Tuesday, August 07, 2007
Christianity is a Kingdom
Hello blogger friends. I just felt like writing about a thought I had recently. Christianity is not a democracy, it is a kingdom. Jesus Christ states that His second coming will be to establish His Kingdom, and that the current establishment on earth is a kingdom (the Church), and that the kingdom of God is within us. The Church is not to be run by people, although people are the Church of God. People should not vote on what is truth, what kind of worship should be offered to God, what kind of social actions should be taken by the people of God, etc... These issues are not a matter of man’s personal opinion. We don't have a right to "vote" on what we agree is the truth. We must humbly present our requests for truth before the King and wait for His answer. However, He did give us His holy word, the Bible, His will for living each day of our life with every answer to all of life's questions. One must be guided by the Holy Spirit in order to correctly interpret and understand the Holy Scriptures or there is a possibility of falling into error, which so many have done. We must also spread the word to all creation that their rightful King is returning to establish His kingdom and He will be judging the living and the dead. Submission to the King is not an option. He is, however, a good and loving King. Amen.
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1 comment:
"I think Paul's statement that the current establishment on earth is a kingdom (the Church), and that the kingdom of God is within us." is the best definition I have ever heard of the Church of Christ on Earth.
"For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them." Eph 2:8-10
I was a Roman Catholic my entire life. I have only been a Protestant about a year. I am now studying to become a Presbyterian. As Presbyterians we are all members of the Priesthood of Christ. I was one of the fortunate to have been elected by God to receive sanctification because of his grace not my own merits. It is the basis of the wonderful Protestant doctrine of Faith and Salvation by Justification. It is the basis of the Protestant Reformation and the basis of Protestantism as the true Gospel and church of Jesus Christ on earth as he established it 2000 years ago.
I also think that your statement that "the current establishment on earth is a kingdom (the Church), and that the kingdom of God is within us.” defines better than any definition I have ever heard before of who and what is the church. When I was a roman catholic I admired the works of JohnXXIII and the RC church leaders of Vatican II who had the courage to define the church as the People of God. It was hoped by many others and me that that statement would be the basis and beginning of the Roman church overturning the terrible teachings of the Council of Trent which tried to make into heresy the true and correct teachings of the Protestant Reformers and the Protestant Reformation. Over the last 35 years the teachings and reforms of Vatican II have been slowly reversed by the current pope and his curia. Protestantism must be defended now more than ever. It is also one of the reasons I converted to Protestantism.
I am now a Reformed Protestant because I began to search for the truth of the gospel and know myself better as a Christian. Paul Thompson said, "We must humbly present our requests for truth." I was born again as a Christian in that search for truth and I was lead by God in that search to the Reformed Theology and the Presbyterian Protestant fold. I believe that the Presbyterian fold is the purest and correct teaching of the Gospel.
I also think Paul's statement "The Church is not to be run by people, although people are the Church of God." is the best statement of what is the church of Jesus Christ and who are the people who are the people of God. It follows the logic of John Calvin who I now believe was one of the greatest of Christian men and one of the greatest reformers and a wonderful leader of the Glorious Protestant Christian Reformation over 400 years ago. The reformation was necessary in order to salvage the catholic universal Christian church on earth from the corruption's and abuses that had developed over hundreds of years by the control of Rome and the men who controlled the roman church, the bishop of Rome and his cardinals. The current roman pope had comments that he made regarding the fullness of truth recently. I think Paul Thompson's statement on “Christianity is a Kingdom” is a better teaching on the fullness of truth than any other I have heard.
The Roman Catholic Church strayed from the community of Christ, as it existed in the early days of Christianity. It became a worldly Kingdom after Constantine made Christianity the religion of the Roman Empire. The roman church had a worldly head on earth known as the Roman pontiff or pope. It was being run by men and not following the Gospel as Christ taught. The church of Rome and the gospel it said it taught became corrupted because it did not submit itself to the Bible as the only and final authority on Gods word on earth and His Kingdom which Christ said is not of this world. It is also a basic tenet of the Protestant Reformation. Only Christ is head of His Church and we his people submit to the Scriptures as the only and final authority for his church. It is why I became a Protestant about one year ago. I knew Christianity was a Kingdom but not of this earth. When I discovered the fullness of that truth when studying the Protestant Reformation and reading scripture it was easy for me to become a born again Christian, I simply followed what I believed and knew was the truth. I knew as Paul also stated that Submission to the King is not an option. I knew and believe the Reformed Theology and the discovery of its teachings presented truth in its fullness to me. I believe that I experienced as Calvin also described it in his own words and his own search for the fullness of truth “a true Protestant Conversion.”
As a Calvinist Presbyterian Protestant I agree with Paul who so eloquently said, “the kingdom of God is within us." The fullness of truth can be found there. Submission is as Paul Thompson said to the true King and head of the Church, Jesus Christ, not a roman pope who is another man.
Paul, when you become an ordained Presbyterian minister, I hope I am still around. I would like to come and hear your first sermon.
God bless you Paul and may God take care of you so that you return safely to your family in the near future.
Dudley Davis
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