Spiritual
Essentials of Church Life:
Nine Essentials
By
Steve Van Nattan
1. Worship--
Obey the Word-- Exalt God I
have had a reader write and try to prove to me that the Lord's Church is not told
anywhere to worship God. This is the sort of mindless drivel which comes of hyperdispensationalism
(throwing away the Old Testament), and possibly some guru Jerkenhalter preacher
who does not want to take the time to worship God in the assembly. Thus,
I gather it is essential to prove here that the Church must exalt and worship
God as their first duty. Here is my conviction on this doctrine:
Psalm 22:27 All the ends of the world shall remember and
turn unto the LORD: and all the kindreds of the nations shall worship before thee.
This
will be fulfilled during the Kingdom reign of Christ, but it is also happening
right now as the Gospel is preached worldwide.
Psalm 99:9 Exalt the LORD our God, and worship at his holy
hill; for the LORD our God is holy.
Psalm 96:8 Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name: bring an offering,
and come into his courts.
9 O worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness:
fear before him, all the earth. The
average Fundamental Baptist thinks that the way to worship best is to bring an
offering. Worship is far more than taking an offering to pay the preacher's salary.
Ugh! John
4:23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship
the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.
This
is that hour, and will continue through the Kingdom of Messiah.
John 4:24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must
worship him in spirit and in truth. This
rules out ritual and "Order of Worship No. 6" in the back of the Reformed
Hymnal. Luke
24:52 And they worshipped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy: This
is how the Church Age started. This is how any local church should start.
Acts 24:14 But this I confess unto thee, that after the
way which they call heresy, so worship I the God of my fathers, believing all
things which are written in the law and in the prophets: Christian
worship is heresy to religious people, so do not follow the rituals of denominations
in worship.
1 Corinthians 14:24 But if all prophesy, and there come
in one that believeth not, or one unlearned, he is convinced of all, he is judged
of all:
25 And thus are the secrets of his heart made manifest; and so falling
down on his face he will worship God, and report that God is in you of a truth.
New
believers should start worshipping at once. Worship is not something you learn
in a seminar, it is your heart calling out exalting God in your way. This can
be done with the saints gathered, but beware of vain repetition and ritual. Beware
of hyping worship out of obligation. Note how this works in the Gospels:
John 9:36 He answered and said, Who is he, Lord, that I
might believe on him?
37 And Jesus said unto him, Thou hast both seen him,
and it is he that talketh with thee.
38 And he said, Lord, I believe. And
he worshipped him.
Philippians 3:3 For we are the circumcision, which worship
God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the
flesh. The
church is the "we" here. This fulfills the promise to the woman at the
well in Samaria.
Colossians 2:21 (Touch not; taste not; handle not;
22 Which all are to perish with the using;) after the commandments and doctrines
of men?
23 Which things have indeed a shew of wisdom in will worship, and
humility, and neglecting of the body; not in any honour to the satisfying of the
flesh. Beware
of "will worship" which is the flesh exalting itself, or exalting other
men. Acts
10:25 And as Peter was coming in, Cornelius met him, and fell down at his feet,
and worshipped him. Beware
of exalting the teacher, witnesser, or preacher-- This is Jackboot religion at
its worst.
Acts 10:25 And as Peter was coming in, Cornelius met him,
and fell down at his feet, and worshipped him.
Acts 18:7 And he departed thence, and entered into a certain
man's house, named Justus, one that worshipped God, whose house joined hard to
the synagogue.
8 And Crispus, the chief ruler of the synagogue, believed
on the Lord with all his house; and many of the Corinthians hearing believed,
and were baptized. Start
a church with people who worship God, and it will be a powerful church.
Hebrews 11:21 By faith Jacob, when he was a dying, blessed
both the sons of Joseph; and worshipped, leaning upon the top of his staff. Even
in death we are encouraged to worship to the end.
Revelation 20:4 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them,
and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded
for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped
the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads,
or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
Worship
is a choice, and refusing to worship God and Christ is also a choice. Beware of
a worshippless Christianity.
Psalm 118:28 Thou art my God, and I will praise thee: thou
art my God, I will exalt thee.
2.
Holy and Grave-- This
is not a goon show-- It is the Body of Christ
1 Timothy
3:8 Likewise must the deacons be grave, not doubletongued, not given to much wine,
not greedy of filthy lucre;
Verse 11 Even so must their wives be grave, not
slanderers, sober, faithful in all things. Titus
2:2 That the aged men be sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity,
in patience. Most
Jackboot Baptist and Pentecostal preachers play the fool every Sunday morning.
They crack jokes all along the way, and may waste up to twenty minutes before
the sermon "loosening up" the people. Some call it "comic relief"
which says something about what went before. Look here:
Ephesians 5:3 But fornication, and all uncleanness, or covetousness,
let it not be once named among you, as becometh saints;
4 Neither filthiness,
nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient: but rather giving
of thanks. We
see here that the foolish jester is right in the same list with the adulterer.
3.
Singing-- Old hymns of the faith and sing the Word of God
The Theme Hymn of this
ministry: Arise, My Soul, Arise
Ephesians
5:18 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;
19 Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing
and making melody in your heart to the Lord;
20 Giving thanks always for
all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; CCM
is not spiritual, at least not the Spirit of God-- maybe the spirit of Beelzebub
though. There is nothing in the above verses to justify this Jesus dooo-waa nonsense
singing in many churches today. One lady I know, a Methodist (!), mockingly calls
it "Jesus of Nashville." Start out singing old time hymns of the faith,
full of zeal and doctrine, and this will give your services power. Furhtermore;
God will enjoy your services too. Does that sound silly? Well, look here:
Psalm 22:3
But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel. So,
how can we praise Him too much-- He is at home in our praises. I
have had kids as young as six years old whose favorite hymn was "Be Thou
Exalted" or "Arise, My soul Arise." Avoid the pointless contemporary
choruses. Sing only a few chorus, and then ONLY older ones which have passed strict
standards on doctrine. Even some old ones, like "Do Lord," are trivial
and stupid. NEVER sing, "We are one in the spirit" unless you want devils
to enter your service. Sing
a long time, and encourage the saints to sing with great zeal. Sing ALL the verses
of all hymns. Be cautious and invite the folks to watch for a line that is off
a bit on doctrine. We love "The Old Rugged Cross," but we don't like
the line, "So, I'll cling to the old rugged cross." We don't cling to
crosses-- that is for Catholics. So, we didn't dump the hymn. George Bennard was
a Bible believer, but his one bad word choice there MUST be submitted to the final
authority, which is the Word of God. So, we sing, "I will SING of the old
rugged cross." Problem solved, and the saints now know that the hymn book
is not inspired. All things must be examined by the Word. We
have given you hymn book resources in the section:
DOCUMENTS
AND HERITAGE OF A BIBLE BASED HOUSE CHURCH There
is a trend which is now endemic in larger churches-- That is, fun church. The
platform becomes a big show and performance area. All sorts of props are used,
and multiple worship leaders allegedly lead the congregation in worship. In fact,
it is a big church house circus. Here is a rule to help you understand if you
have a freak church as to worship and music: "We
should never be driven to distraction by a performance so ornate and thrilling
that we feel we must applaud rather than stand in awe of God's beauty." Rev.
D.P.Cassidy- Redeemer Presbyterian Church, Austin, TX
Raucous
laughter, wild applause, and a general atmosphere of frolic are the responses
of the flesh when we are amused. Worship has nothing to do with amusement. A-muse--
"Against thinking". Entertainment is for people who want to coast mentally.
Worship is for people who want to exalt God first and foremost, even if they themselves
do not feel anything warm and fuzzy. Here
is how the virus of flesh-driven "worship" has migrated from the USA
to the world. These are Ethiopians who fled from Ethiopia during the Marxist
coup in 1975. They have the Rhema disease that started in Florida with Benny Hinn
and Rodney Howard Browne. Vain
repetition of the heathen combined with basic two year old "look at me"
vanity. 4.
Prayer-- For all saints, for Caesar, and for zeal
This is the easiest and
first thing to go in a church which becomes self-centered. Worship is next. If
you call a prayer meeting, PRAY. I am sick of all the Jackboots who call Wednesday
evening meeting "Prayer Meeting," and then they end up using all the
praying folks in AWANA or some other program. Many churches have Bible study instead
of pray, and this sounds spiritual, but it makes for a prayerless church nonetheless. There
are several things about prayer which can become troubling in a House Church:
1. Long winded prayer.
Jesus discouraged this:
Mark 12:38 And he said unto them in his doctrine, Beware
of the scribes, which love to go in long clothing, and love salutations in the
marketplaces,
39 And the chief seats in the synagogues, and the uppermost
rooms at feasts:
40 Which devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make
long prayers: these shall receive greater damnation. Some
of the men who are known for long prayers are probably not even born again. They
don't pray like they are talking to their Father-- they pray to get attention.
They also pray in King James English often, and this puts off the new believer
who doesn't know KJV English. This needs to be stopped one way or other by privately
talking to the man. 2.
Ladies praying: When
a man in the assembly is new in the Lord and cannot pray out loud for the group,
it is wrong to allow women to lead openly in prayer. They will make the man feel
very small. If you want a House Church which is politicly correct, go ahead, but
don't call me to bail you out of the mess you make. 3.
Prayer requests out of control: An
old and wicked problem in many churches is to take verbal prayer requests, and
then have prayer right afterward. Very often, some brat lady with a nasty spirit,
will give all manner of private gossip in the form of "we need to pray for
so and so." You will blow your assembly all to pieces if you allow this to
happen. Ask for prayer requests in writing if there is any chance of this sort
of thing. 4.
Make sure prayer is reverent: I
have heard a number of people pray who were trying to cure everyone present of
too much reverence and respect for God. They prayed like hippies just getting
on a high of crack. All sorts of silly imagery and weird vocabulary is used. Just
stop this as soon as it starts. 5.
Prayer as preaching and tongues: Some
people sent in by Satan will pray for some prayer request during a prayer meeting,
and they will interject bad doctrine as they go along. This may be the only way
in which they are promoting their heresy, but it will have a powerful effect on
the assembly as people become frightened of prayer time if they are present. The
other trick is for a visiting Pentecostal to interject a "shandilyamai shundai
and a hoopai in a moon pie" into the flow of their prayer. If you stop them,
they will look all hurt and make you look like a jerk. If
someone comes into your fellowship who disagrees on some doctrine, but they don't
promote it and speak only to a leader of it in rational discussion, well, you
may want to leave them alone. But, when someone plays tricks with your prayer
time, or in any other way, run them off-- no mercy! It
is a disease of the Laodicean church that prayer is talked about, organized, and
promoted. but no one prays. Take every opportunity to resort to prayer in your
gatherings and services. 1
Thessalonians 5:17 Pray without ceasing.
5.
Giving-- The collection-- On the First Day without duress
One Jerkenhalter Pastor
tallied up the giving every year of all the regular people. This last year, he
found one family had not given nearly as much as a tithe. This preacher had a
pretty good idea how much the man of the family made at his job. So, when the
preacher sent a record of their giving, he added a note that they had not given
like they should have. As it turned out, the family had switched over to giving
cash so they would give totally secretly, as Christ instructed. The family was
hurt very badly, and the preacher still has not confessed the sin of judging them
falsely. This is Jackboot religion at its worst. Here
is the key passage on giving in the New Testament: 1
Corinthians 16:1 Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given
order to the churches of Galitia, even so do ye.
2 Upon the first day of the
week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that
there be no gatherings when I come. Faith
Promise giving is unbiblical. Everyone should give according to the ONGOING blessing,
week by week. There must be NO compulsion or shame. No commitments should be laid
on which are pushing the saints and putting them in bondage. Give to missionaries
AFTER you know you have it. Now,
here is the biggest heresy there is to a Jackboot Fundamental Baptist preacher.
Watch it now, some of you are going to need CPR after reading the next sentence.
Are you ready? Sitting down please. Here goes: TITHING
IS NOT TAUGHT IN THE NEW TESTAMENT AND IS MONGREL GIVING. What
if God wanted to give you a large sum of money to pass on to the needs of His
work? If you were only tithing, He would have to give you millions in order to
get enough out of your measly ten percent. So, teach the saints to give according
to the text above and then shut up. Don't be teaching on giving all the time,
and don't ever shame people about how much they are giving. You are NOT the Holy
Spirit. It is none of your business. Just teach giving about twice a year and
let the Holy Ghost do the rest.
6.
Study, Read, and Teach ONLY the Word of God--
Book Studies-- About
80% - Topical
Studies-- Maximum 20% The
average Fundamental Baptist, Bible, or Pentecostal local church has a pastor who
will not study for his sermons. He makes a show of study, but he really is too
lazy to really work at it. Some actually don't know how, so they should have some
consideration, but only if they ask for help. These
preachers rehash sermons they have on cassette or from notes they took in Bible
College. They have only about 5 topics they preach on, though they are clever
enough to find new proof texts from time to time. YOU
will NOT do this friend. You will study, for you are under orders to do so as
a leader:
2 Timothy 2:14 Of these things put them in remembrance,
charging them before the Lord that they strive not about words to no profit, but
to the subverting of the hearers.
15 Study to shew thyself approved unto
God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
16 But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more
ungodliness. Read
lots of Bible in your assembly:
1 Thessalonians 5:27 I charge you by the Lord that this
epistle be read unto all the holy brethren. 1
Timothy 4:13 Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine.
14 Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy,
with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery.
15 Meditate upon these
things; give thyself wholly to them; that thy profiting may appear to all.
16 Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing
this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee. NO
Bible teaching from videos and cassette sermons Again,
YOU do it. Your must humble effort is what God wants, and the Holy Spirit is on
record as committed by our Lord to help you. Ask, and you shall receive.
John 14:26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom
the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all
things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. God
has no secrets He is willing to keep from you if the Flock of God needs them.
Study!
Teach! Live it! Acts
20:28 Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which
the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath
purchased with his own blood. Let
me illustrate the worst error many people make in starting a House Church. Here
is a parable: A
man and his wife were just married, and they began to eat out on special occasions.
They decided they would only eat in the best restaurants and eat only the best
steaks and good food. This
went on for several years until they had a couple of children come along. At that
point, the husband and his wife began to pick cheaper restaurants. They still
tried to eat well, but with the kids along, they had to be more price conscious. Well,
the years past, and it got to be hard to find the time to sit in a restaurant
for long evenings and wait for the food and get home with the kids in time for
bed. So, the whole family got to where they usually went to McDonald's to eat.
The food was predictable. What little selection there was tasted OK, and it was
delivered fast and hot, and if they ate quickly, they could still get home and
have some evening left. One
day one of the kids asked Mom and Dad, "What is it like in one of these fancy
restaurants?" Well, Mom and Dad looked at each other, and they really got
to feeling bad. Their kids had never eater a good steak, and they had never had
Baklava or Cappuccino. So, the couple told the kids, "Tomorrow night we are
taking you to a five start restaurant." WOW!
The kids all got dressed up, and they didn't eat all day so they could enjoy the
food. When they did eat at the restaurant that evening, they were in awe all the
way through the meal. Croutons on the salad, the waiter ground the pepper onto
their salad, the baklava was like something made in heaven, and the steak was
unreal. One of the kids said, "Mom, can we eat here more often?" Mom
and Dad got to talking, and they came to the conclusion that if they stopped eating
out altogether, they could eat at home and make their own special meals. This
is exactly what they did. Mom and the whole family started learning how to cook
those special dishes themselves, and they had a special meal once a week which
was a real treat. Well,
as time passed, the bother of getting all those dishes made seemed like a lot
of distraction, and the special meals got simpler and simpler. Finally, one evening,
they were all in a hurry on account of how all of them were totally distracted
by the cares of life, and they all came to the conclusion that the best thing
would be to make: Cheeseburgers,
Chocolate shakes, and fries. Selah Now,
are YOU going to go home to your House Church, dig into the Word and lay out a
feast at first, only to settle later for simpler and simpler spiritual food? You
need to covenant with the Lord today that you will give this the top place in
you life-- study to show thyself approved unto God.
7.
Unity or One Mind Living
with one another and other local churches This
is not the unity of ecumenism or cross organization warm fuzzies. This is the
one mind the Apostle Paul called for in the local church family.
Romans 12:16
Be of the same mind one toward another. Mind not high things, but condescend to
men of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits.
2 Corinthians 13:11 Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect, be of good comfort,
be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you.
This one mind allows
NO room for democracy. American and Western churches stumble over this because
of the legacy we have received from Greece and the rule of man. Voting and the
"church business meeting" do more to destroy Christian fellowship than
any other thing as far as I am concerned. Do not proceed when there is clear division
in the leaders of the assembly. To
live above with those we love,
Oh, that will be glory.
To live below with
those we know,
Well, that's another story. Visit
the sick and shut-ins Eating
together from house to house,
and
all things in common Acts
2:41 Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there
were added unto them about three thousand souls.
42 And they continued stedfastly
in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers.
43 And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by
the apostles.
44 And all that believed were together, and had all things
common;
45 And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men,
as every man had need.
46 And they, continuing daily with one accord in the
temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness
and singleness of heart,
47 Praising God, and having favour with all the
people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved. It
would be wrong to legislate the above early church conditions, but it would be
equally wrong to try to dump this passage under the pretext that this was only
for the transitional Jewish Church. It is very obvious that these responses to
the Holy Ghost were based in the same zeal one for another that should be in us
today. Let me illustrate how this same spirit was at work in the Gentile Church
of Paul's day:
Romans 15:25 But now I go unto Jerusalem to minister unto
the saints.
26 For it hath pleased them of Macedonia and Achaia to make a
certain contribution for the poor saints which are at Jerusalem.
27 It hath
pleased them verily; and their debtors they are. For if the Gentiles have been
made partakers of their spiritual things, their duty is also to minister unto
them in carnal things.
28 When therefore I have performed this, and have
sealed to them this fruit, I will come by you into Spain. So,
the care of one saint for another, or one church for another, is rooted in a heritage
going far back in the Lord's Church. In this text we see that race and culture
did not stop the compassion of the saints from giving. Nothing would startle the
ungodly like a House Church of Anglos sending a gift or help to some Hispanic
or Black church, and visa versa. Black churches need to give and not only receive.
Some things need to be learned yet in this old wicked world, and we should start
at the church house. We
need to cultivate a sensitive spirit for the needs of the saints at the person
to person level. Too much giving goes as a lump of money to some monster need
far away. How about next door? It is also not enough to throw money over the horizon
at various needs as the liberal churches do. We should be always eager to help
with the little troubles of life. Baby
sitting for a sick mother, helping a family move, sending a financially strapped
newly married couple somewhere special, and a thousand other small things come
and go. Each one offers a blessing to the saint who solves the problem. The Lord's
Church should be famous for this zeal.
8.
Soul Winning-- Six
days-- Work and Witness in the world Israel
did not invite Philistines into the temple for Sabbath services. That was NOT
what was happening on the Sabbath in the temple. You have NO business making Sunday
the day of evangelism at the House Church. The fact that your former Jackboot
pastor did evangelism from the church house pulpit does NOT mean that he was doing
right. When
the early church came together on the First Day of the week, it was for edification
and worship. There is almost nothing about evangelism in the gathers. Soul winning
was done up on Mars hill and along the way during the week.
1 Corinthians 14:26 How is it then, brethren? when ye come
together, every one of you hath a psalm, hath a doctrine, hath a tongue, hath
a revelation, hath an interpretation. Let all things be done unto edifying. While
these people were overdoing it, the situation is revealing in that they were NOT
doing any soul winning. They were told by Paul to back off on the intensity of
activity so that the saints could be edified. No one is edified in the long run
if the Gospel is preached all the time to saved people. This sound blasphemous
to anyone cultured in a Jackboot church, so let me show you that I am right in
this:
Hebrews 6:1 Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine
of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance
from dead works, and of faith toward God,
2 Of the doctrine of baptisms,
and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.
3 And this will we do, if God permit. In
your House Church, MOVE ON from the Gospel and repentance and salvation to teaching
the books of the Bible and learn all the doctrines. Teach the people to do soul
winning six days a week between Sundays. On
the First Day--
and Worship as a Body Exodus
20:9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:
Matthew 17:1 And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother,
and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart, 2 And was transfigured before
them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light. In
our Western cultures we are now used to working five days on the job, and then
we have Saturday off and Sunday also. Preachers often ignore the need of the saints
to rest. The Jackboot preacher gives his people virtually no time to rest. Many
men today are victims of a new approach to hiring in commercial and industrial
areas. In the 1980s many companies found that if they asked their workers to work
overtime and on Saturday the company would actually be ahead since the overtime
paid was less than the benefits for hiring new workers. I
had a man in Michigan who worked like this all week. His company had a lot of
Vietnamese and Polish workers fresh over from their homelands, and these people
had never made good money in their life. They would take all the overtime they
could get-- they would have camped at the company if they could have. The company
used this greed for wages and asked them to work lots of overtime and on Saturday.
When the brother from out church politely tried to back out of the overtime, the
company politely let him know he could lose his job if he didn't cooperate. When
that brother came up the steps to the church house Sunday, I would just thank
God he was even there. He would often drift off to sleep during the sermon, and
his wife would start to wake him up. I told her to let the poor guy sleep. What
better place to get a nap than with the saints away from the world and the tensions
of life. When they didn't show up on Sunday evening, I knew the brother was probably
just sitting in his big chair sleeping or out deer hunting. Was
it my job to thrash him into attending all the meeting at the church house? No!
It was none of my business. A lot of these Jackboot preachers have never been
in the work place for any period of time, and they don't have any idea what life
can be like. I have, and I know that the saints need their rest. Furthermore;
when the church works a faithful husband or wife until they cannot find time to
enjoy the marriage chamber, the church or Jackboot preacher are helping to destroy
their home and marriage. These kinds of churches and preachers should be abandoned.
They are wicked. Please
so not duplicate this in your House Church. Keep the schedule helpful to the saints
and the real world. Avoid overmuch activity on Sunday. Let you friends have a
rest. Genesis
2:1 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.
2 And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on
the seventh day from all his work which he had made.
3 And God blessed the
seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his
work which God created and made. God
didn't get tired. No, He simply was doing a thing which is LIKE God. Rest came
before the curse, and no one was tired. Rest is a matter of obedience. If you
cannot rest on Sunday, you must rest on another day, or God will see to it that
you suffer for it. If you have Saturday off, and you rest then, that does not
mean everyone else can do as you do. YOU are not the model for everything in your
House Church. SO,
WHAT IS SOUL WINNING? Proverbs
11:30 The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that winneth souls
is wise. If
Solomon wanted to win souls, there is more to it that Church Age activity. I am
tired of the sorry tricks of Jack Hyles and door to door evangelism. Every soul
comes a different way, but I am convinced that about 75% of people who walk the
aisles of Fundamental Baptist and Pentecostal churches are not being saved. I
want you to read some old fashioned testimonies of people who got saved. The interesting
aspect of these stories is that each one went on to be a real warrior for the
Lord. These are mostly testimonies of old time Methodists and Holiness people,
but I hope you will not get bogged down in the rather Arminian aspect here. Just
read and see how each one came a different way, and the "soul winner"
was different in method and personality each time. http://wesley.nnu.edu/0301-0400/hdm0379.htm#Copyright
2000 by the Wesley Center for Applied Forget
the plans and tricks of Hyles and the other clever ones. Teach your people to
just talk about Jesus all the time, let their moderation be known, lift up Jesus,
hand out tracts, street preach, or whatever they would like to do to glorify God
in spreading the Gospel. But,
most of all, teach your people to make friends for the Gospel's sake. Teach them
that these people should be long term friends. Some souls come very slowly. I
am really MAD at these hit and run evangelism methods. I
have a friend, a Catholic priest, whom I am after for Christ. He is getting more
and more frustrated with the Roman Whore, and we talk about the troubles in the
Vatican and the Catholic system. I am not pushing him much. I listen, talk about
Jesus, he talks about the Bible and what he likes to talk about, we drink coffee,
and on and on it goes. One day, in the sovereign will of God, something will come
up in his life which pushes him to the limit in some way. I want to be there then,
for I will not have to push and shove and play little Hyles word games with this
man-- He will come running to Jesus Christ. Do
you want a guide book to souls winning? You have it-- the Four Gospels and the
rest of the New Testament. All kinds of methods are in it. Then, find books of
testimonies of salvation which are copyrighted before about 1950, and read them.
9.
Baptism and the Lord's Supper-- Be sure it is not a ritual
There is a notion out
there in the Grace Movement that baptism is Jewish and not for the Lord's Church.
That is blatant heresy. Another notion is now catching on which says that the
Lord's Supper is observed as an attitude of worship rather than as a literal observance.
This is another heresy. You
must understand that the two ordinances of the Lord's Church have been major targets
by Satan for mutilation. The Catholics have added ordinances, warped the Lord's
Supper, and the Brethren and some others have added foot washing, which is not
an ordinance, though it won't hurt you I suppose. Satan
loves these heresies, for they help saints to disobey the Lord Jesus Himself.
Study the two ordinances of the Lord's Church and observe them. As
to baptism, try not to borrow a church baptistery since this makes a thing of
open testimony a private secluded thing. Jesus went down to the river Jordan and
was baptized in the open. You should seek out places in lakes and rivers for baptisms. The
Lord's Supper was the opposite. Jesus made sure to do this in a very private gathering
of the committed. He also dismissed Judas. You should have the Lord's Supper at
a time not common to your schedule so that only the committed are present. The
unsaved must NOT be there. It is not enough to piously warn them not to eat or
drink. Make sure they simply are not there. In
the churches I have pastored, the Lord's Supper was only on Sunday evening, and
the elements were kept out of sight. If a sinner happened to visit, I never did
the Lord's Supper-- I postponed it until another Sunday. Also,
avoid scheduling the Lord's Supper, like "the second Sunday of every quarter"
etc. This tempts certain people to treat the Lord's Supper like the Catholic Mass,
and they will plan to be there, though they are unfaithful on other occasions.
Break up this notion by not announcing when it will be. Just don't neglect it
entirely. When
you do the Lord's supper, have godly men lead, read different Scripture passages
each time, don't get in a rut, and use the whole meeting time only for the Lord's
Supper. Don't tack it on the end of a meeting in ten minutes flat. This is blasphemous.
Avoid ritual, but DO demand reverence. The Lord's Supper should not have trendy
clever innovations. It should be a time of reflection and worship. Do
NOT demand some class on membership. Anyone who is born again and knows it, and
who has any kind of testimony with your assembly, is to be invited to the Lord's
Supper. Don't hold any children back from this if they have made a clear profession
of faith in Christ. I like to have the kids sit right in front of me, and I ask
them questions, like, "Will eating this piece of bread get me saved?"
and, "Can anyone turn this grape juice into Jesus' Blood?" and, "Why
did Jesus have to shed His blood on the cross?" Do this every time, and the
kids will one day KNOW what they believe about the Lord's Supper. By
the way, don't go buy a bunch of these wee plastic cups and one of those ecclesiastical
tray sets. Those things reek of liturgy. Use some sort of small cups from K-Mart.
Have an old timer with a wood shop make a wooden tray that is your own church's
furniture and simple. Also, none of those Catholic wafers please, but do use unleavened
bread like rye crackers so the picture of Christ without sin (leaven) is not lost. At
baptisms, do lots of singing, have each person give a testimony, and have a picnic
afterwards if possible. This is a great day or zeal when the saints should be
shouting. Make it as public as possible. We know the believer is not saved in
the water, but all around the world baptism is the day of departure out of the
world and into Christ. The heathen have always seen it this way, so make the best
of it. Again,
don't try to tack baptism onto the end of some other meeting you think is more
important. Do it when you can make the baptism the main event. Also, try to have
the one who lead each person baptize that person. There is NO biblical instruction
on this, and Jesus and Paul both avoided doing all the baptizing. You don't need
some archbishop's hands on people to get the full blessing. That is stupid stuff
friend. I especially want fathers to baptize their own children so that their
children see Dad as the chief discipler, not me. If Dad is not saved, how about
Mom or Grandpa or the one who lead them to Christ? Where
I have pastored, I have left behind me a bunch of kids who were in awe of the
fact that their Grandpa or their Mom were good enough Christians to baptize them.
There is a bond there that is priceless. Now,
if the saint is Chris Jaramillo and he repairs box cars on the Santa Fe railroad
for a living, you better have as big a brother in the Lord as possible down in
the water handling him-- especially since brother Chris came out of the water
like an Apollo missile shouting and raising the roof. I had Tom Yates in there
to help me in case I lost Chris, and we mainly just had to get him under and then
jump out of the way. What a day that was-- Chris forgot to dry off and went dripping
all over the church house shaking everyone's hand and praising God. Chris had
just made the final break with the Roman Whore, and he was in the heavenlies.
We invited Chris's Catholic parents and family to sit on the front row and made
a big fuss over them as our guests for Chris's sake. They were deeply moved and
enjoyed the whole event. Baptisms should be the highlight of the year every time.
ESSENTIALS
FOR A HOUSE OF PRAYER
We
suggest Distinctives here to guide a local House Church into Bible based reality.
There
is some overlap with the above Essentials. Be a noble Berean, and
"work
out your own salvation" as it were.
You may need to add some Standards, and some may have nothing to do with life
in your area. All
over the world there is a frightening sameness with Fundamental Baptists, and
with many other churches. Many saints are troubled, feeling something is not quite
right-- somehow their local church might not be just like the church the Apostle
Paul wrote about in the inspired Word of God. We
have watched, and we have listened to many unchurched people. Some are simply
rebels, and some are just not interested in the Gospel and the victory walk with
Christ. But, there are a significant number of saints who have left the "local
church" and gone home because of some very ungodly troubles they have had
to endure in what should be Christ honoring churches. We
also have a problem up front with the word "church." Jesus said his
house was to be a House of Prayer. The word "church" is not used in
the Bible for brick and mortar, or to define an organization. It is a blasphemy
against the Lord himself to take the glory of BEING the Church of Christ and applying
it to geography and bricks. The Russian Baptists never used the word "church"
for the meeting place. They called it a prayer house.
Ephesians
3:20 Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask
or think, according to the power that worketh in us,
21 Unto him be glory
in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.
It
is vile and profane to imagine the glory of God is found in a place, in a denomination,
or in a movement, be it Baptist, Charismatic, Brethren, Presbyterian, or any other
group. The glory of God is found in the Church, the Body of Christ-- his redeemed.
Jesus did not die for Baptists, he died for sinners. The
Fundamentalists of Jesus' day had done similar things to the temple: Matthew
21:13 And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of
prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves. We
find a chilling parallel today as Fundamental Baptist preachers do not provide
time for prayer on Sunday morning. On Wednesday evening prayer is a tack on while
their message is central, and worst of all, they preach and rage endlessly about
tithing, a topic not found in the Epistles of Church life. So,
please consider starting a House of Prayer in your neighborhood. We
are proposing a fellowship which exalts God in the following ways: DISTINCTIVES 1.
We will worship God at every gathering
This
will not be in Charismatic frenzy and affect, and it will not be three hymns,
announcements, and an offering, which is what the average Baptist preacher thinks
is worship.
|Psalms
29:2 Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name; worship the LORD in the beauty
of holiness.
Ephesians
5:18-20 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the
Spirit; Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing
and making melody in your heart to the Lord; Giving thanks always for all things
unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; 2.
Bible Reading and Study
This
will be with full participation of all present, not a pulpit dominated event.
It will be leader oriented in that a leader will have studied to show himself
approved unto God. But, the saints will learn together. The
emphasis will be on book studies with the Epistles taking the lead until the fellowship
is grounded on what a church is. Otherwise,
every book of the Bible will be considered for teaching. The
King James Bible will be the only standard in teaching. No
other version or revision of the Bible will be tolerated for any use anytime by
anyone.
There will be no creed, church constitution, by laws, or doctrinal
statement added to the King James Bible. 3.
Wisdon and Knowledge
We
in the fellowship will not coast mentally and spiritually. This is a curse in
modern life. Each person will be encouraged to be first in the Bible, and then
enlarge his or her vision of the Christian life and the world. We will look forward
to your reports on things you learned from books you are reading, from life as
you observed it last week, and from worthy news sources. Youth in the fellowship
will be expected, in both a pert and polite manner, to share what they too are
learning about life and godliness. If
you are rather dumb about life, but you are eager to change that situation, welcome.
If you think being dumb is a form of godliness, please find a Pentecostal church
in your area to attend. We
will occasionally invite like minded godly men to visit the fellowship to share
their wisdom and knowledge with us. As
our fellowship is in its new days, we will discuss "traditions of men"
which we do not find in the Word of God, and we will seek biblical ways to avoid
or replace them. 4.
Edification will be the main event
The
Gospel will not be preached -- This is a gathering of Bible believers.
Sheep
need feeding. Goats will not be invited, they will be evangelized six days between
Sundays. Hebrews
6:1-3 Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on
unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works,
and of faith toward God, Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands,
and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. And this will we do,
if God permit. While
the Gospel will not be preached, Jesus Christ will be central to all teaching,
and so the Gospel will be as much a part of the teaching and singing as it is
in the Word of God. Here
is an example of the modern madness we will avoid. One man said, "When you
have gone past the cross, you have gone to far." That is blasphemy, for the
resurrection is "past the cross," and so are all the Apostolic teachings
to the Church. Too
many churches we see lately are all foundation-- Gospel, Gospel, Gospel and no
building of perfection, a completed building. We will be teaching Much
Assurance
to saints. By
the way, children will NOT be run off when the teaching time comes. They will
be helped to learn at their level with their family. I.E. No Junior Church !! 5.
Singing
There will be exalting singing, not Charismatic endless "praise"
and repetition.
The old hymns of the faith will be sung out of a solidly conservative
hymn book. There
will be NO CCM or Honky Tonk Southern Gospel style. There will be no "specials"
sung. The
whole body gathered, including children will worship and sing as families. There
may be spontaneous solos or duets during the worship time.
Ephesians
5:18 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;
19 Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing
and making melody in your heart to the Lord;
20 Giving thanks always for all
things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; 6.
Prayer
There
will be a time for prayer, concentrating not on petitions and "my need"
but on
exalting God. Prayer will be spontaneous, but not gushy mushy TBN type
folly.
1 Timothy 2:1 I exhort therefore, that, first
of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for
all men; 7.
Fellowship
Fellowship
is NOT walking around between hymns in the aisle shaking hands.
Fellowship
is best experienced in your and my living room between Sundays.
Fellowship
is greatly enhanced by coffee and pie at Bob's Hamburgers or at the
Smoky Mountain
Produce Cafe. Those
who reject the saints in regard to fellowship will be asked to find other
fellowship. Of
course, your Sunday gatherings will provide much fellowship.
1
Peter 4:9 Use hospitality one to another without grudging. 8.
The two, and only two, ordinances will be observed
The
Lord's Supper will not be observed only twice a year. It will be more often. The
Lord's Supper will be open to all those who make a public confession of
faith
in Jesus Christ, that he is the Son of God. Anyone
not willing to openly confess Jesus Christ will be excluded. Baptism
will be by immersion and will not be required before experiencing
any of the
other blessings of being in a Christian fellowship. Both
ordinances will be only for born again Bible believers.
INCORPORATION This
House of Prayer will not be incorporated.
It will be based in the homes of
the saints.
If it grows too large, it will move to rented space.
It will
NEVER own real estate or lay bricks.
If it grows beyond rented space, it will
start
another House of Prayer at another location. READ
OUR ARTICLE ON THE UNREGISTERED CHURCH
STANDARDS It
is customary in all Fundamental Baptist, and other narrow way churches, to make
a big fuss over standards. Well, yours will not be what you are used to. They
are
designed to help the saints BE the church, not serve the whims of the
preacher and
some demented deacon. 1.
Saints gather to edify one another
The
Church is not a building, it is the saints who gather.
We will discipline ourselves
to NOT use the word "church" to describe anything
but the people
of God.
There will be no evangelism at the fellowship gatherings of the saints.
All
saints will be encouraged and trained to preach the Gospel six days between Sundays.
If
you do not want to preach the Gospel, find other fellowship.
By the way, preaching
is not a "calling," it is a command.
Preachers, deacons, elders,
men, women, and children must preach the Gospel to someone.
Hebrews
10:25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some
is;
but exhorting one another: and so much the more,
as ye see the day approaching. The
principle activity of gathered saints is to edify one another. You need to be
ready to participate if you want to gather with us. 2.
There will be NO door to door visitation
There
will be home to home hospitality.
There will be cafe to cafe witnessing.
There
will be WalMart to Kroger's soul winning.
There will be NO church bus or van
to round up sinners and disrupt the fellowship of the saints. 3.
Dress standard
Modest.
Please
do NOT come looking like a baboon or a whore. 4.
There will be no Baptist heritage.
The
Baptist heritage stops when you get back to about 1650 AD.
Your heritage will
be in Jesus Christ who is from eternity.
We will welcome into fellowship, anyone
who confesses
the Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God, and....
who
is carrying only a King James Bible. 5.
There will be NO ecumenical spirit.
Fellowship
is ONLY in Jesus Christ and the literal use of the King James Bible.
Any leader
from some mongrel church who approaches us will be invited to
repent and believe
on the Lord Jesus Christ and leave his mongrel church.
Visitors from other
churches will be welcome, but not to ANY disputations.
Romans
14:1 Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, but not to doubtful disputations. 6.
There will be no "altar calls."
There
is no altar in the Apostolic teachings. Check it out. Where it is found, Paul
is talking about the Old Testament altar. The truely born again saint talks when
the dead beat walks.
Romans 10:9 That if thou shalt confess
with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath
raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
10 For with the heart man believeth
unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. We
will, thus, appeal to the heart-- That means, we teach, and we leave the acting
on the teaching up to you and the Holy Ghost who convinces men of sin and righteousness
and judgment. We happen to believe that you are smart enough, and the Holy Ghost
is powerful enough, to apply the teaching of the Word without a knock down drag
out trick fest with, "every head bowed and every eye closed." When a
new saint is ready to join us, he will confess his faith openly, head up, and
all of us rejoicing. When some sin needs to be confessed publicly, it will not
be done kneeling. It will again be facing the saints and humbly and verbally. 7.
The House of Prayer will never be registered with Caesar.
Put
a notarized piece of paper into the County Clerks records naming the "House
of Prayer" so that some cult does not copy it to cause trouble. Other than
that, there will be no relationship with Caesar, and no tax receipts will be given
for giving.
Mark 12:17 And Jesus answering said unto
them, Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that
are God's. And they marvelled at him. 8.
There will be no teaching on tithing.
This
topic is not taught in the Apostolic teachings of the Bible for the Church Age.
Giving
will be on the First Day of the week according to your blessing.
Giving will
be hand to hand between you and the receiver.
Some gifts can be handed to the
leaders to be sent to missionaries or for secret giving purposes.
There will
be no tax receipts issued.
Deuteronomy 16:17 Every man
shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the LORD thy God which
he hath given thee.
1 Corinthians 16:2 Upon the first day of the week let every
one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings
when I come. 9.
There will be no membership list.
Those
welcome and approved by leadership will be chosen by the faithful men.
Revelation
21:27 And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither
whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in
the Lamb's book of life.
There is NO biblical indication that any other
list is needed beyond the Lamb's book. 10.
There will be NO visiting evangelists.
Exception:
Only if they are willing to stay for six months by faith alone.
They must have
their whole family with them.
There will be NO visiting entertainment groups.
Guest
teachers may be called.
When the pastor has to be away, one of the men will
lead the study.
Acts 20:29 For I know this, that after
my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.
The
most deadly wolves are those who roam around and drop in for one meeting. They
are often living a filthy life, and they are Balaams who leave their wife alone
at home and chase offering plates. 11.
Rebuke will not be done from the teaching desk or pulpit.
Rebuke
will be one on one as required by Christ, and the leaders need not do all of this.
Ladies
will be rebuked ONLY be ladies.
Men will be rebuked ONLY be men.
Children
will be rebuked ONLY be their parents.
Matthew 18:15
Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault
between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother.
16
But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the
mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.
17 And if he
shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear
the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican. 12.
There will be no CCM, Southern Gospel, or trite non biblical choruses.
No
one will ever sing to a boom box and prerecorded music.
Ephesians
5:19 Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and
making melody in your heart to the Lord; 13.
Meeting
The
assembly will meet on Sunday at midday
A fellowship dinner and visiting time
is part of your faithful attendance.
If you do not like eating with the saints,
go away please.
The Sunday midday meeting is for two reasons
Acts
2:42 And they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and
in breaking of bread, and in prayers.
The breaking of bread
was not the Lord's supper. They ate together. A.
Sunday is the only day of rest many of us have. We want you to have a restful
start, middle, and ending to your day. B.
If you want to attend another church Sunday, you will be able to do so and still
be a part of your fellowship. We do not demand your absolute loyalty to the House
of Prayer. Pastors from other churches in agreement with our Bible should be welcome
also. The exception would be any pastor who comes with a chip on his shoulder.
14.
Mid Week gathering
This
time will be for prayer, with singing, and will ONLY be in the homes of the saints.
We
may suggest Thursday evening so that other saints from other churches may join
us. 15.
There will be NO Charismatic manifestations tolerated.
Anyone
who comes as an agent of this movement will be run off as soon as their cover
is blown.
On the other hand, anyone who is fed up with the folly of Charismania
is certainly welcome.
Put your bandages back on, take your insulin, and come
get some hugs :-)
We will pray for you, and God will decide if it is time for
you to be healed.
Jesus still loves you if you cannot speak in tongues.
By
the way, if you are sinless, we are not. Go away please. 16.
There will be no tolerance of the teachings of Mike Pearl
Much
tragedy is now rampant because of the Pearl's books, which are not proven by the
Word of God, which is woefully absent in much of their writings. Anyone pulling
the Pearl line will be shown the door.
2 Timothy 3:6
For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women
laden with sins, led away with divers lusts, 17.
Hospitality between Sundays is not optional, it is required.
If
you only want a novel Sunday place to attend with no interest in seeing the people
in your
living room later, you will eventually be rebuked or sent away.
This
is not a cult, but we DO demand loyalty to the sheep.
1
Peter 4:9 Use hospitality one to another without grudging. 18.
There will be no discussion of the Greek or Hebrew in teaching times.
If
you have such linguistic skills, keep them to yourself please in your own study. 19.
There will never be a choir.
Saints will be welcome
to sing solos, but not as a special issue that raises one saint above another.
Spontaneous solos and duets will be welcome from those living in a very open and
godly manner, NOT from guests who just wandered through the door.
1
Timothy 5:22 Lay hands suddenly on no man, neither be partaker of other men's
sins: keep thyself pure. 20.
Democracy
There
will be no decisions made by voting.
There will be no business meetings in
the commonly understood manner.
Decisions will be made by those who need to
make them, and only with one mind.
Romans 12:16 Be of
the same mind one toward another. Mind not high things, but condescend to men
of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits.
Democracy was about
800 years old when Jesus and Paul were living in Palestine. The Holy Ghost did
NOT encourage the use of it. 21.
There must be no griping about the church you just left.
The
fellowship of the saints is an oasis, not a gripe session.
Also, if you are
divorced, we do not want to hear about your lousy Ex. 22.
Leaders
There
can, and may be, a pastor who is first among equals, deacons, and possibly elders.
Women
will not be pastors or deacons.
No man may lead in the assembly who has taken
an oath in the Masonic Lodge or in the Elks, Moose, Grange, or other closed orders.
First
Timothy Three will be followed literally in the raising up of leaders in the assembly. 23.
There will be no male or female
This
means that when gathered, the Lord's people will not make physical or emotional
distinctions as to sexuality. This also means those who are courting will NOT
be involved with one another in any special way at the gatherings. Husbands and
wives will also avoid physical and emotional displays when with the assembly.
If you cannot be affectionate the other six days, stay home and catch up.
Also,
men will dress like men, and women will dress like women. And, that starts in
childhood. Half naked little girls are an offense to godly saints.
1
Corinthians 11:18 For first of all, when ye come together in the church, I hear
that there be divisions among you; and I partly believe it.
19 For there must
be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest
among you.
It is heretical to have division in the assembly. This is
also where you read elsewhere that the family will not be dismantled into various
special age groups. 24.
There will be no counting of bodies
You
are not invited to "be there every time the church house doors are open."
Attendance is NOT the measure of dedication and spiritual zeal. If you could be
with us, and you are not, you lose, not us. But, if someone calls and checks on
you after you missed fellowship, take that with grace. It should be a blessing
to be missed. 25.
The assembly will be a sheep fold, not a wolf pack or goat herd.
The
pastor is NOT an "under-shepherd." That title is not in the Bible.
The
pastor is a sheep who has been given to the Church to edify the other sheep.
If
he expects to be heard, he better be well fed himself first by getting up to the
feed trough regularly. The
assembly will not be distracted by trying to gather a herd of goats. Any leader,
including the pastor, who gives his strength more to the unsaved than to the church
family will be removed from his work and responsibilities. This includes a church
school, home schooling, bus ministry, rescuing troubled women and abortion candidates,
and all community service distractions. Only sinners who are willing to be saved
and enter the fellowship eagerly will be helped socially.
Romans
12:10 Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring
one another; 26.
The mind in gear
In
many parts of the world, it is thought that one need not think much-- just yell
and holler a lot. Baptist preachers hack and wheeze and spew saliva all over the
front row, and the saints think they got a blessing. Pentecostal preachers wail,
shake, weep, and fake a special visitation happening-- this is mostly because
they have not been studying their Bibles, and they have to cover their rebellion
with mystic activity.
This was NOT the picture of Jesus, Paul, or any other
Bible man who blessed God's people.
The saints WILL participate, but ONLY after
the brain is in gear and truth is flowing.
Even informal visiting will NOT
be about the college football teams and politics.
"This is the South"
or "this is California" is NOT an excuse to play the fool in the assembly.
Philippians
1:27 Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether
I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand
fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel; 27.
Race
There
will be NO racial feeling tolerated.
There will be NO platform for solving
racial issues either.
Once inside the assembly, Jesus Christ will make us one.
Racial
issues in the community will not be your interest.
Colossians
3:10 And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image
of him that created him:
11 Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision
nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but Christ is all, and
in all. 28.
Finances
Bills
must be paid. Some way will be found to gather the cash to pay them.
Leaders
who labor in the Word will be given double honor, that is, helped financially.
There
will be no begging by the leaders. Information will be discreet.
There will
be no Faith Promise giving. Giving will be on the First Day of the week, as God
has blessed you last week. You will be encouraged to give to the saints in the
assembly and meet their needs before you wander off to give to other needs in
the community. Prefer the brother.
Philemon 1:14 But
without thy mind would I do nothing; that thy benefit should not be as it were
of necessity, but willingly.
Romans 12:17 Recompense to no man evil for evil.
Provide things honest in the sight of all men. 29.
Trendy Things
Promise
Keepers, The Prayer of Jabez, Bill Gothard, Purpose Driven Cheese, and such cheap
religion will be forbidden. Anyone promoting such things, including Christian
counseling, will be run off.
Acts 17:21 (For all the
Athenians and strangers which were there spent their time in nothing else, but
either to tell, or to hear some new thing.)
1 Timothy 6:20 O Timothy, keep
that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and
oppositions of science falsely so called: 30.
Quietness
Isaiah
32:17 And the work of righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness
quietness and assurance for ever. If
you crave a rowdy honky tonk religion, a TBN hype, please keep moving. We don't
want you here. Disagreements within the assembly will be dealt with in the way
instructed by our Lord: Matthew
18:15 Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his
fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy
brother.
16 But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more,
that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.
17
And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect
to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican. Anyone
who resorts to gossip or open wrath instead of following the above command will
be rebuked before all. 31.
Calvinism and Free Will
We
believe that God chose every saint in Christ before the foundation of the world.
God is NOT hanging around the front of the church house to see who comes down
the aisle so he can tag them like some deer hunter tagging some other guy's deer.
God chose all saints before time began.
Ephesians 1:3
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with
all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:
4 According as he hath
chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and
without blame before him in love:
5 Having predestinated us unto the adoption
of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his
will,
6 To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted
in the beloved.
Any Baptist who manages to explain away the absolute
finality of God's choosing of you and me before the creation of the world is (grab
hold) a God damned Baptist. I say that because anyone who degrades the power of
choice by God is damned to hell for teaching heresy. Also,
the Bible teaches that whosoever will may come. Choose you this day whom you will
serve. Every sinner on earth is a free agent who can choose to believe the Gospel
of Jesus Christ, or he can reject it and go to hell.
Revelation
22:17 And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come.
And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of
life freely.
2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some
men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should
perish, but that all should come to repentance.
Any Baptist or Calvinist
who denies that every sinner is loved by God and invited to believe on the Lord
Jesus Christ and be saved is (grab hold) damned to hell for teaching heresy. I
say that because Jesus died for all men, and his blood will cleanse any sinner
who repents and believes in Jesus Christ. Both
of the above are true and active now, and if you feel some need to explain them
completely, you are an arrogant fool. God's ways are not our ways. Both election
and free will operate together, and God is great enough to be sovereign in both.
If you have a problem in this area, deal with it in your Bible. Do NOT bring it
up over and over in the assembly. John
Calvin was a murdered of Christians, as were most European Reformed leaders long
ago. So, we leave Calvin and Zwingli to scream for water in hell while we follow
the King James Bible, which was a product of God fearing English and Scottish
Reformers. 32.
There will be NO youth group
The
family is the ONLY unit of the local church in the New Testament. When Paul was
preaching in Ephesus, a kid fell out of the window. The kid was not downstairs
singing "Do Lord." He was listening to Paul teach. Acts 20:7-11
On
the other hand, there may be a story time reading a chapter from a missionary
biography each Sunday, or an object lesson. If so, any adult who comes in regularly
after the story time will be rebuked. Mature adults are happy to join in with
children occasionally.
Matthew 18:3 And said, Verily
I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall
not enter into the kingdom of heaven. 33.
No man may lead in the fellowship who is incontinent with food or beverages.
This
include both alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverages. When a man is more than forty
pounds overweight, he has more serious problems than just weight. For the record,
the Bible provides no exceptions to this requirement for alleged "metabolism
problems." There is no such thing.
Proverbs 23:1
When thou sittest to eat with a ruler, consider diligently what is before thee:
2 And put a knife to thy throat, if thou be a man given to appetite. 34.
Beggarly Elements
Profane
and pagan holidays and festivals will not be a part of the church's life at their
gatherings, such as, Christmass, Halloween, Valentine's Day, May Day, Easter,
including sun rise services, and any other festival based in worldly forms and
practice. This excludes decorations and music of the season of such festivals.
Those who choose to practice pagan ritual days will keep it to themselves and
NOT make any reference to those days when gathered with the saints. Caution must
be encouraged also as to patriotic days. These must never take precedence over
regular fellowship gatherings. Being a witness is no excuse for running with the
dogs. Galatians
4:9 But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn
ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in
bondage? 35.
Missionaries
The
assembly will have few missionaries, support them well, and insist that they respond
to the assembly faithfully and spend more then one service when on furlough. A
missions week may be planned, but it will not be a time to call in Dr. Famous
Amos, a mission board talking head.
Acts 15:4 And when
they were come to Jerusalem, they were received of the church, and of the apostles
and elders, and they declared all things that God had done with them. 36.
World view
The
field is the world, not just our lot on the corner of Main Street and Third Avenue.
Each believer, including the children, will be encouraged to watch the world,
Israel, and human affairs with a Bible in hand. Regular discussions on the world
will be common. Issues that affect Christians will be examined. And, other local
churches will be seen as part of our fellowship where ANY issue effects them as
well as us.
Ecclesiastes 3:11 He hath made every thing
beautiful in his time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man
can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end.
But,
he will try. Anyone who shows boredom with God's creative work will be lovingly
rebuked. 37.
STEALING SHEEP
A
house of prayer must NOT be built by stealing sheep from other church fellowships.
The biblical reason for you to leave another local church and join the house of
prayer is if you have been thrashed or cast out of the church where you attend.
If you were sent away because you are a rebel sinner, you will be sent back to
the pastor of that church to get right before joining the house of prayer. If
the church you attend falls short of the Apostolic teaching on New Testament church
life, you will be welcome at the house of prayer. Please
allow other saints from other churches to have fellowship with you. Your meeting
times should allow other saints to still attend their home church meetings if
possible. Young adults with lots of energy will find it refreshing to start the
day Sunday in another "Sunday School," a church service, come join you
at midday, and end the Lord's Day in another church in the evening. You do NOT
own the sheep-- Jesus Christ does. 38.
A WORD TO PASTORS IN OTHER BIBLE BELIEVING CHURCHES
If
you are a servant of Jesus Christ and his Church, we are NOT in competition with
you. We are an alternative for saints who are being jack booted, and for saints
who are being wearied by the traditions of men in many churches. We will be encouraging
people to maintain fellowship with ALL narrow way Bible believers in the churches
in their area. If you believe that any of your people who visit a house of prayer
are disloyal to Christ, we will teach them that you are a heretic. On the other
hand, we would encourage you, as one of Christ's pastors, to encourage any house
of prayer so that the Body of Christ may be strong in all areas. For
the record, a house of prayer is not a "Baptist" church. It is a fellowship
of Bible believers who desire to build on the foundation of the New Testament
Apostles only. There were NO Baptists in the New Testament Church Age. The only
biblical Baptist preached under another dispensation which the Apostle Paul forbid
us to reproduce in any way. If
you are a sodomite, pervert, jack boot, or criminal, we will do every lawful thing
we can to destroy you and give safe haven to any true sheep that leave your Satanic
fold.
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