Is mainstream Christianity consistent with the message Christ preached 2,000 years ago? If it was then we should be able to find passages in the New Testament where Christ taught the guiding principals that inspired modern Christian Culture.
. Did Christ Teach The Following?
�If you follow me and keep my birthday then a man in a red suit will fly in the sky with magic reindeer and bring you presents for being my disciples. And if you follow me and follow my teachings then a bunny rabbit will bring you colored eggs every spring. And if you stay true to my teachings you will keep a hallow ceremony every autumn and dress as ghosts, witches, and devils and teach the children that extorting candy is right and good.�
Obviously Christ did not teach this yet these events are the highlights of Christian Culture every year. These hallmark ceremonies of mainstream Christianities have their origins in paganism and are not consistent with the teachings of Christ or the practices of the early church. How did Christianity deteriorate to this level of paganism and materialism?
Another hallmark of modern Christianity is the belief that all is required of his disciples today is to believe on him and accept him as their savior and their eternal life is assured. Regardless whether one studies the teaching of the Catholic Church or the Protestant Churches that came out of her, the belief systems of these mainstream organizations can be summarized as follows: �When someone is born, they get a soul that has never existed before, and unless that individual accepts Christ as their savior before they die, their soul goes to Hell.� This means that anybody who belongs to any other religion is doomed to eternal torment. Another interesting dilemma posed by this theology is that anybody who lived and died before the time of Christ is also doomed to Hell. How could they accept Christ if Christ hadn�t lived yet?
Yet when one studies the teachings of Christ, as recorded in the New Testament, he never claimed that he came to die for the sins of mankind or even that he came to save everyone at that time. In actuality, he on purposely cloaked his teaching in parables to prevent the masses from understanding the true meaning of his teachings.
Matthew 13 10 The disciples came to him and asked, �Why do you speak to the people in parables?� 11 He replied, �The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. 12 Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. 13 This is why I speak to them in parables: �Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand. 14 In them is fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: ��You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving. 15 For this people's heart has become calloused; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.� 16 But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear. 17 For I tell you the truth, many prophets and righteous men longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it. NIV
I agree with you Dennis. It's just very hard for me to find a place that will satisfy me in the areas of spiritual development and fellowship. I have been very busy with a project that takes up all of my weekends for now but I know that as soon as they are free I'll make a more concerted effort to find a body to fellowship with. I simply don't appreciate the status quo and mumbo jumbo of Christianese anymore.
Lost doctrines? The essential core doctrines of Christianity are here. God sent His word and it shall not return to Him void.
The opening post of this thread does not mention a single lost doctrine.
There is only an enumeration of complaints against peripheral issues that are neither here nor there.
Sabbath observance is not a doctrine of Christianity, so that does not qualify. Could we please have a few examples of lost doctrines?
Here is Christianity:
Jesus is God
Man needs Redemption
Jesus came in the flesh, real flesh to die a real death and provide real redemption. That essential doctrine is not lost.
Those who depend on Jesus for redemption will be reconciled to God and are born of God, born again, born from above, regenerated, made new, made sons, made living stones, placed in the body of Christ, made new creations in Christ.
Those who are believers are to live through the indwelling power of Christ (1 John 4:9).
Nothing of the Christian Faith is loss, unless you believe Jesus failed in His promise: "Upon this rock I will build my Church and the gates of Hades (Gk) [i.e. the DEFENSES of death and the kingdom of darknes] shall NOT PREVAIL AGAINST IT. If essential doctrines of Christianity are lost, then Jesus did not fulfill this promise.
Eh...I would think it's pretty obvious that most people have lost God's truth. That doesn't mean it doesn't exist anymore, or that evil will win out in the end...but God's truth has been twisted and misinterpreted and blatantly ignored because "it doesn't apply anymore", "it's only for the jews", or "it was for a different time". There must also be some truth that the Christian world is ignoring because, in the last days, God calls His people out of "babylon"/confusion.
Eh...I would think it's pretty obvious that most people have lost God's truth. That doesn't mean it doesn't exist anymore, or that evil will win out in the end...but God's truth has been twisted and misinterpreted and blatantly ignored because "it doesn't apply anymore", "it's only for the jews", or "it was for a different time". There must also be some truth that the Christian world is ignoring because, in the last days, God calls His people out of "babylon"/confusion.
