Liberal Churches?

[Sojourner]

Australia has it share of Liberal Churches, I have attended some of these from time to time and its not for me. My chief complaint is that I cant see what the actual point of attending meetings there is? - There is never any challenge to change your life or to turn away from sin, and often the theology is present that Christianity is not exclusively the only way to God and that there are various roads to God for various different groups of people and that all religions get you there in the end. If that is the case, why would you not simply stay at home and take the way of watching the football broadcast on your couch each weekend, what difference would it make? 

 

The other three observations is the sheer boredom that I feel driven to whilst the services are in progress, I feel like its an atmosphere of political correctness backed up with music from two centuries ago and often the sermon is based around the ministers interpretation of left wing politics. 

 

I once attended Easter Sunday Services at a Liberal Methodist church and the sermon was simply that "a man had two clay pots, one was cracked, he filled the pots with water to water his plants but each time the pot reached the plants it had run dry. One time the pot was able to speak and said to the owner that it felt useless and the owner turned the pot to see the pathway full of watered flowers all along the way where it had leaked water". - Still I guess they made their point as several years later I still recall the sermon! 

https://www.facebook.com/AskDrBrown/photos/a.190367064322237.55437.109430102415934/1017574054934863/?type=1&theater 

[Woody]

Where I live .... I am stuck with conservative churches .  They can be the death to one's soul.

I am not sure it is worth attending.

Today .... I left in the middle of Sabbath School and waited in the car for the wife.

I was up to here with having my soul tormented.

[Sojourner]

Yet you choose to belong to a Conservative Denomination? 

[Woody]

I would have issue with your characterization.

In some areas it is fine to be conservative.

In other areas .... it is best to be liberal.

[Gerr]

The demons don't care whether your soul withers on the liberal or on the conservative end of the spiritual spectrum. 

[CoAspen]

Liberal=They don't agree with my interpretation of the Bible

 

Conservative=They don't agree with my interpretation of the Bible

 

 

The words obviously have different meanings, but.......the above is how they are most often used in religious circles. 

[JoeMo]

There are things I like and things I don't like about "conservatives" and "liberals".  As CoA pointed out, they all center around "they don't agree with my interpretation of scripture".  My issue is the lack of balance at either end of the spectrum.  I love to go someplace where I am free to get emotionally involved during Praise Time; and where the unconditional love, grace, and mercy of Jesus is preached.  I believe that these free gifts and the power therein from Christ that draw us into compliance; not the threat of condemnation and punishment. 

 

But there is another dimension to the Word. A third of the Bible is dedicated to prophecy.  I don't know about you, but I truly believe we are living in a time that, unless we die untimely deaths, we will see King Jesus coming in clouds of glory.  Prophecy tells us how to discern the signs of the times and how to respond to them.  This dimension is sadly lacking in most (not all) "liberal" congregations.  So at least twice a month, I attend a "conservative" church; and sometimes put up with a distasteful message reinforcing the deceiver's lie of my unworthiness.

 

I am willing to put up with stuff I don't agree with in order to obtain this balance between learning to trust everything to Jesus and feeding my passion for study of prophecy.

 

Does that make sense?

 

Good topic, Sojourner.

[CoAspen]

I just do not like labels. Each person has their own meaning for the label.

[Gregory Matthews]

Every congregation has its own personality.  probably no congregation can appeal to everyone, while our larger congregations may be able to appeal to a broader group than a smaller congregation.

 

Find one that suits you.

[LifeHiscost]

 the deceiver's lie of my unworthiness.

 

I am willing to put up with stuff I don't agree with in order to obtain this balance between learning to trust everything to Jesus and feeding my passion for study of prophecy.

 

Does that make sense?

 

Good topic, Sojourner.

The trouble lies not in the recognition of my unworthiness as much as failing to recognize the Sovereign's knock to be allowed to come in to exercise His power to deliver from that condition, without more except to submit.

 

7Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. 8Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.…James 4

 

God is Love! Jesus saves!

[Aliensanctuary]

I don't believe that the churches of today present a true picture of the Kingdom of YHVH. We are given a glimpse of his Kingdom during the days of Moses and Joshua, not in the feckless behavior of the whiners and the disobedient, but in the majesty of the Tabernacle where YHVH met and communicated with the people of Israel. Prophecies in the scriptures give us a picture of what the Kingdom of the Stars is like, not some mythical place we call heaven, but in the tithes and sacrifices presented to YHVH. 

 

Churches today mislead many, but after resurrection, I believe, the real Kingdom will be taught to humans who can then decide to join it, or not. Whether churches are liberal or conservative is not so important since they both miss the mark, by a long-shot.

[Johann]

Peter exhorts his brethren to “grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.” [2 Peter 3:18.] Whenever the people of God are growing in grace, they will be constantly obtaining a clearer understanding of His word. They will discern new light and beauty in its sacred truths. This has been true in the history of the church in all ages, and thus it will continue to the end. But as real spiritual life declines, it has ever been the tendency to cease to advance in the knowledge of the truth. Men rest satisfied with the light already received from God’s word, and discourage any further investigation of the Scriptures. They become conservative, and seek to avoid discussion. {GW 297.2}

[Jeannieb43]

When the pastor calls for the offering, he never asks "Please give a CONSERVATIVE offering."    He always asks for a LIBERAL offering!

 

So being liberal is good, in some circumstances.

 

In fact, in this day and age, being liberal is best, IMHO.   We must be inclusive of all races, all genders, all interpretations of Scripture, if we are to live as Jesus lived when He was here on earth.

[Kevin H]

The conservative and liberal issue is very complicated as there are different points and shades. Our most conservative members are liberal compared to some fundamentalist Christian groups. This was the problem that D. Canwright had with the church and joined the most conservative of his day, the Northern Baptists. Yet our most liberal churches are very conservative in that we are Bible believers, believe in a personal God and that Jesus is the Godman. We believe in the historicity of the Bible, and look forward to the Second Coming. There are churches out there who sees the Bible as offering good moral lessons but that's it.

 

Frequently in theological circles a conservative is one who believes the Bible to be historical (even if they are not Fundamentalists) and in a personal God, while a liberal only sees it as having some good moral guidelines. Our arguments over whether we are liberal or conservative in the church are only over the shades of conservatisms.

[fccool]

Liberal is a four letter word in modern conservative religion, but it really has very little to do with political liberalism.   Liberal churches follow the ideals of liberal theology, which is basically the concept of independent (from dogma and tradition) interpretation of Biblical narrative, which never actually got the "inerrancy" flavor until very recently.

 

From that standpoint, Protestantism, and Adventism is fairly liberal.  It's all about a frame of reference.

[Gail]

I am SO glad this topic is more than just bickering about food and music!!

[Gail]

There are times in my life that I find I need more liberality and there are times that I need to be reined in and calmed down.

 

If Christ is preached in the way He preached, in living words (that are life-giving), I appreciate both. But dryness in either camp is tough like kale (as well as dry like the hills of Gilboa)

[fccool]

Again, liberal is a matter of perspective.  Jesus could be considered liberal from perspective of Orthodox Judaism.   I think we need to define what we mean by these terms prior to discussing.

[JoeMo]

fc suggests: " I think we need to define what we mean by these terms prior to discussing."

 

I would propose that CoA gave as good of a definition as there is in Post #6 - whether one is more conservative or liberal than I am equates to "they don't agree with my interpretation of the Bible" (or of EGW, I might add).

 

Putting an objective definition on "liberal" and "conservative" would be a challenge.  A person I would consider "libera"l is one more liberal than me; a "conservative" would be one who is more conservative than me.  Furthermore, it depends on which aspect of my faith.  I am very Liberal in some aspects and very conservative in other aspects.  It's kind of a relative thing.  People whom I view as conservative, others may view as flaming liberals.