It's a Fact

[Leonard]

Tell me. If a saved person studies every day, breaks bread in different homes with other Christian during the week, have bible studies with people during the week, follows the leading of the Holy Spirit in all that they do, but does not find a church that agrees with their beliefs ... are they going to wither and die away as you all put it?

If the only exposure to God one gets is on a Sunday morning, then they live in the world the rest of the week, they will fall away in time.

I don't go to church every Sunday and do not belong to any one church. There is more to following God then meeting in a building one day of the week.

Love In Christ,

OneLight

I think that person may still lack in their spiritual life, but will probably be OK, for they would be part of a SERIOUS fellowship of believers who worship the Lord. Most people don't do that UNLESS they 'go to church.'

[Treasure]

I see your point but the beer thing pretty much excludes me. I also would not consider my church or my views on church (as in the Body of Christ) to be materialistic. So much of the church has become just that but my belief is that we know so much about them more because they're so sensationalized by a liberal press rather than there are no good churches around. The world will always attempt to take attention from the truth.

Well to each his own. I love beer.

The Body of Christ isn't seen today in America. It is an idea that eludes most churches. We argue so much among oursleves. Which denomination is right, which is not, which doctrine is correct, which is not, what the bible says to you, what it says to me. There are so many contradictions within 'The body of Christ' that we arent a body. We're a stained glass window. A fragile one at that. Yet we're too afraid to admit our weakness, or do anything about it.

Liberal press has nothing to do with it.

So it's up to you to decide what is or isn't authentic.

Not all churches agree, not all doctrines are the same but God is true.

Yes, I might contradict myself but I'm not God either. He is always faithful and the beauty of that is that He is faithful and just when His body isn't.

Yes, we have weakness within the Body of Christ, yes we are fragile in many areas but one thing remains true above all and that's the Word of God. It, nor He changes.

[OneLight]

I think that person may still lack in their spiritual life, but will probably be OK, for they would be part of a SERIOUS fellowship of believers who worship the Lord. Most people don't do that UNLESS they 'go to church.'

Hmmmmm ... serious fellowship. Maybe true where you are from, but we have a whole lot of bench warmers in the NE. It is a fact that in the NE God is not welcomed as warmly then in the rest of the US. At the same time, He is not rebuked as in San Francisco either. It almost like being in a spiritual refrigerator. You never hear God Bless at an end of a conversation or Praise The Lord when something happens. Here, it's more truckers talk. There are some in each church that have an open walk with the Lord and do talk about Him in public, but that is just as rare as finding a needle in a haystack. I tried explaining this to other people on another Christian site, but I guess you have to live here to know what I am talking about. They, like some, feel that because I do not go to one particular church every Sunday, but hop from on the another, that I am not a real Christian. This is why I left that site, for to them, my words became dull to their ears.

I do have people who I can talk to that love the Lord, but they are not a real friend. In other words, they never invite me to anything outside of church and never accept an offer I extend to them. I'm not saying that I'm a lone leaf on a tree. I do go to a church that spends two and a half hours in worship and about a half hour in the word. Not too much meat there, but they do love to worship the Lord. Then there is another church where it is usually pretty full ... about 50 people ... that never raise their hands in worship or even say Praise The Lord. If you clap during a song people give you the eye. Even through they are there, they seem emotionless. I asked the pastor about why the church is like that and he explained that some people are just that way. Then you have another church that thinks that they are a school for Prophets. Don't think I have to explain this one. We have the usual Baptist, Congregational, Lutheran, and Episcopal churches, but I do not feel like I belong there.

In an nutshell, I can say it is me because I do feel like a round peg trying to fit in a square hole. As I mentioned, the one church that I like stays in song so long that they never really get to the Word. How can one be fed then?

This is why I depend wholly on the Holy Spirit to teach me and guide me. I follow the direction of the Spirit as much as I can, but being human, I do miss His directions at times. But you are 100% correct when you imply that we can not live without fellowship. I feel so lonely for a Christian friend, not a Christian acquaintance, some times that I do cry out to God to place me where He wants me so I can become friends with other Brothers and Sisters in Christ. Since I have returned to Christ, I have spent more time without anyone that I can have a conversation about God with, then I like to admit. In fact, the only Christian friend I do have is my own son, and he just became a Christian a couple of months ago.

This all might sound like some sad song titled Feel Sorry For Me, but it is not. I know that God will do with me as He pleases, and there has to be a reason why I am where I am. I have to look for the reason and understand. Maybe it is that I need to really know what it is NOT to be around a lot of "real" Christians before I can enjoy their company? But until then, I will continue in God as I have and not feel guilty that I have not found a "home" as some put it.

I hope you can understand more as to why I question the saying that one will wither and die if they don't go to church on Sunday. If that was the case, then I would be spiritually dead.

Love In Christ,

Your Brother,

OneLight

Edited to add:

I want to apologize, Brother Leonard, in the open, without deleting anything that I had posted, for I read your statement wrong. It wasn't until I did post, and re-read my post, that I realized that your statement was not saying that one would not have serious fellowship. Sorry Brother for my misunderstanding.

Alan

[Scarletprayers]

OneLight, Brother

[MeCajunboy]

I've seen it a hundred times exactly as described above. And yet there's ALWAYS some chowder-head peeping: "You don't have to go to church to be a Christian.......You don't have to go to church to be a Christian....You don't have to........"

Yep same here right along with the the chowder-head next to them that think all they have to is go to church on Sunday and gossip with the other people there and that's all that's required of them to be a christian and get in heaven.

I agree with both of you....................just going to "church" isn't going to get you into heaven either.

I dont think heaven should be a motivation for anything.

I think I know what your next response will be thoughtful, but I'll bite. What should be a motivation excluding Heaven? Of course, we all know that the inevitable response would be , "to be nearer to God and experience total love for all." But ...................your response please?????? The wait is killing us all!!!!!