Tuesday, August 31, 2010

I would have to clean up my act. I'm not a good enough person to become a Christian.

These words are a paraphrase of what my high school coach told my Mom when she was presenting the gospel to him. He felt that he wasn't living a good enough life to try to be a Christian. How tragic! Have not we Christians failed in presenting to those around us who we really are and what the good news of the Bible really is!

I wish I could find the quote from Vernon Mcgee but I can't. What he said was basically that sinners are the only group for which God made any arrangement. Guess what? If you're a sinner, then there is good news for you! If you're not a sinner, then I know of no plan of salvation or good news for you.


Sinners Jesus will receive;
Sound this word of grace to all
Who the heavenly pathway leave,
All who linger, all who fall.

Sing it o'er and o'er again;
Christ receiveth sinful men;
Make the message clear and plain:
Christ receiveth sinful men.

Come, and He will give you rest;
Trust Him for His word is plain;
He will take the sinfulest;
Christ receiveth sinful men.

Now my heart condemns me not,
Pure before the law I stand;
He who cleansed me from all spot,
Satisfied its last demand.

Christ receiveth sinful men,
Even me with all my sin;
Purged from every spot and stain,
Glory I shall enter in.

Erdmann Neumeister (1671-1756)

Friday, August 27, 2010

Holiness: the false and the true

This is a MUST READ for anyone who was brought up in a works-based Christian faith or anyone that is striving to reach what is known in Christian circles as "sinless perfection". It deals with holiness teachings. Actually, I think it would be a great read for everyone.

http://www.inchristalone.org/PDFiles/Ironside.pdf

Thursday, August 26, 2010

Don't let your hearts be troubled

“Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me. There is more than enough room in my Father’s home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am. And you know the way to where I am going.”
“No, we don’t know, Lord,” Thomas said. “We have no idea where you are going, so how can we know the way?”

Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. If you had really known me, you would know who my Father is. From now on, you do know him and have seen him!”

Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.”

Jesus replied, “Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and yet you still don’t know who I am? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father! So why are you asking me to show him to you? Don’t you believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words I speak are not my own, but my Father who lives in me does his work through me. Just believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me. Or at least believe because of the work you have seen me do.

“I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father. You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father. Yes, ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it!

John 14:1-14

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

Turn and Be Saved

Therefore also now, saith the Lord, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning. (Joel 2:12)

The word "turn" means "repent." God says to His people whose hearts are turned from Him, "Repent." Repent means primarily to change your mind. You indicate a change of mind by turning around. The by-product of repentance will be fasting, weeping, and mourning. Unfortunately, a great many people think that if they go down to an altar and shed enough tears, they are converted. Well, I went through that process as a boy and found it to be absolutely meaningless.

And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the Lord your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil. (Joel 2:13)

You see, this was to be a heart experience, not some outward gesture. Actually, the Mosaic Law forbade the priest from tearing his garments. Repentance was not to be shown by being a fanatic. The tear was to be in the heart.

Now he gives the reason for turning to the Lord: "For he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil." In the Books of Exodus and Jonah, I deal more thoroughly with the question of what it means when God repents. When Israel was in Egypt, it looked as if God changed His mind. He sent plague after plague to Egypt to give Pharaoh the opportunity to repent and turn to Him, but he didn't. Also in Jonah's day, God sent Jonah to preach to the Ninevites that He would destroy the city. However, Ninevah repented and turned to God; so God did not destroy the city. It looked as if God had changed His mind after He said that He would destroy the city, but He did not change His mind. God is immutable. He is always gracious; He is always merciful, and He is always slow to anger.

My friend, you can always depend upon God. He never changes, He is immutable; but when a sinner repents and turns to Him, God says in effect, "You were under My judgment, and I was going to judge you, but now that you have turned to Me, I will not judge you." God is always gracious and ready to forgive.

My friend, the only way we can come to Him is to come as sinners wanting to turn from our sins. If you have been turning from God and now will turn to God, all you have to do is call upon Him and He will save you. "... Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved ..." (Acts 16:31). You don't need to do anything but that. You don't need to join a church, go through a ceremony, or promise Him something. You simply turn as a sinner to Christ for His mercy.

-- Dr. J. Vernon McGee

Monday, August 23, 2010

No justice

So there is no justice among us,
and we know nothing about right living.
We look for light but find only darkness.
We look for bright skies but walk in gloom.
We grope like the blind along a wall,
feeling our way like people without eyes.
Even at brightest noontime,
we stumble as though it were dark.
Among the living,
we are like the dead.
We growl like hungry bears;
we moan like mournful doves.
We look for justice, but it never comes.
We look for rescue, but it is far away from us.
For our sins are piled up before God
and testify against us.
Yes, we know what sinners we are.
We know we have rebelled and have denied the Lord.
We have turned our backs on our God.
We know how unfair and oppressive we have been,
carefully planning our deceitful lies.
Our courts oppose the righteous,
and justice is nowhere to be found.
Truth stumbles in the streets,
and honesty has been outlawed.
Yes, truth is gone,
and anyone who renounces evil is attacked.

Isaiah 59:9-15

Friday, August 20, 2010

That can't be right, I'm such a good person! Not like that tax collector....

Yes indeed, it is good when you obey the royal law as found in the Scriptures: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you favor some people over others, you are committing a sin. You are guilty of breaking the law.

For the person who keeps all of the laws except one is as guilty as a person who has broken all of God’s laws. For the same God who said, “You must not commit adultery,” also said, “You must not murder.” So if you murder someone but do not commit adultery, you have still broken the law.

So whatever you say or whatever you do, remember that you will be judged by the law that sets you free. There will be no mercy for those who have not shown mercy to others. But if you have been merciful, God will be merciful when he judges you.

James 2:8-13

Thursday, August 19, 2010

Works or faith?

Abraham was, humanly speaking, the founder of our Jewish nation. What did he discover about being made right with God? If his good deeds had made him acceptable to God, he would have had something to boast about. But that was not God’s way. For the Scriptures tell us, “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.”
When people work, their wages are not a gift, but something they have earned. But people are counted as righteous, not because of their work, but because of their faith in God who forgives sinners. David also spoke of this when he described the happiness of those who are declared righteous without working for it:

“Oh, what joy for those
whose disobedience is forgiven,
whose sins are put out of sight.
Yes, what joy for those
whose record the Lord has cleared of sin.”

Now, is this blessing only for the Jews, or is it also for uncircumcised Gentiles? Well, we have been saying that Abraham was counted as righteous by God because of his faith. But how did this happen? Was he counted as righteous only after he was circumcised, or was it before he was circumcised? Clearly, God accepted Abraham before he was circumcised!

Circumcision was a sign that Abraham already had faith and that God had already accepted him and declared him to be righteous—even before he was circumcised. So Abraham is the spiritual father of those who have faith but have not been circumcised. They are counted as righteous because of their faith. And Abraham is also the spiritual father of those who have been circumcised, but only if they have the same kind of faith Abraham had before he was circumcised.

Clearly, God’s promise to give the whole earth to Abraham and his descendants was based not on his obedience to God’s law, but on a right relationship with God that comes by faith. If God’s promise is only for those who obey the law, then faith is not necessary and the promise is pointless. For the law always brings punishment on those who try to obey it. (The only way to avoid breaking the law is to have no law to break!)

So the promise is received by faith. It is given as a free gift. And we are all certain to receive it, whether or not we live according to the law of Moses, if we have faith like Abraham’s. For Abraham is the father of all who believe.

Romans 4:1-16

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Faith or works?

What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do?
So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.

Now someone may argue, “Some people have faith; others have good deeds.” But I say, “How can you show me your faith if you don’t have good deeds? I will show you my faith by my good deeds.”

You say you have faith, for you believe that there is one God. Good for you! Even the demons believe this, and they tremble in terror. How foolish! Can’t you see that faith without good deeds is useless?

Don’t you remember that our ancestor Abraham was shown to be right with God by his actions when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see, his faith and his actions worked together. His actions made his faith complete. And so it happened just as the Scriptures say: “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.” He was even called the friend of God. So you see, we are shown to be right with God by what we do, not by faith alone.

Rahab the prostitute is another example. She was shown to be right with God by her actions when she hid those messengers and sent them safely away by a different road. Just as the body is dead without breath, so also faith is dead without good works.

James 2:14-26

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Man of Sorrows

"Man of Sorrows," what a name
For the Son of God who came
Ruined sinners to reclaim!
Hallelujah! what a Savior!
Bearing shame and scoffing rude,
In my place condemned He stood;
Sealed my pardon with His blood;
Hallelujah! what a Savior!
Guilty, vile, and helpless, we,
Spotless Lamb of God was He;
Full redemption—can it be?
Hallelujah! what a Savior!
Lifted up was He to die,
"It is finished!" was His cry;
Now in heaven exalted high;
Hallelujah! what a Savior!
When He comes, our glorious King,
To His kingdom us to bring,
Then anew this song we'll sing
Hallelujah! what a Savior!

-Philip Paul Bliss (1838-1876)

Monday, August 16, 2010

The Substitute

It is not by incarnation but by blood shedding that we are saved. The Christ of God is no mere expounder of wisdom; no mere deliverer or gracious benefactor; and they who think they have told the whole gospel, when they have spoken of Jesus revealing the love of God, do greatly err. If Christ be not the Substitute, he is nothing to the sinner. If he did not die as the Sin-bearer, he has died in vain. Let us not be deceived on this point, nor misled by those who, when they announce Christ as the Deliverer, think they have preached the gospel. If I throw a rope to a drowning man, I am a deliverer. But is Christ no more than that? If I cast myself into the sea, and risk my life to save another, I am a deliverer. But is Christ no more? Did he but risk his life? The very essence of Christ’s deliverance is the substitution of Himself for us, his life for ours. He did not come to risk his life; he came to die! He did not redeem us by a little loss, a little sacrifice, a little labour, a little suffering, “He redeemed us to God by his blood;” “the precious blood of Christ.” He gave all he had, even his life, for us. This is the kind of deliverance that awakens the happy song, “To him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood.”

The tendency of the world’s religion just now is, to reject the blood; and to glory in a gospel which needs no sacrifice, no “Lamb slain.” Thus, they go “in the way of Cain.” Cain refused the blood, and came to God without it. He would not own himself a sinner, condemned to die, and needing the death of another to save him. This was man’s open rejection of God’s own way of life.

-From God’s Way of Peace, 1862, Horatius Bonar

Thursday, August 12, 2010

What faith isn't

So faith is not our righteousness: it merely knits us to the righteous One, and makes us partakers of His righteousness. By a natural figure of speech, faith is often magnified into something great; whereas it is really nothing but our consenting to be saved by another: its supposed magnitude is derived from the greatness of the object which it grasps, the excellence of the righteousness which it accepts. Its preciousness is not its own, but the preciousness of Him to whom it links us.

Faith is not our physician; it only brings us to the Physician. It is not even our medicine; it only administers the medicine, divinely prepared by Him who "healeth all our diseases." In all our believing, let us remember God's word to Israel: "I am Jehovah, that healeth thee" (Exodus 14:26). Our faith is but our touching Jesus; and what is even this, in reality, but His touching us?

Faith is not our savior. It was not faith that was born at Bethlehem and died on Golgotha for us. It was not faith that loved us, and gave itself for us; that bore our sins in its own body on the tree; that died and rose again for our sins. Faith is one thing, the Savior is another. Faith is one thing, and the cross is another. Let us not confound them, nor ascribe to a poor, imperfect act of man, that which belongs exclusively to the Son of the Living God.

Faith is not perfection. Yet only by perfection can we be saved; either our own or another's. That which is imperfect cannot justify, and an imperfect faith could not in any sense be a righteousness. If it is to justify, it must be perfect. It must be like "the Lamb, without blemish and without spot." An imperfect faith may connect us with the perfection of another; but it cannot of itself do aught for us, either in protecting us from wrath or securing the divine acquittal. All faith here is imperfect; and our security is this, that it matters not how poor or weak our faith
may be: if it touches the perfect One, all is well. The touch draws out the virtue that is in Him, and we are saved. The slightest imperfection in our faith, if faith were our righteousness, would be fatal to every hope. But the imperfection of our faith, however great, if faith be but the approximation or contact between us and the fullness of the Substitute, is no hindrance to our participation of His righteousness. God has asked and provided a perfect righteousness; He nowhere asks nor expects a perfect faith. An earthenware pitcher can convey water to a traveler's
thirsty lips as well as one of gold; nay, a broken vessel, even if there be but "a shard to take water from the pit" (Isaiah 30:14), will suffice. So a feeble, very feeble faith, will connect us with the righteousness of the Son of God; the faith, perhaps, that can only cry, "Lord, I believe; help mine unbelief."

Faith is not satisfaction to God. In no sense and in no aspect can faith be said to satisfy God, or to satisfy the law. Yet if it is to be our righteousness, it must satisfy. Being imperfect, it cannot satisfy; being human, it cannot satisfy, even though it were perfect. That which satisfies must be capable of bearing our guilt; and that which bears our guilt must be not only perfect, but divine. It is a sin-bearer that we need, and our faith cannot be a sin-bearer. Faith can expiate no guilt; can accomplish no propitiation; can pay no penalty; can wash away no stain;
can provide no righteousness. It brings us to the cross, where there is expiation, and propitiation, and payment, and cleansing, and righteousness; but in itself it has no merit and no virtue.

Faith is not Christ, nor the cross of Christ. Faith is not the blood, nor the sacrifice; it is not the altar, nor the laver, nor the mercy-seat, nor the incense. It does not work, but accepts a work done ages ago; it does not wash, but leads us to the fountain opened for sin and uncleanness. It does not create; it merely links us to that new thing which was created when the "everlasting righteousness" was brought in. (Daniel 9:24)

Excerpt from, “How Shall Man Be Just With God?”
Horatius Bonar
Published 1873

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Pick a church and win a prize!

There are many, many, many different Christian churches you might attend. With so many different practices, traditions, and beliefs, how can you possibly pick just one?!
Eastern Orthodox Churches
Albanian Orthodox Church
Orthodox Church of Alexandria
Orthodox Church in America
Orthodox Church of Antioch
Bulgarian Orthodox Church
Chinese Orthodox Church
Orthodox Church of Constantinople
Cypriot Orthodox Church
Czech and Slovak Orthodox Church
Estonian Orthodox Church
Orthodox Church of Finland
Georgian Orthodox Church
Church of Greece
Japanese Orthodox Church
Orthodox Church of Jerusalem
Orthodox Church of Mount Sinai
Polish Orthodox Church
Romanian Orthodox Church
Russian Orthodox Church
Serb Orthodox Church
Ukrainian Orthodox Church
Oriental Orthodox Communion
Armenian Apostolic Church
Coptic Orthodox Church
Ethiopian Orthodox Church
Eritrean Orthodox Church
Indian Orthodox Church ("Malankara Syrian")
Syrian Orthodox Church ("Jacobite Syrian")
Schismatic Orthodox Churches
Belorussian Orthodox Church
Church of the Genuine Orthodox Christians of Greece
Macedonian Orthodox Church
Old Believers
Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia
Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church

Celtic Christianity
Celtic Catholic Church (under The Papacy from 1172 to the 21st century)

Churches in full communion with the Roman See
Roman Catholic Church
Eastern Catholic Churches
Belarussian Church (Byzantine rite)
Bulgarian Church (Byzantine rite)
Croatian Church (Byzantine rite)
Georgian Church (Byzantine rite)
Greek Church (Byzantine rite)
Hungarian Church (Byzantine rite)
Latin or Roman Church (Roman rite)
Melkite (Byzantine rite)
Romanian Church (Byzantine rite)
Russian Church (Byzantine rite)
Ruthenian Church (Byzantine rite)
Serbian Church (Byzantine rite)
Slovak Church (Byzantine rite)
Uniate Church (Byzantine Church)
Neouniate Church
(other rites)
Armenian Catholic Church
Chaldean Catholic Church
Coptic Catholic Church
Ethiopian Catholic Church
Maronites
Melkites
Syrian Catholic Church
Syro-Malabar Catholic Church
Syro-Malankara Catholic Church
(historically related, but no longer in full communion)
American Catholic Church
Catholic Apostolic Church
Catholic Life Church
Christ Catholic Church
Liberal Catholic Church
North American Old Catholic Church
Old Catholic Church
Palmarian Catholic Church
Philippine Independent Church
Mariavite Church
Polish Catholic Church

Nestorian Churches
Assyrian Church of the East

Protestantism and descendant churches
Early Protestants (before Luther)
Hussites
Lollards
Waldensians
Lutheran
American Association of Lutheran Churches
Apostolic Lutheran Church of America
Association of Free Lutheran Congregations
Church of Denmark
Church of Estonia
Church of Finland
Church of Iceland
Church of Norway
Church of Sweden
Church of the Lutheran Brethren of America
Church of the Lutheran Confession
Evangelical Covenant Church of America ("Swedish Evangelical Mission Covenant")
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada
Evangelical Lutheran Church in South Africa
Evangelical Lutheran Church of Latvia
Evangelical Lutheran Synod
Laestadian Lutheran Church
Latvian Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
Lutheran Church of Australia
Lutheran Church of New Zealand
Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod
Lutheran Church - Canada
Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod
See also: United / Uniting churches
Reformed and Presbyterian Churches
Reformed churches
Canadian and American Reformed Churches
Christian Reformed Church in North America
Church of Lippe
Dutch Reformed Church
Federation of Swiss Protestant Churches
Free Reformed Churches of North America
Heritage Reformed Congregations
Hungarian Reformed Church in America
Orthodox Christian Reformed Church
Protestant Reformed Churches in America
Reformed Christian Church in Croatia
Reformed Church in America
Reformed Church in Bavaria and Northwestern Germany
Reformed Church in Hungary
Reformed Church in the United States
Reformed Church of Alsace and Lorraine
Reformed Church of Japan
Remonstrant Brotherhood
United Reformed Church
United Reformed Churches in North America
Presbyterian
Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church
Bible Presbyterian Church
Church of Scotland
Cumberland Presbyterian Church
Evangelical Presbyterian Church
Evangelical Presbyterian Church in England and Wales
Free Church of Scotland
Free Church of Scotland Continuing
Free Presbyterian Church
Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland
Korean Presbyterian Church in America
Orthodox Presbyterian Church
Presbyterian Church in America
Presbyterian Church in Ireland
Presbyterian Church in Korea
Presbyterian Church in the Republic of Korea
Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand
Presbyterian Church of Australia
Presbyterian Church of Canada
Presbyterian Church of Korea
Presbyterian Church of Wales
Presbyterian Church USA
Reformed Presbyterian Church - Covenanted
Reformed Presbyterian Church of Ireland
Reformed Presbyterian Church of North America
United Free Church of Scotland
Uniting Presbyterian Church in Southern Africa
see also United / Uniting churches
Anabaptist
Amish
Beachy Amish
Nebraska Amish
Old Order Amish
Swartzendruber Amish
Hutterites
Bruderhof Communities
Mennonites
Alliance of Mennonite Evangelical Congregations
Anabaptist Association of Australia and New Zealand
Brethren in Christ
Chortitzer Mennonite Conference
Church of God in Christ, Mennonite (aka Holdeman Mennonites)
Conservative Mennonite Conference
Evangelical Mennonite Church
Evangelical Mennonite Conference
Evangelical Mennonite Mission Conference
Fellowship of Evangelical Bible Churches (formerly Evangelical Mennonite Brethren)
Mennonite Brethren Churches
Canadian Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches
Japan Mennonite Brethren Conference
US Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches
Mennonite Church Canada
Mennonite Church in the Netherlands
Mennonite Church USA
Mennonite World Conference
Swiss Mennonite Conference
Various Brethren denominations
Church of the United Brethren in Christ
Plymouth Brethren
River Brethren
Brethren in Christ Church
Old Order River Brethren
United Zion Church
Schwarzenau Brethren
Church of the Brethren
Conservative Grace Brethren Churches, International
Dunkard Brethren
Ephrata Cloister
Fellowship of Grace Brethren Churches
Old German Baptist Brethren
Old Order German Baptist Brethren
The Brethren Church (Ashland Brethren)
Social Brethren
Baptist (All Baptist associations are congregationalist affiliations for the purpose of cooperation, in which each local church is governmentally independent)
Alliance of Baptists
American Baptist Association
American Baptist Churches
Association of Baptist Churches in Ireland
Association of Grace Baptist Churches
Association of Reformed Baptist Churches of America
Association of Regular Baptist Churches
Baptist Bible Fellowship International
Baptist Conference of the Philippines
Baptist Convention of Ontario and Quebec
Baptist Convention of Western Cuba
Baptist General Conference
Baptist General Conference of Canada
Baptist General Convention of Texas
Baptist Missionary Association of America
Baptist Union of Australia
Baptist Union of Great Britain
Baptist Union of New Zealand
Baptist Union of Scotland
Baptist Union of Western Canada
Baptist World Alliance
Bible Baptist
Canadian Baptist Ministries
Canadian Convention of Southern Baptists
Central Baptist Association
Central Canada Baptist Conference
Christian Unity Baptist Association
Colored Primitive Baptists
Conservative Baptist Association
Conservative Baptist Association of America
Conservative Baptists
Continental Baptist Churches
Convenció® Žacional Bautista de Mexico
Convention of Atlantic Baptist Churches
Cooperative Baptist Fellowship
European Baptist Convention
European Baptist Federation
Evangelical Baptist Mission of South Haiti
Evangelical Free Baptist Church
Fellowship of Evangelical Baptist Churches in Canada
Free Will Baptist Church
Fundamental Baptist Fellowship of America
General Association of Baptists
General Association of General Baptists
General Association of Regular Baptist Churches
General Conference of the Evangelical Baptist Church, Inc
General Six-Principle Baptists
Global Independent Baptist Fellowship
Grace Baptist Assembly
Independent Baptists
Independent Baptist Church of America
Independent Baptist Fellowship International
Independent Baptist Fellowship of North America
Interstate & Foreign Landmark Missionary Baptist Association
Landmark Baptist Church
Liberty Baptist Fellowship
Myanmar Baptist Convention
National Baptist Convention of America, Inc
National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc
National Baptist Evangelical Life and Soul Saving Assembly of the U.S.A
National Missionary Baptist Convention of America
National Primitive Baptist Convention of the U.S.A
New England Evangelical Baptist Fellowship
New Testament Association of Independent Baptist Churches
North American Baptist Conference
Northern Baptist Convention
Norwegian Baptist Union
Old Baptist Union
Old Regular Baptists
Old Time Missionary Baptists
Primitive Baptists
Progressive Baptists
Progressive National Baptist Convention
Reformed Baptists
Regular Baptist Churches, General Association of
Regular Baptists
Separate Baptists
Separate Baptists in Christ
Seventh Day Baptists
Southeast Conservative Baptists
Southern Baptist Convention
Southern Baptists of Texas
Sovereign Grace Baptists
Strict Baptists
Two-Seed-in-the-Spirit Predestinarian Baptists
Union D'Eglises Baptistes Francaises Au Canada
United American Free Will Baptist Church
United American Free Will Baptist Conference
United Baptist Convention of the Atlantic Provinces
United Baptists
United Free Will Baptist
Unregistered Baptist Fellowship
World Baptist Alliance
World Baptist Fellowship
See also List of Baptist sub-denominations
Pentecostals
Abundant Life Worship Centers
Apostolic Assemblies of Christ
Apostolic Assembly of the Faith in Christ Jesus
Apostolic Church of Pentecost of Canada
Apostolic Faith Church
Apostolic Overcoming Holy Church of God
Assemblies of God
Bible Way Church of Our Lord Jesus Christ
Calvary Holiness Association
Christ Gospel Churches International
Christian Congregation of Brazil
Church of God (Charleston, Tennessee)
Church of God (Chattanooga)
Church of God (Cleveland)
Church of God (Huntsville, Alabama)
Church of God by Faith
Church of God, House of Prayer
Church of God in Christ
Church of God Mountain Assembly
Church of God of Prophecy
Church of God with Signs Following
Church of Our Lord Jesus Christ of the Apostolic Faith
Church of the Little Children of Jesus Christ
Congregational Holiness Church
Elim Pentecostal Church
Fire Baptized Holiness Church of God of the Americas
God is Love Pentecostal Church
Holiness Baptist Association
Independent Assemblies of God, International
International Church of the Foursquare Gospel
International Pentecostal Church of Christ
International Pentecostal Holiness Church
Open Bible Standard Churches (association of autonomous churches)
Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada
Pentecostal Assemblies of the World
Pentecostal Church of God
Pentecostal Free Will Baptist Church
Redeemed Christian Church of God
The Church of God (Jerusalem Acres)
United Holy Church of America
United Pentecostal Church International
African Independent Churches
Church of the Lord
Kimbanguist Church
Zion Christian Church
Messianic Judaism
Chosen People Ministries
Jews for Jesus
Union of Messianic Jewish Congregations
Misc. movement churches
Calvary Chapel
Church of Christ, Instrumental (aka Kelleyites)
Evangelical Free Church of America
Schwenkfelder Church
Vineyard Movement
Other Pietists & Holiness
Apostolic Christian Church
Bible Fellowship Church
Church of God (Anderson)
Church of God (Guthrie, Oklahoma)
Church of God (Holiness)
Churches of God General Conference (Winebrenner)
Evangelical Covenant Church
Missionary Church
Moravians
United Christian Church
Unity of the Brethren
Methodists
African Methodist Episcopal Church
African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church
Bible Methodist Church
British Methodist Episcopal Church
Chinese Methodist Church
Christian Methodist Episcopal Church
Congregational Methodist Church
Church of the Nazarene
Evangelical Church
Evangelical Methodist Church
Free Methodist Church
Fellowship of Independent Methodist Churches
Fundamental Methodist Conference, Inc
Independent Methodist Church
Korean Methodist Church
Methodist Church, Hong Kong
Methodist Church in Ireland
Methodist Church in Singapore
Methodist Church of Great Britain
Methodist Church of New Zealand
Methodist Church of South Africa
Methodist Church of Sri Lanka
Primitive Methodist Church
Salvation Army
United Methodist Church
Wesleyan Church
Wesleyan Reform Union
See also: United / Uniting churches

Anglicans
Episcopal Church
Anglican Communion
Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia
Anglican Church of Australia
Anglican Church of Canada
Anglican Church of Kenya
Anglican Church of Korea
Anglican Church of Papua New Guinea
Church in Wales
Church of England
Church of Ireland
Church of Nigeria
Church of Uganda
Church of the Province of Burundi
Church of the Province of Central Africa
Church of the Province of Melanesia
Church of the Province of Myanmar
Church of the Province of Rwanda
Church of the Province of South East Asia
Church of the Province of Southern Africa
Church of the Province of Tanzania
Church of the Province of the Indian Ocean
Church of the Province of the West Indies
Church of the Province of West Africa
Episcopal Church in Jerusalem and the Middle East
Episcopal Church
Episcopal Church of Cuba
Episcopal Church of the Sudan
Hong Kong Sheng Kung Hui
Iglesia Anglicana de la Region Central America
Iglesia Anglicana de M鸩co
Iglesia Anglicana del Cono Sud de las Americas
Igreja Episcopal do Brasil
Lusitanian Church of Portugal
Nippon Sei Ko Kai (Japan)
Philippine Episcopal Church
Scottish Episcopal Church
Spanish Reformed Episcopal Church
Schismatic (or "continuing") Anglican Churches
African Orthodox Church
African Orthodox Church of the West
African Orthodox Episcopal Church
American Episcopal Church
Anglican Mission in America
Anglican Province of Christ the King
Charismatic Episcopal Church
Communion of Evangelical Episcopal Churches
Free Church of England
Free Protestant Episcopal Church
Reformed Episcopal Church
Southern Episcopal Church

"Quakers"
Religious Society of Friends (Quakers)
United Society of Believers in Christ's Second Appearing (Shakers)

United / Uniting churches
China Christian Council
Church of Bangladesh
Church of Pakistan
Church of North India
Church of South India
Evangelical Church in Germany
United Church of Canada
United Church of Christ
Uniting Church in Australia

Restorationism
Restoration Movement (Stone-Campbell)
Disciples of Christ
Christian Church
Churches of Christ
International Churches of Christ (Boston Movement)
See also: United / Uniting churches
Millerite
Sunday Adventists
Advent Christian Church
Church of God General Conference (Abrahamic Faith)
Church of the Blessed Hope (aka Church of God of the Abrahamic Faith)
Primitive Advent Christian Church
Seventh Day Adventists
Branch Davidians
Branch Seventh Day Adventists
Creation Seventh Day Adventist Church
Davidian Seventh-Day Adventist Association
General Association of Davidian Seventh-Day Adventists
People's Christian Church
Seventh Day Adventist Reform Movement
Seventh-day Adventist General Conference (Seventh-day Adventist Church)
The Registry
Church of God Adventists
Assembly of God in Christ Jesus
Associated Churches, Inc
Associates for Scriptural Knowledge
Biblical Church of God
Body of Christ Church of God
Church of God (Anadarko)
Church of God (Jesus Christ the Head) (UNICO)
Church of God (O'Brien)
Church of God (Philadelphia Era)
Church of God (Sabbatarian)
Church of God (Seventh Day, Salem, West Virginia)
Church of God Evangelical Association
Church of God's Truth
Church of the Great God
Congregation of God, Seventh Day
Congregation of God
Congregation of Yah
Foundation for Biblical Research
Foundation of Life Fellowship
General Conference of the Church of God (Seventh-Day)
General Council of the Churches of God
Global Church of God
Harmony of Life Fellowship
International Church of God (ICG)
Philadelphia Church of God
Restoration Church of God
Seventh-Day Church of God
The Eternal Church of God
The Pure Truth
Triumph Prophetic Ministries (Church of God)
Twentieth Century Church of God (Pennsylvania)
Twentieth Century Church of God
United Biblical Church of God
United Church of God
United Seventh-Day Brethren
Universal Church of God
World Insight International
Worldwide Church of God
Bible Student Groups
Back to the Bible Way
Christian Believers Conference
Christian Bible Students Association
Christian Millenial Fellowship
Christian Prophets of Jehovah
Dawn Bible Students Association
Epiphany Bible Students Association
Independent Bible Students
Jehovah's Witnesses
Laodicean Home Missionary Movement
Layman's Home Missionary Movement
Lord Our Righteousness (Life Support)
Pastoral Bible Institute
Philanthropic Assembly
Sacred Name Groups
Assemblies of YHWHHOSHUA
Assemblies of Yah
Assemblies of Yahvah
Assemblies of Yahweh (Easton Rapids, Michigan)
Assemblies of Yahweh
Assemblies of the Called Out Ones of Yah
Bible Study Association
Church of God (Jerusalem)
House of Yahweh (Abilene, Texas)
House of Yahweh (Odessa, Texas)
Missionary Dispensary Bible Research
New Life Fellowship
Scripture Research Association
Workers Together with Elohim
Yahweh's Assembly of Messiah
British Israelism
Anglo-Saxon Federation of America
British-Israel-World Federation (Canada), Inc
Calvary Fellowship, Inc
Christian Conservative Churches of America
Christian Identity Church
Christian Research
Church of Israel
Church of Jesus Christ Christian (Aryan Nations)
Covenant, the Sword and the Arm of the Lord
House of Prayer for All People
Kingdom Identity Ministries
LaPorte Church of Christ
Ministry of Christ Church
National Association of Kingdom Evangelicals
New Christian Crusade Church
Prophetic Herald Ministry
Remnant of Israel
Tabernacle of the Phineas Priesthood
Southcottites
Israelite House of David
Israelite House of David as Reorganized by Mary Purnell
Yahweh's New Covenant Assembly
Other Adventists
Christadelphians
Christian Nations - Eagle Warriors
Church of God (Reinersten)
Kingdom of God on Earth Within Man
Remnant Church
Restored Israel of Yahweh
Shiloh True Light Church of Christ
Star of Truth Foundation
True Church
Latter Day Saint movement (Mormonism)
Aaronic Order
Church of Christ (Bickertonite)
Church of Christ (Cutlerite)
Church of Christ (Temple Lot)
Church of Christ with the Elijah Message
Church of Jesus Christ in Zion
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints*
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (Strangite)
Community of Christ**
Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints
Pentecostal Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints
Restoration Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints
Restored Church of Jesus Christ
Sons Aumen Israel
True and Living Church of Jesus Christ of Saints of the Last Days

What do they all have in common?
The bad news: Attending any of them (or all of them) will not save you!

The good news: Many of these churches will tell you about the One who can save you, the Savior Jesus Christ. Also, in many of these churches you will find folks who believe in Jesus Christ, and you can find great encouragement in gathering together with them.

Monday, August 9, 2010

Insert witticism here

So Christ has truly set us free. Now make sure that you stay free, and don’t get tied up again in slavery to the law.
Listen! I, Paul, tell you this: If you are counting on circumcision to make you right with God, then Christ will be of no benefit to you. I’ll say it again. If you are trying to find favor with God by being circumcised, you must obey every regulation in the whole law of Moses. For if you are trying to make yourselves right with God by keeping the law, you have been cut off from Christ! You have fallen away from God’s grace.
But we who live by the Spirit eagerly wait to receive by faith the righteousness God has promised to us. For when we place our faith in Christ Jesus, there is no benefit in being circumcised or being uncircumcised. What is important is faith expressing itself in love.

Galatians 5:1-6

Friday, August 6, 2010

What child is this?

Tell me, you who want to live under the law, do you know what the law actually says? The Scriptures say that Abraham had two sons, one from his slave wife and one from his freeborn wife. The son of the slave wife was born in a human attempt to bring about the fulfillment of God’s promise. But the son of the freeborn wife was born as God’s own fulfillment of his promise.
These two women serve as an illustration of God’s two covenants. The first woman, Hagar, represents Mount Sinai where people received the law that enslaved them. And now Jerusalem is just like Mount Sinai in Arabia, because she and her children live in slavery to the law. But the other woman, Sarah, represents the heavenly Jerusalem. She is the free woman, and she is our mother. As Isaiah said,
“Rejoice, O childless woman, you who have never given birth! Break into a joyful shout, you who have never been in labor! For the desolate woman now has more children than the woman who lives with her husband!”
And you, dear brothers and sisters, are children of the promise, just like Isaac. But you are now being persecuted by those who want you to keep the law, just as Ishmael, the child born by human effort, persecuted Isaac, the child born by the power of the Spirit.
But what do the Scriptures say about that? “Get rid of the slave and her son, for the son of the slave woman will not share the inheritance with the free woman’s son.” So, dear brothers and sisters, we are not children of the slave woman; we are children of the free woman.

Galatians 4:21-31

Thursday, August 5, 2010

The Great Adoption

Think of it this way. If a father dies and leaves an inheritance for his young children, those children are not much better off than slaves until they grow up, even though they actually own everything their father had. They have to obey their guardians until they reach whatever age their father set. And that’s the way it was with us before Christ came. We were like children; we were slaves to the basic spiritual principles of this world.
But when the right time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, subject to the law. God sent him to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children. And because we are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, “Abba, Father.” Now you are no longer a slave but God’s own child. And since you are his child, God has made you his heir.

Galatians 4:1-7

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Here's a quarter...

“This is what the LORD says, he who made the earth, the LORD who formed it and established it—the LORD is his name: 'Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.”- Jeremiah 33:2-3

Monday, August 2, 2010