We have a nice, new member that has posted the following in the forum for New Members.
I have his permission to move it to here because I found it so interesting.
I'd have a few questions for both Seasoned by Grace, our new member, and all the participants:
1. Is it important to know church history?
2. How, or what, can make us feel secure when standing before God (even in this life)
3. In light of Matthew 7:21, who are the few that will find the narrow gate?
21“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. "
Here is the post by Seasoned by Grace:
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what I share will reflect 42 years of reading, studying, and researching scripture, and especially the last 5 years of my 17 years of my retirement, have been incredibly intense, putting together a huge library of study tools, and creating a library of over 550, commentaries spending many thousands of hours studying the history of Christianity, the history of the bible, world history going back to creation, and studying koine Greek - the language Jesus spoke and the common language of the day over most of the world, and studying every biblical topic that the Holy Spirit brought to me to study.
I am not a scholar or know it all. I just wanted Gods truth for myself, and then for those God brought to me.
Romans 14:22 says, "The faith which you have, have as your own conviction before God,
happy is he who does not condemn himself in what he approves."
Many years ago when I first became a follower of Christ, things I heard in the church and things I saw done or sometimes left out, made me question whether I had really become a believer, and was I really in the right church. What was the right church?
I needed to know. My life depended on it.
So for the next 42 years, I have sought the answers, and God through the leading of the Holy Spirit, and much prayer for the truth, has blessed me to come to the conclusions I needed to feel secure in my standing before Christ each day, and when I stand before Him after my physical life ends.
1st Peter 4:18, Peter said, "If it is with difficulty that the righteous is saved, what will become of the Godless man and the sinner?" A dire warning to believers, along with many other warnings.
My faith has been adjusted several times over the last 42 years, as God has commanded it should, and my faith in many ways doesn't resemble much of what the Christian culture as a whole calls Christianity today, because of all the major discrepancies in all the mainline faiths beliefs and teachings, and even the smaller individual churches who's doctrines are not able to be saved by either.
There is only one way to salvation, not the many we have today, and it only comes from Gods word, and God says in Matthew 7:14, and Luke 13:23-23 that "FEW" who call themselves believers will enter His kingdom of heaver. Read Matthew 7:21 and the verses before and after - SCARY.
God bless you all.
My name is OLIGOS
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highlighting is mine.
I have his permission to move it to here because I found it so interesting.
I'd have a few questions for both Seasoned by Grace, our new member, and all the participants:
1. Is it important to know church history?
2. How, or what, can make us feel secure when standing before God (even in this life)
3. In light of Matthew 7:21, who are the few that will find the narrow gate?
21“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. "
Here is the post by Seasoned by Grace:
**********************************************************************************
what I share will reflect 42 years of reading, studying, and researching scripture, and especially the last 5 years of my 17 years of my retirement, have been incredibly intense, putting together a huge library of study tools, and creating a library of over 550, commentaries spending many thousands of hours studying the history of Christianity, the history of the bible, world history going back to creation, and studying koine Greek - the language Jesus spoke and the common language of the day over most of the world, and studying every biblical topic that the Holy Spirit brought to me to study.
I am not a scholar or know it all. I just wanted Gods truth for myself, and then for those God brought to me.
Romans 14:22 says, "The faith which you have, have as your own conviction before God,
happy is he who does not condemn himself in what he approves."
Many years ago when I first became a follower of Christ, things I heard in the church and things I saw done or sometimes left out, made me question whether I had really become a believer, and was I really in the right church. What was the right church?
I needed to know. My life depended on it.
So for the next 42 years, I have sought the answers, and God through the leading of the Holy Spirit, and much prayer for the truth, has blessed me to come to the conclusions I needed to feel secure in my standing before Christ each day, and when I stand before Him after my physical life ends.
1st Peter 4:18, Peter said, "If it is with difficulty that the righteous is saved, what will become of the Godless man and the sinner?" A dire warning to believers, along with many other warnings.
My faith has been adjusted several times over the last 42 years, as God has commanded it should, and my faith in many ways doesn't resemble much of what the Christian culture as a whole calls Christianity today, because of all the major discrepancies in all the mainline faiths beliefs and teachings, and even the smaller individual churches who's doctrines are not able to be saved by either.
There is only one way to salvation, not the many we have today, and it only comes from Gods word, and God says in Matthew 7:14, and Luke 13:23-23 that "FEW" who call themselves believers will enter His kingdom of heaver. Read Matthew 7:21 and the verses before and after - SCARY.
God bless you all.
My name is OLIGOS
*********************************************************************
highlighting is mine.