Do not depart to the Right hand nor the left

J

JohnC

Ephesus - Revelation 2:1-7

Christianity is literally littered with the remnants and carcasses of failed denominations and churches.... We have accumulated nearly 2,000 years of failed churches.. Our history is filled with with the litter of churches that strayed from the Love, Duty, and Fear of God and the inerrancy of The Scripture...

But - we shouldn't be surprised by this... It's not a NEW thing at all.. What we must always keep in mind in this regard is the caution to the Church of Ephesus... Through ALL the other discussions and noise - we must not forget our FIRST LOVE...

The ONE thing that brings us together...

We must not forget that when we forsake our first love (For whatever good, noble, or thoughful reason) - He will finally remove our "Candlestick"....

See - this is a careful admonition in Joshua 23:6, Proverbs 4:27 and AGAIN by Jesus in Matt 7:13-14 (Enter by the narrow gate...)

Conservatives love to throw this rock at Liberals and vice versa.... The truth is - Stray from your first love EITHER to the Right or to the Left and the results are THE SAME... You will be another fogotten asterisk in the history of His Church...
 
Lol right and left, i didnt think of it that way. I'm definitely not rightwing or leftwing anymore. I learned that politics got nothing to do with Jesus' Kingdom.
 
Lanolin said:
Lol right and left, i didnt think of it that way. I'm definitely not rightwing or leftwing anymore. I learned that politics got nothing to do with Jesus' Kingdom.
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No, they don't. But here in America, anyway, the two certainly have become intertwined - and dividing, even among Christians. We should working together for His church, not only to support, edify and lift one another up, but more importantly for the work and building up of the body of Christ for His glory.
 
I am not talking specifically about your political leaning... What I am talking about is your outlook towards God....

There are many "Conservative" Christian churches which are quite legalistic - Many put an emphasis on "Outward Holiness" ... They put a very strong emphasis on Family, "Family values," Historical truth and historical values, patriotism, and and an emphasis on turning backwards into the Past which was always good and condemnation that the present is completely evil... A very strong emphasis on Loyalty to THIS building and THIS leadership structure.... A strong emphasis on "Repentance" which specifically means self-control instead of Narcissism.. A strong emphasis on Doctrine police.. You may see a trend to quietly forsake good works under the guise of "Faith not works"... They tend to "Err" in one particular sort of way - but tend to avoid error on the other side.... We can call this "Departing the path to the Right"......

There are many "Liberal" Christian churches who don't take the scripture seriously. We hear "You must get with the times... That bible stuff is old and dusty ethnic tradition".. You may see the downplaying of the scripture and uplifting of recent research and secular trends. There may be a strong emphasis on social "justice," on "Inclusion" and on doing good works for the sake of the good works - not for any intention of spreading The Gospel.... There is typically a very strong emphasis on "Love" meaning universal acceptance and a partial or complete rejection of Repentance, Duty, and Fear. There may be a strong emphasis on working for "Causes" and stirring discontent..... We can call this "Departing the path to the Left"

My point is that BOTH are error... BOTH continue to result in churches failing because they Lose their First Love....

With the "Conservative" - the Love of God brings them back into balance by stimulating Good works, Charity, Mercy, Compassion, Justice, Forgiveness, inclusion, and a focus on Inward holiness... and it also helps to right the ship in regards to Repentance being an INWARD action that yields OUTWARD fruit...

With the "Liberal" - the true Love of God brings them back into balance by Practicing/Teaching true Repentance, Duty, and Fear of God... That sin is real and there are CONSEQUENCES of sin even to Believers who have accepted Christ... This helps right the ship in regards to Repentance in general, Accepting the Inerrancy of the Scripture and importance of the eternal truths in the scripture.. That the God's church is not in position to intentionally facilitate Sin... Understanding that Inclusion and social Justice are two-edged swords and must be handled with care....

If you look at the history of the Christian Church - it is littered with the carcasses of churches who have departed the path BOTH to the Right and to the Left.... Their lampstands are GONE...

Thanks
 
JohnC said:
That sin is real and there are CONSEQUENCES of sin even to Believers who have accepted Christ...
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I don't see this being preached in the liberal churches at all. Quite the opposite, actually. It's all about acceptance and inclusion, and any talk of sin as labeled as judgemental and intolerant.
 
The places I visited where I experienced this were sort of that way - "Inclusive" meaning that in theory - they professed that their arms were open to any sin and any sinner.... and yes - any talk of "Sin" as such was branded as judgmental and intolerant...
 
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