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Originally Posted by aron
In my case, I feel LDS and JWs are 'over the line' and not genuine Christians. SDA have added the law and imposed it on the gentiles. So they are perilously close to being 'out' if in fact not already so. The LCs with their slavish attention paid to their 'apostle' who by Paul's word in Titus 1:6 and 1 Tim 3:4 doesn't even qualify to be an 'elder' in a local church are also perilously close to being 'out'. But who can really say who is 'out' and who is 'in'? I am thinking of the story where the reaping angels gather the wheat and the chaff is thrown away, and the 'wheat' is in the "Wedding Feast" and suddenly the Master comes into the feast and says to one 'wheat', "Who are you? Where is your garment?" and the one accosted is silent and ashamed. ~Matt 22:11-14
My point is, we can't really tell. If the reaping angels bring in the wrong ones, how much more will we! Just be merciful to everyone, and let God sort things out. But obviously keep yourselves from the wolves. Some people don't give the benefit of the doubt. But only God knows for sure.
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And there are those that feel the same way toward Local Church members. To make the point, a number of professing Christians have openly labeled the Local Churches a cult in the past and condemned many of their teachings, specifically on the topic of the nature of Christ .
Still your line in the sand is based on feelings and opinion yet you say there's a "little word called truth". Is truth also subjective? If not, where can we find it and know for certain? If you say things like "only God knows" then does that by default leave us all in the dark absolutely, in this case, regarding fellowship? If God knows, is He not capable of speaking to His children? And are not His children capable of hearing their shepherd's voice?
If you struggle with uncertainty would the solution then be to embrace a liberal approach to fellowship? What about 2 John 1:10? You say meet with all believers yet in another sentence claim all Mormons and JW's are not genuine Christians. They too believe in Jesus Christ as the Son of God. If only God knows who's faith is genuine or not, then by this logic shouldn't we meet with all Mormons and JW's just to be of the safe side?
This thinking seems like another case of an oppressive religious group wrongly executing biblical principle thereby tainting them completely. Seeing now the LC's hostility toward Christians and realizing how wrong it was, is now going to the other extreme and embracing anyone and everyone (save those that fit a muddy and purely subjective criteria) solve the issue then?
Quote:
Originally Posted by aron
Paul said that everyone has a psalm, a revelation, a tongue or interpretation. But this is not 'adding to scripture' because it may be amended by others. My interpretation may balance your revelation. But the Book of Mormon doesn't allow that.
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In 1 Corinthians 14:26, Paul's saying those that come with psalms, prophesy, tougues, ect should do so for the building up of the body. He is not teaching ecclecticism. And by "interpretation" he means interpretation of tongues, not interpretation of passages of scripture. And also, I do not agree with the extra biblical revelation of " One Church, One city" being something that's "amendable" within the Local Churches because without it the Local Churches wouldn't exist.
Ask and you will receive, seek and you will find (Matt 7:7). If there's no reply, keep asking (Lk 18:1-8). Why settle on "only God knows" implying we cannot if that's not scripture?
ByHisMercy is asking for an answer to a question regarding fellowship. She wouldn't be doing so if she didn't believe her concern couldn't be answered. It's true that perhaps neither you nor I can answer that question for her but God certainly can. Being content with "only God knows" is, to me, raising a white flag.