Questions to Ask Before Joining Any Churchainity Group Organization

Musicmaster

Musicmaster

To help you sort out the doctrinal stance of any given churchianity group you may be considering to join with, here are some helpful questions to ask THEM in order to take their doctrinal temperature:

1. What is man's biggest problem: sin or self-esteem?
2. What must a man do to inherit eternal life?
3. How do you deliver the salvation message?
4. How hard is it to become a Christian?
5. How often do you talk about sin, righteousness, and judgment?
6. How seeker-sensitive is your church?
7. How do you handle complex theology in your sermons?
8. What is your mixture of topical vs. expository preaching?
9. Describe your youth programs.
10. Describe your evangelism programs.
11. What church growth model do you follow?
12. How much do you give to missions and the hungry?
13. Do you believe the Bible contains any errors?
14. Do you believe in a literal six day creation?
15. Do you believe in a literal hell and eternal punishment?
16. When you distribute the Lord's Supper, do you emphasize the need to examine yourself?
17. Can a person who is living in a willful and persistent, unrepentant lifestyle of sin inherit eternal life?
18. Does your church exercise church discipline?
19. What criteria are used to determine if someone is qualified to be a Sunday school teacher or a youth volunteer?
20. What are the essentials of the Christian faith?

Need to find a church? Here’s three sites that can help:
founders.org/church-search
tms.edu/find-a-church
9marks.org/church-search

For more insight into the questions above, see Todd Friel's (sp) video:

 
I can answer number 4 no problem.

It’s really hard.
The amount of times I flung my bible in the bin, only to scramble it back out a week or 2 later when I stopped getting angry because I wasn’t getting anywhere or, where I shoved it on the shelf because I didn’t want to be a Christian anymore because the pub seemed better…

Or, when I just wanted to join in all the moaning at work without putting in any effort to try and change anything.

Yes it hard.

I don’t suppose it gets any easier either.
I’ve not even touched on family matters yet either😬
 
Via dolarossa said:
I can answer number 4 no problem.

It’s really hard.
The amount of times I flung my bible in the bin, only to scramble it back out a week or 2 later when I stopped getting angry because I wasn’t getting anywhere or, where I shoved it on the shelf because I didn’t want to be a Christian anymore because the pub seemed better…

Or, when I just wanted to join in all the moaning at work without putting in any effort to try and change anything.

Yes it hard.

I don’t suppose it gets any easier either.
I’ve not even touched on family matters yet either😬
Click to expand...
Hi Via I agree it is a hard journey. We all stumble but as long as we pick ourselves ip again, like you do we will make it in the end.
Your posts are encouraging :)
 
Via dolarossa said:
I can answer number 4 no problem.

It’s really hard.
The amount of times I flung my bible in the bin, only to scramble it back out a week or 2 later when I stopped getting angry because I wasn’t getting anywhere or, where I shoved it on the shelf because I didn’t want to be a Christian anymore because the pub seemed better…

Or, when I just wanted to join in all the moaning at work without putting in any effort to try and change anything.

Yes it hard.

I don’t suppose it gets any easier either.
I’ve not even touched on family matters yet either😬
Click to expand...

Via, it is written:

1 John 2:26-27
26 These [things] have I written unto you concerning them that seduce you.
27 But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.

When it seems difficult, when we feel dejected, low, put down, empty, THAT is when we need to be on our knees before Him, and pour it out to the Lord. When what is written speaks of those that seduce you, that's not just people, but life circumstances and happenstance. It's also fallen angels that seduce people away from the strength of faith. THEY are the prime targets against which we aim our prayers unto the Lord:

Ephesians 6:12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high [places].

It is written:

Romans 8:37-39
37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.
38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Again, it is written:

Romans 3:22 Even the righteousness of God [which is] by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference:

2 Corinthians 5:21 For he hath made him [to be] sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

You don't have to FEEL as though you are the righteousness of God in Christ, that is imputed upon all who call upon His name.

So, it is written:

Psalm 147:6 The LORD lifteth up the meek: he casteth the wicked down to the ground.

So long as we are meek, He lifts us up in His strength, especially when we cannot lift ourselves up.

MM
 
Via dolarossa said:
I can answer number 4 no problem.

It’s really hard.
The amount of times I flung my bible in the bin, only to scramble it back out a week or 2 later when I stopped getting angry because I wasn’t getting anywhere or, where I shoved it on the shelf because I didn’t want to be a Christian anymore because the pub seemed better…

Or, when I just wanted to join in all the moaning at work without putting in any effort to try and change anything.

Yes it hard.

I don’t suppose it gets any easier either.
I’ve not even touched on family matters yet either😬
Click to expand...

Becoming a Christian is simply a matter of being born from above. That is how we are added to the body of Christ. There's no formula or incantation. It is by faith and the Grace of God that we are saved and born again.

So, when some organization places obstacles before anyone, they are not spreaders of the TRUE Gospel.

Paul laid it out so very simply, for it is written:

Colasians 1:26-27
26 [Even] the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints:
27 To whom God would make known what [is] the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:

How amazing is that, and so simple?

MM
 
Musicmaster said:
Romans 8:37-39
37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.
38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Click to expand...

I needed to hear this message today. Thank you.
 
Why do we need to ask all these questions when we can just join your house church Musicmaster?

By the way, do you play any instruments?
 
Musicmaster said:
To help you sort out the doctrinal stance of any given churchianity group you may be considering to join with, here are some helpful questions to ask THEM in order to take their doctrinal temperature:

1. What is man's biggest problem: sin or self-esteem?
2. What must a man do to inherit eternal life?
3. How do you deliver the salvation message?
4. How hard is it to become a Christian?
5. How often do you talk about sin, righteousness, and judgment?
6. How seeker-sensitive is your church?
7. How do you handle complex theology in your sermons?
8. What is your mixture of topical vs. expository preaching?
9. Describe your youth programs.
10. Describe your evangelism programs.
11. What church growth model do you follow?
12. How much do you give to missions and the hungry?
13. Do you believe the Bible contains any errors?
14. Do you believe in a literal six day creation?
15. Do you believe in a literal hell and eternal punishment?
16. When you distribute the Lord's Supper, do you emphasize the need to examine yourself?
17. Can a person who is living in a willful and persistent, unrepentant lifestyle of sin inherit eternal life?
18. Does your church exercise church discipline?
19. What criteria are used to determine if someone is qualified to be a Sunday school teacher or a youth volunteer?
20. What are the essentials of the Christian faith?

Need to find a church? Here’s three sites that can help:
founders.org/church-search
tms.edu/find-a-church
9marks.org/church-search

For more insight into the questions above, see Todd Friel's (sp) video:

Click to expand...
Excellent question! I have at one time used all of them.
 
Lanolin said:
Why do we need to ask all these questions when we can just join your house church Musicmaster?

By the way, do you play any instruments?
Click to expand...

Just percussion instruments. Anything else I could not play to save my life. I do, however, compose music and create it with software that makes use of recordings of REAL instruments, and then plays those samples as if I were playing the real thing. I have quite a few samples of my work online. Here's a sample of an orchestral piece I wrote and created through my computer:

https://soundcloud.com/fourwindsangels%2Funbounded-love

Asking those question are vitally important if one wishes to know what manner of group and doctrines one is entering into. Otherwise, one could wind up in the midst of a cultic grouping that teaches and follows false doctrine.

MM
 
most Churches have a statement of faith questions are good to ask in most cases just by attending and listening and with your Bible follow the scriptures that are being used.. we have discernment it dont take long to figure it out
 
Just read your Bible beforehand, pray, maybe go to one or two services, and if anything seems 'off' you don't need to go back.
You can visit a church without having to officially join it. Many churches actually put a whole lot on people if they decide to officially pledge to be members or become 'staff'.

If a church has another book they are using instead of the Holy Bible, be wary. eg a book of doctrines and covenants, a catechism, a 'new our exclusive church only translation', Pearl of Great Price, Live your best life now, Chairman Mao's red book...Mein Kampf...a manifesto.....

God wants all your money....(I think thats the name of one of those books!)
The Purpose Driven Life...
 
The problem is, however, it can take months or years for one to hear some or most of the answers to those questions.

If a pastor is too busy to answer a potential new member, then they are already too large in number, and need to split into a new branch church. Pastors should know each and every member. If they don't, then they are no longer a pastor, but just a teacher from afar. Pastoring is an ACTIVE function, not a passive one by way of teaching from afar, or vicariously through a satellite dish or the internet.

MM
 
It shouldn't take that long if you send a short email or txt message or phone call. Just don't ask them all at once.
I think a lot of larger churches have 'new believers' classes anyway if they are a growing church that welcomes new babes in Christ.

I don't really know what the ideal number congregaton is though. Whatever fits I suppose. Maybe 70? if it gets twice that number split again? I recall that Moses when he had difficulty marshalling the Hebrews he got advised to delegate tasks.

Also Jesus number of disciples I think got up to 70, I remember reading that somewhere in the Bible. And then he sent them out two by two.

I wouldn't worry too much about numbers, I think some people worry too much about stuff like that. Groups can always regroup. Also groups don't always stay static.
 
Lanolin said:
It shouldn't take that long if you send a short email or txt message or phone call. Just don't ask them all at once.
I think a lot of larger churches have 'new believers' classes anyway if they are a growing church that welcomes new babes in Christ.

I don't really know what the ideal number congregaton is though. Whatever fits I suppose. Maybe 70? if it gets twice that number split again? I recall that Moses when he had difficulty marshalling the Hebrews he got advised to delegate tasks.

Also Jesus number of disciples I think got up to 70, I remember reading that somewhere in the Bible. And then he sent them out two by two.

I wouldn't worry too much about numbers, I think some people worry too much about stuff like that. Groups can always regroup. Also groups don't always stay static.
Click to expand...

New believers classes? That's a sad state of affairs. Shuffling people through a systematized, programmatic litany of steps, like a public school system, that is what my other thread addresses on the topic of Passive Pastoring. Perhaps there should be additional questions added to that list, such as:

21. What percentage of the congregation does the 'pastor' know personally?
22. Is there discipleship efforts in the organization that are face to face, within arm's reach of each other?
23. Is the 'pastor' directly involved in discipling new converts, and those seeking grater depths and growth in their faith besides just standing behind the pulpit week in and week out, expecting their sermons to do the work for them in equipping the saints AND doing the evangelism the gathering of believers was never supposed to be purposed for?
24. Does the pastor teach what TRUE worship is, and what it is not?
25. Does the pastor teach the difference between praise and worship, in that they are not synonymous and interchangeable?
26. Do the elders function as biblical elders rather than the typical, watered down elders who simply had been members for a specified period of time as opposed to actually being mature in the faith and in their own spiritual stature?
27. Has the church given itself over to the more worldly, egalitarian understanding of elders and pastors as the bastion defense against heresy?
28. Are mature believers encouraged and empowered to serve pastoring functions within the church to assist the elders in growing their numbers as elders, all in preparation to split into a new church plant to facilitate growth rather than to build a larger and fancier facility as a monument to the senior pastor's own pride and accomplishment?
29. Is there a women's ministry where elder women instruct the younger women in biblical womanhood?
30. Is true fellowship ever allowed in the gathering of believers where each one can share their greatest joys or deepest sorrows to the congregation, a psalm, a song, a praise, a teaching, and all the other things the Bible we all claim to believe, is actually practiced?

I'm sure we could add a whole slew of additional questions, the answers to which would end up being NO, NO, NO, and more NO's.

The systematized approach is broken, and the usual response to that is for the institutional apologist being questioned simply shrugs their shoulders in defeated indifference and says, "Well, that's just the way it is. Pastors simply don't have the time to do it all."

THAT is the malady of modern churchianity. That creature they call their "pastor" is serving in a capacity that is beyond reason for him to be a pastor of biblical stature and function. In this post-cross world of ours, as always, the dude who has been given the title of 'pastor' has been into an impossible state. There's simply no way he can do it all, which would be to function as a biblical pastor, and in accordance with all the expectations of those who hired them.

What else can be added? Any thoughts?

MM
 
forgiven61 said:

1 John 2:20​


“But ye have an unction from the Holy One, and ye know all things.”=====discernment
Click to expand...

I like that section of scripture. :)

1 John 2:27 But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.
 
Musicmaster said:
To help you sort out the doctrinal stance of any given churchianity group you may be considering to join with, here are some helpful questions to ask THEM in order to take their doctrinal temperature:

1. What is man's biggest problem: sin or self-esteem?
2. What must a man do to inherit eternal life?
3. How do you deliver the salvation message?
4. How hard is it to become a Christian?
5. How often do you talk about sin, righteousness, and judgment?
6. How seeker-sensitive is your church?
7. How do you handle complex theology in your sermons?
8. What is your mixture of topical vs. expository preaching?
9. Describe your youth programs.
10. Describe your evangelism programs.
11. What church growth model do you follow?
12. How much do you give to missions and the hungry?
13. Do you believe the Bible contains any errors?
14. Do you believe in a literal six day creation?
15. Do you believe in a literal hell and eternal punishment?
16. When you distribute the Lord's Supper, do you emphasize the need to examine yourself?
17. Can a person who is living in a willful and persistent, unrepentant lifestyle of sin inherit eternal life?
18. Does your church exercise church discipline?
19. What criteria are used to determine if someone is qualified to be a Sunday school teacher or a youth volunteer?
20. What are the essentials of the Christian faith?

Need to find a church? Here’s three sites that can help:
founders.org/church-search
tms.edu/find-a-church
9marks.org/church-search

For more insight into the questions above, see Todd Friel's (sp) video:

Click to expand...

My checklist is much shorter:

1. Does the church preach Christ:
a. Who He Is
b. His payment for our sin
c. And in the words of Francis Schaefer, How should we then Live?

End of list

All teaching must proceed from 1a and 1b and result in 1c.
 
Musicmaster said:
1. What is man's biggest problem: sin or self-esteem?
2. What must a man do to inherit eternal life?
3. How do you deliver the salvation message?
4. How hard is it to become a Christian?
5. How often do you talk about sin, righteousness, and judgment?
6. How seeker-sensitive is your church?
7. How do you handle complex theology in your sermons?
8. What is your mixture of topical vs. expository preaching?
9. Describe your youth programs.
10. Describe your evangelism programs.
11. What church growth model do you follow?
12. How much do you give to missions and the hungry?
13. Do you believe the Bible contains any errors?
14. Do you believe in a literal six day creation?
15. Do you believe in a literal hell and eternal punishment?
16. When you distribute the Lord's Supper, do you emphasize the need to examine yourself?
17. Can a person who is living in a willful and persistent, unrepentant lifestyle of sin inherit eternal life?
18. Does your church exercise church discipline?
19. What criteria are used to determine if someone is qualified to be a Sunday school teacher or a youth volunteer?
20. What are the essentials of the Christian faith?
Click to expand...
21. Have any kids gotten hurt on your parking lot party jumpers?
22. How many women pastors does this Campus ..oops, Church support?
 
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