It would be too easy to dismiss this dislike for church as only another symptom of original sin and love of moral darkness, but I believe that explanation is too pat to be wholly true. It doesn’t explain enough. Some persons, for instance, find church intolerable because there is no objective toward which pastor and people are moving, aside possibly from the limited one of trying to enlist eight more women and 10 more men to chaperon the annual youth cookout or reaching the building fund quota for the month. And believe me, that can get mighty wearisome after a while, so wearisome indeed that alert, forward-looking persons often forsake the churches in droves and leave the spiritless, the dull and those afflicted with permanent insouciance to carry on, if a phrase so active dare be used to describe what they do. To Paul there was nothing dull or tiresome in the religion of Christ.*
God had a plan which was being carried forward to completion, and Paul and all the faithful in Christ Jesus were part of that plan. It included predestination, redemption, adoption and the obtaining of an eternal inheritance in the heavenly places. Gods purpose has now been openly revealed (Ephesians 3:10,11). It was the knowledge that they were part of an eternal plan that imparted unquenchable enthusiasm to the early Christians. They burned with holy zeal for Christ and felt that they were part of an army which the Lord was leading to ultimate conquest over all the powers of darkness. That was enough to fill them with perpetual enthusiasm.*
*source:Oneplace.com
, church
Buy A.W. Tozer books at Amazon.com:
1. A Passion for God: The Spiritual Journey of A. W. Tozer
2. Living as a Christian: Teachings from First Peter
3. God’s Pursuit of Man
4. The Pursuit of God
5. Reclaiming Christianity: A Call to Authentic Faith
What Happens After We Die? Watch This Two Part Series
ByThor
OnNovember 20, 2011
Inchristian articles, Headline
What really happens when we die? This is a very controversial topic, at least in the modern world, and even to Christians. The Larry King Live Show invited various spiritual leaders from many faiths including Evangelical Pastor John McArthur of Grace Community Church in Southern California, a Catholic priest, a rabbi, a muslim scholar, a spirituality teacher, and a prominent Atheistleader.
After watching these two part series, I admire the straightforward and strong answers of John MacArthur. Defending Christianity in a debate is huge task. But with a great understanding and mastery of Biblical principles, we do know how to approach it.
Pt 1 John MacArthur – Larry King Live – What Happens After We Die
Pt 2 John MacArthur – Larry King Live – What Happens After We Die
WATCH THIS VIDEO FOR THE FULL EPISODE
Tags:
What Happens After We Die?, John McArthur, Larry King Live Show, religion, interview, news talk , analysis, television, commentary, modren warfare, God, Jesus, Christ,salvation,death , truth, life, Christians, heaven, die, grave, Grace to You, John MacArthur, Bible, church