I just got let go from my job due to a restructuring. I fully committed myself to God only a few months ago. I've been praying for financially freedom to free myself from this job, and it seems half of my prayer came true.
I was frustrated with work, sure. While I do have time thanks to their generous departure agreement, I've been praying to him on what to do next and the first thing I heard back was to attend church.
How do you know what's the right church to attend? Are there any red flags to look out for? Or do you have to just visit each one to find out yourself?
Just a few thoughts:
As I said, just a few thoughts, but remember, Jesus gave us three things to do:
If a church is not emphasizing those things, it will lose sight of its purpose.
Start studying the bible on your own so that you can develop a good sense for how well a church adheres to the bible, the entire thing, not just their favorite parts.
Check the websites of churches in your area and read about what they believe; statement of faith. Check other online resources too. If there is a church or two in your area that has a pastor that broadcasts on Bott Radio, that may be a good lead to check out.
Pray that the Holy Spirit guides you to the right place.
Red Flags: Doesn't address current issues we face. Doesn't address prophecy (30% of the Bible).
I hope that helps. God bless.
Another Red Flag: The church stayed closed for an extended time during the Covid scam. It's reasonable that the may have shut down for a few weeks or so but, if they remained closed for an extended time, the leadership doesn't have the courage required to preach the truth and to abide by it.
Absolutely.
That’s going to be hard to know if he just moved unless you visit and ask that question, which would sound a little odd.
You can just ask around to see if anyone knows of some churches that didn't shut down. Also, most churches record and publish their sermons these days. He can just watch some of their services from around that time to see what they were doing.
Ask God to show you which one. He wants you to attend church so He will show you.
Also consider He may be sending you to a less than perfect one because of what you have to offer and not merely so you can be fed and entertained.
Your body is the temple and when you invite the Holy Spirit in to your heart and live according to the commandments, you create a place for G-d to dwell within you, and by accepting Jesus as your Savior you are joined spiritually and physically to all others, thus becoming the Church. You are always attending Church in that sense. If you would like to go to a building of like-minded individuals, you will need to qualify what they truly believe by asking questions that are important to you. But anywhere where people gather in His name is The Church and an opportunity to spread His Love.
Well said!
I spend several minutes trying to put this very thing into writing! You said it much more eloquently! Thank you
Thank you, friend. All credit to the Spirit!
Amen that is the most important part! Without the Spirt, is like a boat with no rudder, or a class without a teacher. I will add that I spent 40 plus years in a large denominational church, not naming names.but they never taught that spirt was accessible. I had to get away from The Conventional “Church” to find the ways of the Spirit Now I talk to God all the time, I share my thoughts, and plans, and the most important part is be alert and aware of everything especially in nature, because he can be very creative showing his ways,
You truely appreciate it all when you see those little gifts left for you to find.
A ton of churches dont want you to have a direct connection because they want you to go to them for the word.
I agree completely. Spiritual connection does not require a human to be the middle man.
Absolutely. Like when Jesus was baptized, the Holy Spirit descended upon Him like a dove. In that sense the holy spirit dwells inside us all when we accept the grace God gives us freely. We become a temple where God dwells in the form of the HS. And that's the part of God that nutures your soul and helps you grow spiritually closer to God. I was baptized a few years ago, I'm 27, and I've had my struggles, but I've noticed a complete change in attitude and outlook when I close my mouth and open my heart to listen to what God is telling me. A lot of the times it's in the form of me thinking in my own head about Bible passages or events, usually at work when I'm by myself, and all of a sudden these ideas and connections pop into my head to make sense of my questions or doubts. God is speaking to me, and He speaks to us all, we just have to listen.
I prefer to connect to God directly through Jesus Christ without other people interfering.
My heart is all the church I need.
Do not stay in that position. Jesus’s whole point was community. Is you want to go fast, go alone, but if you want to go far, go together!
Yep. There doesn't need to be a building or a large congregation. Jesus said wherever people gather I'm His name, there He will be also. But Christians have to be a community together. To study the Word, and to help each other through tribulation, and uplift each other.
I base the church I attend on 6 things: 1) Their only authorative scripture is the Holy Bible, 2) they teach that Jesus Christ is the only begotten son of God, 3) that Jesus Christ was born of the Virgin Mary, lived a sinless life was crucified for our sins and was raised from the dead, 4) baptism, 5) participation in Holy Communion, and 6) the Holy Trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit).
Spot on. Those are the hard basics a church should be teaching. Well said fren 👍
If there is any Man/Woman that is head of the church and uses control methods to instill power over the congregation, this is a HUGE red flag!!
Doctrine written by man (extra-Biblical) to control the flock, is also a big red flag.
I personally look for "Bible alone" based churches that urge individuals to study and dig, using original language (Greek, Hebrew) as a basis to glean true and intended meaning. Very much like we do things here.
Church services to praise God and hear his word. Small group Bible Study to dig into the nitty gritty.
Non denomitinal Bible based. I was Catholic for 58 years and learned nothing.
Sensus Fidelium…Online
I listen to youtubes everyday, every night…I never knew so many beautiful things about my faith.
If you listen ….you will learn everything that the communist education system didn’t want you to learn…you will learn the mysteries of the mass and about the infinite mystery of love of the Eucharist…all the things your priests failed to teach you.
Your treasure was stolen from you, it’s still there, you just have to reclaim it.
Thank you for your help and direction.
living way out in the country and not near any churches that I liked, I searched online and many are using fb for their sunday services...
Is it time to build one? My husband and I have considered it.
Seek and ye shall find.
You'll know.
A faithful church 1) preaches the Bible and ONLY the Bible as the source of divine truth (Heb. 4:12, 2 Tim. 3:16-17), 2) preaches the true gospel - that is, that God, the almighty and perfect Creator of this world, sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to die on the cross for the sins of His people, that whoever believes in Him and repents from sin will be saved - as the only way of salvation, and 3) is made of a body of believers who, understanding the above two truths (in essence, believing in who God truly is and who we are in His sight through the pages of Sacred Scripture), live lives of genuine humility, conviction, and holiness in the faith, acknowledging their shortcomings as still-fallen people living in a fallen world, and so spur one anither to love, good works, and gathering together, whether they are the people in the pews or in the pulpit.
Fren, please understand that there is no such thing as a perfect church. Your objective should thus not be to find a perfect church, but a faithful one. The church may not always get the doctrinal side right, but so long as the leadership and the congregation serve in humility and live in light of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, God will bless that church.
I'll be praying for a successful search! God wins.
I've heard arguments in favor of the Geneva Bible on here. What do you think?
I have recently switched to Geneva because of the annotations. I find them to be very helpful and sometimes I am given a bit more clarity.
WRT a congregation, use discernment. If they are preaching the philosophies of man, leave quickly. Modern socio-political and economic theories displacing solid Bible teaching is a sure red flag. Count how many times the preacher returns to the Bible - "look what it says in...". If he doesn't do that, he's not adequately Biblicaly grounded and I would encourage you to seek another spiritual family.
The Blue Letter Bible is a fantastic resource.
Preferred Bible translation is a lower priority matter. Jesus said in Matthew 7:15-20 to recognize false prophets by their fruits. Making a snap judgment about someone based on their preferred Bible translation is not Christ-like behavior.
Back when I was young and a teenager, I tried to get into the Douay-Rheims and KJV but got lost in the old-fashioned word usage and syntax. I found a NLT and could finally understand it because it was in simple English. Then I understood the bondage my soul was in and shortly afterwards, I asked Jesus to give me a heart of flesh and not stone.
No church is perfect. God is perfect though. Develop a strong relationship with Him. A good church should help build on that relationship not hinder it. God bless you in your journey.
PS: Read your Bible and pray daily. There is NO substitute for your direct relationship with your Savior. Keep your eyes on Him.
A suggested, continue in prayer seeking God's guidance on the church he wants you to put down roots in.
The way I look at this is God has told you to go to church ( community of believers).
Would you expect that God having made this known to you to simply abandon you to searching aimlessly for just any church community out there?
Would he let you wander into a heretical church community after telling you to find a church?
Continue to pray and ask God to bring you into the fellowship and church community that he desires for you to be in. Ask that God would clearly reveal this place to you as you are faithful and obedient to earnestly seek out said community.
Johnny Enlow mentions a few things to look out for.
https://rumble.com/v1aqfqr-july-1-2022.html
God is not in your church. God is in your soul.
Yes and no. Depends on the church. Jesus says that wherever people gather in His name, there He will be also. Jesus (God the son) is definitely in church with us, but the Holy Spirit dwells inside of us that accept the grace God gives freely. That's how I understand it at least
The Lord told me not to go to church, he spoke obliquely to me but I didn't get what he was telling me until I got the 'rona from one chapel I visited.
Thank you my Lord, thank you and praise you, i am now immune!
No Gun signs will save you a lot of time. Just turn around right there at the door and leave.
Absolutely. The Bible isn't there to make you feel good, it's there so us as humans realize how messed up we are because of sin, and through the curse of sin we need God's intervention (Jesus dying on the cross) to be able to join God in His eternal kingdom. Because we as sinful beings cannot do it on our own. "No one can come to the Father except through Me" Jesus says. A good sermon should be convicting us, remind us to repent of our sins, and then bring it back around to focus on the sacrifice of Jesus for our sins. And because of that we are washed clean and our blood price has been paid in full. Praise the Lord!
The church we were going to got political. I’d hear about white privilege during sermons. We thought maybe just that person preaching.... but then it got worse. We want to hear God’s word- not their agenda.
We haven’t made much attempt to find one since.... but we should. Thank you for this thread.
I would ask did Jesus come in the flesh, did Jesus die on a cross, and was Jesus resurrected on the 3rd day. If they cant answer all questions a YES then move on also Lay it on the Lord
If you visit multiple churches, a simplistic approach is to count the number of Bible verses that the preacher speaks. I’ve listened to some that tell all kinds of stories about their kids and their dogs and read fewer than five Bible verses. Others will go through a Bible passage, bring in other verses, and end up reading over 30 verses of scripture.
There’s plenty of other criteria. This one is a simple place to start.
The "church" are the people that have accepted Jesus as their Savior. Those that have faith that He died for our sins and arose from the grave 3 days later. Many Christians attend a local "church" building where they can worship together. Many attend online fellowships. You can look at John Barnett on Youtube, He is a Bible teaching Pastor online until you get your bearings.
You probably won't find one so study on your own.
Do NOT attend any church where the people who attend do not carry well worn Bibles with them to church and home.
Look at each church’s website for red flags. Look at their online bulletin (if available) to see if the style fits you.
Red flags are anything LGBT or Jesus loves you the way you are (anything telling you that you are fine as you are)
A church should challenge you. A church should proclaim that we are sinners in need of a savior.
If you attend one that looks good, pay careful attention to the message, if it’s ok or good, try again the next week to verify. Also try speaking with key people in the church to see if your values align with theirs. Elders, deacons, ushers, whoever.
If there’s no website, that’s actually a positive in my eyes.
As someone said, ask God to show you where he wants you. I know many have been scandalized by the pedo priests, but recall even those directly following Jesus included Judas.
Last I checked, there were more than 30,000 different denominations, all claiming to be true yet with glaring inconsistencies on every topic imaginable — imo, this is the fruit of so called reformers, who rejected existing authority to become their own authority.
Consider Jesus prayed that all would be one/united in faith, and when he established his church, it was intended to safeguard and present in every age, those truths he desired to be handed on. I believe he also provided a way for us to receive him in communion and to confess our sins and receive forgiveness.
Study earliest Christian writers, like Ignatius, Polycarp, Clement, Irenaus, and others, to see what the earliest Christians believed.
An eye opener too is studying where we got the Bible, in terms of which books were included, or declared as canonical. For over 1500 years, Christendom used a Bible having 73 books. Following the Protestant reformers, this was reduced to 66 books.
When looking into Christian history, be sure to look at original sources and all sides — don’t just take catholic or protestant or orthodox views alone, but see what each claims, from their own documents.
We just moved to a new area. My wife has been watching church services from local churches on YouTube. Many of them post full services, especially from the lockdown period, on there. We've been able to "visit" without getting the pressure and sales pitch from eager, well meaning parishioners.
Good luck!!
It's a good sign if the pastor has a Bible on his podium as he is preaching the Bible.
Make sure they have small groups or bible studies. Sitting in rows is fine but God's real power comes when we sit in circles.
Prophesy BIg time manifestation----->https://youtu.be/YH3oNGW4-yc