Where do one steppers go to church?
 

I am new here so please forgive my ignorance.

Where do one steppers go to church?

It is really hard to find a church that is not affiliated with the UPCI in my area.

Also is there somewhere to buy books that teach the one stepper belief?

The Pentecostal Publishing House has a large selection, but all of their books are three stepper material.

I am real new so I am sorry if I didn't say something the right way. :smack

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

Anywhere they can! :thumbsup

I attend a UPCI church, but I simply try to just not emphasize my differences because I don't want to cause trouble. But I have drive quite a ways to get there.

Maybe you might want to consider starting your own church.

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

You might try the local Baptist church?

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

If there is a Grace or Life Church in your area, you might want to check them out. I've found most of them to be one steppers.

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

"Where do one steppers go to church?"

"Anywhere they want to!"

<rim shot>

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

1 step, 2 step, 3 step...all this worldly dance stuff is carnal :heeheehee

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

My pastor has a UPC license, but our church is not affiliated. That my pastor is more 3 step than I doesn't make me nervous. I am likely wrong on some stuff too!

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

:thumbsup

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

A starting place might be to go to the Global Network of Christian Ministries website and look at their church directory. The radio button to do that is way at the top of the home page on the right. it is titled "Find a GNCM Church". I am pasting a link to their home page at the bottom of my post.

Global is not exclusively a Oneness org. but it is where a lot of UPC pastors went who left after the affirmation statement issue. There are also a lot of independent "one stepper" churches. Can you tell us what city or town you are in? If it would compromise your anonymity and you don't want to reveal it I understand.

http://globalministriesonline.com/

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

Definitely not here:

http://julicidal.com/wp-content/uplo...urch-Steps.jpg

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

Thanks for all the responses!

I am in the Saint Louis Missouri area.

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

Anheuser-Busch, St Louis MO.

Need I say more?

What are the alternatives to Global? Any others?

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

try south county christian church, newly named, cross point church.

Pastor is Shawn Craig (ever hear of Phillips Craig and Dean)

Oneness pentecostal roots in this church

http://www.thecrosspoint.com/index.c...452/index.html

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

Faith Church looks like a place I'd visit if I lived in st Louis
http://faithchurch.com/locations/

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

I agree with this recommendation. I don't know anything particular about this church but have known Shawn Craig for many years. He is a good man.

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

I attended Sunday morning and Wednesday evening services. I really liked it. It is so good to go to church again.
The pastor Shawn Craig gave an amazing sermon!
:happydance

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

http://www.majc.us/

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

You could try the Apostolic Christian Network or the International Ministerial Association. The Fellowship (Full Gospel Fellowship) is one step, but some (not all) ministers baptize in titles.

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

While I've been praying for God to reveal his will for our family - I would not classify myself as a one-stepper. I recognize that being raised in the UPC has certainly skewed the way I read Scripture - but I have be attempting to study with a fresh mindset to let the Scripture interpret itself. That said, I still keep coming away with the impression that "if any man have not the Spirit of God he is none of his" and that tongues are clearly the initial sign of receiving the baptism of the Holy Ghost. I'm not saying that if someone truly repents of their sin and then dies before being baptized or receiving the Holy Ghost that he's not saved. BUT - the scripture clearly points toward true believers taking a step of obedience to be baptized in Jesus name and to seek the promise of the Gift of the Holy Ghost (Acts 8). (I'm also not saying that people who live their whole lives only knowing repentance and baptism in the titles won't receive their reward...but I have to do what God has revealed for me and my family.)

Okay -all that said - I've been researching churches in my area for a while now, considering taking a step outside of the UPC, away from the man made traditions, obligations, and "expectations" put upon mature Christians. Even though my church "doesn't preach standards," there's still an expectation that "mature Christians" will tow the line. It's an environment I have a difficult time foreseeing raising my kids in.

Do you know how difficult it is to find a church that baptizes in Jesus name? There's an ex-UPC church in town that does, but the pastor doesn't believe that all believers should seek the baptism of the Holy Ghost.

Finally, finally - I've found a church that according to their beliefs page on their website, preaches baptism in Jesus name and the infilling of the Holy Ghost with evidence of tongues. And judging from their pictures of their ministers, they don't teach traditional UPCI standards.

Unfortunately, in my area of the country, none of the ministerial associations listed in this thread are represented anywhere nearby. I've resorted to a Google search on "churches" and painstakingly clicking on every single dot that comes up in my area, and then reading web pages when I stumble across one that looks promising.

The church I've just discovered is about 35 minutes away. Not ideal, but I've driven farther to church in my past. Plus, it's in an area near where we've considered moving in the next 5 years. We're still praying about God's will for our family, and I'm not sure if/when we're going to visit it. But it's a weight off my mind to know that it's out there. An answer to prayer...even if it isn't the right place for us, I prayed that God would show us at least one option out there, and two days after having my face in the ground over this, I've finally stumbled across it. God is good.

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

I'm puzzled about how what is essentially a direct, clear quote from the bible can be in any way blunted or adjusted by saying "coming away with the impression that..."

Can relatively clear phrases (at least by biblical standards) be really be recast as your impression?

Same question--what part of "none of his" is unclear?

Etc., etc...

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

Hey, man, you're preaching to the choir here. Look - the Bible does not say "explicitly" that "tongues are the initial evidence of receiving the Holy Ghost." Yes, there are instances where it talks about someone receiving the Holy Ghost, and tongues aren't "mentioned." But, IMO, the absence of information does not mean that something did not exist, just that it was not noted or documented.

I've asked twice in the last couple months on this forum for a one-stepper to give their understanding of Acts 8, and why it was so very evident that SOMETHING physical and observable happened when the Samaritans received the Holy Ghost. ALSO, why were the apostles called upon to pray for them to receive the Holy Ghost, if they had "already received it when they believed" (which they clearly had believed already, as they were baptized). No one has taken it upon themselves to try to give an answer.

So...anyway...yeah, I'm with you. But I know this isn't a debate that begins and ends with how you and I read our Bibles.

(Oh, and on the part of someone "not being saved" if they lived a life of devotion to God without speaking tongues...not for me to judge, if it's not something that was revealed to them in God's word. All I know is what I read and must obey, and preach and teach the same. God is bigger than me, though, so I don't discount his ability to have mercy upon whom he will have mercy.)

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

Fair enough, thanks. But as a believer, I was strongly a three-stepper, and just couldn't find scriptural justification for the wiggle room you are describing (although it would have made life easier had I found that wiggle-room.)
But carry on....

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

:toofunny :toofunny :toofunny :thumbsup

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

Much of it is in indoctrination. When I read the bible now I see one step all over it.

When we left God told me to read the Bible like a new born babe without my denominational glasses to cloud my judgement of what He was and is doing.

Like I have been told maybe it was not God but the debil.:heeheehee

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

MarcBee, Just noticed your current belief system isn't Biblical. I respect, though, that even in your current state, you see some of the same clarity - even if you don't believe it yourself anymore.

I was at a point in my life a few years ago where I had a decision to make - Faith...or No Faith. I chose faith. Yes, I agree that there are many things in the Bible that seems clear cut and dry and hard to swallow (and then there are other things that are "way out there" and hard to believe in our natural understanding), but I cannot get past the intangible truth that I see and feel a God in this great big world. Now, I could be some sort of "spiritual" person without a belief system...maybe go to a Unitarian church...or I could choose to trust that the Bible is the documented Word of God and his plan for humanity. I chose the latter, and I'm grateful that God was merciful upon me to allow me to make that choice.

At one point, I told a close friend - agonizingly - that I didn't know how to just "believe" something that I didn't believe. He told me: It's a choice. At the time, I didn't understand. Now I do. I choose faith, and I choose to read and obey what I continue to see in his Word. Whether or not God is bigger than my understanding (oh, and I have no doubt that He is) is irrelevant to me.

I must obey what I see...and for the minutia that I don't "see" in the Word...I choose not to make an issue out of those things. Who was Christ harshest on in Scripture? It was the people who created rules and regulations and placed them as hurdles to salvation. He said (Matthew 23:13): "What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you shut the door of the Kingdom of Heaven in people’s faces. You won’t go in yourselves, and you don’t let others enter either."

I choose faith, but I also choose not to create stumbling blocks to salvation by going outside the Word. Anyway - all this is totally off-topic, but a good dialogue nonetheless.

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

I've been hearing the same thing. Just read the Word. Get rid of the dogma, get rid of the tradition, and read the Word.

While I've no doubt that the Christian walk certainly begins before someone speaks in tongues...I do see in the Word that it the Holy Ghost is a PROMISE, and that all believers should be encouraged to receive the gift he has for us. I'm still not on board with seeking "tongues" for the sake of "making sure you're ready." But in my journey, I've taken issue with churches that do not teach about and encourage all believers to experience the baptism of the Holy Ghost.

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

I am only telling you what I felt God told me. Also I am Pentecostal and believe that the Baptism of the Holy Ghost with the evidence of speaking in tongues as the Spirit gives utterance is for today.

We had a Holy Ghost shout down last night at church with many youth losing their English.

I want all that God has for me.

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

I think we're pretty close to the same place. :) But I need baptism in Jesus name to seal the deal. And the AG churches in my area laughed at me when I asked (okay, actually, they didn't laugh...they were quite kind in their responses) and pointed me to the AG.org Statement of Faith. (I believe you said your church does, indeed, baptize in Jesus name, right?)

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

That is another member here whose church Baptizes in Jesus Name.

Our church Baptizes according to Matthew 28:19.

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

But when it comes to teaching about matters of faith and religion, what isn't indoctrination? Or, what shouldn't be indoctrination? (rhetorical questions.)

Only when one admits, "I don't know the answer, so there's wiggle room on that subject," --seems only then is teaching any belief not indoctrination. But in admitting that, one is simultaneously admitting the Word of God is not clear enough to make a clear decision--when the scripture claims the god will lead you to All Truth. Either way, "indoctrination" ought not be in a perjorative term to Christians, IMO.

Interesting, I had somewhat the opposite experience. I started out A of G, was happy there for one year, received HG, spoke in tongues, but upon hearing Acts 2:38 message the first or second time, a bunch more things fell into place, at least doctrinally. At least it all made sense enough for the next 20 years.

(OF course, now, everything makes even better sense, since it's all made up by different religious men with slightly different religious beliefs. Shoehorn them all together and call it The Word of God--way more likely, and sensible.)
:icecream

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

Ah, okay. Yeah, that's a tough one for me to get past. Again - another instance where I can only practice and teach others what I see in the Word. But...it's been a debate going on give or take 1688 years...I'm not the master theologian who's going to change everyone else's mind. :preach

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

Don't worry MarcBee yourself and Timmy are coming back. Your going back to UPC and I am taking Timmy back to the AG. Momma Shanda :nahnah

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

I understand I am not going to change anybodies mind. We are called to love and witness to those that know Christ. :highfive

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

Hehheh, His Reverend Lee Stoneking is probably right about that possibility (with the wrong reasoning, naturally.)

:happydance

http://www.apostolicfriendsforum.com...ad.php?t=44746

:happydance

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

I saw that andI was never a big fan of Elder Stoneking when I was in UPC. :happydance

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

I actually never said I was a one stepper. I was wondering where one steppers go to church. I would rather worship with a one stepper who has love and mercy in his heart than someone I totally agree with over doctrine.
I am a three stepper who believes in the light doctrine, who admits maybe I am wrong. :smack

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

Forgive my ignorance...what is the light doctrine?

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

The light doctrine is that you are judged by the light of what you have heard.

If you have not heard the Gospel you cannot be judged by it.
If you have not heard Acts 2:38 preached, you cannot be judged by it.

If you have heard that-Jesus died for your sins, was buried, rose on the third day and now sits on his throne in Heaven, then you have enough information to become a believer.
If this person repents of their sins, believes with all their heart and confesses Jesus as Lord they are a righteous believer. They must continue to follow after Jesus and not continue to sin willingly. When this person stands before God’s throne they will be welcomed into Heaven.

If a person believes, repents is baptized in Jesus Name and Receives the Holy Spirit by the Evidence of speaking in tongues, they are born again. They too must follow after Jesus and not willingly sin. BUT the born again believer is in a full or complete relationship with God. They are fully saved.
I have also heard the term “wicked, righteous and holy” to describe this.

Re: Where do one steppers go to church?
 

Here are some more documents that might be helpful! :happydance