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Char4Jesus
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« on: March 10, 2009, 05:40:21 pm »

If a person can't go to church because of a disability, does this make them less of a christian?

Or, like in my case,   sometimes I can't go because of the anxiety (which is all in my mind) but sometimes I could go, but choose not to,  does this mean that I'm not a christian at all,  not a good christian,   or is it that only God should judge me on this and not others?

And in the case of someone without any disabilities that chooses not to go to church for their own reasons,  should other people judge them?

Next part of the questions   lol.

Can an online site (like CIP) be a substitute for a church.   We have the sermons, the bible studies, the prayers, and the fellowship.   Can CIP be considered a church by any of the people in the situations above?   

I would like to see answers backed by scriptures if possible.     This has been bothering me for a long time now and I'm wanting to know if what I feel in my heart is right, or if what others are telling me is right.   

Thank you all in advance for helping me to discover God's answers for myself and maybe others.

God Bless you and I love you

Charlene
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« Reply #1 on: March 11, 2009, 12:25:37 am »

First of all  John 3:16 says-

For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that WHOSOEVER believes in him will have everlasting life.

Salvation is not earned it is a free gift.

We are expected to be transformed in the image and likeness of Jesus once we receive salvation, he comes to live in us.

Be ye not conformed to the world but transformed by the renewing of your mind.

The bible does tell us to not forsake the assembling of the saints.  We are to edify one another and support one another being knitted together as one body in Christ.

The parable of the lost sheep, and how the Shepard will leave the flock and go after the one sheep that has strayed lets us know that their is power in unity.  If we stay to ourselves we become weak prey for the enemy to attack.

The bible also tells us that wherever two or more are gathered in His name he is with us.

Once we are saved Christ lives in us, it is our spiritual growth that needs to be nurtured, the spirit of God in us will lead us into a closer walk with him if we allow it.

I have a friend that is bedridden and she is spirit filled and spends her days on the phone praying for others.  Disability should not take away our desire to love one another and fellowship if at all possible.

I f a person believes in his heart that Christ was raised from the dead and asks Jesus to be Lord of his life he will be given salvation, then he needs to be baptized.Romans 6 talks about baptism.

Different circumstances in our lives keep people out of the church, it is the condition of your heart God looks at.  If you feel in your heart you should be attending a church then I would say the holy spirit may be leading you to seek a church to worship.  We need to listen to the spirit of God and be careful not to get offended by churches and  the people but go to worship the Lord and receive what he has for us. What amazing miracles are seen when we attend spirit filled services and see the hand of God in peoples lives.  We are supposed to edify one another, with songs and psalms making melody to the Lord.  That is for us. So that our joy may be full.

Hope this helps,  Love Laurie




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II Chronicles 7:14 If my people who are called by my name, shall humble themselves and pray, and seek my face, and TURN FROM THEIR WICKED WAYS; THEN  will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and heal their land.

Your sister in Christ,  Laurie
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« Reply #2 on: March 11, 2009, 08:42:55 am »

For believers, there is no substitute for attending church. Besides something that pleases God, it is necessary for a believer’s spiritual well-being. For shut-ins or invalids who aren’t able to go to church, the ministries on radio or TV might be the only kind of fellowship or spiritual nourishment that they get. God certainly understands the circumstances of these people, and recognizes the sincerity of their hearts. However, it is a different matter for those who could attend church but are too lazy, or put other things such as entertainment and amusements before God, or who harbor bitterness or indifference toward other believers.
It is important to attend church for the following reasons:

(1) It is an Expression of our Love for God

It is where we can gather with other believers to publicly bear witness of our faith and trust in God, something that is required of all Christians (Matt. 10:32-33) -- and it is where we can bring Him offerings of praise, thanks, and honor, which are pleasing to Him. The psalmist wrote, “I will declare Your name to My brethren; In the midst of the assembly I will praise You” (Psa. 22:22).

(2) It builds up our Spiritual Strength

Paul states that Christians face a wrestling match with the Devil and his evil spiritual forces, and warns that the church must put on spiritual armor for protection, as it will take everything at our disposal to stand (Eph. 6:10-18). How important that we take every opportunity available to receive ministry and strength from God’s Word. “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Rom. 10:17).

3) It brings a special visitation of the Lord’s Presence

Even though Jesus resides within the heart of every believer, he honors a gathering in his name by coming in the “midst,” with his power, awareness, and anointing. In such a gathering, Christ is able to do things in hearts that he may not at any other time. The scripture says that God inhabits the praise of His people (Psa. 22:3), and in such an atmosphere the Holy Spirit will often manifest spiritual gifts that minister to the body of Christ. “For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them” (Matt. 18:20).

(4) It provides fellowship with other Christians

“But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7). Keeping ourselves in love and harmony with other believers keeps us humble before God so that Christ’s blood can continue to cleanse us from our sins.

(5) It combines our spiritual strength in prayer

The Bible indicates that agreement in prayer with other believers has special favor with God. “Again I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven” (Matt. 18:19). There is multiplied strength in the combined faith of God’s people, and it is clear that greater spiritual gains can be realized through corporate prayer and worship. This agrees with how God has historically blessed the union of His people in battle against their enemies. “Five of you shall chase a hundred, and a hundred of you shall put ten thousand to flight; your enemies shall fall by the sword before you” (Lev. 26:8).

(6) It honors the Lord’s Day

The fourth commandment of the law that God gave Moses was to set aside the seventh day of the week, as a holy day to the Lord. “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy” (Ex. 20:8).

love,
Georgie
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Hebrews 11:1 (NIV) Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.
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« Reply #3 on: March 11, 2009, 10:05:05 am »

Hi Charlene..what a great question!  smitten  Laurie and Georgie answered you perfectly. The anxiety you feel about going to church is a tactic the enemy uses all the time with believers. If there is way for him to get between you and God, he's going to do it. I get furious when the devil does these things and I like nothing more than to rub his face in his failed attempts of stealing my joy. But should people judge you for not going to church? Of course not!  There are many 'so called Christians' attending church every Sunday that go for no other reason than to say 'they went to church.' Their time spent with God starts on Sunday morning and ends the moment the service is over.' I feel so sorry for them.

Like Lauri said, the fact that you have uneasiness about not going to church could be the Holy Spriit speaking to you. Church isn't the building, it's the people in it. All there to stand united in Praise of the One who created us. There is power in numbers. Healings happen, veils are lifted and strong friendships are made. Countless blessings come from belonging to a church. So many folks can't go to church though and minstries such as this one are a perfect way to spend time with God. We receive many emails from members that have been blessed by the Sunday Sermon and the Weekly Devotional. This is how we know God is in complete control of this ministry. He is in our Houses of Worship and He is here. It is incredible how God makes a way for us to worship Him. No one is left out or left behind.

Since Lauri and Georgie already gave you the Scriptures you needed, I won't add any. I love what you said about needing to have God's Word back the answers that are given. Since CIP is a 'Fellowship' ministry we sometimes tend to visit more than anything. That's a good thing though as long as we keep Jesus as our focus.  smitten

love,
terri
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"HE PERFORMS WONDERS THAT CANNOT BE FATHOMED, MIRACLES THAT CANNOT BE NUMBERED" 
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Char4Jesus
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« Reply #4 on: March 11, 2009, 10:25:05 am »

These are great answers and I thank you.   I don't feel uneasy about going to church,  I feel that I get most of what I need here 7 days a week.  But I have heard other say that I'm not a christian, or a good christian because I don't get out and go to church.   I believe that God led me to CIP and I love the peaceful warm feeling that I get after one of the prayer meetings, or reading a good post that I feel was meant to me.  I know that God talks to me a lot in CIP and I'm so happy that He has led me here.   I'm just not sure how to answer those people that say I'm  not a good christian (one of them is a pastor so it's really hard to know what to say)

Charlene

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God Bless you and I love you
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« Reply #5 on: March 11, 2009, 11:11:34 am »


Are you saying a pastor said 'You aren't a good Christian'? Yikes!! If this is the case, I would question his ability to know who God is. Charlene only you know what the Lord is speaking to you. Everyone of the planet has an opinion about what true faith is and how we are to follow God. Our relationship with Jesus is a personal one. Jesus said "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me." And this is just what you do sis. Most folks don't know the magnitude of your service here in CIP. Serving in this ministry is a daily and time consuming job. A job that God has so graciously called you to and one that I know you love. For the one's that say 'You are not a good Christian', they need only to look inside themselves to find out why they have a need to throw stones. If they are honest with themselves they will find that it is their faith that is lacking, not yours.

love,
terri
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"HE PERFORMS WONDERS THAT CANNOT BE FATHOMED, MIRACLES THAT CANNOT BE NUMBERED" 
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« Reply #6 on: March 11, 2009, 01:12:53 pm »

 AMEN AMEN TO ALL OF THE ABOVE .I TO CANT GET OUT TO CHURCH ANY MORE .BUT GOD IS EVERY WERE AND WHEN I CALL ON HIM  HE BE WITH ME WERE EVER I AM. AND YES CIP IS A GREAT BLESSING TO US . IT HELPS ME TO PRAY HERE ON POST FOR OTHERS .AND IN E-MAILS . OUR CHURCH DID HAVE A PRAY LINE .I KNOW THIS IS WHAT GOD WANTS US TO DO AS HOME BOUND CHRISTIANS. IT SOMETIMES TAKES ME 2 TRYS TO GET TO MY CAR TO HAVE HUBBY TAKE ME TO DOCTOR APOINTMENTS  BUT WITH A LITTLE TALK WITH THE LORD I MAKE IT AND MY ANXITEY MEDS. GETS ME TO MY DR.'S AND BACK HOME .AND HE LOVES US FOR WHO WE ARE .BLESSING  LOVE YOU JESUS  FOR HELPING US GLORY  .WE KNOW THAT ALL THINGS WORK TOGETHER TO THE GOOD TO THOSE WHO LOVE GOD..ROMANS 8:28  LOVE FOR GOD IS IN THE AIR WITH EVERY BRETH WE TAKE 
FAITH IN CHRIST ENABLES US TO LIVE ABOVE OUR CIRCUMSTANCES NOT UNDER THEM.. (FROM OUR DAILY BREAD.) SO WE DO FOR HIM AS OUR MIND LETS US DO.AS WE ARE ONE ON ONE WITH THE LORD.
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« Reply #7 on: March 11, 2009, 02:26:57 pm »

Amen and Amen to all said, and Prasie the Lord for His mighty work He dose dohere in CIP.. I sure stand in agrremen with all your servants of the Lod have said, and I could add no more to it.. It is all from His Word.. I am so thankful that it is a personal walk between me and God, and how he knows my heart, yes and he is with me at  all times no matter where i am.. Because I am the Church, not the  name on any church.I belive in going and being in church, for his word and fellowship, and I dofeel better when I go.. but when I can't go, you know all I do is get lost in CIP, and my Blessings are just as great. God Loves us, and Bless's us no matter where we are as long as our heart and mind is set upon Him and His word. We got to remember that we are living in the end times, and watch out for false accuses, Let  ever one search there own Heart be for they judge one another, God Is  our judge not people.. He says we can know them by there fruit, and judgeing is not a good fruit..
Love nd Hugs Charlene, Just keep leaning on Jesus and follow His Holy Spirit in you..
Leona smitten smitten smitten smitten smitten smitten smitten smitten
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What You Are Is God's Gift to You And What You Become Is Your Gift To God. Leona
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« Reply #8 on: March 11, 2009, 02:36:56 pm »

I'm surprised no one touched on Hebrews on this. Hebrews 10:25 speaks specifically about making sure you make the meetings of the saints. As all the others touched upon, it IS a matter of the heart. That is where God's Word in us starts, and that is where it ends. If you can be at church, then you should be at church (presuming it is a Bible-believing church).If you have the desire in your heart, but lack the physical ability, then, God knows your heart. Only you and the Lord can truly understand where you heart lies. Keep in mind, it is also a matter of the heart to be going to church. We, as Christians, should have a desire to go to church. We, being saved, are no longer bound by any requirement to go to church. We should have the desire to be among the company of saints. For those who don't have the physical ability to be with the saints (yet  Wink), boards like CIP are blessings, and in many ways, can function in the same ways a church does, and praise God that it does! It does help satisfy the desires of the saints who can't be in the physical company of other saints. But, there is no substitute for physically being among the saints, praising God as a united body. After all, once we get to heaven, it will be wall-to-wall God's people.

In His service,
Brian
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« Reply #9 on: March 15, 2009, 04:41:08 pm »

I just got this e-mail and thought I would share!!   smitten

WHY GO TO CHURCH:
If you're spiritually alive, you're going to love this!
If you're spiritually dead, you won't want to read it.
If you're spiritually curious, there is still hope!

Why Go To Church?

A Churchgoer wrote a letter to the editor of a newspaper and
complained that it made no sense to go to church every Sunday. 'I've
gone  for 30 years now,' he wrote, 'and in that time I have heard something
like 3,000 sermons. But for the life of me, I can't remember a single one
of them.
So,I think I'm wasting my time and the pastors are wasting theirs by giving
sermons at all.'

This started a real controversy in the 'Letters to the Editor'  column, much
to the delight of the editor. It went on for weeks until someone wrote this
clincher:

'I've been married for 37 years now. In that time my wife has  cooked some
32,000 meals. But, for the life of me, I cannot recall the  entire menu for
a single one of those meals, But I do know this... They all nourished me
and gave me the strength I needed to do my work. If my wife had not given
me these meals, I would be physically dead today. Likewise, if I had not
gone to church for nourishment, I would be spiritually dead today!'

When you are DOWN to nothing.... God is UP to something!
Faith sees the invisible, believes the incredible and receives the impossible!
Thank God for our physical AND our spiritual nourishment!

All right, now that you're done reading, send it on! I think everyone should read this!
'When Satan is knocking at your door, simply say, 'Jesus, could  you get that for me?'
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May the Peace of the Lord be with you always! ~~Deb~~
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« Reply #10 on: April 11, 2009, 09:58:18 pm »

Charlene:

If you are a child of God, then you are the church; as are each of us who have placed our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. The real issue here is not whether or not you attend “church”; the real issue here is that you are bound up with anxiety. In other words, the concern should not be whether you get into your car and drive to a building on Sunday; the issue is that satan has you bound up and you cannot. Once we forego the power of the enemy, the “fight” suddenly becomes one of “flesh and blood” and not, as the Word of God states in Ephesians 6:12, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 

Picking up on what was said before:

Hebrews 10:25
Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

If we notice this, the concern is not “meeting together,” for the sake of “meeting together”; the concern is that we “encourage one another.” In essence, there is no “rule and regulation,” concerning “church” or anything else for that matter, that supersedes God’s love for us and the command of our Lord Himself that we are to “love one another,” (John 15:12). The “meeting together” is for the benefit of each other; not for the sake of some law that binds us to an unattainable “salvation” via an impossible obedience to the law which brings death (1 Corinthians 15:56).

At best, considering all that is written in the Word of God concerning the “gathering of the saints” in the view of fulfilling some sort of a “duty,” what can be said is that the Word of God says that, while all things are permissible, not all things are beneficial. In other words, while it may be “beneficial” to you that you do attend church on Sunday, it is not a “law” that is more important than you as a child of God. The problem that the Pharisees and Sadducees faced, really, was that they placed their emphasis on the “law” and not on the love of God or the love God for others. Jesus Himself said (Matthew 7:12) that the law and the prophets were summed up like this: “Do to others what you would have them do to you.” In the end, salvation is found in this (love)…not in getting into your car, heading to a building on Sunday, and trying to fulfill “a” or “the” law.

For whoever is in the “church” then, the issue for us would really be the fact that you are bound up with anxiety; not to sit here and ponder whether you are a “good” Christian or not; children of God do not do the latter.

In the end, we are praying for you. If God wills above all else that you attend church, then He will see to it that you will be free from your bondage and are able to do so. Until then, do not let your heart be troubled; serve God as you can and with all of your might…and do His Will the best that you are able. Peace to you, Charlene.

In Christ,

K. Allen
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