[America’s Most and Least] Bible-Minded Cities

http://cities.barna.org/americas-most-and-least-bible-minded-cities-2/ ^ | 1/21/2013 | Barna Research

[who knows what evil?]

The only thing I know about Catholicism is that it is not my ‘cup of tea’... :-)

[who knows what evil?]

I ran across a number of Christian ‘home churches’ when I was in Tennessee and North Carolina several years ago...I wonder if that is the group no one can ‘pigeonhole’...

[Elsie]

And which is why Rome would have dealt with a certain Itinerant Preacher from Galilee thusly:

---

Dear Sirs:

I understand that a position as pastor is open in your church and I would like to apply for it. I have some qualifications for the work, and this letter is an honest review of my past service in the ministry.

I am almost 60 years of age and have been in the ministry for about 25 years. I’ve never lasted very long in any one place, but once I did stay in one church three years. People say my health is not good, but I ignore these kinds of irritants and press on anyway, believing my ill health is actually an advantage to keep my big ego in check.

I’m a strong leader and have usually wound up in charge of everything I’ve ever done. I’ll be frank with you, I’m not always popular, and have been expelled from a number of cities where I ministered. But in every case it was because of a trouble-making opposition I seem to get everywhere I go. I just preach the truth and some people get angry when they hear it.

You may hear about the time when I confronted the highest leader in my denomination to his face -- in front of an entire church body. But he was clearly in the wrong and he backed down. It is that simple: I was right, and he was wrong. I spoke the truth, as I always do. And my truth won the day.

I have seldom been able to work full-time in the ministry, so I have usually had employment outside of my ministry to help support me. In some churches I received no salary at all, and occasionally my job even provided for paying the staff too, though that was not the average situation. Don't the idea though that I worked only with large churches. Most of the churches I've worked with were small, and all of them were able to meet in a house or small hall.

I am a good preacher and well-trained in Bible truths though I often preach longer than people think I should—sometimes for several hours. And you might hear that I have even preached all night at times.

I have had some success at church planting, though some believe my methods are wrong. What I do is enter a new city and find the local religious gathering. I attend there until I get an opportunity to teach or speak, then I show them how their doctrine is wrong and the doctrine I teach is correct. This usually causes a lot of division, and those who side with me generally split off the original group and with that core group I start a new church.

In case you follow up on my references you may discover some questionable events. So I need to give my side on these stories. Yes, it is true that I am guilty of conspiracy to commit murder. But that was before I accepted Christ. And it is true that because of several problems since becoming a Christian, I have been put in jail. But most of these were short stays, though I have just been released from a four-year stint -- two years in Caesarea and the last two here in Rome. But I’ve never given up on my faith—even as a convict. Yes, I have been accused as a trouble-maker but these are false accusations, the real trouble-makers are the Jews who keep following me everywhere I go stirring up trouble against me.

Spiritually I have had an incredible journey. Early in my ministry I had "another world" experience—which I do not even talk about. I heard inexpressible things. And you need not worry about a charismatic influence, for I am a hard-liner on that issue, always limiting speaking in tongues to a few at a time, and though I speak with tongues myself more than most everybody else, I never do so in public meetings.

I have always worked in a staff ministry, and usually expect a staff as normal. If your church can't pay them, I will figure out a way to have them work directly for me. My staff is generally loyal to me, in fact I demand it. In my first staff relationship, the senior member of the staff quickly recognized that I was more competent than he was, and he stepped down to the associate role so I could assume the leadership of our staff. Later that year the third member of our staff left abruptly walked out, but I thought at that time he was too soft for the ministry anyway. Eventually I lost my associate too when he tried to persuade me to bring that young fellow back on staff. I refused. He left and started another ministry, though we are still friends. I have been used to working with a large staff, but I admit that I've had a lot of staff turnover -- few of them stay very long. That's what multiplication is all about, though isn't it? As to my wife, I do not give any details other than I will be accompanied wherever I go not by her but by a physician, a faithful layman who has been with me for quite a while. He will be moving with me to wherever I go next.

There may be other rumors and accusations about me that you hear when following up my references Strong leaders have strong opposition. So, I wish to address these other rumors and reports directly to you as follows:

1. I can get along with church leaders, so long as they are not narrow-minded and legalistic.
2. I am not a church splitter. The only division I ever cause is where falsehood is being preached.
3. I am not a liberal on issues of behavior and keeping church traditions—though the Jerusalem headquarters ruled gentiles can't eat meat offered to idols, I have adapted that rule in the gentile churches -- face it, the headquarters is often in the business of protecting the old wineskins. I allow the gentiles in my churches to eat idol-meat, unless it would cause another to stumble.
4. As for legalism, it is true that I am an avid opponent of it and will do everything in my power to defeat these evil people who are enemies of the true gospel.
5. The single woman we stayed in that first week in Europe was a new convert and she had said, "If you consider me a believer, come home and stay with me." Besides, there were several of us anyway, and she had servants there too.
6. I did not use a new-age seeker-approach to reach the academic community. I merely started where they were—in a belief in an unknown God.
7. It is true that I stayed several years with one married couple never getting my own house, but that was on their invitation.
8. My involvement in casting out demons is not the primary focus of my ministry.
9. I do not have a "death-wish," and the only reason I refused to listen to the Christians about my plans to go back to the city where I was most opposed was because they were wrong in discerning the Lord's will and I was right.
10. I am not personally benefiting from my ministry and not making tons of money off of it—I do not even break even.
11. I did not even touch the big offering I have been raising for the last 20 years. I never transport the money myself and always have several witnesses hold it and take the cash to the project—I do not handle offering monies whatever you have heard from one of my former churches.

I hope you will consider my application.

 

[Elsie]

I ran across a number of Christian ‘home churches’ when I was in Tennessee and North Carolina several years ago...

They are EVERYWHERE!

Most will be following accepted Christian teachings; but many veer off into never-never land; thus we occasionaly get HeavensGaters, Branch Davidians, Jim Jones followers and MORMONs.

'Members' of these groups, if they want to avoid error, MUST follow the example of Acts 17:11

These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.

[Elsie]

Guess who...

[who knows what evil?]

These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.

Absolutely.

[daniel1212]

of course there are none. If you are a Christian and not a Catholic, you are a protestant....there isn't a third catagory.

In a very broad sense perhaps, however traditionalist as yourself even exclude the majority (being liberal) of Catholics from really being so, and deny that evangelical churches can properly be called churches.

Christians were not called such simply because they were in dissent from Judaism, nor is it proper to label all as Protestants who dissent from Rome.

If one agrees to define titles at least according their most basic original doctrinal distinctives, one of which is the supremacy of Scripture as the wholly inspired infallible Word of God, and its basic literal interpretive grid, and salvation by faith (albeit a faith that effects works) and not earned, then Mormons and other cults, which deny the very Christ that we affirm, and like Rome, effectively operate under out of sola ecclesia (the church is the supreme authority), then it is hardly fitting that they properly be called Protestants, even though the latter is variegated.

Groups such as these cults actually deviate more in basic tenets from historical Protestantism overall than the sedevacantists do from Catholicism, and who are among your fiercest critics. And then you have the various Anabaptists sects which were persecuted by both Rome and magisterial Protestants.

Keep in mind that the church itself essentially began in dissent, joining prophets who also were rejected for their own dissent, and by such the faith has been preserved, truth being established by Scriptural conformity in word and in power.

And it is because of what Protestantism historically fundamentally primarily believed overall then Evangelicalism (which was once equated with fundamental Protestantism) arose as a subset of Protestantism, due to deviation from fundamentals of faith by a significant amount of Protestantism.

This movement transcended denominations and historically has manifested a shared contention for the basics of the faith, such as the supremacy of Scripture as described above, the truths of the Apostle's creed, the Triune nature of group as the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, and other tenets, against cults which deviate from both historical Protestantism and Catholicism, as well as contending against certain other doctrines not warranted or contrary to Scripture.

However, as we see in Scripture, a great apostasy will occur before the Lord returns and all believers, dead or alive, henceforth are forever with Him ( not in purgatory ), and so only a relative remnant (including what is left of Israel ) shall be saved, by true faith, which endures and is rewarded. (Heb. 10:17,35) May all and i always walk consistent with said faith.

[daniel1212]

Thanks! That is an exceptional piece on Paul. Not to mention he has been known to travel by rope in escaping from enemies.

Goes along well with "Pope Paul"

The time he took part in a vow which involved a Jewish sacrifice - under what i think was the ill-advised advice of James and almost resulted in his death (Acts 21:20ff) - is the only real thing that might manifestly indicate some fault of Paul, if the dispute with Barnabas was wholly spiritual.

[daniel1212]

The Incarnate God-Man, Christ Jesus Our Lord, had an answer for their question. The "reformers" do not, and never will. "Lest the Lord build the house, the builders labor in vain."

Rather, the Lord and His church established their claims - which manifestly did not include such things as praying to the departed or ostentatious clothing and titles (not even being distinctively titled "priests") - upon Scriptural substantiation, as that is what is abundantly evidenced to be the transcendent material standard for obedience and testing truth claims.

And it is the historical evangelical gospel which effects manifest regeneration, testifying to the church as the body of Christ being that of the living God, (1Tim. 3:15) versus its institutionalized counterpart overall, of which Rome and many Protestant churches are part of.

As for the work of the Reformers being "in vain," instead you could be thankful for the impetus they provided toward Rome's own reforms, but above all for the multitudes that have been added to the kingdom of God thru their preaching which convicts souls of of their damned and destitute desperate condition, and directs them to lay hold of the risen Lord Jesus for salvation by His sinless shed blood, and so follow Him . And evangelicals yet evidence more of than Catholics overall (though both as in overall decline).

For to be truly in vain then no good fruit could be allowed, but as Rome affirms that properly baptized Protestants have the Holy Spirit, and are part of the general body of Christ, and (according to PJ2) even have saints, then you must allow that their work has not been in vain.

Or are you are part of the SSPX sect or sedevacantist schism, if you do not mind me asking?

[metmom]

Not hard if you know Scripture.

[Rightly Biased]

lots of info here I don’t wanna lose.

so bttt... and bookmarked

[mitch5501]

I've never seen that.That was great!

cheers

[editor-surveyor]

How many epistles did ol’ Barny write?

And how might Mark have ultimately ended up with Paul, rather than Barnabas?

[editor-surveyor]

The guy really needed to go to a Job Fair, and learn how to compose a good resume...

[Elsie]

lol

[daniel1212]

I really am just a peon who has far to go. Besides, but do i really one looks like a pope to you?

circa 1995, on right

[editor-surveyor]

Just put two ball caps on at once with the bills pointing up; it’ll look enough like a fish hat to satisfy the Dagon worshiping mackerel snappers.

The pic is too shady to read, what were you selling?

[CynicalBear]

Oh, I don’t know. Put one them pointy hats on ya and a nice white robe with some gold ropes strung around and some of them nice red shoes we could maybe have somethin there! LOL

[daniel1212]

I am holding a poster of "The Bridge,

from The Friends of Israel (75 years and a good org overall), which is powerful picture, though the one i was wearing was faded.

and offering Fellowship tract League gospel tracts at a Freedom Rally for the legalization of pot. Back then most any event would see one or two of us graciously literally holding forth the word of life (we were even in the middle of the 94 Woodstock ["mudstock"] festival reunion in NY by God's design). For me its mainly the Internet and locals for now, but i can assure you that God is in the "tract" ministry, even though it can make you identify with the situation of Ezek. 3:4-10 (this is NOT the Bible belt), and helps to do as 33:8 states but you have far more conversations than without them, as a tract offers you the opportunity to explain it (as in Acts 8:27-35) especially among young people. However, you do have aberrant types out there also.

I am only wearing one hat, and it likely says "Jesus is Lord." Years previous we did just shirt and tie evangelism, knocking doors as part of a Baptist church, but as the Lord placed us more in marketplace (sometimes literally) evangelism, there was a need to be more conspicuous in the sense of placing Christ and eternity before souls and calling them see the choice they must make.

[daniel1212]

Thanks, i think the Jesus baseball cap will do for ID in outreach.