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disciples of christ mission statement

A

ale8

Member
I hope this is the right spot for this question. before i start i just want to say I am not trying to say one denomination is better or right.


I am trying to figure out what it is the disciples of Christ believe. I have a local church my wife and I was thinking about going to. I called the church because their web site was not helpful. I ask two questions.

1. What is the stance on the trinity
2. Is Jesus the only way to be saved

the responses to 1 was very vague. It went something like this. Some people in the congregation would share your believes and some wouldn't. He didn't ask what i believed. For question 2 he said we believe Jesus is Lord and Savior.

the response to 2 was ok but to 1 was not what i expected. It doesn't rule out that they would except some other way. After searching the web for a list of beliefs I came up with nothing solid. I did find this on the wiki site.
For modern Disciples the one essential is the acceptance of Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, and obedience to him in baptism.<sup id="cite_ref-40" class="reference">[41]</sup> There is no requirement to give assent to any other statement of belief or creed. Nor is there any "official" interpretation of the Bible.<sup id="cite_ref-41" class="reference">[42]</sup> Hierarchical doctrine was traditionally rejected by Disciples as human-made and divisive, and subsequently, freedom of belief and scriptural interpretation allows many Disciples to question or even deny beliefs common in doctrinal churches such as the Incarnation, the Trinity, and the Atonement. Beyond the essential commitment to follow Jesus there is a tremendous freedom of belief and interpretation. As the basic teachings of Jesus are studied and applied to life, there is the freedom to interpret Jesus' teaching in different ways. As would be expected from such an approach, there is a wide diversity among Disciples in what individuals and congregations believe. It is not uncommon to find individuals who seemingly hold diametrically opposed beliefs within the same congregation affirming one another's journeys of faith as sisters and brothers in Christ.
Members and seekers are encouraged to take being disciples seriously, meaning that they are student followers, of Jesus. Often the best teaching comes in the form, "I'll tell you what I think, but read the Bible for yourself, and then study and pray about it. Decide in what ways God is calling you to be a follower of Jesus."
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I am was expecting something like this which came form a Assembly of God site.

The one true God has revealed Himself as the eternally self-existent "I AM," the Creator of heaven and earth and the Redeemer of mankind. He has further revealed Himself as embodying the principles of relationship and association as Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

I am just trying to figure out if this church is right for me. The way it stands now I dont think it is. It seems like there would be a lot of confusion with out some agreed upon points.
 
Here is a tid-bit from Wiki on them....

For modern Disciples the one essential is the acceptance of Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, and obedience to him in baptism.[41] There is no requirement to give assent to any other statement of belief or creed. Nor is there any "official" interpretation of the Bible.[42] Hierarchical doctrine was traditionally rejected by Disciples as human-made and divisive, and subsequently, freedom of belief and scriptural interpretation allows many Disciples to question or even deny beliefs common in doctrinal churches such as the Incarnation, the Trinity, and the Atonement. Beyond the essential commitment to follow Jesus there is a tremendous freedom of belief and interpretation. As the basic teachings of Jesus are studied and applied to life, there is the freedom to interpret Jesus' teaching in different ways. As would be expected from such an approach, there is a wide diversity among Disciples in what individuals and congregations believe. It is not uncommon to find individuals who seemingly hold diametrically opposed beliefs within the same congregation affirming one another's journeys of faith as sisters and brothers in Christ.
Members and seekers are encouraged to take being disciples seriously, meaning that they are student followers, of Jesus. Often the best teaching comes in the form, "I'll tell you what I think, but read the Bible for yourself, and then study and pray about it. Decide in what ways God is calling you to be a follower of Jesus."
Modern Disciples reject the use of creeds as "tests of faith," that is, as required beliefs, necessary to be accepted as a follower of Jesus. Although Disciples respect the great creeds of the church as informative affirmations of faith, they are never seen as binding. Since the adoption of The Design of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ),[43] in 1968, Disciples have celebrated a sense of unity in reading the preamble to the Design publicly. It is as a meaningful affirmation of faith, not binding upon any member. It was originally intended to remind readers that this Church seeks God through Jesus Christ, even when it adopts a design for its business affairs.


What are you looking for in a church?
 
Thanks Danus

My mine concern is what my kids will be taught. Also I dont see how there could be a sermon preached when the preacher or the church view where not expressed. Lets use healing as example. How could that be preached since there is no formal stance on it. If you looked up healing on the Assembly of God site you get this.
Divine healing is an integral part of the gospel. Deliverance from sickness is provided for in the atonement, and is the privilege of all believers.

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So if there is no stance like this taken how could there be a sermon on it. I mean you would have to either preacher it two ways or one way which means that is either the church's stance or the preach right.

I get that everyone in any church may have different belief's on some things. Lets you tongues. I know a lot of people that disagree on that howevery the church takes a stance on it one way or the other. I do not disagree with this statement
I'll tell you what I think, but read the Bible for yourself, and then study and pray about it. Decide in what ways God is calling you to be a follower of Jesus."
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I just don't see how there could be any preaching on what I call heavy topics. Like tongues, homosexuality, or hell.
 
You might find this link helpful...let me know if it doesn't work.

Christian Church (DOC)


I do know that the DoC are mostly committed to "unity". Which seems a worthy goal, but I am of the opinion that there are somethings that the Church needs to stand firm against. Unity, for unity's sake at the cost of ignoring important issues, isn't something I find Biblical.
 
Yeah, I think that would be the extent of my dealings with that church. I would think a pastor would LOVE to hear someone ask, "What does your church believe? What do you believe?". Maybe too many people are church hopping for esthetic reasons.

If a pastor doesn't give you a convicted answer in the affirmative to those two questions, I would think there are better communities out there; unless you live in the land of Far Far Away! (even then!) Without knowing anything about the mission of that church, I would think a vague answer like that either means there's a little universalism going on, or the pastor is too afraid of turning off prospective members to give an honest answer. :gah
 
thanks for the replies. I was thinking the same thing but I just needed to see what other people thought. I try not to let up bringing cloud my judgement when it come to switching to a new Church. I try to remain open to new things while not compromising my foundational beliefs.

Now i have a issue with family because some of our relatives go to this church. I have been praying for wisdom all week since going to this church was suggested to me on Sunday. I am having a difficult time expressing why I don't want to go. If I say they don't stand for anything then I will get hit with the old "the bible can be interpreted in many ways" which is why i think some of my family like this church. I guess that statement is true to some degree but the Bible IMO is very clear on a lot of subjects. I am dealing with family that believe there is a God but not a personal God and with some of them I don't know what the believe about Jesus. So this church to me seems easy to go to. If that makes sense.

I think what Mike said is very true
I would think a vague answer like that either means there's a little universalism going on, or the pastor is too afraid of turning off prospective members to give an honest answer. :gah
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thanks again for the input.
 
First off I want to commend you on looking for a church that follows your personal beliefs, not the one with the best music, best kids programs, nicest building, etc. Secondly I want to tell you that you probably won't find a Pastor that you agree with 100%. (At least I never have) So the more accurate questions you should ask the Pastor is "What does your church teach regarding _______? ( _____ being the Trinity, water baptism, or whatever). Because like I said before you and the Pastor may not agree on personal beliefs.


The next thing I would like to suggest is to visit the church once or twice to get a feel for it. If it doesn't feel right simply tell your family its not a good fit for you and move on to another. When you find a church that you feel God wants you in then stay. It is really that simple.
 
Dennyh good points. I have thought about going a couple of times. I will post back if i do and what I think of it.
 
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