The Church Is Flexible

[Cammmpbell]

For a thousand years the church demanded infant baptism. When many church members began to rebel against the idea of a child burning in hell the church decided to no longer require it. The scripture which supported it is still there.

For thousands of years the church hunted down, tortured and killed millions of innocent young women because they were accused of witchcraft. When sane people began to realize there was no such thing as a witch the church dropped the subject and no longer mention it. The scripture is still there.

For thousands of years the church tolerated and often accomodated slavery. When it was outlawed they stopped saying anything about it. The scripture is still there.

For thousands of years the church preached and accomodated the submission of women. After women were finally allowed to vote they stopped saying anything about it. Some churches are even allowing women to take part in church activities and even preach. The scripture is still there.

After preaching billions of hell fire and damnation sermons the church now declares that hell is only death and doesn't burn someone in hell for all eternity. The scripture is still there.

Amazing how the church adjusts to anything which begins to effect their weekly attendance and consequently...contributions. I predict that soon Gays will be welcomed into the church with open arms and marriages will be performed for same sex couples...right in the Sunday morning sanctuaries. The scripture condemning homosexuals to the flames of hell will still be there.

 

[Lokiate]

They already are in some places, and not so much in others.

 

[Caroljo]

This is have to agree with you on, for the most part.
Years ago my uncle was a Nazarene minister....back then it was against their "laws" to go to movies, dance, play cards, etc. Now, it's all fine. The thing is, those laws were "man made" laws, there's nothing in the Bible saying you can't do these things! I've been trying for a long time to find a church i can attend that follow God's laws and teach only what's in the Bible and don't have any additional Taboo's that aren't in the Bible....

God never changes....why do people think they have to try to change Him and what he expects from us? Of course many of the laws did change with the New Testament because Jesus came and fulfilled many of them from the Old Testament, for example we no longer have to make sacrifices to Him, Jesus fulfilled that with His sacrifice for us.

 

[Cammmpbell]

This is have to agree with you on, for the most part.
Years ago my uncle was a Nazarene minister....back then it was against their "laws" to go to movies, dance, play cards, etc. Now, it's all fine. The thing is, those laws were "man made" laws, there's nothing in the Bible saying you can't do these things! I've been trying for a long time to find a church i can attend that follow God's laws and teach only what's in the Bible and don't have any additional Taboo's that aren't in the Bible....

God never changes....why do people think they have to try to change Him and what he expects from us? Of course many of the laws did change with the New Testament because Jesus came and fulfilled many of them from the Old Testament, for example we no longer have to make sacrifices to Him, Jesus fulfilled that with His sacrifice for us.

Christianity was all but dead till the Roman emperor Constantine was himself converted about 340AD. Then he decided that Rome was the center, Christmas and Easter were to be on the dates of the pagan holidays and what would be included and excluded from the new testament.

The son of god, virgin birth, savior, crucifiction, resurrection story was told all over N. Africa and the middle east dozens of times beginning 2000 years before the Jewish version...which they no longer believe themselves. God is created in the image of man and not the other way round.

 

[LOki]

God is created in the image of man and not the other way round.

FTW!

 

[Caroljo]

This is have to agree with you on, for the most part.
Years ago my uncle was a Nazarene minister....back then it was against their "laws" to go to movies, dance, play cards, etc. Now, it's all fine. The thing is, those laws were "man made" laws, there's nothing in the Bible saying you can't do these things! I've been trying for a long time to find a church i can attend that follow God's laws and teach only what's in the Bible and don't have any additional Taboo's that aren't in the Bible....

God never changes....why do people think they have to try to change Him and what he expects from us? Of course many of the laws did change with the New Testament because Jesus came and fulfilled many of them from the Old Testament, for example we no longer have to make sacrifices to Him, Jesus fulfilled that with His sacrifice for us.

Christianity was all but dead till the Roman emperor Constantine was himself converted about 340AD. Then he decided that Rome was the center, Christmas and Easter were to be on the dates of the pagan holidays and what would be included and excluded from the new testament.

The son of god, virgin birth, savior, crucifiction, resurrection story was told all over N. Africa and the middle east dozens of times beginning 2000 years before the Jewish version...which they no longer believe themselves. God is created in the image of man and not the other way round.

I don't know about your first statement above, i've never studied it. But i don't agree with your second statement. The old testament tells about Jesus coming, the virgin birth, the crucifixion and resurrection that was all to come. I would like to know where you get your information from....and not from some Religion hating website either.
Once you are a believer, and you have faith in that Jesus came to earth and died for all our sins and was risen again, you KNOW in your heart that God is real. I've seen too many miracles and i know what He's done for me. But someone with a hard heart and closed mind will never experience it.

 

[Avatar4321]

So there is one single Christian Church now?

 

[Cammmpbell]

So there is one single Christian Church now?

As we speak if the south sea islands are included over 4000 ancient gods are being worshipped. The Christian faith including denominations, conventions, sects, cults, sub cults etc. count up to more than 44,000. Makes one wonder why an omnipotent god couldn't have managed to get his very important message across with more clarity.

I repeat...man created god in his image and not the other way round.

 

[Baron]

Amazing how the church adjusts to anything which begins to effect their weekly attendance and consequently...contributions. I predict that soon Gays will be welcomed into the church with open arms and marriages will be performed for same sex couples...right in the Sunday morning sanctuaries. The scripture condemning homosexuals to the flames of hell will still be there.

You know Apostasy was predicted in the Revelation Book.

 

[C_Clayton_Jones]

So there is one single Christian Church now?

Hypocrisy is practiced consistently among all the denominations.

I repeat...man created god in his image and not the other way round.

True.

 

[Disir]

Christianity was all but dead till the Roman emperor Constantine was himself converted about 340AD. Then he decided that Rome was the center, Christmas and Easter were to be on the dates of the pagan holidays and what would be included and excluded from the new testament.

I don't think there was an actual conversion. This was more of a power play to maneuver a group of people into a higher status and remove another group from power. I think that it is a mistake to lay all of this on Constantine because it ignores the Christology Wars. It gives him too much credit while ignoring the following centuries where doctrine is decided. This is where the picking and choosing comes in. Ignatius was livid of the other interpretations (and possible loss of power/control) and so began the collection of texts. You have four cities that play a role: Alexandria, Constantinople, Antioch and Rome.

The people didn't demand baptism. It became important when Augustine butchered original sin. In fact, it was Julian of Eclanum, a Pelagian, that called him out on it and says that Augustine's God is the persecutor of infants, who throws tiny babies into eternal fire. He won the label of heretic.