Do You believe

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   Jeramiposted 11 years ago

   Do you believe that the institution of CHURCH today is remotely similar to what it was in the first century?  … I don’t …                                I don’t think that Jesus wanted to establish religion, he was establishing a personal connection between us and God.
      I believe that Jesus sent his disciples out into the world to those that already believed, giving them the Good news, that what they had been waiting for had come to pass.
       Everything that He foretold did come to pass,  and then his teachings were converted to what it then transformed into today.

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      Castlepalomaposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      I f most people could live pass the age of 30 during the 1st century , then they are surly not as intelligent as the people are today. I won't go down the rest of the list of low energy and hardships back then. Very little likeness of people back then, compared to people today

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         Jeramiposted 11 years agoin reply to this

         I'm only talking about that very small percentage of the population which  (WE as) Christians are referring to as the original church.
         
           From what I have read, they were a different sort of people, an example to follow you might say

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            Castlepalomaposted 11 years agoin reply to this

            Only 3% Christians go to church regulatory, that must be a sign

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            1. 59

               Jeramiposted 11 years agoin reply to this

               That is a sign   This may be because Church has few similarities to that which it started out being??

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      2. 78

         Chris Nealposted 11 years agoin reply to this

         Most people DID live past the age of 30 in the 1st Century.
         
         Even if we accept at face value that the average lifespan in Rome and Jerusalem at that time was 30-40, that means it was the average not the maximum!
         
         There would have been many who died earlier due to infant mortality, wars, famines and disasters, there would have been just as many who lived much longer. Flavius Josephus said the Essenes usually lived to be over 100.
         
         The assertion that the Gospels could not have been written by the purported authors, those whose names are one them, is based on the fallacy that the expecgted average lifespan of an individual in a given era represents the maximum lifespan of any given individual in that era.

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      aguasilverposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Christ has never needed a large body of believers to change things, all He requires are a remnant who will obey, and the battle is won.
      
      We confuse what I call Churchianity with Christianity, the two things are very different, and whilst there are believers who dwell in the body of Churchianity, hidden in plain sight, for the most part those beguiled by Churchianity serve a different Jesus in deed, and in deeds.

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      Disappearingheadposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      No I don't think the Church is remotely like the first century one. It didn't take long for it to become a professional institution. From that it developed priests and bishops who sought to control the masses via fear of hell and inquisition. They invented Original Sin, hellfire, and reinvented Satan according to their design and purpose. They denied the people the word of God in their own language to prevent the truth and their hypocrisy being revealed. They discouraged inquiring minds and science.
      
      Today things have calmed down considerably but old doctrines are hard to let go, and independence of mind is seen as rebellion and pride. Many still want to fleece the flock.
      
      I think the nearest you will find to the 1st century church Jerami is a small independent, non-affiliated house church.

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   4. 78

      Chris Nealposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Jesus did send His disciples out into the world, but not only to those who already believed. He sent His disciples out to ALL! And that is the Great Commission. Certainly institutions that claim His name must be examined on a regular basis, and there are aspects of the modern church that it would be difficult to argue Jesus intended.

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      Cagsilposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      I don't think they are "exactly" the same. But, there's still going to be similar traits which have remained.
      I would agree with the first part. He didn't want to establish a "religion" considering he despised "religion" in the form it was then. As for the second part? Pure hogwash. He wanted to establish a connection between "reality" and the "inner" consciousness of the individual, so as to release and power the conscience.
      Okay, I'll disagree with this.
      It doesn't take a genius to foretell the future, when you look at all the facts available. And, I'll agree with the second part- his teachings were transformed into what you see today. It's too bad most won't be critical of those who supposedly wrote or put together his teachings.

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         Jeramiposted 11 years agoin reply to this

         Kinda hard to see exactly what I said that you are argueing about?

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2. 61

   Druid Dudeposted 11 years ago

   Jerami...actually, he sent the disciples out to 1) The lost sheep of Israel...if they believed, then they would not have been called 'lost'. 2) To non-jews who, for the most part, had never even heard of these ideas because they were pagans/ Religion was the furthest thing from his thinking, because he viewed himself in the context of Judaism, saying that he had come to 'fulfill the law', which indicates that he was part of the closing chapters. He didn't see himself as the beginning of a new religion, nor was christianity the first, so, 'religion'had already been around...for a very long time.

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3. 59

   Jeramiposted 11 years ago

   even though I didn't; couldn't have found the same words as these last two comments ....  I agree completely!!!   TOTALLY !!

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