Considering Moving to New Denomination

hislastwalk · Apr 6, 2012

Don't forget real wine. lol.
I went to an episcopal church back in the day, & was shocked that the wine was real. XD

shawntc · Apr 6, 2012

That reminds me. I have a friend who is an outspoken Catholic. A couple weeks ago I made a status on Facebook saying, "My stomach is upset again... what did I eat this time?" and he replied "The Eucharist!

"

Great. The flesh and blood of my Savior made me ill? That may be bad.

He later realized he misread it. He thought I wrote "What should I eat this time?" Now, there are a couple reasons why the Eucharist is a bad choice of midnight snack. First, I'm not a priest so I can't exactly administer the Eucharist to myself. Second of all, I'm not Catholic so technically I shouldn't even take the Eucharist lest I drink judgment upon myself. Yeah, thanks buddy. Encouraging me to invoke God's judgment on me. XD

On a more serious note, I am inclined to remain Protestant, and I'm probably stubborn enough that my mind won't be swayed. I've read about the Catholic traditions and I'm just not comfortable with them.

dscherck · Apr 6, 2012

shawntc said:

Well, I used to be concerned about certain traditions as well, but there's a difference between "Big T" tradition and "little t" tradition. Big T is stuff like the Trinity, etc. Little t is stuff like praying the rosary, blessing yourself with holy water, etc. Big T tradition is set in stone, but little t is optional. You can be a devout Catholic and never say a single rosary. It may be that the traditions you're concerned with are little t.

Dude653 · Apr 6, 2012

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Oh yeah,,,,emotion is just terrible,,,,,I mean why would anybody wanna express joy in the house of God?? That would just be terrible:rolleyes:

shawntc · Apr 6, 2012

Dude653 said:

You kinda messed up with the quote system there so I don't know who you are trying to reply to, but I'll add this little bit: I have no problem with people expressing their emotions to God. Some react very openly emotionally. I on the other hand am not very emotional about it and tend to be more reserved. I have no quarrel with those who are more emotional. At the same time, I am very uncomfortable in places where there are intense emotions. My church is notable for this kind of thing, which makes it a bad fit for me. I don't condemn it, I just don't belong in it. God makes everyone different. I respect those who are more outgoing as equals of me, because they are.

violakat · Apr 6, 2012

Here's the thing, when Emotion takes away from worship, it's not worship. When Solemness takes away from worship, it's not worship. Too many people equate an emotional high as being spiritual, and so they are worshiping in the Spirit. And the other half believes that you must speak the truth and only the truth, that emotions has nothing to do with. They believe in worshiping only in the truth.

The Bible, however, says, that we must "worship Him must worship in spirit and truth." John 4:24

You can dance, clap your hands, raise your arms, sit there, close your eyes, what ever. But, if it prevents you from keeping your eyes on God as you sing, then you are not truly worshiping. For instance, I love raising or clapping my hands in church. But, if I went to a church that danced in worship, it would distract me, because I would be focusing only on the dancers, and not on worshiping God. So for me, that would not be a place I would belong. Each person is different, and each person is called to worship God in a different manner. It reveals a different aspect of Him. When we start to say, "OH, You have to do this or your not worshiping God, or you can't do that to worship God," then we limit God and begin to place God in a box.

Siberian_Khatru · Apr 11, 2012

I went to a Lutheran service, once. I felt kinda uncomfortable... and I was with people who are like a second family to me.

jandian · May 17, 2012

Which one of these religions did Jesus say He was coming back for?

shawntc · May 17, 2012

jandian said:

If by religions you mean denominations... all of them!

BUT, I am not well suited for some of these denominations. These are two different matters.

jandian · May 18, 2012

I just think ppl can loose focus if they start saying which religion has issues. Non is perfect. What you ought to look for is a church where it is evident that they are truly searching after the true presence of God through Jesus Christ. That can be found in almost "and i stress on the almost" all christian "and I stress on the christian" religions/denominations.

God bless

frankleespeaking · May 18, 2012

shawntc said:

I currently go to a Pentecostal church. In about four months I will be leaving home for university, and I am thinking of leaving the Pentecostal denomination when I do. I don't think that Pentecostalism is ungodly, however I've begun questioning whether or not some of the practices it's had are Scriptural.

For example, baptism in the Holy Spirit. Does that even happen outside of Pentecostal churches? For those who don't know, baptism in the Holy Spirit is when the Holy Spirit comes upon a person and basically "overflows" in their spirit. This happened in Acts 2 in the upper room, when 120 people were baptized in the Spirit with speaking in tongues. According to Pentecostalism that is a repeatable even that all believers should strive to seek. But I'm not so sure that really is repeatable. The events on Pentecost could just be intended for that one day, as a way of officially beginning the church's ministry.

Then there is being slain in the Spirit. That is almost certainly not Biblical. I did some reading and it first started in the late 1700s with the start of the Methodist movement. One person who saw when it was beginning to happen remarked that he had never read of such a thing in his Biblical studies. If it's unbiblical... why allow it?

I'm also rather uncomfortable in the worship setting. I'm a rather quiet, self-controlled person. But during worship, true to our reputation, we have a way of getting loud and energetic. People often start crying and get worked up. And as my pastor says, the Spirit begins to move. It's just very uncomfortable for me. I don't get caught up in the music or get emotional. It's just not how I am.

Due to all of this, I think it may be pertinent for me to find a new type of church to attend. I go to a Southern Baptist church on Wednesday evenings, which has broadened my perspective. I'd like to find a church that has the same basic beliefs as Pentecostal, but not as... rowdy, I guess is the word. I have nothing against people who are loud for God. But I just don't think that's the kind of setting I belong in.

Specifically, these kinds of beliefs are must-haves for me:

Saved by grace only
Trinity
Inerrancy of the Bible
Divinity of Jesus
Literal Second Coming of Jesus, and Millenial Reign
Preferably Arminian (as opposed to Calvinism)

I'm really thinking something like Baptist would work for me. What say you guys?

personally i see the bible telling believers the gifts of the Holy Spirit will continue untill Christ comes again, although we see its very easy to "Not stir up the gifts" or on the other hand abuse the gifts and make them something their not, my only beef with penticostalism is the belief that everyone should speak in tongues, thats not scriptural, just as not everyone prophesies, or has gifts of healing

I don't think separating yourself from the works of the Holy Spirit and joining a church that doesn't reconize 1 Corithians 12 is still for the church today is the answer, but i do understand your questions concerning some of the things done in the name of God

shawntc · May 18, 2012

So if I find myself in a setting where I am consistently feeling uncomfortable and somehow "wrong," a couple of you say I should just grin and bear it? That hardly seems like something that God would want for me.

I am not putting down the Pentecostal denomination.

I am not trying to say that it's bad. It has issues, but so does every denomination!

If a person likes being able to bawl loudly and speak in tongues until they're dry in the mouth, then all the more power to them. But that is a setting I do not believe I would be able to best serve God in.

jandian · May 19, 2012

Dont get me wrong S, I agree that if you are not comfortable then it might be the Spirit of God leading you out. It just seemed that the thread took up a different slant, making it more about the denomination rather than looking for a place where the Spirit of God dwells. That was the point of my statement

Dude653 · May 19, 2012

Maybe you should try a non denominational church. I have been a member of one for over 6 yrs now and i love it. There are many things done in churches that are denominational tradition and are not necasarily Biblical

shawntc · May 19, 2012

Dude653 said:

Hadn't considered that. Non-denominational does sound, at face value, like it could be similar to Pentecostal, though.

nige87 · May 20, 2012

My question to you is why do you feel the need to belong to any church at all?

Most of them are the same as the next one and in the end its that collection plate that is of the most importance to the church leaders.

You can fellowship with friends or family or just read the bible and pray by yourself.

And all the different denominations to me is just ridiculous, I want no part of any of them.

G4JC · May 20, 2012

Pentecostal/Charismatic....
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QVuQFPhRs3E[/youtube]

Catholics...
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RiLUjYauzUs[/youtube]

Hmm... both believe in intense spirtuality, both are calvanistic, and both like the word "fire"...

Good luck on your church search. Also read the bible for yourself and pray to God for Wisdom.

Edit: +1 to above post.

frankleespeaking · May 20, 2012

jimmydiggs said:

"many are called few are chosen" Mathew 22:14.....not even all the elect will be chosen......this is also witnessed in Revelations as Jesus is rebuking the churches, telling them to repent and do their first works so that they will be found "worthy to wear white robes"

shawntc · May 20, 2012

Kindly abstain from sparking another Calvinism vs. Arminianism argument please.

Although on a related note... Catholics are Calvinists? I thought, in their non-Protestantness, they didn't fit into those two categories.

dscherck · May 21, 2012

shawntc said:

We're certainly not Calvinist. If you want to learn more about what we Catholics teach, you might grab a copy of the Youcat, or ask your local Catholic parish about RCIA. RCIA basically is a class to teach people about the Catholic Church, normally it's for people who want to join the Catholic Church, but you're not obligated. And you're encouraged to ask questions galore.

Considering Moving to New Denomination

hislastwalk

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