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Hebrews 10:24, 25, "And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching."
Should be a place to worship in spirit and truth where each member has an earnest desire to incite others to love and good deeds as well as a place to encourage and be encouraged...a respite from the trials of this life.
The church should be a place of fellowship and worship of the LORD.Also the church should act like something similar to a truck stop or bike messenger depot,sending out workers.
Being a Christian is simply about whether you believe in God and Jesus Christ as Savior. The church decision is an option available for a person if they so choose. It is definitely not a requirement or even necessary. I have a Bible in the house and refer to it on occasion. Verses can easily be accessed by computer, too.
Merely attending a weekly church service is not among the top considerations for me personally. Whether someone is courteous and respectful toward other people in their daily life (all people, not just other Christians) is first and foremost IMO.
Church should TEACH. Church should IMPART KNOWLEDGE.
I know that some people feel that church should be a place of worship, and it should, but as for me, it needs to be where I can go to LEARN.
These days I'm very close to losing my Christian faith and it's because so many pastors and church-goers from whatever church I've attended haven't cared enough to impart necessary knowledge to me... or, perhaps worse, they haven't actually HAD the knowledge. My current pastor won't talk theological issues with me because he feels it is his job to present the message, and it's the Holy Spirit's job to convict me of the veracity of the message. Way to cop out of your professional responsibilities, I say.
Church must stop being a place where people hear the same old boring stories in the same old boring sermon format. I don't care about what happened to someone in the Bible - I care about what happens to me. Don't tell me about Abraham's faith - according to the Bible, he was directly contacted by God. Until that happens to me, our two situations are nowhere near the same. Don't tell me about Job - he was directly contacted by God. Don't tell me about how faithful Paul was under adversity - he was directly contacted by God. If you aren't going to make it directly relevant to me, in the same conditions I'm experiencing, at least you can TEACH ME SOMETHING. Provide empirical evidence that cannot be refuted by anyone of any religious stripes (or lack thereof), that what the Bible says is true. That's more powerful than any sermon could ever be.
You've touched on the subject that has pestered this pastor for 30 years is how to make church relevant. When I do a sermon on marriage while studying Colossians or Ephesians or whatever, I can look out at one wave in the sea of congregants (wishful thinking) made up of zoned out youth and single's bored out of their gourds while their parents and other marrieds are totally engaged. Try as I may, I've yet to find a way I can be all things to all people. It is encouraging though when someone who 10 years ago sat there brain dead, now as a young married comes up and thanks me, that has kept me going.
Thanks for the excellent post on a timeless topic.
What Role Should Church Play In A Christian's Walk?
They should foster the ONE Spirit that should unite all the followers of Christ . . . agape love. They should stop focusing on the unessential specifics of belief about Christ and God and focus on Christ's Gospel of love and His instructions to "love God and each other" daily and repent when we don't, period. If we cannot be recognized by the ONE uniting Spirit of agape love . . . we are failing Christ.
Church should TEACH. Church should IMPART KNOWLEDGE.
I know that some people feel that church should be a place of worship, and it should, but as for me, it needs to be where I can go to LEARN.
These days I'm very close to losing my Christian faith and it's because so many pastors and church-goers from whatever church I've attended haven't cared enough to impart necessary knowledge to me... or, perhaps worse, they haven't actually HAD the knowledge. My current pastor won't talk theological issues with me because he feels it is his job to present the message, and it's the Holy Spirit's job to convict me of the veracity of the message. Way to cop out of your professional responsibilities, I say.
Church must stop being a place where people hear the same old boring stories in the same old boring sermon format. I don't care about what happened to someone in the Bible - I care about what happens to me. Don't tell me about Abraham's faith - according to the Bible, he was directly contacted by God. Until that happens to me, our two situations are nowhere near the same. Don't tell me about Job - he was directly contacted by God. Don't tell me about how faithful Paul was under adversity - he was directly contacted by God. If you aren't going to make it directly relevant to me, in the same conditions I'm experiencing, at least you can TEACH ME SOMETHING. Provide empirical evidence that cannot be refuted by anyone of any religious stripes (or lack thereof), that what the Bible says is true. That's more powerful than any sermon could ever be.
Excellent post, and illustrates why, with the rise of fundamentalism, so many people feel church is irrelevant.
On another post, I related how theologian Paul Tillich so talked about the NOW, so talked about forgetting the past and not worrying about the future, that he was in almost lockstep with Alcoholics Anonymous which TEACHES that men and women will always be on an upward journey that slides up and down, but that they must live TODAY.
But most churches talk about pie in the sky by and by, or how the strongest of the faithful overcame. Most of us find ourselves in a predicament in this life and we are not as faithfully strong as Abraham or Paul.
The lesson of the church must be to "keep seeking, keep knocking," and live life TODAY. You only need enough faith for TODAY. It's existentialist Christianity that has its roots in Dutch theologian Soren Kierkegaard who famously wrote, "What we need to do is gather all the Bibles into a pile and create a bonfire." He wasn't advocating biblical ignorance, but he saw how far off churches even in his time were from being relevant to the people of his day.
Churches living in the NOW are active constantly in serving others whether it be with meals on wheels, providing temporary shelter for the homeless, providing facilities for AA meetings, providing Friday night entertainment for young people to keep them off the street (food, music, games---and counseling for those who want it). Figuring out whether or not their church has done any good TODAY.
One sacred, one secular song, both with similar meanings.
Last edited by Wardendresden; 07-07-2014 at 11:02 AM..
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What Role Should Church Play In A Christian's Walk?
