Quote:
Originally Posted by CC1
What I have said is that if someone just leaves the UPC or any church for that matter and removes themselves from what the bible clearly tells us is there for the development of our christian walk (pastors, teachers, etc as mentioned before) then they are wrong.
My observation is that once people stop going to church if they do it very long they learn to love sleeping in on Sunday's and just making it another day off.
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The other thing I have observed is people who quit going to church because they just can't find one that teaches and preaches everything EXACTLY as they believe so they suddenly become proponents of "home church" and either have church with just family or recruit a few more malcontents or followers so they don't ever have to hear something they don't like or agree with. There may be some rationales for home church (when the church is under persecution and can't meet corporately, etc) but my belief is t hat 90% of the time it is just an excuse for stubborn people who must have everything their way.
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What a crock. I say that in love.
First of all, since we 'quit going to church' years ago, we have actually become, as a family, MORE God-centered than we were when we were 'attending church'. We pray more, study Scripture more. Sunday is a work day at our house. Sabbath is spent in prayer, study, and worshipping together. When we gather as a little family (all 8 of us) we spend about 2-3 hours 'having church' which is more than we ever did at a 'church'. We spend more time in prayer, more time singing, more time reading the word, more time discussing the Word, more time studying the word, together in our little 'family church gathering' than we ever had 'going to church'.
The reason we left 'going to church' in fact is because the churches we went to were unable to keep up with us in our walk with God. We hungered for God, everyone else was telling us 'hey, you need some balance, you need to chill out on the praying and studying Scripture all the time, take in a ball game, let's talk about sports or the weather or politics, everytime you people show up it's all Jesus this and Jesus that'. And that was from 'pentecostal' people and churches.
We tried to 'get involved' in church but nobody wanted much to do with anything. I tried to basically tell pastors I 'sat under' hey, I need discipleship, I feel a burden for spreading the Word to our community' and all I EVER got was 'well, have at it'. No help, no instruction, no 'training', no recommendations other than 'invite all your friends and neighbors to come to church next Sunday!' We came to realise our only 'purpose' in 'going to church' was to dump some money in a collection plate and 'invite people to come to church' and give an 'amen' when the preacher said something cool.
That's it.
We, not just myself, but my wife as well, had it made quite clear to us what our 'place' in the 'local church' was - pew warming tithe-payer, and that's it. Anything more was apparently seen as a sign of 'imbalance' or 'over zealousness'.
Combined with a constant attack on our children, demanding they attend 'children's church' or 'sunday school' where they were fed a constant diet of pablum, cookies, and nonsense. Our children got to the point where on their own they REFUSED to attend any sunday school or children's church because they said 'it's just a day care'. And this at practically EVERY 'church' we went to. They wanted to be 'in church' with their family, they wanted to worship God with the Body of Christ, they wanted to hear GOD'S WORD PREACHED.
And since they weren't playing the game, we as a family were constantly ostracised.
Our family would often pray after meetings, and several times were practically kicked out so they could shut the lights off and run off to Denny's or Pizza Hut or whatever.
We came to realise that most modern churches are all fluff and no substance. Not because they didn't do what we wanted, but because we were taking the Scriptures seriously and it seemed they weren't.
Combine that with loads of false doctrines being taught - rapturism, pagan holy days, false standards of holiness - where folks are keeping standards but look like they belong in a nightclub nonetheless - no interest in actually training people as disciples, etc etc etc... we had to leave.
We began meeting with other believers in a 'house church' setting. Those believers had been doing house church since at least the 50s, and I believe further on back than that. There is in fact an entire subset of Oneness Pentecost that has ALWAYS been 'house church', but they are ignored and marginalized by the 'mothership' and associated groups. No biggie.
We haven't met with them for awhile because they are over 2 and a half hours away from us now and we don't have the money for gas.
As for having house church or family church so 'we never have to hear what we don't like' that's funny. Real funny. In our family worship we read straight from the Bible, OT and NT, according to a schedule that covers the entire bible several times in the year. We deal with and interact with the Word of God as written, without any 'choice' as to what God says. We have OFTEN had to correct our living, lifestyle, choices, ways of doing things because of being confronted by God's Word. We have made many changes. And continue to do so.
We aren't perfect, but I'd be remiss if I allowed this type of slander and false accusation to go unopposed and unanswered.
Thank you for your time, please donate to the AFF-GOOP Fund found in my sig line, and may the Lord bless you all!
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