Christians not much different than unbelievers

We have all heard of babies having babies.....

I think the problem is spiritual babies raising spiritual babies.

Scarlett you hit the nail on the head!!!

I see and talk to so many parents that think that their kids are innocent and that they don't know what is going on.

Satan has the parents blinded...
Kids do know more today than kids did even 10 yrs ago.

What is even more disturbing is the parents that just don't care.

Here is my rant about youth ministry...
Church members expect the youth leaders to do all the spiritual work!

As youth pastors/leaders, we need to get the parents more involved... give the parents homework to do with their kids...

They may say, "I'm too busy, that's why we hired you" But part of being a good youth leader is supplying the parents with the necessary tools to spiritually feed their children..

But then again you have the parents that are spiritually babes themselves....

 

The best thing I know to do with the kids is to reassure them that they can talk to me about anything; and I have to constantly remember to not put them down for their thoughts or influences (including friends) but as GP says try to turn them toward discipleship and responsibilities of being a Christian which includes standing up and setting an example for the things that are right.

My 13 year old often debates abortion at school and really sticks to her guns coming to me for more ammo.

Just last week after our discussions she countered with some of these things in her secular gifted class which is now in majority against abortion for the first time after three years of this:

That the definition of life is something that is growing according to the same scientist that claim it isn’t, and starting with the first time a cell splits it is growing!

A woman is not right thinking she is choosing to do something with just her own body in aborting a baby as the baby doesn’t even have the same DNA as the mother, it is a life of its own with its own rights, dependant on the parent just like a new born would be and if a parent choose to kill an already born child it is murder. If the mother doesn’t want the responsibility of the baby she has a choice to find someone that does. The choice to kill another human being is wrong and she has NO right to do that just because it is presently in her body.

For someone to say they believe for them abortion is wrong but do not have the right to stand against someone else doing it is the same as saying murder is wrong for me but it’s alright for someone else to do it, no difference!

Personally, I think shielding is pretty much a lost cause other than to teach our children to want to turn their selves away from the evil things in the world and to treasure the good things.

 

And what is really confusing is when people that say they are Christian and Pro-choice...

I don't even understand that one.
let alone a 12 year old trying to figure it out.

Abortion is MURDER!!!
That is what we should be teaching our 12 yr olds.

And those that perform abortions are MURDERERS.
Why can't people understand?

 

Tator Tot, "Christians not much different than
unbelievers" was your topic?
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??? You can't remember from one day to another what you wrote? I just told you on this board...there is not much difference! You can't see that? Why should it be a shock to you that your school girls think worldly thoughts, read the posts on BB. These are wordly people! I'm not highjacking your posts.

 

Shiloh... you know few if any of us.

Perhaps we are worldly by your standard... but we won't be judged by that. We will be judged by the Righteous One... and I doubt that he will judge us for allowing women to wear pants, drinking alcohol without getting drunk (I don't drink at all btw), or for using a Bible other than the KJV... since those restrictions are not found in His revelation to us... only in yours.

 

I am also grateful for the Righteous Judge who determines my level of "worldliness."

I have discovered that many of the teenagers with the most worldly thoughts come from very strict, very conservative, very fundamenatal churches and families.

Perhaps part of the reason for worldly thinking is a rejection of extra-biblical restrictions and limitations masked as "spirituality"?

 

A hearty amen to Scott, C4K, and Tater

 

Excuse me TaterTot , ScottJ and other baptist catholics. You see people sin is sin! The "Word of God" does not place a premium on "your" BIG sins and disregard "your" little sins. The Bible tells us to be different, Be Holy, be separate, and so forth. If you people want to disregard those teachings and mock those of us that don't, so be it. However don't get upset TaterTot when kids mock you. You can mock a separated Baptist here and all you do is get them to write back but kids are not fools!! They can spot a phony a mile off. When they know you condone drinking, smoking, ect. and then you come across as "Holy Roller Joe" they know! Heb.3:14

[ February 08, 2006, 05:17 PM: Message edited by: blackbird ]

 

Shiloh bringeth up a good point. Sin is sin. There is no big sin and small sin.

However, here on earth, some sins have greater consequences than others. But to God, the consequence of all sin is the same: spiritual death.

 

Yep, sure can.

 

I see it

 

The Bible does not make you the authority for us to determine what is right in matters where the Bible doesn't speak directly. Further, it certainly doesn't designate you as the one to tell everyone else when God's revelation wasn't quite "conservative" enough as in the case of non-drunken alcohol consumption.

Yes and no. We lived near a church in west GA for awhile with a very charismatic preacher that espoused much of what you do. Some of the young men were enamoured with him and following his lead they declared that they were "called to preach". He prided himself on his "young preacher boys".

I know specifically about two of his "A" students... neither is now serving God. Both are into alcohol and became promiscuous. One is a drug user.

Sometimes it actually takes some biblically based experience and discernment to spot a phony... I knew what the guy was after meeting him a couple of time and listening to one sermon.

What they "know" depends on their expectations. That is one reason why I won't drink. I know that many in the areas where I have lived expect genuine Christians not to drink. We have better alternatives to alcohol than they had in biblical days so why would I do something that might bring me into question. In fact, I'll drink water only for the sake of the gospel if the day comes when soda is thought of in similar terms as tobacco.

I suspect that expectations are different where Johnv lives... and know it is different in Europe.

[ February 08, 2006, 05:20 PM: Message edited by: blackbird ]

 

BTW, I think young people are attracted to genuine, not superficial, expressions of the fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5).

When young people see goodness, kindness, moderation, love, joy, peace,.... They know that is different. Those are the things a kid looking for the right things will notice. They'll reject bitterness and legalism.

 

Scottie.."They'll reject bitterness and legalism."
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...and "christians" who drink alcohol amd smoke cigarettes and mock preachers that preach against those worldly sins.

 

I think many of these poor kids are put off by the harsh, critical, condemning, name-calling nature of some Christians.

Perhaps they find a love and acceptance in the world that they don't find in the church.

 

I think so too, C4K

From both sides.

 

I think many times people want "love and acceptance" to mean "let me do whatever I want and don't tell me its wrong." The unbelievers I know, for the most part, respect those who have a standard and stick to it, even if they don't agree with it. Usually the people getting offended by the standards of a church are other believers. Unbelievers expect us to want and attempt to be different from them. They are disappointed, on some level, when we try to act and look just like them.

Ive seen people leave and get angry because something they were doing was preached against....does this mean that the preaching was wrong? Not necessarily. I think not usually. The people doing this sort of leaving are basically either other Christians OR they are scoffing unbelievers who had no intention of really seeking out God anyway.

Face it. We can't bemoan the fact that Christians are far too much like the unbelievers of today, and then start getting mad at each other about "legalism"....within the same discussion. Do we want or believe that Christians ought to be different than unbelievers? Or don't we? Unbelievers can be nice, kind, patient, gentle and loving.....Christians aren't the only ones who can have these attributes.

Whats different about us? Based on the OP, we know we are supposed to be different somehow...right? We are disappointed when we find our own kids inundated with the "world's" ideas and influences.

Holding to standards which make you different does not automatically translate into "legalistic and rude and unloving." I can see some around here who are just sometimes not very tactful, sometimes downright rude, on BOTH sides of the separation issues. I don't think its about the stance so much as it is about the personality of the individual.

 

In some regards I agree. However, these kids can tell real love from someone who just wants them to conform to a standard of some sort. Having standards does not make on unloving anymore that not having standards makes one loving.

It is a spirit that puts people off and turns them away. We can accept and love kids without accepting and loving their sin and worldliness.

If you were a young person reading this thread, would you be drawn to the love of Christ being shown here?

 

C4K, If you are offended by my remarks I'm truly sorry. However I am still going to Preach the word; in season, and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine whether you and the SB preacher and others like it or not! You make remarks about me judging. You don't know me from Adams house cat. How do you know what's on my heart? You talk about love and being longsuffering? I can be as longsuffering and as loving as I need to be with a lost person or young person. It is the people that claim to be Saved Baptist and some of you are PREACHERS that I have trouble with. I have preached for years to young people who have looked at some phony christians who smoked their cigarettes while watching their TV sets drinking their liqueor and bad mouthing old fashioned Baptist preachers who do tell them some things are SIN! I can be longsuffering but not to some smug faced baptist preacher that condones sin and then cries about why our kids live like the world. You know why it's hard to get kids in church today....sorry preachers!! I was at Sammy Allens Campmeeting one time and they asked everyone under 21 to stand. There must have been at least 200 young people there in the service. Do you know who was preaching? Don Green, Phil Kidd and others like them. Reason...they knew they were real! They preached against SIN and LIVED it! Thank you!