Apologetics

[freedom]

@theducktator I have never met an Anglican; that’s actually really cool!

Wellll, ok, it really depends on the Non-Denominational church.

I would say the church I attend is probably closer to Baptist, but there are also many variations of Baptist churches.

Simply put, a Non-Denominational church is a church that doesn’t belong to a specific church organization…we’re independent, and that means our beliefs are purely based on the Bible and not on church doctrine.

We don’t have special things we do during service, other than communion that we have on occasion, sermons, worship, etc.

We do instruments, we do singing, we believe in speaking in tongues and teen/adult baptism. We believe in salvation, we believe that Christ’s sacrifice is the only and complete way to come to the father and the only way to enter heaven. We believe in heaven, we believe in hell.

We just believe in the Bible, simply put. Not the opinions of the Church.

#BeardedSteveRogersIsSuperior

[freedom]

what I said above is my church specifically, btw

#BeardedSteveRogersIsSuperior

[freedom]

@thearcaneaxiom Ty for understanding and for your kindness <3

I’m still here to kindly discuss things if anyone would like, just not for debate 😊

@theducktator Youth Group can be fun for sure! I have also gone to a more local church’s youth group (my actual church is 1 hour away from us, and we tend to have to be there at 9 AM on Sundays for worship practice, so) on occasion, and they’re Baptist.

@whalekeeper Hope you feel better soon! <3

@trailblazer Non-Denominational’s unite! XD

 

jkjk, I love all of y’all no matter your denomination💖

#BeardedSteveRogersIsSuperior

[freedom]

it’s also interesting with my church though, because we’re renting it, basically.

The church building actually belongs to a Messianic Jewish church who use it on Saturday morning, we use it on Sunday Morning, and an African Pentecostal Church uses it on Sunday afternoons.

So it’s really interesting/fun to see all of us using the same building <3

#BeardedSteveRogersIsSuperior

[TheArcaneAxiom]

@theducktator

Oh, I forgot the Anglicans! Sorry😅 I know a few Episcopos that are pretty cool. Yeah, I’ve found Anglicans interesting because they’re a unique combination of Protestant and Catholic.

My dad says Non-Denominationals are essentially Baptists by another name. XD

That’s how I’ve always understood them yeah. They just have a specific emphasis on, well, baptism.

I will use the official name then. Who was Mormon? I didn’t even know he was a person.

Thanks!

Mormon was an ancient prophet in the Americas who compiled all the Nephite records into the Golden plates, hence the reason we call it the Book of Mormon. It’s kind of a joke of ours when people ask “are you Mormon?” we respond, “nah, that guy died thousands of years ago”😂

To clarify. We don’t baptize infants because we think they will go to hell if we don’t. We baptize them to officially enter them into God’s family, and so that they may be able to call him Father. When they get older, they may be confirmed, which is when a baptized person, usually a teen or adult, publicly affirms the Christian faith. Hopefully that makes sense. 🙂

Fair enough. That is one of the things I get hung up on is when people think babies go to hell, because some genuinely do, because “they reject Christ by default”. So if baptism is just how you enter the Father’s family, what is the alternative if not hell? Is there an in-between state, or some kind of limbo, or they become some unique class of angel? Or is there even some form of purgatory where they can eventually join into the Father’s family?

He is perfect in Justice, yet He is perfect in Mercy, even when we fail Him. For this, He is good.

[The Ducktator]

@freed_and_redeemed

We don’t have special things we do during service, other than communion that we have on occasion, sermons, worship, etc.

I went to a church at a camp recently that I think was Non-Denominational. It was fun, but I was kind of confused by the lack of structure. XD

We do instruments, we do singing, we believe in speaking in tongues and teen/adult baptism. We believe in salvation, we believe that Christ’s sacrifice is the only and complete way to come to the father and the only way to enter heaven. We believe in heaven, we believe in hell.

We just believe in the Bible, simply put. Not the opinions of the Church.

That makes sense. “We do singing” Is this just part of your summary, or are there some churches that don’t do singing? 😬 Singing is my favorite part of church. I’m not entirely sure what Baptists believe, other than they don’t do infant baptism or alcohol, so I can’t really compare the two.

Youth Group can be fun for sure! I have also gone to a more local church’s youth group (my actual church is 1 hour away from us, and we tend to have to be there at 9 AM on Sundays for worship practice, so) on occasion, and they’re Baptist.

I think it would fun to have a Youth Group, but most of the kids at our church are younger. Maybe my littlest siblings will get one someday. An hour is far. Our church is 10 minutes away from us, though some of our parishioners drive close to 45 minutes.

We rent our church too. It’s technically a Boy Scout center, so we have to set up the alter and chairs every Sunday.

The squirrels are collecting more nuts than usual this winter. I've already lost 3 relatives.

[freedom]

@theducktator

I went to a church at a camp recently that I think was Non-Denominational. It was fun, but I was kind of confused by the lack of structure. XD

Understandable. Non-Denominational churches tend to be more lenient on how we do things, haha. This past Sunday, we didn’t even have a sermon because our pastor felt God lead him to not do so even though he wanted to preach so bad!

That makes sense. “We do singing” Is this just part of your summary, or are there some churches that don’t do singing? 😬 Singing is my favorite part of church. I’m not entirely sure what Baptists believe, other than they don’t do infant baptism or alcohol, so I can’t really compare the two.

Just part of my summary. As far as I know, I’m pretty sure basically every denomination does singing. But we don’t just do things like hymns, and there are churches that don’t do instruments (I do know that much, lol).

In summary, the largest things Baptists believe (my church is Non-Denominational but still very similar to Baptist in some ways😂) are:

1. Biblical authority: Scripture is the ultimate guide for faith and practice.
2. Autonomy of the local church: Each church is self-governing and independent.
3. Priesthood of all believers: Every Christian has direct access to God without mediation.
4. Two ordinances: They practice believer’s baptism and the Lord’s Supper.
5. Individual soul liberty: Each person is responsible for their relationship with God.

And, of course, Baptism is very important to Baptists. But some Baptists don’t believe in the Holy Spirit, some do, and other such things…with there possibly being 65 different variations of Baptists 😅

But yes, Baptists believe in teen/adult baptism and generally abstain from alcohol.

I think it would fun to have a Youth Group, but most of the kids at our church are younger. Maybe my littlest siblings will get one someday. An hour is far. Our church is 10 minutes away from us, though some of our parishioners drive close to 45 minutes.

We rent our church too. It’s technically a Boy Scout center, so we have to set up the alter and chairs every Sunday.

I get that. We don’t have too many teens either, and those that are teens tend to not want to come to Youth, so🤷‍♀️ Yeah, it’s far, but we love our church <3

Yep, we have to take stuff down too and set it up, but our Pastor usually sets everything up the night before so we don’t have to do it on Sunday morning.

#BeardedSteveRogersIsSuperior

[freedom]

My grandparents (on Dad’s side) are Baptist and have been raised that way as far back as I know, and being in the South, most Christians I meet are Baptist, so I’m pretty familiar with Baptist beliefs…but I could still learn a whole lot more for sure!

#BeardedSteveRogersIsSuperior

[The Ducktator]

@thearcaneaxiom

We believe baptism is not necessary for salvation and life in heaven, though obviously you should be baptized if at all possible. Some infants, such as those miscarried before birth, will not be able to be baptized. They will still go to heaven. I will need to ask my dad for the rest of his reasons and we have a book in our church stuff that explains this. Here is the answer from the Anglican Catechism.

“Why is it appropriate to baptize infants?” (Q. 129).

“Because it is a sign of God’s promise that they are embraced in the covenant community of Christ’s Church. Those who in faith and repentance present infants to be baptized vow to raise them in the knowledge and fear of the Lord, with the expectation that they will one day profess full Christian faith as their own. “

The squirrels are collecting more nuts than usual this winter. I've already lost 3 relatives.

[whaley]

Thanks y’all! I’m feeling okayish enough to read these posts, at least.

@thearcaneaxiom

I’ve seen mostly non-denoms and Pentecostals… but I haven’t asked a lot of people. I know @godlyfantasy12 has some interesting Pentecostal views but I don’t think she would want a conversation about it.

we’re independent, and that means our beliefs are purely based on the Bible and not on church doctrine. We just believe in the Bible, simply put. Not the opinions of the Church.

*Assumption detector* Sorry 😅 I would like to stress real quick, belonging to a denomination doesn’t mean we believe church tradition is that important.

Plus, isn’t church doctrine an organized confession of Christian beliefs? It takes God’s word and summarizes it understandably. It’s just one way of professing and sticking to it. I’m sorry for speaking up… it just sounds like you’re saying church doctrine isn’t what it’s literally defined to be.

“Everything is a mountain”

[whaley]

@freed_and_redeemed

This past Sunday, we didn’t even have a sermon because our pastor felt God lead him to not do so even though he wanted to preach so bad!

What did you do then?? 🤣 Not to be that terrible person, but maybe he forgot his sermon notes…? Or was tired?

That probably sounds so rude of me since I don’t know him 😅

“Everything is a mountain”

[whaley]

Sorry if that came off as rude at all… I’ve always had that thought in the back of my mind whenever someone says something similar. I’m sure you have nice leaders who care about what they’re doing <3

“Everything is a mountain”

[freedom]

@whalekeeper You’re good. I understand you’re not trying to be rude <3

What did you do then?? 🤣

We stayed in a place of worship for two hours.

Yes, we sang and prayed and did worship for two hours without a sermon.

 

It was absolutely A M A Z I N G

 

y’all…like…I still don’t know what to say about it.

 

I felt God so close. People were feeling the presence of God, some falling, others hitting their knees on the ground and just sobbing (like me😂). Someone else was even being delivered from the presense of a demon.

 

 

I honestly don’t know what else to say.

Idk if I’ve ever felt God’s presence like that before.

#BeardedSteveRogersIsSuperior

[freedom]

@whalekeeper

*Assumption detector* Sorry 😅 I would like to stress real quick, belonging to a denomination doesn’t mean we believe church tradition is that important.

Plus, isn’t church doctrine an organized confession of Christian beliefs? It takes God’s word and summarizes it understandably. It’s just one way of professing and sticking to it. I’m sorry for speaking up… it just sounds like you’re saying church doctrine isn’t what it’s literally defined to be.

I do understand that.

I know not all are like this, and I’m sorry if it seemed that I was assuming something (I really wasn’t trying to) but many denominational churches I have seen/heard of hold so firmly to their church doctrine and some even place it above the authority of the Bible.

I’m not saying all do.

 

What I am saying is that BECAUSE I’m Non-Denominational, we don’t have a set doctrine besides the Bible.

 

 

I apologize if what I said was confusing. It’s hard to really explain something only through text and without being able to hear/see emotions 😅

#BeardedSteveRogersIsSuperior

[freedom]

and not all Church doctrine is Biblically sound, either. But I’m not going to get into that.

#BeardedSteveRogersIsSuperior

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