Christian Forums

MY VIRTUAL CHURCH

Our Church List of Teachings (updated):

will teach the importance of Discipleship
will teach that Jesus is God the Son
will teach our belief in the Holy Trinity
will teach that Jesus is the only way to Heaven
will not have "formal" membership requirements (but will have informal registry of members and their spouse 'n' kids)
will allow women to hold office/positions within the church
will perform Infant Dedication service for those parents who request such be performed (will not be mandatory)
will teach the importance of water baptism (invest in property on the bank of a nice wee stream  if voted on by the church)
will teach that there certainly is a baptism of the Holy Spirit, and the crucial need for all Christians to experience this
will teach that salvation comes from God's Grace, through the blood of Christ and our faith in Him, and that good works are our obedient obligations (fruits of our salvation) to keep His commandments to us.
we will welcome all who come through our doors (being no respector of persons), and of those that are without Christ in their lives, we will share the Good News with them.
we will hold that those seeking positions of servitude in our church be men/women of good character (in that they exhibit they are true believers, in their words, and in the way they lead their lives)
our church will teach that man is justified by faith, and not deeds of the law
our church will have musical instruments
our church will teach that marriage is only between a man and a woman
our church will take the stance that we are pro life, and our teachings/counseling will reflect this stance (but we will love and support those who may for whatever reasons disregard our teachings/counseling)
our church will stand against spousal/child abuse
our church will offer counseling for various social issues (provided we have qualified personnel to do so)
our church will celebrate Communion (details to be determined)
our church will teach/discuss the existance of the belief of once saved, always saved, and the belief that a person can remove themselves from God's saving Grace through willful disobedience, and allow our members to believe as they are led to believe, and to disagree respectfully, without causing a splintering within our church.
our church will teach that the theologies of Free Will vs. Predestination exist within the church, and that Scripture can be found which seem to support both positions, and our church will allow members to believe as the are led to belived with regards to these apparent opposing theologies, and to disagree respectfully with other members who believe different than them.
our church will offer Foot Washing Celebrations to those members who wish to participate

with reference to the "gift of tongues:
a)  Our church ALL agree that "speaking in tongues" is one of the GIFTS OF THE SPIRIT, and that's good that we all agree to that.
b)  However, our church disagrees on the issues of "meaning of/and the practice of speaking in tongues." 

our church believes that there is One Gospel, the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and that it is for all mankind.                                             

our church will consider/discuss/debate the issues of Preterism, Partial/Full (futurist), Dispensation Theology, and the Rapture. as requested during our Wednesday night Bible Study, and not have a "Formal" declaration as to our church stance on these issues  We will agree that people can hold different views concerning these issues, but that they are not Salvation based issues.

(title edited to assure that any/all criticism arising from this post will be directed at me.......just saying)

Quote from: Xian PUgilist on Wed Oct 24, 2012 - 11:13:37
Ummm, I'm confused?  I looked for a question, or a reason but didn't see one.  Is this just your own personal manifesto of beliefs?

I'm seriously asking...

The OP is a list of core teachings arising from a small groups effort.  If y'all would like to discuss any of them, an ongoing discussion is here:

http://www.gracecentered.com/christian_forums/theology/my-virtual-church-and-it's-teachings/