Thursday, July 23, 2009

'Christian' practices?

Some of the practices which are so ingrained into modern Christianity, yet hard to find it among the early Christians of the first century or in the Bible...
  • Senior, junior, associate, youth, music pastors
  • Pulpit-pew structure
  • Passing of offering plates to collect money
  • Worship leaders
  • Worship services
  • Miracle crusades
  • Healing services
  • Health and Wealth preaching
  • Mid-week services
  • Building church buildings
  • Seminaries
  • Hiring of professional speakers
  • Clergy ordination, resumes, interviews
  • Denominations
  • Leadership hierarchies
  • Contemporary Vs. traditional services
  • 'Going' to church
  • Preaching against certain type of sinners
  • Political endorsements, protests, threats
  • White church, black church etc
  • Pentecostal church, baptist church, methodist church etc
  • Questions such as "What kind of a church you go to?", "How big is your church?", "How many services do you have?" etc
  • Evangelism department
  • Making something into a "movement"
  • Seminars on "how to win souls?", "witnessing" etc
  • Emphasis on rituals such as Baptism etc
  • Prayer chains
  • Altar calls
  • "Spirit-led" worship Vs. Spiritless worship
  • Confession
  • Miracle water, hand kerchiefs etc
  • "If you are a Christian, you are to be perfect" mentality
  • Veneration of '10 commandments'
  • Emphasis on behavior modification, teaching of performance-based acceptance.
Okay, enough...

12 comments:

Leonard said...

I thought I was doing pretty good till I got to this one,,,

"If you are a Christian, you are to be perfect" mentality

Guess I'd better stay home this week...
Best

Bino M. said...

I hear ya, bro!

Mattityahu said...

Better than thinking you ARE doing well if you are doing those things.

It sounds so foreign to my brain though. But let the Scriptures have the final authority on truth. "I have counted it all as rubbish".

Leonard said...

OK, but I still wanna stay home... my brain hurts... think ive been sitting here to long...

ps. Hi Matt lets do the voice thing again soon... thanks me.

The Lewis Family said...

I know, it's crazy really, how those very practices are law to so many. That is what a christian must do in order to be a good christian. Seriously, after I saw Jesus, I started to see a whole bunch of not Jesus. . .

Steve said...

There is no such thing as a 'good' Christian.

Just 'forgiven' Christians

Ike said...

"Miracle water, hand kerchiefs etc"

Bino...

For a donation of "any" amount...I'll send you some water. If you send me "money"...would that be a miracle? Nah...just stupid!

Anonymous said...

Hmmmmmm. Dont give up. We have the cross.

http://centralityofthegospel.wordpress.com/2009/07/26/the-gospel-a-fire-in-the-heart/

John Fincher said...

You say enough, but I want to give you more! Some my overlap with yours, but I have different terms.

Statements of Faith
Communion Table
Communion!
Triune God or Trinity or God in Three Persons (ain't denying it, but these ain't in there)
Local Church?
Missions Board
Deacons Board
Chairman of the Deacons
Offeratory/Special Music
Benediction
Invitation

Chinedu said...

Hey Bino. Don't talk about ordination just yet. I'm three months away from my "formal ordination". Couldn't you have waited till after three months? Ha ha ha. lots of love.:-)

Leonard said...

See Bino, told ya this guy was Ok, he's funny and sports a real sexy haircut...
Best

John Fincher said...

Church Covenant