How do you choose a church?

[tntgoodwin]

ITA?

[Caitilin]

ITA?

 

I totally agree.:D

[milovany]

If it was just about going back to the first way it was done, I would become Jewish :P

 

Well, sure, if you didn't believe Christ is the Messiah. But since you do, you'd become Orthodox instead. ;)

[tntgoodwin]

Well, sure, if you didn't believe Christ is the Messiah. But since you do, you'd become Orthodox instead. ;)

 

Of course, the Roman Catholics would claim otherwise... ;)

[milovany]

Of course, the Roman Catholics would claim otherwise... ;)

 

This is very true! Before there was Eastern Orthodoxy and Roman Catholicism, both were united as the "one holy catholic and apostolic" church for the first thousand years of Christianity; they were not separate entities. In AD 1054 the great schism occurred, resulting in the separation. So one basically has to determine which one maintains the historical faith that was developed in those early years. We believe this is the Orthodox church, but do understand that Roman Catholics believe it we the Catholic church.

Edited March 20, 2011 by milovaný

[Guest truthforsaints]

Hello

 

I've compiled some research regarding denominational family trees, history, liturgy, etc here:

 

http://truthforsaints.com/Christian_Denominations/Christian_Denominations.html

 

I would probably add my voice to those that recommend a Calvary Chapel for you, that would seem to most closely fit your statement of faith.

However, I might add the possibility of some Foursquare Churches, and yes, even some Vineyard Churches.

 

Both of which tend to be viewed as "overly charismatic" by the more main stream orthodox amongst us but really, both denominations permit a liturgy that most closely resembles the vision of that particular church.

 

In short, because there are a large number of Vineyard Churches that did not get caught up in the Rodney Howard Browne fiasco of the 90s, they still most closely resemble a slightly more charismatic version of the "sister" church from which they came: Calvary Chapel.

 

Just my two bits. God bless your journey, your statement of faith is very sound, just remember, we're all human and no church will be perfect.

 

Andrew

http://www.truthforsaints.com

[3lilreds in NC]

PRAY!!!!;)

 

This is SO important. God will lead you where you need to go. Sometimes my thoughts spin when I'm in a situation like this, and when I stop, and let God do the talking, the results are ever so much better.

 

When we were in Raleigh, we chose our first church because it was the only Wesleyan church in the area. We were not Wesleyan, but had gone to my Aunt & Uncle's Wesleyan church in Michigan, and loved it. It did not turn out to be a very good church experience, but we met some of our best friends, so it was worth it.

 

Then, we went to a fabulous, fabulous, FABULOUS non-denom church in Raleigh. The pastor was amazing, the worship was amazing, and I have never felt the presence of the Spirit in a church like I did in that one. Even when they made decisions I would not have made, I was confident that they had earnestly sought God's leading.

 

When the fabulous pastor left, we decided to leave too - more because we had 2 babies a year apart and the church was pretty far from our house. We ended up at another non-denom church because several of our friends who'd been looking for churches went there. It was OK. I never felt "home" there. We did make some friends, but the church was so big, you could attend service every week and never see someone you knew. I grew up in a very small church, so I think that had a lot to do with why I was uncomfortable. The music was great, the pastor... got on my nerves after a while. Nothing wrong with the doctrine or anything like that, which is why I didn't insist we change churches. I visited some different ones now and then but never found anything I liked well enough to uproot the kids. I will say that both the "mega-churches" had fabulous children's programs.

 

Since we've moved, we've been attending a small, non-denom but very traditional church that is less than a mile from our house. (They used to be part of a denomination, but when that particular denom took a very liberal turn, they pulled out and became unassociated.) The people are very friendly and there are a few families in our neighborhood even. That's been nice. Their contemporary service, which we like, is at 8:15 (ack) but they let me sing so we manage to make it every week. They have recently hired a fabulous youth pastor, so while there isn't a ton for the kids yet, I believe she will make it a great place for them. It's not "perfect match" in everything, but we like the people so much, and it's so convenient, that we haven't been motivated to find something else. Since I'm singing, we would have to go to church twice, and no one has thought that sounded like a good idea yet, LOL. Also, God hasn't told us to go anywhere, so that's a pretty good reason to stay put.

 

How long do you visit at a church? One week isn't enough, IMO, to get a good picture. One family we know has been visiting our church and another church by alternating weeks. That would give you a good parallel view of a couple of churches if you could narrow it down.

[iwka]

How do you choose your church?

 

I don't. The Church has chosen me. I gladly accepted.

[tntgoodwin]

Hello

 

I've compiled some research regarding denominational family trees, history, liturgy, etc here:

 

http://truthforsaints.com/Christian_Denominations/Christian_Denominations.html

 

I would probably add my voice to those that recommend a Calvary Chapel for you, that would seem to most closely fit your statement of faith.

However, I might add the possibility of some Foursquare Churches, and yes, even some Vineyard Churches.

 

Both of which tend to be viewed as "overly charismatic" by the more main stream orthodox amongst us but really, both denominations permit a liturgy that most closely resembles the vision of that particular church.

 

In short, because there are a large number of Vineyard Churches that did not get caught up in the Rodney Howard Browne fiasco of the 90s, they still most closely resemble a slightly more charismatic version of the "sister" church from which they came: Calvary Chapel.

 

Just my two bits. God bless your journey, your statement of faith is very sound, just remember, we're all human and no church will be perfect.

 

Andrew

http://www.truthforsaints.com

 

Thanks for this! My one concern about the Calvary Chapels is that some of them seem very anti-Calvinist...have you known this to be true?

[Partizan]

I'm sure God will lead you to a congregation that is perfect for you. Here's a few practical tips that can help (regardless of your theological leanings):

 

1. Do shop for churches "concentrically." Start with the congregations closest to where you live. The closer you live, the more you can be involved in its life. Can't find a decent church within a reasonable distance? Perhaps your living room might be the start of a new congregation in the area. That's how many churches got started. But don't start there.

 

2. Do be so kind as to leave your name, address, and phone number so that the church can contact you if they want. Don't feel compelled to leave an offering, unless you truly desire to make one.

 

3. Do attend more than one service before moving on. Don't let your first impression be your only one. Churches, like people, have bad hair days too.

 

4. Do make arrangements to speak with the pastor of the congregation as soon as possible.

 

5. Do introduce yourself to congregation members and talk with them. You'll learn a lot. Don't sit on the fringes. Christianity is not a spectator sport.

 

6. Don't get sucked in by programs and music. Remember, this is worship, not entertainment. Music can be manipulative.

 

7. Don't lead with your heart; use your head. Christianity is about the objective fact of salvation in Jesus Christ, not feelings.

 

8. Don't be put off if the service seems out of touch with the culture. The Church is supposed to be the embassy of a kingdom not of this world.

 

9. Don't expect any congregation or pastor to be perfect in practice.

 

10. Do plan on joining. Church shopping should be a temporary phase, not a way of life.

 

11. Do look and listen for Jesus Christ crucified in the middle of everything. Without the death and resurrection of Jesus for the forgiveness of the sinner and the life of the world firmly in the middle of a church's teaching, preaching, and practice, it's hold on Christianity will be tenuous at best. Being "biblical" isn't enough. Some churches like to say they're "Bible-believing" churches. That sounds good, but the Bible wasn't nailed to a cross for the forgiveness of your sins. Christian churches are "Christ-believing," and you can't get more biblical than that.

 

12. Is the congregation in fellowship with other Christian congregations or does it stand alone? Watch out for the "Lone Rangers" of religion.

 

13. Is the church confessional and creedal? If a church can't put down in writing what it believes and teaches, maybe it doesn't believe anything at all.

 

 

Hopefully that can help.

Edited March 26, 2011 by Partizan

[tntgoodwin]

We reject:

...

5-point Calvinism

For a deeper understanding of what Calvinism is, see the book Calvinism versus Arminianism by Chuck Smith, but for our purposed here, suffice it to say that Calvary Worship Center rejects two of the five points of “5-point Calvinismâ€. First, Calvinism teaches that Jesus’ atonement on the Cross was limited, that is, that He died only for a chosen group, His “electâ€, not for the sins of the entire world. We believe that Jesus died on the Cross for all the sins of all people, and that anyone who wants to can accept Him as Lord and Savior and be born again. Strict five point Calvinists’ believe that only the elect can be saved and that God has elected others to spend eternity in hell.

 

Secondly, we reject the Calvinistic teaching called “irresistible graceâ€, which is the belief that man cannot, even if he wants to, resist the wooing and calling of God to salvation. Instead, we believe that man has a free will and he can resist the call of God if he chooses to do so.

 

 

^From a Calvary church's website.

 

Thanks Partizan, for those ideas!

[katemary63]

We visited churches weekly for 6 months before choosing. Some of them more then once. Wait till you know its the right one. We just kept going and then, one day, we all said, "Yup, this is it."

 

We settled on a Fellowship Bible Church. Now that we have experience with one, if we moved again, we'd just look for another one. We love it.

[Guest truthforsaints]

Thanks for this! My one concern about the Calvary Chapels is that some of them seem very anti-Calvinist...have you known this to be true?

 

Yes, generally a Calvary Chapel will closely resemble the doctrine of its founder, Chuck Smith. However, I've found that some Calvary Pastors are somewhat more Calvinist and others more Arminian than Smith. Some are now even becoming Molinists! (Middle Knowledge, a sort of "compromise between Calvin and Arminian).

 

My point is, there are areas of doctrinal fluctuation in the non-essentials for the churches I mentioned in my first post. You are correct, you will not find a Calvary Chapel anywhere that will embrace Double Predestination: i.e. God's "irresistable" grace. For staunch Calvinism you would be best off at a Presbyterian or Evangelical Free Church. Neither of which are pentecostal in doctrine (Calvary Chapel) or in practice (Foursquare, Vineyard). But both adhere closely (or closer) to Reformed Theology.

 

Andrew

http://www.truthforsaints.com