Mayor Pete Attacks Trump's Faith...

[Adrift]

Long ago I was given the sage advice - "if you're looking for the perfect church, and you find it, don't join it, cause you'll ruin it".

But, yeah, we had built an entire college ministry on the concept "you don't have to be Baptist to be here", and had a Sunday School class and Preaching Service of 125 College Kids. (I was the college minister) When we got a new pastor, his very first sermon to the college preaching service was all about "I have a little B on every bone in my body - I am a Baptist through and through -- if you're not a Baptist, you need to......"

I was stunned. I kept thinking he was being facetious or trying to make some point, and would come around to "you are accepted!" - but he didn't.

The next Sunday, we had 12-13 college kids show up, look around, and leave. He managed to kill 4 years of building a college ministry with ONE incredibly divisive sermon.

Wow. Yeah, last time I went to a Baptist church it was a Full Baptist one in Germany, and while the service was a little over the top for me, they were great people, very loving, and welcomed people in without question. The best churches I've been to never mention their denomination. We're Christians, and that's what's important.

[Adrift]

Wait! It's FRIDAY - so no MEAT, right?

I mean, it's a good friday, but it's not Good Friday. We better have meat, or else I'm going to have twice the beer.

[One Bad Pig]

Wait! It's FRIDAY - so no MEAT, right?

You're just trying to make me sin, aren't you?

[Cow Poke]

Wow. Yeah, last time I went to a Baptist church it was a Full Baptist one in Germany, and while the service was a little over the top for me, they were great people, very loving, and welcomed people in without question. The best churches I've been to never mention their denomination. We're Christians, and that's what's important.

Since I had been telling college kids "you don't need to be Baptist to be here", it occurred to me one time to ask our Sunday Night college gathering* (about 60-70 kids) "just out of curiosity, how many of you are Baptist?" Only about a dozen hands went up. Then I went through some other denominations, and even "unchurched", and was pretty pleased that we had a good variety of both "other denominations" and none at all.


*when I found our that the "room and board" plan at the college included ALL MEALS EXCEPT SUNDAY EVENING, we started providing a "Free Sunday Night Meal" at our church

[Cow Poke]

You're just trying to make me sin, aren't you?

I used to hold a grudge against the Catholics because, on Fridays, our school cafeteria served NO MEAT - but then they started serving a really AWESOME cheese pizza every Friday with some of the best french fries!!!!

[Sparko]

*when I found our that the "room and board" plan at the college included ALL MEALS EXCEPT SUNDAY EVENING, we started providing a "Free Sunday Night Meal" at our church

Pretty smart.

Food and Baptists.

[One Bad Pig]

I used to hold a grudge against the Catholics because, on Fridays, our school cafeteria served NO MEAT - but then they started serving a really AWESOME cheese pizza every Friday with some of the best french fries!!!!

I'm gonna have some nice black bean burgers tonight.

Fasting for no reason but to do it would be Pharisaical. I should keep it in mind more often that we fast on Wednesdays and Fridays in conscious rejection of the greed of Judas Iscariot and in remembrance of the cross of Christ (who gave up rather more than meat).

[Mountain Man]

Long ago I was given the sage advice - "if you're looking for the perfect church, and you find it, don't join it, cause you'll ruin it".

But, yeah, we had built an entire college ministry on the concept "you don't have to be Baptist to be here", and had a Sunday School class and Preaching Service of 125 College Kids. (I was the college minister) When we got a new pastor, his very first sermon to the college preaching service was all about "I have a little B on every bone in my body - I am a Baptist through and through -- if you're not a Baptist, you need to......"

I was stunned. I kept thinking he was being facetious or trying to make some point, and would come around to "you are accepted!" - but he didn't.

The next Sunday, we had 12-13 college kids show up, look around, and leave. He managed to kill 4 years of building a college ministry with ONE incredibly divisive sermon.

Reminds me a bit of a guest speaker we had at my church a year or two ago who went way over the time our service normally ends, and when he noticed people starting to fidget and check their watches, he became angry and said something like, "If you don't want to be here then just leave! I dare you, get up and walk out! But you might miss out on something that God has to tell you!" and all I could think was, "You haven't read from the Bible in the last 40-minutes, so don't tell us you're speaking for God!" As much as I wanted to walk out, I didn't because it would have been unnecessarily disruptive and potentially misinterpreted by others -- and who knows, there might have been someone there who really did need to hear the message.

[Mountain Man]

Wow. Yeah, last time I went to a Baptist church it was a Full Baptist one in Germany, and while the service was a little over the top for me, they were great people, very loving, and welcomed people in without question. The best churches I've been to never mention their denomination. We're Christians, and that's what's important.

I've heard some very good arguments that denominations are unbiblical because of the way they promote division in the body of believers.

1 Corinthians 3:

For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way? For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not being merely human?

What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor. For we are God’s fellow workers. You are God’s field, God’s building.

[One Bad Pig]

I've heard some very good arguments that denominations are unbiblical because of the way they promote division in the body of believers.

1 Corinthians 3:

For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way? For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not being merely human?

What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor. For we are God’s fellow workers. You are God’s field, God’s building.

The reason Protestants have denominations in the first place is because Luther, et al. could never find sufficient agreement to unite. I'm not sure the solution is for every congregation to be independent.

[tabibito]

I've heard some very good arguments that denominations are unbiblical because of the way they promote division in the body of believers.

1 Corinthians 3:

For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way? For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not being merely human?

What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor. For we are God’s fellow workers. You are God’s field, God’s building.

Or maybe it is a matter of saying you're not a Christian because your head of denomination isn't the same as my head of denomination. It wouldn't be the same as, say, an Anglican spending time helping Baptists out in their "English for Foreign Speakers" classes. It would be the same if the Anglican started poaching.

[rogue06]

I mean, it's a good friday, but it's not Good Friday. We better have meat, or else I'm going to have twice the beer.

You sound like it's an either/or situation.

[Cow Poke]

I'm gonna have some nice black bean burgers tonight.

Fasting for no reason but to do it would be Pharisaical. I should keep it in mind more often that we fast on Wednesdays and Fridays in conscious rejection of the greed of Judas Iscariot and in remembrance of the cross of Christ (who gave up rather more than meat).

I had to attend an appreciate dinner for the Police Chaplain this afternoon, where there was a wide range of BBQ ribs, brisket, sausage, chicken... it would have been crass to refuse to partake of the bounty.

[Cow Poke]

Reminds me a bit of a guest speaker we had at my church a year or two ago who went way over the time our service normally ends, and when he noticed people starting to fidget and check their watches, he became angry and said something like, "If you don't want to be here then just leave! I dare you, get up and walk out! But you might miss out on something that God has to tell you!" and all I could think was, "You haven't read from the Bible in the last 40-minutes, so don't tell us you're speaking for God!" As much as I wanted to walk out, I didn't because it would have been unnecessarily disruptive and potentially misinterpreted by others -- and who knows, there might have been someone there who really did need to hear the message.

It's kinda like when there might be a low attendance on a Sunday Morning, and the preacher launches into a diatribe on the size of the crowd --- and I would think "Don't yell at ME, I'M HERE!!!!"

[rogue06]

It's kinda like when there might be a low attendance on a Sunday Morning, and the preacher launches into a diatribe on the size of the crowd --- and I would think "Don't yell at ME, I'M HERE!!!!"

Sorta kinda preaching to the choir so to speak.