Quote:
Originally Posted by OneAccord
Sadly? Its sad when people begin to emphasize a relationship with God rather than trying to meet requirements? It was the Pharisees that demanded requirements to be met , rules to be followed. It was Jesus that encouraged His disciples to enter and maintain a relationship with God. Without having a relationship with God, the keeping of requirements is null and void.
Nicodemus was a teacher, a ruler among the Jews. Yet, he had no clue as to what it meant to be born again. He kept all the right rules, submitted to the right standards, yet he could not grasp the concept of having a personal relationship with the Lord. Now, THAT is sad. And whats even more sad is the fact that in all churches, including many Oneness churches, there is gross negligence on the part of the ministry to teach what is and what is not a true relationship with God. And the keeping of rules and standards is not necessarily the same as having a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.
But I wil agree...there are requirements. There are standards. The Bible tells us what is required of us. But, we can cast out devils, and not truly know Him. We can give all we have to the poor, and still have nothing. We can keep every law, and still fall short. Thats where grace is found... in the relationship we have with God. Unless we abide in Him- have a relationship with Him- the best rule keeping we can do will end in a puff of smoke.
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It has been a relationship with God that has led me to the belief in the standards i hold. We are a very conservative church (much more than most upci churches). This is not soemthing i am boasting of but i am using this to to say that being conservative in standards does not mean that we believe our savation is based on such. My pastor is constantly exorting us to pray, fast and read the Word of God and make these things a part of our daily life. He teaches much more on relationship than he does standards. Matter of fact he very seldom teaches on standards, but when he does he has already taught on relationship with God to such a degree that our hearts are prepared and yearning to do what is right. I am convinced that if we will seek God and truly yearn after Him, He will lead us to the same or at least very similar convictions. Throughout my walk with God i have been on many different planes and held various view points..but I have sought God and continued to move forward. At one point I had no problem with television...now i can see how it influenced me. Previously I had no problem with wedding bands..God has showed me that they are not pleasing to Him. At one point in my walk i was perfectly fine with the thought of broadcasting on television..now i see very clearly the dangers of such. At one point i considered baptism non-essential..now i understand that it is the name of JEsus Christ applied in baptism that remmits sins (this of course is void without repentance) . I do not judge someone who does not hold exactly the same convictions i do, because i believe we all may be at different levels in our walk. But if we are not moving in the same direction, then we are not being led by the same Spirit. Perhaps someone loves God but does not at this time have a conviction against worldly sports. I believe that they may be very much saved and very much seeking God. If that is the case, I believe with the right teaching and a heart that is desiring God sincerely, God will bring them to a place of such a conviction. Paul told the Corinthian church to speak the same things..it is reasonable to expect this because we should be being led by the same Spirit. But i do not judge another brother or sister who is being led by the same Spirit as myself but is simply on higher or lower plane than myself. And there are certainly many wonderful saints in both places.
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