Quote:
Originally Posted by Sons to Glory!
Is their daily walk with the Lord and abiding in Him getting stronger? Do they regularly speak and testify to others that He is working in their lives? Do they sing, pray and worship God with an abandon to self?
Or are they just showing up, beholding one person or a group of people, watching them function and do these things . . . while there is little evidence of the Lord being manifested in their own lives?
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The evidence is generally that they are growing. It just doesn't look like you want it to look for yourself, and by believing the slander of those of your sect, are happy to demean them. Their way is not full of shouts of "Oh, Lord, Amen, Hallelujah" so I guess it must not be meaningful.
I am beginning to believe that the real evidence of growth in Christ is growth that does not require a pep rally to get it moving. That doesn't need to feel superior to others to know the ways of Christ. That reflects simple diligence in obedience. You see, I know a fair number of those people that you seem happy to dismiss as "just showing up [and] watching them [clergy] function." I can assure you that these people are more grounded and solid in their faith than a whole lot of evangelical and inner-life people. They can dismiss the slander of the evangelicals and people like Lee, the Upwards Church guy, and other "we are in the spirit" kinds of people because they know in what they believe and it is not better feelings or methods. It is in Christ who died and rose for them which then continues in obedience to what he has commanded.
And while you continue to cast aspersions upon these people — believers in Christ — I wonder what manner of teaching you are buying into that makes it OK.
I know that you will then ask why I cast any aspersion at these people you follow. I just note that they are busy putting rules on their followers (and others) that they are/were not willing to put on themselves. You are insisting that the charges made by those you prefer are correct yet do not seem willing to look into whether they are right about what they claim concerning either the statements of scripture on the subject or the things that the ones they are disparaging are actually doing. You just take them as stated and move on.
And to think that you wanted us to simply give your group a generic pass when you won't even take a real look at one issue beyond restating their rhetoric.