I have been going over this for as long as I can remember. I agree we need to be among fellow beliversin and amongst the church; however may "grievance" is this...IS it wrong to think I can find the same feeling, and walk the same road by finding God through Christ while I am perched above the tree line come dusk opening day?
I do not know where I heard this but I have been on it for several years that "church is not to be defined by walls and doors, but by the light of Christ you find within the fellowship of man and your surroundings." I have for many years found that pre-dawn on my hunting tripsand many times all day while hunting I feel I am closer to Him than I am when I am back in the world.
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"Dei Gratia, Non Veni Facere Voluntatem Meam, sed ejus que misit me patris"
NAHC Memember since 2004
Texas Certified Hunters Education Instructor
Texas Commisioned Public Notary
I do not know where I heard this but I have been on it for several years that "church is not to be defined by walls and doors, but by the light of Christ you find within the fellowship of man and your surroundings."
Matt.18:19-20
[19] Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.
[20] For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.
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Jesus said, "he who stands firm to the end will be saved" Mark 13:13.
Live Life in such a way that those who do not know Christ will come to know Him because they know you
Reb, I do not understand that first verse you layed out. I knew the second but do not understand what is being said in the first. Can you break it down into redneck lingo for me...honestly...
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"Dei Gratia, Non Veni Facere Voluntatem Meam, sed ejus que misit me patris"
NAHC Memember since 2004
Texas Certified Hunters Education Instructor
Texas Commisioned Public Notary
24 And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 25 not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.
We have a duty to our brethren to exhort one another. It's hard to do when you're by yourself in a tree waiting for ole mr.whitetail. We also need to be careful that we don't begin to search for a feeling as the basis of our worship. When we come together ( the assembly ) we are there for multiple reasons. The first and foremost is to worship our Creator. The second is to exhort one another, and last is to recieve a blessing from our worship. Feeling should be the last thing we baseour decision of where to attend or worship on, because feeling isn't really a great guide. Jeremiah 10:23
Quote:
23 O LORD, I know the way of man is not in himself; It is not in man who walks to direct his own steps.
When we base our decisionsabout where and when to worship on our feeling, we are basing them on a faulty rule. I've heard lots of folks say things like," I just don't get anything from that preacher's lessons." Or, " I really can't get into worship there because I don't feel comfortable, or some person there is a total hypocrite...", etc. The problem with this line of thinking is laying the resposibility for worship, or our lack thereof, at someone else's feet. We are responsible for our worship to our God.
One last verse....Romans 1:24-25
Quote:
24 Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, 25 who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.
I find myself completely convicted with this verse. I used to try and ditch church during hunting season, with the same line of thinking you've layed out.I cannot do it anymore.For me,I feel as if I'm worshipping the creation God has given us to enjoy,if I'm away from my brethren on Sunday hunting, instead of maintaining my focus on worshippingmy Creator.
In Him,
GH
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I love animals.......they' re delicious!
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"We can have no '50-50' allegiance in this country. Either a man is an American and nothing else, or he is not an American at all."-- Theodore Roosevelt
A wise man's heart is at his right hand; but a fool's heart at his left. Ecclesiasties 10:2
The last four letters in American..........I Can
The last four letters in Republican........I Can
The last four letters in Democrats.........Rats
Level grape, no, it is not wrong for you to believe that you can fellowship with God outside the walls of what some men call a "church". In fact the Bible supports it , so much so that it clearly says that the TRUE Christians will not be in what man calls a "church", as the last day approaches because the false shepherds will devour them if they were...Matthew 24:16
The Bible teaches that in these last days the True Christian will be "scattered throughout the mountains", because the falseshepherds {pastors} of religion will abuse them, and starve them , while they feed themselves.......Hear the prophecy of Ezekiel, as he points to this....
Ez 34:2-10
***Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD unto the shepherds; Woe be to the shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves! should not the shepherds feed the flocks? Ye eat the fat, and ye clothe you with the wool, ye kill them that are fed: but ye feed not the flock.
The diseased have ye not strengthened, neither have ye healed that which was sick, neither have ye bound up that which was broken, neither have ye brought again that which was driven away, neither have ye sought that which was lost; but with force and with cruelty have ye ruled them. And they were scattered, because there is no shepherd: and they became meat to all the beasts of the field, when they were scattered. My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and upon every high hill: yea, my flock was scattered upon all the face of the earth, and none did search or seek after them.
Therefore, ye shepherds, hear the word of the LORD;
As I live, saith the Lord GOD, surely because my flock became a prey, and my flock became meat to every beast of the field, because there was no shepherd, neither did my shepherds search for my flock, but the shepherds fed themselves, and fed not my flock;
Therefore, O ye shepherds, hear the word of the LORD;
Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require my flock at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the flock; neither shall the shepherds feed themselves any more; for I will deliver my flock from their mouth, that they may not be meat for them.***
In Matthew 24, it is asked of Jesus to state the signs of the end of the world. Jesus makes two things very clear. First He states that when you see "abomination of desolation , stand in the Holy Place" , Judea will flee to the Mountains. What this means, and this was a prophecy of Daniel, is that the True Christians {Judaea is a picture of the Church} will flee the churches when Satan takes control of them. It is important to realize that Satan will take his final stand in the churches, and he will appear as an angel of light.
The second thing that Jesus proclaims is that every True Believer will suffer great tribulation {verse 21-22}.
As we read on Jesus proclaims that in these churches , now headed by satan, great "signs", and "wonders" shall be preformed by the false prophets, and false Christs who head these now dead churches. Nowhere is this more evident than in the tongue speaking, and snake handling churches that have brought the people under a "great delusion"
LG, there is no need to feel bad for not having a desire to attend organized "churches", for it is God Who will call us out of them, as the Day approaches. Despite this, religous hustlers who run the organized denominations will falsely use Scripture to guilt people into staying, because sadly today, most churches are just for profit organizations that work under the guise of Christianty. One thing to take note of, that falls in line with what Jesus said, is the growing number of religous denominations that proclaim to be Christian, and the numerous new "Bibles" being touted as better "translations"
The Good News is, is that Jesus says that despite the dead nature of the churches, the True Christians will come out of them ...Rev 3:4, and He also says that He, being the Good Shepherd, will gather the Flock from the mountains, where they were driven.
Where do find God?
We also need to be careful that we don't begin to search for a feeling as the basis of our worship. When we come together ( the assembly ) we are there for multiple reasons. The first and foremost is to worship our Creator. The second is to exhort one another, and last is to recieve a blessing from our worship. Feeling should be the last thing we baseour decision of where to attend or worship on, because feeling isn't really a great guide. Jeremiah 10:23
