“But, dear friends, remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ foretold.
They said to you, “In the last times there will be scoffers who will follow their own ungodly desires.”
These are the men who divide you, who follow mere natural instincts and do not have the Spirit.
But you, dear friends, build yourselves up in your most holy faith and pray in the Holy Spirit.
Keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.
Be merciful to those who doubt; snatch others from the fire and save them; to others show mercy, mixed with fear—hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.”
Jude 1:17-23
The church has been around for a long time. And while the church is actually believers a living entity, it has sadly become institutionalized.
There are many today who scoff at the church saying it’s irrelevant in the twenty-first century. Nothing could be further from the truth.
There are many liberals in the church today that are turning away from the core values of the church. At the same time on the other end of the spectrum there are people who have put the church in a box. Adding things that God never intended believers to do. Both groups are not good for the church. Both groups in their own way turn people away from the church.
We need to carefully look at what we believe. We need to study the word of God verse by verse, praying and asking God to show us the truth from His word. Only by doing this can we build ourselves up in the faith.
At the same time we need to reach out to those of our community that doubt. To turn those who are turning away from the faith back to a personal relationship with Christ.
I think it is important that we as Christians are committed to dialogue among ourselves.
There will always be differences of opinion within the Christian community but our core values should always be the same.
The Apostles Creed I believe gives us a good base. It reads.
1. I believe in God the Father, Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth:
2. And in Jesus Christ, his only begotten Son, our Lord:
3. Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary:
4. Suffered under Pontius Pilate; was crucified, dead and buried: He descended into hell:
5. The third day he rose again from the dead:
6. He ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty:
7. From thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead:
8. I believe in the Holy Ghost:
9. I believe in the holy catholic church*: the communion of saints:
10. The forgiveness of sins:
11. The resurrection of the body:
12. And the life everlasting. Amen.
(*that is, the true Christian church of all times and all places)Think about it.
