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Deliverance
Three steps (RTC)
RTC says, .... (Interested )
Response (RTC)
Hey RTC, no mind over matter business. (Interested )
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As for church, yah, it is a source of strength. But why are so many people church hopping these days? ++I'm sure there are tonnes of reasons why people church hop, but I believe one of the underlying reasons is that people do not understand what church is. We have inheritated an unhealthy dosage of teaching about the church that bears little resemblance to the dynamics of the early first century church life. We end up looking for a place to belong to, a great "entertaining" experience with good preachers and great songs with live bands, big budgets and big programs and what not. We put our money where we feel a service has been adequately rendered. We end up with a feed-me-feel-good consumer mentality, little wonder that church hopping is such big business. There's even a book in SKS titled "Stealing Ship" exploring this behaviour! As for Lone Ranger christians it is not the ideal but certainly better than giving up the faith altogether. ++I do not really like to settle for the "better than nothing" kind of reason. To me, if one adopts the lifestyle of the hermits in the 4th century, one has abandoned a central part of the Christian faith (church life) which the Lord has put us into. Even if there is no rejecting of the Christian faith, neither is it an embracing of the Christian faith that the Lord or His apostles have taught. Do you have a better solution for those who have ceased attending churches? Ah, I'm sure you'll say go to a house church. ++Well, can you think of another solution that can be better supported by the NT? What if the house church also truns out to be a failure? I know people who have gone back to the church after being in a house church for a while. That is okay. ++Being in a fellowship called a house church does not mean the end of all church life problems. I never said it to be so nor do I believe it to be so. One can just as well be as institutionalized in a house setting. Meeting in homes require a radical change in thinking and theology, which many are not able to come to terms with. I have a brother-in-Christ who would like to join our meetings but lament that we have no music ministry which consists of a full band so he can't serve God. Such is the degree of entrenchment of our modern day ideas of serving God and ministry! Church life is delicate and fragile without the masks we put on every Sunday telling people we are "OK". Many house churches fail because people cannot stand the ugliness of real vulnerable people, or that there is no "agenda" to look forward to. These are the people whose minds are not renewed. Some persevere on and "make it" while others give up and have a miserable existence as a pew warmer in the last row. My concern is for those who have totally given up. ++If you really know this people and have concern for them, seek them out and begin to express the risen Lord in your midst. Have them meet in the simplicity of your house. Share Christ. Know nothing except Christ among you. Labour to see Christ formed in everyone of you. Get outside help (you'll need it! We had help from the States too). So I believe one's faith should be strong enough to see one through with or without fellowship if necessary. ++That depends on what you mean by fellowship. Do you mean the church? Or do you mean the support of a few believers who are willing to go through hell with you? Paul on many occasions had to face the worst ordeals in his life but he had the comfort of Timothy, Titus, and even Luke. Well, there will be times when we are all alone and everyone seems to desert us, but such should be the few dark moments of our Christian walk and not the daily characteristic of our walk! May be very difficult but who said the christian life is easy? ++No one said that. But having said that, one would just make the Christian life much more difficult by not being in the fellowship of holy ones. |
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Outline:
"Ultimate" Reason for church hopping by RTC, 2001, Dec 12 
Unless during war-time, I don't think House Church is applicable...eom by Emmanuel, 2001, Dec 13
Tell that to the folks who meet like that all over the world... by RTC, 2001, Dec 13
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