What is Christianity?

Christianity centers in the glorious Person of Christ! The aim and purpose of every Scripture truth is to fix the eye on Christ Himself! 

He is the Alpha and Omega of Christianity. From Him proceeds every ray of spiritual light. To Him all believing hearts are drawn. The Christian finds consolation and strength only in Him. Every motive for Christian living is from Him. The glorious privileges which Christians possess, can only be enjoyed from union and communion with Him. Their highest standard of duty is to follow His footsteps, and to walk even as He walked. 

Christianity, in fact, is Christ! It is Christ in the Scriptures, Christ in the Manger, Christ on the Cross, Christ, the Risen One, Christ, the Ascended One, Christ, the Prophet, the Priest, the King, Christ in His Glorious appearing, to be revealed from Heaven with His mighty angels! All our trust, all our love, all our obedience, is due to Him! The more the eye and the heart is turned fully towards Him the more true and genuine is our Christianity. 

[George Everard] 

Colossians 3:11 .. Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but Christ is all, and in all. 

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Your Pastor ~

Q: How much authority does your pastor have over you? 

 A: None. 

Christ did not appoint little Popes over the church, he established servants. 

[Christopher Gregory]

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Psalm 34:22 ... The Lord redeemeth the soul of his servants: and none of them that trust in him shall be desolate.

John 12:16 ... If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my Father honour.

Galatians 5:13 ... For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.  ❤

"God Hates"

What is God's attitude toward unregenerate man?  It has been said that God hates sin, but He loves the sinner. Is this true? 

Let us hear the voice of inspiration: 

"You hate all workers of iniquity The Lord abhors murderers and deceitful men!" Psalm 5:5, 6 

Does that express an attitude of love on God's part? 

Again, we read, "The LORD examines the righteous, but the wicked and those who love violence, His soul hates. On the wicked He will rain fiery coals and burning sulfur; a scorching wind will be their lot!" Psalm 11:5-6 

"Because they did all these things, I abhorred them!" Leviticus 20:23 

"I will destroy your high places, cut down your incense altars and pile your dead bodies on the lifeless forms of your idols, and I will abhor you." Leviticus 26:30 

"And when the LORD saw it, He abhorred them!" Deuteronomy 32:19 

We read further, "God is angry with the wicked every day!" Psalm 7:11 

"The LORD detests all the proud of heart. Be sure of this: They will not go unpunished!" Proverbs 16:5 

God is not so meek and indulgent that nothing will arouse His indignation. He hates all that is sinful. He could not love righteousness, without hating iniquity. He could not love the righteous, without hating the wicked. To love both, would be to abolish all moral distinctions. Of the impenitent sinner it is said, "The wrath of God abides on him!" (John 3:36) 

It is only sin that renders him hateful, but man is responsible for his state of sinfulness and chooses evil; therefore, to deal with the sin, God must deal with the man. Not only does God hate man's sin, every sinful word, thought, and deed--but He also hates every evil desire. The natural man loves evil. That love of evil, which is a part of his nature God abhors! All desire that runs out after impurity or for that which is unholy merits and excites God's indignation and abhorrence. 

Every evil ambition that arises in his soul, repels God. Every evil disposition, every evil feeling, hatred, envy, malice, revenge, selfishness, pride, jealousy, deceit, hypocrisy, and all the long catalog of evil things, of which man's heart is the source are obnoxious to God. All tendency to oppose the will of God, all rebellion at His providences can only excite hatred in God. God can love only what is pure and holy. All else He hates and must hate with all the strength of His righteous character! 

 [Charles Naylor]

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The Christian and War

Q: 

Must a Christian Take an Active Part in War When Called Upon? 

 A: 

1. Affirmative: Through the influence of sin war is, under certain circumstances, a necessity. The sword was entrusted to the government and must be wielded by it in defense of justice. War is not always forbidden, but in several instances commanded in the Bible. The Christian is a citizen of the State, enjoying the privileges of citizenship and therefore also obliged to shoulder its duties. When the call to arms comes, he is in duty bound to obey the government. If he did not, he would be a traitor to his country. If a Christian refuses to take part in a war that is waged in the interest of justice, he not only helps the enemies of his country, but, in fact, upholds injustice while he should minister to righteousness. 　 

 2. Negative: The Bible commands love and forbids hatred, and especially murder. Now war is simply wholesale murder, in which Christians are compelled to slay their own brethren. The Church of Jesus Christ is the great agency of God to promote peace on earth. She must reflect in her own life and in all her activities the peace that she enjoys in virtue of the saving work of the Prince of Peace. A Christian is in duty bound to obey the government only as long as its demands do not go contrary to the Word of God. If these do conflict with the clear precepts of the Bible, he must refuse obedience, must obey God rather than man. 

[Louis Berkhof]

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"Gravity"

Q: How do you explain gravity?

A: Gravity is a perfect example of mankind's scientific limitations.  But with God, there are no limits.  It is The Lord that holds everything perfectly together.

Colossians 1:17 ...  And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.

Hebrews 1:3 ... Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high:

Spiritual Blindness

 Q: How do you know if you've gone spiritually blind?

A: When you see nothing wrong with what God calls sin.

2 Corinthians 4:4 ... In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

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"The Lord is One"

Q: Do you Christian's worship three Gods, or just one? I've heard about God the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit, but doesn't that mean you believe in three Gods? I've always wondered about this.

 A: No, Christians don’t worship three Gods; there is only one God, and He alone is the One we worship and serve. When Jesus was asked which of the commandments was most important, He replied, “Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one” (Mark 12:29). 

The Bible does tell us, however, that God has shown Himself to us in three distinct ways. First, He has shown us that He is our Father. Like our earthly fathers (but in a far greater way), He brought us into being, and He loves us and protects us and takes care of us. The Bible says, “As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him” (Psalm 103:13). But God also has shown Himself to us in the person of Jesus Christ, who was God in human flesh and came to earth for a distinct reason: to make it possible for us to be with Him in heaven forever. Our sins separate us from God but by His death on the cross, Jesus Christ became the complete sacrifice for our sins. 

God also comes to us in a third way by His Holy Spirit, who lives within us when we put our faith and trust in Christ. Just as a clover has three leaves and yet is still one clover, so God has three “personalities” and yet is still one God. And through each of these God shows His love for us. May you respond to His love by giving your life to Him, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. 

[Billy Graham]

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Bad Things

Q: When bad things happen in our world it’s always man’s instinct to ask why God either allowed it, or where was God at in the first place? 

 A: #1: To suggest that God permitted acts of evil that happen, like children being murdered in a classroom, is to associate God with the act itself. God is not an accomplice to acts of violence, if that were the case, God is no different than Satan. But God is love, and he does no harm to children. 

# 2: The world is corrupted by sin because of original sin. Every act of evil is by design an instrument of Satan. For Gods own purpose and reasoning he has allowed this sin nature to occur. 

 # 3: There is no protection for those who come from parents who are not believers and followers of Christ. This is the only covering that a child has whose parents are in the faith. We have the assurance because of Christ and the finished work of the cross, parents can pray over their children and God hears that prayer because of the covenant those parents have believed in, which is Christ by faith. This is why it’s important for parents who are followers of Christ to pray over their children. 

Yes, some events are beyond our human understanding, but we know that God protects his own children, even in situations which are a result of great evil. God is in the midst. That’s his promise. So don’t blame God when bad things happen. Blame sin. 

[Christopher Gregory]

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1 John 2:16 ... For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

James 1:14-15 ... But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.  Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.

Romans 5:12 ...  Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:

1 John 3:8 ... He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.❤

Religious Tolerance.

What is separation of Church and State?

The different colonies in Massachusetts and later also in Connecticut formed in reality a theocratic state. They restricted the right of voting to church members, so that nearly three-fourths of the people were excluded from the rights of free men. This naturally implied also that church members only were eligible to office. 

Taxes were levied for the support of the Gospel, and attendance on public worship was enforced by law. The laws of Moses were provisionally adopted as their civil code. Though the government was democratic, there was as yet no separation of church and state, nor religious toleration. 

While the colonies of the New England Puritans formed a theocracy, Roger Williams declared that a church merged with a state was impossible and demanded a complete separation of the two. He maintained that the civil magistrate has no right to interfere in church affairs, not even to stop a church from apostasy and heresy, and that his power extends only to the bodies, the goods and the outward estate of men. 

He claimed equal rights for believers and unbelievers in the state and opposed the citizen's oath that was required by the magistrate. All these things were subversive of the theocracy. Roger Williams was in advance of his own time. His theory of the separation of Church and State was in the main correct and is justified by history. 

The colonists denied him the right which they claimed for themselves, namely, the right to serve God according to the dictates of his own conscience. Williams stood for the fullest religious toleration.

[Louis Berkof]

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The Blood.

I had this question posed to me recently that I thought I would share, as well as my answer. "Why is there so much sickness, disease, and violence today?" 

The reason is simple, it is a direct result of two things, the result of Satan being allowed to rule over the earth, its kingdoms, and the nations. The second is a direct result of original sin. Man was born into sin due to the actions (sin/rebellion) of Adam, we have inherited this same spiritual sickness. This is why we battle sickness and disease, poverty, violence, hatred against another, perversion, and abuse. It is a result of our fallen nature as human beings. 

The solution? The cross. Christ resolved this debt so that we can live without condemnation. His atonement paid the debt of sin and suffering. What can wash away our sins? Nothing but the blood of Jesus. 

[Christopher Gregory]

1 John 1:7 ... But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.

John 16:33 ... These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

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