Does Fundamentalism come with age?

[Lonelyguide]

because saying that one can define the path to God implies that one believes that one is capable of defining God Himself.

John 14:6
"I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."

Jesus is the only way to God.

You are quoting me out off context! I clearly stated "with the exception of Jesus Himself."

He was capable of defining the path to God. Anyone else who believes that he too can do this is either suffering from an extreme and no doubt rather dangerous case of megalomania or has managed to achieve what Jesus alluded to when He stated that it was given to each of us to do what He did (and more).

Did anyone in this forum get there yet? If so, please let me know.

 

[lovely]

Soma wrote:

Does Fundamentalism come with age?

As a younger person I was more of a Fundy Christian, as it is used in the negative sense. I felt like there was a formula for living for God, and was very self-righteous. I didn't realize this until God revealed that awful sin in my life. It was the early years of a relationship that would humble me, and give me a better sense of relating with Christ by keeping my eyes focused on Him alone.

Soma wrote:

It seems that most if not all the hard core hellfire preaching members of this board are of the older generation?

I do not mind hellfire preaching at all, as long as it aligns with God's Word. On the other hand, nothing had to scare me into loving God, though I do have proper fear of Him...given who He is. If a heart is prepared to hear the Word, then hellfire or whatever will not matter. It is God speaking through others that matters, and even if someone is not having a heart of love, God still uses His Word. Maybe the truth hurts us when we do no want to hear it.

Soma wrote:

Is this due to a need of certainty and security after experienceing hellish events in ones life?

I came to know Christ as a child, and though I have experienced some events that were rough along the way, I do not believe those events drove me to a need of certainty and security. The thing is, if you have truth in your life, then the constant is there already, and these things will keep you coming back to it...David is a good example of that, I believe. God takes me where He wants, and I love every twist, turn, and trial because I know the Truth. John 14 "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No man cometh unto the Father, but by me." I have always needed Him, because I was lost in sin, and if Christ's words are true...the events in this life matter not, but that which is done for Him. I want to be conformed to His image, and my "self" to be crucified.

Soma wrote:

Is the desensitation and alienation against other cultural interpretations of the Divine due to fear and a loss of innocence?

For one thing, I am not of a culture anymore. I do not belong to the culture of the United States. A person's upbringing, and culture, have little to do with the truth of Christ. You must be willing to forsake them. I do not define God. My culture does not define Him. He defines Himself, and He has called me out. He will be who He is no matter what I believe.

Soma wrote:

What do you guys think?

Are their any young generation members of this board who are in sink with the Exclusivistic Fundy mindset?

Am I way off here?

I think you are defining Fundy as someone who is legalistic, and self-righteous, in their mindset...I think that most definitately describes me as a young person. I also believe it can describe people of any faith, and just the young in general.

As far as the older generation, maybe it is that they are sure of their faith, and understand how it works on the human heart...they just say the truth, and let God do the rest.

Soma wrote:

The majority of hard core Churches I have attended had 60 - 70 percent old folks (45-80) in the crowd.... It seems like they had saw so much and done so much "stupid" stuff that they are afraid to question anything anymore and tend to "play it safe" and follow like a sheep the best way possible.......

I would never suggest that following Christ is playing it safe. I think I am honored to be lumped with the sheep, following the Shepherd. Why question the Truth once you already know Him? I prefer to rest in Him, and know that even when I do not know, and even when I question, He is still who He is.

Soma, sometimes I think you believe that there is something greater than the simple message of Christ. You will look forever, and never find it. The Christians who follow Him are not perfect, but knocking them is only one on the list of many excuses that will be used for not receiving His truth.

The Lord bless you.

 

[D46]

Good old time preaching is like "fire shut up in my bones"

 

[Soma-Sight]

You are quoting me out off context! I clearly stated "with the exception of Jesus Himself."

He was capable of defining the path to God. Anyone else who believes that he too can do this is either suffering from an extreme and no doubt rather dangerous case of megalomania or has managed to achieve what Jesus alluded to when He stated that it was given to each of us to do what He did (and more).

Did anyone in this forum get there yet? If so, please let me know.

Very good.....

That is the main difference of the mysticism of Christ vs the traditional Trinitarian movemnet....

The mystic looks to see HOW Jesus acted and puts precedence in actions above belief in historical events of Christs life... The "Love God and Neighbor" argument....

The Trinitarian looks to the EVENTS of Christ's life as some sort of supernatural medicine that saves your soul, actual practice of principles comes second place.... The ol familiar "by Grace we are saved" argument.....

 

[Lonelyguide]

Hi Lovely,

There was much in your post that I liked. Just a few little fragments, however ...

I do not mind hellfire preaching at all

I do ... very much, for my Father is Love. Fear is the wrong teacher. Fear can only be a product/projection of ego. Fear separates. Holy Spirit, the Teacher, does not teach that way. Holy Spirit extends Love. Love unites.

I want to be conformed to His image, and my "self" to be crucified

There is no need for yet another crucifixion, Lovely. That much attention for the ego ... something which is neither changeless (and consequently) nor timeless ... is almost like investing into a belief. Just surrender the things of mind (Luke 14:33), remain vigilant and let yourself be guided by the Holy Spirit.

The Christians who follow Him are not perfect, but knocking them is only one on the list of many excuses that will be used for not receiving His truth.

Anyone who "knocks" anyone will not receive His Truth.

The Lord bless you

Just a little addition, if you will permit ...
The Lord blesses everyone who blesses everyone. Withhold your blessing from the smallest part of the Sonship and you can no longer see the Wholeness of God's creation and the Wholeness of God and you will have placed yourself outside off the Kingdom. One cannot be half-pregnant. Either the Kingdom is Whole and one is in it or it isn't Whole and one is out off it.

 

[Soma-Sight]

Lonelyguide,

Please stick around!

Your posts are a breath of fresh air around here!!! :P :P

I do ... very much, for my Father is Love. Fear is the wrong teacher. Fear can only be a product/projection of ego. Fear separates. Holy Spirit, the Teacher, does not teach that way. Holy Spirit extends Love. Love unites.

Now thats the Gospel I Love!

 

[Lyric's Dad]

Fundamentalism and age?

Nah, in my case it is exactly the opposite. As I get older, and believe me, I am getting OLD!!!, I find myself moving away from the fundamentalist mentality. I say this in the negative way it is sometimes meant. I don't like the hellfire and damnation hit em' in the head and drag em' to Jesus mentality. I don't like the idea of scaring people into accepting Jesus. I find that His amazing love is such a better way for people to see Him.

I still believe that I am a fundamentalist though as I completely believe in the fundamentals of the faith, that Jesus is the Way the Truth and the Life and that none come to the Father but through Him. I believe that it is more important to love then to call names and I believe that Jesus died for all, and that we should try and love them as well.

 

[Rick W]

Fundamentalism as with any "ism" can go to extremes which is rarely good. Heck, even "safety" can get to the point of absurdity. Would you believe I had one of those windshield screens you use to protect the interior from the sun that read, "CAUTION: Do not drive with sunscreen in place.".
As for age I've found "novelty" wears off like hot cars, fast women, ear popping music and partying into oblivion. Being "cool" loses it's allure to gain favor with a world that really doesn't care anyway. Once the worldly things loses it's "salt" questions like "Is this all there is?" or "What is all this about?" gradually come to the surface.

I used to be a very staunch evolutionist, viewed "scientific conclusion" as fact and had no compulsion to accept any authority higher than myself. (I tolerated authority rather than accepting it.) At the age of 45 (i'm 53) all these things ran their course and the love of Christ made itself known or more accurately the pursuit of worldly favor had dimmed enough that Christ could finally get through. Repentance, the changing of the mind, is a divine work from heaven itself. I wasted almost 30 years of my life on things that didn't matter anyway , lost my first love because I thought it was all her fault and I think I paid the salaries of the entire police force of a small town in Pennsylvania through fines, court costs and community service.

I thank God every day for the gift of His Son, knowing there's really a purpose for God's creation, revealing the meaning and purpose of my life, where I came from and where I'm going. These are things secular science can not do. I now see that science is a God given gift to man so we may stand in increasing awe of His power and His glory. But we don't do that. Instead we choose to use science as a means to prove there is no God convinced that science is to the credit of ourselves having nothing to do with the Creator.
Yeah, there's something to be said of age. Unfortunately our culture views the elderly as a liability and not as an asset. And I'm just as guilty of doing that as any young man/woman out there.

 

[JM]

Does Fundamentalism come with age?

It seems that most if not all the hard core hellfire preaching members of this board are of the older generation?

Is this due to a need of certainty and security after experienceing hellish events in ones life?

Is the desensitation and alienation against other cultural interpretations of the Divine due to fear and a loss of innocence?

What do you guys think?

Are their any young generation members of this board who are in sink with the Exclusivistic Fundy mindset?

Am I way off here?

The majority of hard core Churches I have attended had 60 - 70 percent old folks (45-80) in the crowd.... It seems like they had saw so much and done so much "stupid" stuff that they are afraid to question anything anymore and tend to "play it safe" and follow like a sheep the best way possible.......

[/b]

Could also be the leading of the Spirit in the life of a true believer.

 

[bibleberean]

AN EVIL IS IN THE PROFESSED CAMP of the Lord, so gross in its impudence, that the most short-sighted can hardly fail to notice it. During the past few years it has developed at an abnormal rate, even for the evil. It has worked like leaven until the whole lump ferments. The devil has seldom done a cleverer thing than hinting to the Church that part of her mission is to provide entertainment for the people, with a view to winning them. From speaking out as the Puritans did, the Church has gradually toned down her testimony, then winked at and excused the frivolities of the day. Then she tolerated them in her borders. Now she has adopted them under the plea of reaching the masses.

My first contention is that providing amusement for the people is nowhere spoken of in the Scriptures as a function of the Church. If it is a Christian work, why did not Christ speak of it? "Go ye..." into all the world and speak the Gospel to every creature. That is clear enough. So it would have been if He had added, "and provide amusement for those who do not relish the Gospel." No such words, however, are to be found. It did not seem to occur to Him. Then again, "He gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers ... for the work of the ministry." Where do entertainers come in? The Holy Spirit is silent concerning them. Were the prophets persecuted because they amused the people or because they refused? The concert has no honor roll.


Again, providing amusement is in direct antagonism to the teaching and life of Christ and all His apostles. What was the attitude of the Church to the world? "Ye are the salt," not the sugar candy something the world will spit out, not swallow. Short and sharp was the utterance: "Let the dead bury the dead." He was in awful earnestness!

Had Christ introduced more of the bright and pleasant elements into His mission, He would have been more popular when He and His disciples went back, because of the searching nature of His teaching. I do not hear Him say, "Run after these people, Peter, and tell them we will have a new kind of service tomorrow, something short and attractive with little preaching. We will have a pleasant evening for the people. Tell them they will be sure to enjoy it. Be quick, Peter; we must get the people somehow!" Jesus pitied sinners, sighed and wept over them, but never sought to amuse them. In vain will the epistles be searched to find any trace of the gospel of amusement. Their message is, "Come out, keep out, keep clean out!"

Anything approaching fooling is conspicuous of its absence. They had boundless confidence in the Gospel and employed no other weapon. After Peter and John were locked up for preaching, the Church had a prayer meeting, but they did not pray, "Lord, grant unto Thy servants that by a wise and discriminating use of innocent recreation we may show these people how happy we are."

If they had ceased not for preaching Christ, they had not time for arranging entertainments. Scattered by persecution, they went everywhere preaching the Gospel.

They "turned the world upside down." That is the only difference! Lord, clear the Church of all the rot and rubbish the devil has imposed on her, and bring us back to apostolic methods.

Lastly, the mission of amusement fails to effect the end desired. It works havoc among young converts. Let the careless and scoffers, who thank God because the Church met them halfway, speak and testify. Let the heavy-laden who found peace through the concert not keep silent!

Let the drunkard to whom the dramatic entertainment had been God's link in the chain of his conversation, stand up! There are none to answer. The mission of amusement produces no converts. The need of the hour for today's ministry is believing scholarship joined with earnest spirituality, the one springing from the other as fruit from the root. The need is Biblical doctrine, so understood and felt that it sets men on fire.

C. H. Spurgeon

"He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him."

John the Baptist would not be welcomed in the foo foo, sissified, wimped out, limp wristed, gutless, clueless, Disney Land church of today.


Revelation 3:15-16 I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.

:smt078 :smt078

 

[D46]

John the Baptist would not be welcomed in the foo foo, sissified, wimped out, limp wristed, gutless, clueless, Disney Land church of today.

Amen...can you imagine the likes of him and a fellow like Elijah getting together and attempting to hold a revival today!! They'd run them out of town on a rail for sure. They would be "politically incorrect" for their boldness and would probably be arrested in some cirlces for preaching straight from the hip. I'd love to see a couple of guys like that walk in on a Sunday morning mass service! Elijah would probably rain down a bit of fire to help kindle their incense. :-D

 

[destiny]

The shocker to me is nobody could truly define what fundamental really is :o

I guess our politically correct 'church' system here has (redefined) it for us from the looks of this thread. :o ...Oh wait a minute, I think the media redefined it as "wacko" and the 'church' bought into it.
God help us.

Keep preach'in the truth biblebearen!

So long for now, I gotta get off of here and take another loooooong vacation.

 

[bibleberean]

Thanks Destiny and D46.

Enjoy your long vacation. :D

 

[Nocturnal_Principal_X]

The shocker to me is nobody could truly define what fundamental really is :o

So true, that is the very reason I asked for a defintion at the beginning. The fact remains the defintion of fudamental is quite different today then in the 1900s.

I do wonder if any will provide the 1900s defintion and the modern defintion.

 

[Heidi]

As I understand it, fundamentalism is believing the bible to be God's word. Jesus did so he was the first fundamentalist and fundamentalists are therefore in good company. :angel:

 

[Nocturnal_Principal_X]

As I understand it, fundamentalism is believing the bible to be God's word. Jesus did so he was the first fundamentalist and fundamentalists are therefore in good company. :angel:

Ok someone has given the 1900s defintion. No some provide the modern defintion.

 

[Relic]

As I understand it, fundamentalism is believing the bible to be God's word. Jesus did so he was the first fundamentalist and fundamentalists are therefore in good company. :angel:

Ok someone has given the 1900s definition. No some provide the modern definition.

"Modern" day?


Let me break it down for ya!


Fun ( Sticking to a strict me me me me me me me me! type of a person) Lovers of self! :smt055

da (Doesn't know the difference between sin and saint. makes a mess out of scriptural truth by twisting it every which way but to follow the straight and narrow way. Gives excuses for continuing in sin. thinks they don't have to discipline self. ) The lack a true sense of what it means to "fear" / "revere" God; they lack a sense of respect toward God and the wrath that comes with consequences of choosing to sin. They think they have license to do what they want, regardless of it being sin or not. They Ignore the words of Jesus, that says to "Go and sin no more". :smt084

mentalist! (Lives a lie) They call evil good and good evil. . :silly:


That's the definition of a Modern day "Fun"- Da- Mentalist! The live for sin, to sin and think they are under the grace of God to do so without repentance. They think it's okay to keep on without changing. They confuse unconditional love by saying there are no conditions to living the way they choose to live.

:roll:

======================


Now, the "truth" of the definition of fundamentalistcan never change from one generation to the next. One can't change the truth, they can only make a lie out of it. (being influenced by the spirit of lies)

When we go and "distort" / "pervert" definitions to words..... What happens?
Well, you get a bunch of slang jargon, mumbo jumbo that suites the "changing culture" ( as exemplified in many a "modern day" definition) . It, many times, has nothing to do with biblical truth, which, by the way, teaches discernment of the spirit(s).

What does the dictionary say? Well, we can't even trust the "modern day" dictionaries because of the "modern day editors" who take the liberty to go with the flow of "modern day definitions" which, many times, twist/pervert truth, no different than someone's own made up definition of a word.


Anyone have an original Webster's Dictionary? 8-)


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