What to Look for in a Church | Ep. 65
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 1 ธ.ค. 2024
- In this episode of the G3 Podcast, Josh Buice, Virgil Walker, and Scott Aniol discuss what believers ought to be looking for when considering a local church.
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Its amazing how difficult it is to find a church these days, it has been a struggle even in the Bible Belt. The majority of churches are these showtime megas.
It has left me shocked. Oh, there are plenty of them. But the stuff they are teaching/supporting is unbelievable. Even those that are generally biblical are still at least a bit "woke" or whatever. It's bizarre. I've never seen anything like this. And it's not like I'm super picky about side issues. I can deal with differing styles of music. I'm not into the baptizing babies thing, but if a church was strong in every other way, I might put up with it. (As long as they're not teaching it's for salvation.) I don't care if it's dress up or dress down. I just want the Bible taught, no rainbow perversion, no women pastors, and no racist "woke" filth. Is that too much to ask? I don't think so!
@@Yesica1993 We were able to find one church that takes the Bible seriously, it was an adjustment for our family after being entertained for such along time by a showtime mega. It was a hard reality that while being entertained, we were also not growing spiritually.
A lot of cultural rot started when the church decided to entertain and be like the world instead of educate the saints on how to WIN the world and have the answers for sincere seekers. We lost the current war 30 years ago with churches like Willow Creek and leaders like Rick Warren...and people like me that went along with it. I pray the church repents (I had too) and fears God again.
It has been difficult here in Texas…DFW area
And smaller, simple churches are mostly made up of age 60+. Smaller churches can also be led by 'rouge' individuals who split from their previous church and go off to start their own. So you have to visit the church a lot to discern. OR could it be that YOU can be an influence for good at the mega-church, or the small, struggling one.
I don't know how far Sugarland is from you. Dr. Andy Woods is pastor of Sugarland Bible Church that is not a mega church. You could look him up on line. He's a sober teacher with solid theology. I've been blessed by his teachings on Revelation. @@BeksWorld
For us, we looked for a church that embraced the doctrines of grace, understood/practiced church discipline, had no women pastors and discerned the music they played and the book studies they offered. This kind of church is HARD to find. While we are LBConfessional, we found a wonderful, solid, exegeting PCA. 😌
Thanks
Very very grateful to Lord for raising and keeping G3 and everyone of you , His faithful servants, Brothers Josh, Virgil, and Scott, and many more of His faithful saints in G3. This is such an important teaching brothers. I am really very very thankful for you all for teaching me and His true sheep how to discern and know a true church from a false one. Praise God. I have followed and watched you all in G3 for the past 2 years and your teachings are so rich and so helpful that I have learnt to discern a liberal and disobedient church and ran from it last year. Praise God. I have benefitted and received a lot of teachings from you all that I have become a partner of G3 by Lord’s Great Grace! Soli Deo Gloria. I pray that Lord keeps each one of His faithful saint in G3 faithful and truthful to Him till the end. Hallelujah. Amen.
Amen
Thank you for talking about this topic. I have been worried about my spiritual life because the church I currently attend does not have 2 of the components you mentioned. The preaching is there, but not the rest
PRAY for your church. Speak up...but do it in a loving way. Be an influencer! Ask to be the one to start on of those "missing" components. Recognize that no church is perfect!!! (It wasn't in the NT). The guys are simply giving guidelines.
Thank you guys for this podcast...Keep upholding the Truth of God's Word...
Hope to see some of you here in London
I can't believe how hard it's become to find a biblical church even in a big city. I guess I took for granted how blessed I was for many years. For about 25 years I was a part of a great church. Then, at some point, I ended up at a different church. Great church, preached even more verse by verse than my original one, which did more of topical sermons. Once I experienced verse by verse teaching, I felt like I'd been starved my whole life and didn't even know it!
Then came 2020. All churches closed and/or banned unmasked. And most went woke. I've been adrift ever since. I cannot believe I was completely abandoned by people I had lived life with for 7 years or so. I'm at a new church now. And while things seem okay, I've barely gotten to know anyone. I am broken. I don't know what to do.
Is there not a membership class? Or small groups or volunteer opportunities in your new church? Read your Bible and sing worship songs that is for sure and on Sunday ask a leader/elder to be introduced to their wives for direction.
@@carolynenochs9139 I'm still at this church. I was at a small group for a while. But they do that thing where they take a break for summer. Then everyone scatters and you lose those relationships you were starting to build. I will be trying again once fall comes and groups start again. But it's hard. Thanks.
Thank you.
And besides people choosing a church based on the music…look how many people let their children dictate what church they attend. Where do they have the most fun? That’s where they want to go. And if they memorize a verse now and then, that’s all that matters. Sadly.
Thank you so much @G3Ministries for this podcast episode! My husband and I are in the process of searching for another church, there are a lot of help for reminders for us to consider while searching for a church. I do have a question about the regulative principle of worship. Does this include seasonal holiday extras added to the normal Sunday church worship services? My husband and I do not observe Christmas or Easter and have issue with, for lack of a better phrase, being forced to participate in Christmas and Easter centered services and traditions. In our area of the country/state, there are very few (I mean VERY FEW), solid biblical churches and even the solid biblical churches typically have Christmas and Easter theme services. If almost every Church celebrates these holidays, what are we to do if we decide we do not want to participate? We have no issue with families individually deciding to celebrate these holidays and their home, but for those of us who do not observe the holidays, we are never offered an option not to participate or have no choice but to participate, when we gather on Sundays in the church. This is also something we have wanted to consider before joining any church.
GRACE! Ya just gotta show grace. God does. Every person is accountable for what they do before the Lord and what He has asked THEM to do. You can choose to stay home during those special services. Hopefully they will give you the same grace in return. But Christmas & Easter is just going to be the norm and that will not be changing in American/western churches. The Christmas hymns are full of Bible theology and worship God. I don't know what you mean when you say you are "never offered an option." You have no right to expect an "option". Just simply opt out. If they want to know why, tell 'em. That doesn't mean you can't be part of the congregation. FYI, I don't participate in secular Christmas traditions. I'm fully aware of the controversies and date issues and all that. I, too, have felt like God asked me not to be involved in such. But I can't expect any church to stop their traditions for me. I go to worship God and to thank Him for His Gift of Salvation.
Looking for a church in Northern Virginia (Manassas area). Please help and thank you.
A good church must uphold truth and show love. Some churches are big on love, but not on truth. Others are strong in truth, but not in love. As you look for a good church, realize that the Lord can use you to make it more loving... more than He will use you to set the doctrine straight. So find the church that is the pillar and ground of the truth, and then YOU make it more loving, friendly, etc. I Timothy 3:15 But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth. See also John 4:24; II John 1; III John 1
Amen to that! There is no "perfect" church. Not even in the NT! God has people in every church that need the gifts and the ministry that an individual will bring to it. There will always be ONE person you can help or pray for or influence.
I have a question for Buice, Walker, Aninol.. what do you think or I should really say what does the Bible say about women serving communion in the worship service? And do you have women serving communion in your church? Thank you. I am wrestling with women serving communion in our church services.
Finding it difficult. There isn’t a perfect church.
They did not tell you to look for a perfect church.
Hello from Columbia, SC..,since we are all imperfect, shouldn’t my concern be is the gospel preached, studied, accountability in the gospel, then my own imperfections can be dealt with all the imperfections of others?
Yes. But is that all. Which points do you disagree.
We are at a large baptist church. I don’t believe they practice church discipline- how would one know at all- if it was practiced in a large church??
We're from Tennessee which church did you attend while here? We're in the process of finding a church...moved from Illinois a year ago and are currently watching church services online with Redeemer Bible Church in Gilbert, AZ... but we desperately need a home church to fellowship with other brothers and sisters in Christ.
Have you found a good church in Tennesse yet? We are planning to move out to Tennesse in October and I’m already looking online lol
@@SaraKiene949 No, unfortunately not yet... still looking.
We look for a church before we move. We have considered moving but if there's no church that stands up to God's standards we don't move, period! Our spiritual health is more important than anything. Where we live now there's only one God would approve of. There's at least 10 that we wouldn't go to.
If you have to drive 45 minutes each way to work daily, that is NOT a good thing. That's an hour and a half of time more away from family each day. That 90 minutes takes away from time that one could have daily worship with the family at home and reading the Bible in conjunction to a possible 90 minute drive a couple times a week to church WITH the family. The location of the church should not be a top priority. The content of the church should be.
Margo, I must respectfully disagree with you on two of your points. Number 1: a 90 minute drive a day for a commute really isn't that much and is pretty normal. If you are sacrificing in this way I would argue that that 90 minutes isn't being taken away from possible family time, but should be taken away from your personal free time. Then there is the consideration of the timing of the commute. I know I leave for work before my children are awake in the mornings, so it is not taking away from our time together. Also, I doubt many people are doing 90 minutes of daily worship with the family (at least in an organized manner, which I admit is how I am reading your statement) Number 2: The church is more than just attending services or activities a "couple times a week." It is the people who make up that body with you. You should be able to easily participate with your church family in regular life. It is harder to have that community if you are far away from the church (by this I mean the people not the building). Personally for me and my family our schedule and much of what we due is formed around our church. Whether it be actual church organized functions or just groups of us living life together.
@@stephenbird5466 I agree that to really be an active part of the "life" of a church, it has to be close by. Otherwise, it would be an easy temptation to not get involved in ministry, or bible study groups or other types of serving b/c the distance would make it "hard", to want to go that distance...particularly in poor weather and driving conditions.
God is the reason we go to church. It's about Him not me. I don't want to be entertained. The less music and more instruction is what makes a good service.
what I now look for in a church: no creepy old dudes hitting on me