Posts Tagged ‘church’
The Work of the Church
Text: Psalm 104 I. The world is evidence of the ability of God to design perfect systems – Psalms 19:1 A. Everywhere we turn the wisdom of God is manifested – Psalm 104:24 B. This same masterful designer displayed His great wisdom in the design of the church – Ephesians 3:8-11 C. Just as man is not able…
Read MoreYour home page took me aback
Question: I don’t remember the circumstances why I stumbled upon your web page. Upon reading the focus statement on your home page, I decided I would pass something by you for your consumption. It is rather refreshing for a congregation to unabashedly profess that the true nature of Christ’s Body and its purpose is to evangelize.…
Read MoreWhere does it say that only members of the church of Christ will go to heaven?
Question: Does it say anywhere in the Bible that only the church of Christ will go to heaven? That is, only people who go to the church of Christ? What about the other churches, such as the Church of God, or a none denominational church, or the baptist? The reason I ask is that I…
Read MoreJesus only followed Judaism because he was born in it. Doesn’t Jesus want his followers to remain in whatever religion they were born into?
Question: Jesus was born a Jew and he followed the rites of the Jewish community. Had he been born in a Brahmin family he would have worn a sacred thread and follow all their rites to the letter and spirit. He would also have reprimanded their priests for hypocrisy. He had not started a new…
Read MoreHow do you fund your church?
Question: I checked on your web site for anything new and read about your Church on its Home Page. The business model is very good. As you know, I have a nonprofit as well. I had this fantasy that I could create a worldwide organization that I could call on when someone or an organization…
Read MoreIf there are no sound churches in my area, should I worship with a liberal one?
Question: I am disabled and would like to attend an anti-church but there are none nearby and I was wondering if it would be okay to take communion at a liberal church instead of missing communion with the Lord? Answer: All Christians are required to partake of the communion and to attend services. Most of…
Read MoreAre you a part of the “Church of Christ” denomination?
Question: I just found your site on the web. Very interesting information you have compiled. I am curious, are you, in fact, affiliated with what we know as the denomination Church of Christ? Or is it that you just align yourself with the Christ? Answer: As far as I know, there is no denomination using…
Read MoreWhat was the church used for in the 14th century besides religious activities?
Question: In the 14th century in Europe, apart from religious activities what did the public and nobles use the church for? Answer: My first inclination was to dismiss the question since it wasn’t biblically based, but I realized there is a small point that should be made. The question, from a biblical viewpoint, is inaccurate…
Read MoreDo the elders and preachers constitute the church in decisions?
Question: I have been a member of the church of Christ for some time now. My family and I moved to another congregation to help out because they were very small. My wife and I began to have difficulties in our marriage. She decided to take our problems to the elders and the preacher of…
Read MoreIs there no salvation outside the church?
Question: Is there no salvation outside the church? Will those who never heard of Jesus and his gospel be damned because they have not obeyed it? Will people with brain defects like Downs Syndrome be damned because they do not obey the gospel being incapable of doing so? Answer: “Let it be known to you…
Read MoreIf I am just not able to get out, can I worship at home?
Question: I have a very serious question. In some of your answers to others, you have pointed out that to have a worship service alone on Sunday at home is not really what is acceptable, except for when we choose to worship God by ourselves at other times during the week. This is according to…
Read MoreWhat should a new congregation be called?
Question: I am starting a small church in my home. I have attended the Church of Christ here most of my life and preached there as well. I greatly value your site. I am starting this church because the two churches of Christ here have a nasty reputation around town. They make the church of…
Read MoreSin in the Church: A Study of I Corinthians 6:9-10
by Jeffrey W. Hamilton The church at Corinth had many problems in living the Christian life. Their problems did not come from a rebellious attitude toward God. Most of their problems came from a misunderstanding of God’s law. In I Corinthians 5:1-8, Paul takes the Corinthians to task for accepting an immoral person as a…
Read MoreShould families with small children sit in the back pews?
Question: Recently a congregation I am familiar with had an article concerning those who have small children. The preacher stated in the article that it would be best if those that have small children sit on the back pews due to children sometimes being noisy and having to be removed from the auditorium. In fact,…
Read MoreAre Gentiles also descendants of Abraham?
Question: If we Gentiles are also descendants of Abraham, then from whose mother: Hagar, Sarah or Keturah? Is it from Keturah to whom she bore Abraham six legitimate sons after Abraham married her after Sarah died? Am I correct to say that Muslims are descendants of Ishmael who later intermarry with the descendants of Esau,…
Read MoreWhy are so many churches of Christ so small?
Question: Why are so many churches of Christ so small? Why do so many of them seem to have so few young people? Why do so many of them have so many problems? Why are there so many churches? (denominations) Answer: What immediately strikes me is the focus of these questions. They are all internal:…
Read MoreIs the church or Israel the bride of Christ?
Question: Is the church or Israel the bride of Christ? Answer: In the Old Testament, Israel was depicted as God’s bride in several prophecies. But she was declared to be a faithless wife. God declared that He was a husband to Israel (Jeremiah 31:32), but Israel broke the marriage covenant. She became a spiritual adulteress.…
Read MoreIntroducing Ourselves: We Are a Church of Christ
by Jeffrey W. Hamilton based on several similar works by other authors Who we are We are a church of Christ in the most biblical way possible. Being Christians individually, together we are a church. We are baptized believers, raised to walk in “newness of life” (Romans 6:3-4) through faith in God’s work of salvation…
Read MoreInterpretation Versus Belief
by Phillip Owens via The Elgin Hills Examiner, Vol. 1, No. 5, May, 2006. “Interpreters” explain or give the meaning of words from one language to another language. No one would knowingly say of a competent interpreter, “Well, that’s just his interpretation,” meaning that his translation is only an opinion, has no solid basis to…
Read MoreFigurative Speech: “The Kingdom Is Like …”
by Robert Turner Plain Talk, vol. 13, no. 10, pp. 4-5–December 1976 Is the church (God’s people) the “body of Christ” (Ephesians 1:23); or is it like (in some respects) a “body,” and since He is “head over” these people, therefore like the body of Christ? Are we literally His hands, feet, etc? Or are we figuratively…
Read MoreDoes a Congregation have Authority for a Midweek Service?
by Wayne S. Walker While I do not think that I have ever actually known anyone who has taught this, I have heard that there have been brethren who argued that a local congregation is authorized to assemble only on the first day of the week and therefore it is unscriptural to have a midweek…
Read MoreAre you a 501C church?
Question: I ran across your site after my daughter asked me where can she find a clear and concise list of God’s statutes. I pondered that for a while and happened upon your explanation. It’s perfect. Thank you. As is stated in Isaiah, “For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line…
Read MoreWhat do you think about the use of crosses in a building?
Question: I visited at a church of Christ nearby and was thinking about attending there on a permanent basis but I noticed they had a cross painted on a sign in front of the building and a clock in the shape of a cross with a picture of Jesus in the center on the wall.…
Read MoreIs the Church of Christ a Cult?
by David Diestelkamp via The Sower, Vol. 51, No. 4, July/August 2006 One man jokingly wrote that a cult was any group he didn’t like. He was pointing out the tendency to use prejudicial or inflammatory language to describe those with whom we disagree. People sometimes throw the word cult around out of fear of…
Read MoreCongregational Independence (Dark)
by Harris J. Dark via The Preceptor, Vol. 1, No. 2, Dec. 1951. via The Preceptor, Vol. 1, No. 3, Jan. 1952. (Note: The following was electrically recorded when delivered as a sermon by the author at the Chapel Avenue Church of Christ in Nashville, Tennessee in the spring of 1950 and is reproduced here…
Read MoreHow do you get other members to participate?
Question: I am sure it is not unusual for a couple of the members to be doing a lot of the work within the church while others are just sitting around. What can be done to encourage other members to be more involved and participate? The work never ceases and the rewards are enormous. Answer:…
Read MoreIs “body of Christ” more proper than “church of Christ”?
Question: I was recently given some materials about using “church” in the name “Church of Christ”. Apparently, this information came from another congregation, whose minister has been known to be very determined to prove a point or very legalistic. The congregation is also the “Church of Christ”. The question is using “church” instead of “body…
Read MoreWhen should I leave a church?
Question: I am looking for guidance on where I should worship in general and more specifically: If there are multiple sound congregations nearby, must I worship with the most local? Am I free (in God’s eyes) to change which local congregations I worship with as I please? When must I leave or disfellowship a congregation?…
Read MoreWithdraw Yourselves
I. The concept of withdrawing comes from II Thessalonians 3:6 and I Timothy 6:5 (KJV) A. In II Thessalonians 3:6, Stellomai means avoiding – see II Corinthains 8:20 (avoiding trouble) B. I Timothy 6:5 (KJV and NKJV only) – aphistemi means a departure, a falling away, or a withdrawing 1. Luke 2:37 – She never left the temple 2. Luke…
Read MoreWho Are We?
by Jefferson David Tant From to time, in talking with people about churches of Christ, people ask “Who are you?” “What are your beliefs?” We are “one” in Christ. One of our nation’s mottos is “E Pluribus Unum”—”Out of many, one.” In one way, that well describes us. As to what we believe, the simple…
Read MoreDespising the Blood of Christ
Text: Hebrews 10:23-31 I. The Hebrew writer warned that just as Moses’ law required obedience, rejecting Christ’s law would bring a greater punishment. A. He calls is trampling the Son of God underfoot 1. Counting the blood of Christ as a common thing 2. And insulting the Spirit B. I suspect that if you ask most people, they would…
Read MoreA brother who was helping me in the Lord’s work left. What can I do?
Question: A brother here was very involved in a ministry that we were a part of. He and I were both the male figures who were coordinating this ministry. Because of his addiction, he has recently left the church and ministry thereby leaving me by myself to manage it. I feel as though l have…
Read MoreHow can a congregation stay focused?
Question: I attend a small church of Christ which is faced with challenges, such as members leaving to go to other churches, brethren falling away because of their selfish ambitions, and family issues. The reason I bring it up is that we have so much potential to grow as we have a beautiful church building…
Read MoreWhat is the history of the “Church of Christ?”
Question: What is the history of the “Church of Christ?” Answer: The true history of the church is found in the Book of Acts in your Bible. However, I assume from your question you are wondering about the history of the churches of Christ in the United States. A really good and detailed account is…
Read MoreWhat can the church do for widows?
Question: I am interested in knowing what can the church do for the widows? There is a lady who is a widow and a member of the Lord’s church. She has five grown children. Can the church pay for her husband’s funeral out of the treasury? What if all members quit paying their life insurance…
Read MoreThe Authority of the Church
by Dan Gatlin What is your attitude toward the church? For many sectarians, a foundational belief is that the church has all authority. Whatever the church says to believe and practice, that is what must be done without question. This is the basic attitude of the vast majority of Roman Catholics. They are taught…
Read MoreThe “Right” Church
by Robert F. Turner A brother told me his friend asked if the church of which he was a member was the true church. The brother is an honest, conscientious man, and he said he couldn’t tell his friend the church of which he was a member was perfect. He knew, and the friend knew,…
Read MoreHow do you explain that the church is the pillar and ground of the truth?
Question: About the authority of the church: Do you have a response to I Timothy 3:15 where the church of God is referred to as the pillar and ground of truth? Whereas the Bible is never referred to because it did not exist until the church put it together? How can you accept the product of the…
Read MoreCan a church organize tasks without elders?
Question: I would like your thoughts on organizing works in a church that does not have the luxury of elders, such as visitors, attendance, sick members, evangelism. Can men be appointed or volunteer to serve as leaders over these areas with an assistant? Wouldn’t this make these areas offices? Do we have authority for this?…
Read MoreHow Effective Is Your Congregation?
by Gilbert Alexander Evaluating a local congregation and its effectiveness in a community is not a simple task. Population shifts affect the number of members in a local church. Such shifts may be caused by economic changes, persecution, or the relocation of people who have an interest in spiritual things. If some of our modern…
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