it and that is fine. But I hope that if you find error in it that you will share them with the community. But above all i hope that you all pray for Gods truth and not by the head knowledge you think is right because you went to a school. I also hope that there can be scripture to back up what we are stating. So what is the issues with the churches today?
First of all i would like to point out that people going to a building to worship is not the problem. The way that church is taught is a huge issue. This is the truth of the problems of church. Often times if we claim to know Christ and do not go to a church building we are automatically judged as being unsaved, unholy or on the path to hell, as if it is the church that saves us rather than Christ. Or if we are not a part or do not display faith in a man or a denomination then we are unsaved. This is not found in the Bible anywhere as a prerequisite of salvation. Nor is it stated as a showing of our faith or a work to honor the Lord.
Unfortunately week after week people are put on guilt trips of one kind or another for not showing up to church. If you do decide to go to church then the leaders of the church act as though they own you. This making people feel as though they are supposed to be lead by the leaders of the church and the denomination and the congregation rather than Christ. I am not talking about when you go to a real spiritual leader that gives you true Godly advice. Worship is freedom in Christ, the moving of His Holy Spirit moving with in us and it is not for us to judge ones heart on how they worship or where they worship.
The Bible does not state that we have to worship in any specific place or in any specific way. The Bible does state that we should not forsake the gathering of the brethren. That could be done anywhere at any given time with 3 people or 25 people. Acts 7:48- How be it that the most High does not dwell in temples made with hands as said the prophets. If God does not dwell in temples made with hands then where is he dwelling? The Bible does not lie nor does it mislead us.
But I think the one thing that personally disturbs me the most is how many act as though we are to be more faithful to pastors, denominations and congregations than we are to Christ. We are often ridiculed or told that we are wicked because we actually have a desire to move as the Holy Spirit leads us. It is not for me or anyone else to be the Holy Spirit to others. Nor can we honestly say that we know where the Holy Spirit is leading others. If i do not serve the way the pastor or others think i should that is between me and God and more than likely God is not leading me to do those things.
Serving a church building, denomination or congregation is not always serving the Lord. As a matter of fact I am willing to state that it is not even of the Lord most of the time. Getting people to recognize us is not the work of the Lord through men. It men making the church a business, rather than salvation. To often in today's world we have to many people worried about how many members they have or can have. This causing them to preach contrary to the word of God. It also causes Christ to be put on the back burner and ministries more about feeding the flesh than feeding the soul.
One of the most destructive statements used in today's Christianity is " Find a Bible believing church and grow in it." Why is this statement so destructive, because even the pharisees and the Sadducee's believed in the Bible and Jesus told many of them that they are not saved. this statement leaves salvation to knowledge of Gods word, rather than a personnel relationship with Jesus Christ as Lord. Not to mention that their are a whole lot of false teachings coming out of the churches today. Even Satan believes the Bible and knows it to be true and still sets out to twist it even to us if he is able. Knowledge of the word does not give us salvation.
Salvation is not what we can do to obtain holiness. It is only through Christ that it is obtained and that not of ourselves but of the drawing of the father to his son. Then us accepting the gift. There is no meaning in a peace of paper that states that we are a minister, nor in a suit is there a showing of holiness. We are also not showing Christ in us by how we wear our hair or whether or not we shave or anything like that either. These are things that have been taught in many different churches around the world. However they are also not found in the Bible either.
The teaching of faith in men is not wise at all. There is not one man on this earth that has saved a soul. Yet many pastors talk more about faith in a man or what a man wrote or what a man did than Christ. They often talk about founders of their church denomination or church. Menno Simmons, John Wesley, Thomas Road with Jerry Falwell, Joseph Smith and the list goes on. I m not saying that we should never discuss some things about them.However I do think that we need to be careful that we are not giving them the glory and not Christ. This is what i have seen in many churches and from many pastors. They always talk about what the man has done as if they did it all by themselves. Therefore taking Christ out of the equation and placing man in the seat of authority.
Church as a business is very destructive. It has taken faith from Christ and put it on many members. This being a big reason that there are so many false teachings in the churches today. Church has been made more about money and popularity than it is about our Lord and Savior. Being a pastor is a calling not a career opportunity. It has also brought out many of the teachings about prosperity and being popular in the world. While the Bible states very clearly that we will not be liked because the world can not accept light and will hate because we are not of this world. Now many pastors are taking a look at how popular they can be and how great their church can be more than they are looking at the better for the man soul. How selfish can we as men be?
False freedom and seducing spirits, controlling the minds of mankind. If you have to tell people to feel happy or to feel the Holy Spirit, The Holy Spirit is probably not there to begin with. More than likely because you are only playing church and not a part of the church. That being the Body of Christ not you unholy institution that you call holy. A rhetoric taught to those that wish to know how to capture the minds of mankind rather that the soul for Christ. believing that what they have been taught is the truth of the gospel of our Lord Jesus. Rather it is a profaning of his great name. Denying Him as Lord and King of all things. Ignoring or manipulating His power.
This confusing the people as if we have the power. There is only one name by which miracles are done. It is the power in the name of Jesus Christ, You do not see all of this long drawn out garbage healing sessions that you see in many of the churches today. When peter healed the lame man outside of the temple, he did not pull some hocas pocas garbage that people have made it today. He simply stated in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth get up and walk. That was the huge power that he used. Because the power is not ours to begin with. If we have any power of such move through us know that it is the power of the Lord and not of us. These teachings giving people testimonies of people and churches rather than Christ. I heard a testimony given in church this past Sunday, It was amazing how much honor there was given to the church and the people of the church. Yet not one thing mentioned of a thank you to the Lord as if the Lord had nothing to do with it.
That bringing me to another point. How many pastors do you hear give an actual testimony of how Christ has moved through their lives? Seldom do i actually hear honor or glory going to Christ for anything. I am not sure the last time I actually heard a testimony that was a true movement of Christ in the hearts of men. The same testimonies were given to the church and the leaders of the church over the new year celebration. Not one thanks to Christ,i wonder if they actually know Christ to be honest. However it is not for me to say.But i do have the right to be weary of the leaders and their faith.
However there are a few things that God is not going to care about on the day we meet Him. He is not going to care whether or not we have a peace of paper stating that we are a minister. He is not going to care about our Business look or attitude. Nor is He going to ask us how many people we have in our church building, denomination or congregation. The degrees that we see many get from these schools about the bible is not going to matter to God either. It is not going to matter how many people we have fed or given to. The bottom line is not going to be how much money we have or much property we obtain.
God cares about where our hearts are. Did we have to try to charge people up to try to get them to feel the Spirit of God. Are we feeding the flesh of people making them feel as though God does not care about our sins? Is the Spirit of God moving through as we minister to people giving them what they need or just telling them what they want to hear? Are building a business or trying to build up the body of Christ? We should definitely invite the Lord and His Spirit. However we as individuals should already be filled with the Spirit and recognizing it within the church building, if in fact the Spirit of God is in the worship there and not just a man made show.
This is what I am sending as of right now to everyone. However this is an unfinished work. The rest is coming. Any and all comments are welcome. Scripture is always welcome.
