sects/cults

[amor]

Unitarians,  Jesus was just another prophet.

univeralism,  believe that we all go to heaven and that satan does not get even one soul, and if this was the case then we would not need to have Jesus as our Savior, cause satan would not get any anyways.

as was mentioned in an earlier post,  Cults are different then Sects,  some of those on the list fall under sects others fall under cults.

if you want to check on the Quaker church, take the doctrine and line it up with the Bible.

do Quakers believe in Jesus, being the true Son of God, come to earth as a man, Crusified, and reserrected?

do they believe in Heaven and hell?

do they believe that the only way to the Father is thru the Son?

do they believe that everyone is born into sin, and has to accept the Free gift from God of forgiveness?

do they believe that salvation is a gift of grace, not of works?

or do they ( as some do ) place a man as the ultimate authority?

do they believe in the Trinity?

do they believe in Baptism as an outward sign of an inward condition?

this and other questions I do not know. 

mike

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Something here on Quakerism. I'm sure you will not agree much of it, probably making me a heretic in your eyes. But equally it is clearly not a cult. A sect if you like but then so are the Anglicans, the Southern Baptist , the Lutherans, the Roman Catholics, the Copts, the various reformed Reformed Churches and the aforementioned Universalists and Unitarians.

[Gerioke]

Being in a community where pagan rituals are commonplace, I'm glad I know a bit about occultism so that I know to pray against the curses that have been spoken over our community. If we weren't meant to know of these things then they wouldn't be in the scriptures. Spiritual warfare is a very real thing and any good commander knows that you need to know who your enemy is in order to defeat them. If you can't recognise people of questionable spiritual ties, how would you know if they are in your house, or teaching your children or preparing your food?

Our community has taken over the baptist church here and they prefer to have no pastor. Hmmmm. I wonder why that is? Now you can fellowship there , no matter what you believe and I know for a fact that there are people there who do not love God. If we don't know about their religious affiliations we could just go on thinking what a great little church that is. Meanwhile satan's just lapping it up growing strong on our ignorance. We are to be wise, not ignorant.

Mind you, ignorance is bliss

[Scarletprayers]

We are not to "judge" hypocritically, we are supposed to know sound doctrine and use it for reproof and correction. To be able to correct someone you have to judge that what they are saying or doing is incorrect.

The people that I've spoken with who also use the "thou shalt not judge" line anytime you are trying to talk to them, are usually the ones that then follow up with the God wont send anyone to hell theory.

I don't agree with everything I read on this site, but some of the time thats because of my own internal beliefs. My own beliefs that are not supported biblically are wrong, it doesn't matter how intensely I believe them. The bible is to be taken as a whole, not piece meal, using parts we like and denying the rest.

Jesus himself said it will be hard to get into heaven, its a narrow gate and only a few will find it, then all of us should search the scriptures diligently to make sure we are on the right path. And if we love the way Jesus tells us to, we search to also take other people with us.

Your sister in Christ

Kahlan

[his-servant-too]

Cults or sects are religious movements, churches, or other organizations that have all of some of the following characteristics:

1.

Cults and sects usually claim to be biblically based, Christian organizations. For example, the Church of LDS maintains that it is a Christian church centered on Christ and his teachings. The Christian Science church also often refers to itself as a Christian movement.

2.

All cults deny or redefine any or all-essential Christian doctrines. Jehovah's witnesses, for instance, absolutely deny the deity of Jesus Christ. The LDS redefines the Trinity.

3.

Sects may adhere officially to essential Christian teachings while exhibiting other of these characteristics. The International church of Christ, for example, adheres to traditional views about God and Christ, but members regard their movement as the only one proclaiming the true message of salvation today.

4.

Cults and sects usually claim to be led by divinely inspired leaders. They usually believe their leaders are capable of receiving direct revelation from God or have a special, inspired understanding of the Bible. One example is Rev. Sun Myung Moon, founder and leader of the unification church. His followers regard him as Lord of the second advent. A position equal to that of Christ. The LDS believes its president is a living prophet, seer and revelator, who can receive direct revelation from God.

5.

Cults and sects usually claim to possess a new and inspired written scripture that supplements or supersedes the authority of the Bible. Christian Science teaches that Mary Baker Eddy

[his-servant-too]

Being in a community where pagan rituals are commonplace, I'm glad I know a bit about occultism so that I know to pray against the curses that have been spoken over our community. If we weren't meant to know of these things then they wouldn't be in the scriptures. Spiritual warfare is a very real thing and any good commander knows that you need to know who your enemy is in order to defeat them. If you can't recognise people of questionable spiritual ties, how would you know if they are in your house, or teaching your children or preparing your food?

Our community has taken over the baptist church here and they prefer to have no pastor. Hmmmm. I wonder why that is? Now you can fellowship there , no matter what you believe and I know for a fact that there are people there who do not love God. If we don't know about their religious affiliations we could just go on thinking what a great little church that is. Meanwhile satan's just lapping it up growing strong on our ignorance. We are to be wise, not ignorant.

Mind you, ignorance is bliss

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I'm glad I know a bit about occultism so that I know to pray against the curses that have been spoken over our community.

If you as a Christian don't believe in magic or the existence of the pagan gods then why are you worried about a curse? And if you know so much about the pagan community then I

[Gerioke]

If you as a Christian don't believe in magic or the existence of the pagan gods then why are you worried about a curse? And if you know so much about the pagan community then I

[Ovedya]

"And the works of the flesh are manifest, which are such things as...factions, divisions, sects" (Gal. 5:19-20)

According to this verse factions, divisions and sects (Also translated "strife, seditions, heresies") are the manifestations of the flesh, and are verses the fruit of the Spirit (v. 22).

According to the context of this verse, factions, divisions and sects compose one group, because they are related to parties. A faction is a division which seeks political power or influence. A division is according to differences of opinion - a dissention from the concensus (Which is in opposition to Paul's word in 1 Cor. 1:10-13). Finally, a sect is a division based upon a differing school of thought (See Darby's). The same word is used in 1 Pet. 2:1: "...destructive heresies..."

When we talk about "cults" I think that it is pertinent to observe a little bit of history. In Christian era, all sub-dominant religions were called "cults" by the Romans (The word is of Latin derivation). In other words, Judaism was the dominant religion of the Jews, but Christianity was considered a "cult" of the Jews because it came from Judaism. But the Romans really didn't make a big deal about cults because at their peak of political power there were perhaps a few dozen cults running around.

However, the term has since not been used very much or even bothered with until the last 40 years or so in America. In fact, it wasn't until the late 60s to early 70s that the term "cult" really had a resurfacing in America. And it was during this time that the counter-cult movement in Evangelical Christianity attached the current stigma to the word. Historically the word was attached to any group that wasn't Christian or worse, that was blatantly Satanic. But the counter-cult movement of the late 60s up to today attaches the word to certain Christian groups. And this word can be much more damaging than simply calling a certain group heretical or factitious, because of the negative connotations.

Now, having written all of that, I believe that it is more correct to refer to the Jehovah's Witnesses, the LDS, etc. as factitious sects, and their doctrines heresies, rather than calling them cults. And it is more appropriate to refer to a the New Age movement, Dianetics, Eastern Mysticism in its various forms (Including Ba'hai), and the like as cults.

[bukeye2745]

Mike said:

am not judging any person, judging the gospel that is not lining up with the Word of God that is being spread.

To me, by telling someone they belong to a cult you are judging them and you don't know that person's heart.

what does James say about accepting those sharing a gosple other then that of Jesus?

depends on the version being read from, but it says that we are not to bid them God Speed,

putting it plainly, we are not to accept them into our house, if they are spreading any other gosple, and we are not to bless them on their way if they are taking with them a gosple other then that of Jesus Christ.....

I agree

not judging the people, just judging the gosple in which they are trying to tell us we are to accept, and it does not line up with the Word of God.....

Well, I don't agree with some of the catholic doctrine or baptist or jews so should I label all of them a cult?

the only way that we will know if it lines up with the Word of God is if we are ground in the Word of God..... we have to know the Word of God in our hearts, not just in our little pea pickin brains, but in our hearts, and to know it in our hearts we have to have the Spirit of the Lord in our hearts.....

I have Yahweh in my heart. How could you possibly know I don't? That is my point

many people hear something that sounds good and they jump on it and try to follow it with out checking it out with the Word of God.... they take another mans word for it rather then verify it for them selves.....

I agree with what makes sense and I verify it every time I read scripture

if we go to studying other sects, or studying cults, then we will confuse our hearts and will be more confused as to what is really the Word of God.

I have no need to study another group that is not of God, to know they are not of God.....

I don't recall you saying anything about studying these people, I just remember a bunch of labeling. I'll have to go back and read your first post again.

as for a sad thread, maybe it is, but this is a sad world we live in. should we really have to have a thread as this? no, but then the world should not be where it is to day either.....

It is a sad world but I just don't think it was necessary. All it does is cause animosity. Agreed?

when man worships man over God, and allows one man to have complete authority over their lives, when people look to common spirits for answers, when people look to the stars for answers, when people look to anyone other then God for their answers, then it is a sad world.

I agree but my number one worry is everlasting life. We can't save the world and trust me, the world won't save themselves.

Blessings,

Jen

[Ovedya]

Saints,

I sincerely doubt that Mike's goal in posting this was to get into an argument. That being said, I do believe that it is profitable to carry on a discussion on the merits of using the term "cult" in reference to certain groups, or not. My apologies, brother Mike, if I've "stirred the pot" a little too much. I only wanted to voice my sometimes narrow, often stubborn, opinion.

[Gerioke]

If you as a Christian don't believe in magic or the existence of the pagan gods then why are you worried about a curse? And if you know so much about the pagan community then I