HISmanD

I do not agree with you. I do not know of anything that I am addicted to. Let me say first of all that this flesh that all the world still lives in is addicted to SIN. It will strive to live in it and only GOD Himself can keep you from giving in. All of us. Pride is still in the BIBLE especially in PRV.16:18. People behold the mote in other's eyes all the while they have a beam sticking out of their own in Matt. 7:3-5 and then we come to 1 Peter 5:6 "Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God that he may exalt you in due time." Just thought I would point that out.

You put GOD in the list of unhealthy adictions. Just thought I would point that out. Perhaps you are addicted to pointing out typos of People that CANNOT, obviously mean that GOD is an Unhealthy addiction.

Coincedence. Chance. Choice. Possibilities. Fate. Accidents. Fortune. Luck. Unpurposed. Unpredictable. Random. Unintentional. The Problem with these words is that they are used today to Define Bible Doctrines such as Sin, Salvation and Security in Christ (the latter being usually "temporary" ). For Insatnce: 1. Sin has now become Unintentional. 2. Salvation has now become Unpurposed. 3. Security has now become UnPredictable ( depends on your Lifestyle ). Have you ever heard these Types of Statements in Church?: 1. Give your Heart to JESUS. 2. Receive JESUS into your Heart. 3. Accept JESUS as LORD and SAVIOR. 4. Realize you are Lost. 5. Repent of ALL your SIN so Christ can save you. 6. Make a Decision for CHRIST. 7. Pray this Prayer and GOD will save you. These seven statements are heard so much that if anyone points out that they have no SCRIPTURE on SCRIPTURE Basis they are considered Heretics. Let us Analyze these in the LIGHT of the WORD of GOD shall we? 1. Give your Heart to Christ. Whenever Scripture talks of the "heart" it is reffering to the thoughts or feelings of a person. For instance in Matt. 15:8, 1 Peter 1:22, Eph. 5:19. Many of these references refer to People that obviously know GOD. How then can anyone that is Hellbound give their Heart to GOD? The real question is "What would HE want with it?" " The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" However you can still deny the BOOK and do this. You will stand before HIM as HE declares "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God. Not of works lest any man should boast." 2. Recieve JESUS into your Heart. During Christmas millions of People will have "Receive JESUS" into their hearts all day long. The Majority of these people are lost ( "few " in Matt. 7:14 is still there) but still have JESUS in there thoughts and feelings. Sound ridiculous? No more than ascribing Salvation to be under Man's Control. People use "receive JESUS" today as if they were plucking HIM out of Heaven as if HE was at their Beck and call! In fact it is just the opposite! Lost or Saved we are subject to HIM! Rom. 5:17 gives us the correct context of "receive." The context is of somebody being given something of and by the grace of GOD not being seized upon by a wicked heart. 3. Accept Jesus as Your Lord and Savior Look at John 1:1, 3, Gen. 1:1, 2:4, . From just these alone you should be able to figure out that without your help HE already is your LORD. HE does not need our help to accept HIM as anything. 1 Tim. 4:10 tells us that GOD Himself made CHRIST the Saviour. The LORD GOD is not in Heaven blessing men with Salvation because of their faith or because they made HIM something HE will Forever be. Or even because HE knew that they would believe HIS WORD. HE saves men, not at random but according to Design, because HE chooses to. 4. Realize You are Lost. Make no mistake about it mankind knows that their deeds are evil. This can be proven Biblically, Physically, Mentally, Historically and Spiritually. The same was true for me . I never needed to be told I was doing wrong. Here is something else that people wont admit: I enjoyed it! I knew I was wrong but I did not know it was against HIM that I was doing these things. I broke HIS Law and did not know it would send me to Hell. Moses in Heb. 11:25 did not want "to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season." GOD Himself must set HIS affections on man because it does not matter what you realize if HE does not. 5. Repent of all Your Sin Before GOD will save you. Again this saying is geared toward works for Salvation. If Sin, all Sin, any Sin was laid upon CHRIST and Judged in HIM how much is on us? If I had to repent of all my sins before GOD would save me I would not be "writing" this now because I would still be confessing and repenting and trying to remember. WORKS. Do something so GOD will have to or be able to do what HE wants. You are in control then. 6. Make a Decision for CHRIST. How can Man choose anything for GOD or make any choices for HIM? The saying that "the Devil voted against you and CHRIST voted for you and now you have the deciding vote " is BIBLICALLY wrong. But ,lets make a decision for HIM. Here is how: "Realize Your Lost, Repent of all Your Sin, Give Your Heart to CHRIST, Accept HIM as YOUR Lord and Saviour and Receive Jesus into your Heart." TOO much of YOU and what YOU can do and NO GOD. Man's choices mean nothing to GOD. Look at Daniel 4:35. HE does according to HIS Will. 7. Pray this PRAYER and GOD will save you. People all over the World trust a set of WORDS said in a Prayer and never Trust GOD at all. "I said a prayer and therefore I am saved!" Where is this in the BIBLE? Please dont say Rom. 10:13 is the Basis for that considering that the context of the Verse is referring to the People that already know HIM. Please look at it. Matter of fact please do a search of the Bible and you will find that the first time that Phrase appears is in Genesis 4:26. In the Laws of Interpretation( Hermenuetics) you will find the Law of First Mention. The first mention of something defines how it is to be seen throughout the BIBLE. The Context of Gen. 4:26 is one of worship from people that could call upon HIM. I dont think these men were praying for Salvation. Let us now see what Salvation truly is from the same BOOK that condemns these 7 "works" listed above. Acts 16:30 the BIBLE says "and brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" They did not tell the man do this or that or even to pray. Salvation is a PERSON. Not a Baptism, communion, confirmation, catechism, sinners prayer or decisionism. SALVATION is CHRIST JESUS. They answered him in verse 31. It says "And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved,...." John 6:37 says "All that the Father giveth me shall come to me: and he that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out." You do not come then are given to HIM you are given then you will come. Man has not taken GOD out of the BIBLE. They have went above the throne of GOD with the Divinity of Man. You will see the same thing in Isaiah 14 with Lucifer saying the same thing. What the propogaters of Man's Divinity do not realize is that their end result will be the same as Lucifer's. Cast out to an eventual prepared place. Is your Salvation in A Person? True Salvation is the Person of the LORD Jesus Christ. Is your way HIS Way? Hebrew5:9 says "And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him." Do you Believe in JUST HIM and not something you have done?

I hope that nobody has addictions to half truths. My addictions are GOD, Church (not being selfrighteous though in saying these )Reading, Movies, and my Kids. Oh.........and DR. Pepper. I have a prescription , dont worry!

Very Good Shiloh!! Excellent!!

Any group of People can call themselves A "Church". I am not talking about the Body of Christ. I am refering to local assemblies. Anyone group can say that they have a relationship with GOD and therefore the question is how does GOD Himself recognize a True , genuine Church? Not how man recognizes a local group.

There have been many "discussions" as to who these people are and we usually restrict it to a certain group of People only but can it be anyone?

Just making an observation about churches in general. DID not say I wasnt getting fed. Not even part of the topic really. There are good Churches and the one I attend is one of them. I notice trends is what I am saying. Standards are changing. I have seen it in Texas, Missouri, Mississippi, Arkansas, WV, Virginia, Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, Tennessee, North Carolina and have heard about it all over the World from Missionairies on every continent. The Bread, meat and milk is in abundance at the Church I attend though. This is a discussion forum and I am discussing things that I see that is affecting the Church world.

While I havent been on here that long I believe that the discussions are good with just one Fundamental problem. Perhaps as a whole people have not changed their stand on issues because everyone seems to have a different "rulebook." If I was watching a basketball game and a ref calls a foul according to his book and then another ref comes up and says not according to mine it wasnt. Then another , then another and so forth and so on. Soon nobody will get anywhere and the "game" will stop. Nobody will be convinced because their rulebook can be , and has been made to say something different.

15 Years ago GOD saved my soul and I would not have dreamed that the things that are in churches now would be there. The problem is that we have allowed worldly things creep into our own lives and they have gained a foothold inside the churches thereby. It seems that people talk more about music, sports, tv and whatever more than they talk about GOD and HIS Righteousness. " Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh?" This is not a local problem but rather an epidemic that I have seen in Churches all over the U.S.A.

Two questions. To the first... YOU SAID: "Has GOD or is GOD failing to save the whole world?" RESPONSE: No, God is not failing to save the whole world. It is not His intent to save everyone. If it was then everyone would be saved. So, the conclusion of the matter is that God is not intending to save everyone. That would have to be the conclusion if we know that everyone is not saved, but some are. The question then becomes "Why?" Answer: In order to glorify Himself in His grace and in the mercy of God. Your second question... YOU SAID: "Or did He die for a specific People?" RESPONSE: Jesus died for a specific people. John 17:9-10..."I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine. 10 And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them." Jesus as High Priest does two things...He offers sacrifice and intercedes for the people. About to offer Himself for HIS PEOPLE as a sacrifice for their sin (Mark 10:45; Matt. 1:21), Jesus now intercedes for HIS PEOPLE and asks God the Father to "keep those He had given Him" (John 17:11). Now here is something for you to think about... Jesus Himself declares in... John 3:19-20..."And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved." As you can see Jesus is saying that He (the Light) comes into the world, but men love darkness RATHER THAN THE LIGHT because their deeds are evil. Jesus said a man cannot have two masters for he would love one and HATE the other. Everyone is born into sin. They love darkness NEITHER COME TO THE LIGHT (Jesus)! So if Jesus says that men love darkness and NEITHER COME TO THE LIGHT, then what is this message about that the Church proclaims to the world to "accept Jesus into your heart and you will be saved?" How can one do this if the NEITHER COMETH TO THE LIGHT? They CANNOT come to the Light (Jesus) and it is not an issue of will, but of ability. They CANNOT come because they love darkness RATHER THAN HIM (the Light)! It is so very clear. Therefore, God must make a move toward man because man cannot make a move toward God. The Scripture is very clear on this... Romans 8:7..."Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be." The mind of the unsaved is an enemy of God. It is not subject to the law of God NEITHER INDEED CAN BE! It cannot subject itself to God's law. It is hostile to God. So why does the Church proclaim a false gospel to "Accept Jesus into your heart"? Man cannot do this. He is unable. He cannot with his old mind "come to Jesus" and then God gives him a new mind (Jeremiah 31:33). It is God that justifies. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us (Rom. 8:34). Yes! He makes intercession for us! We cannot make intercession for ourselves! Scripture is clear again... John 2:23-25..."Now when he (Jesus) was in Jerusalem at the passover, in the feast day, many believed in his name, when they saw the miracles which he did. 24 But Jesus did not commit himself unto them, because he knew all men, 25 And needed not that any should testify of man: for he knew what was in man. " One of those who saw Jesus and believed in His Name was Nicodemus. He later came to Jesus by night... John 3:1-2..." There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: 2 The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him." Nicodemus saw those miracles and signs and he was one who "believed in His Name." But belief is NOT ENOUGH! Jesus clearly says... John 3:3..."Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." Believe is NOT ENOUGH! You must be BORN AGAIN! (regenerated)! And God is the one that GIVES THIS BIRTH! John 1:13..."Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God." You did not have any control over your physical birth. And you surely do not have any control over your spiritual birth. It is GOD THAT BIRTHS a new believer! I have said enough. The gospel is not "you must be born again, but the gospel is... a promise fulfilled! Thank You For your reply!! You believe the Bible and that is very refreshing today. I believe the very same way and even more so. Wow . Very GOOD!

I believe that CHRIST's Blood was and is sufficient to save the entire world if GOD so chose. It did indeed wash away sin. I believe that CHRIST knows who His Bride is and we should therefore GLORIFY Him for dying for the CHurch as the Bible says. Thank you LORD for choosing me when I couldnt choose you. 1 John 4:10"Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins." 1 John 4:19 " We love him, because he first loved us." Acts 20:28b ".....the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood." GOD cannot, has not, nor will HE ever fail. Those HE draws to Himself will come to HIM.

"GOS" was obviously a Typo. I didnt prieview before I posted. Sorry guys!

Has even the differences among and within the denominations hurt not only the Gospel but the fellowship of the Saints? I am looking for some honest opinions on this matter as it affects not only the Church in the world's eyes but the Great Commission I believe as well. I do not personally care if they come to our church to hear the GOSPEL just as long as they go somewhere. But we care more about numbers it seems more than we care about souls. The Bible says in 1 John that "if we walk in the light as He is in the light we have fellowship one with another"

Has GOD or is GOD failing to save the whole world? Or did He die for a specific People?