How will your church celebrate the Reformation?

[agedman]

That is about the stupidest reply I have seen, (almost).
When Luther discovered the scriptures in the university library, He was engrossed from the beginning and read as much as he could.

• 2 And he had in his hand a little book open: and he set his right foot upon the sea, and his left foot on the earth,
• 3 And cried with a loud voice, as when a lion roareth: and when he had cried, seven thunders uttered their voices.

From the beginning of the reformation, from the time that Luther posted his thesis on the church door inviting people to come and debate them. (I don't know if it is recorded that anyone turned up) It was as if the message went into the world as a loud voice, so loud it shook the papal empire.

What happened next? The seven thunders uttered their voices. The Papal Bull, from the seven hills thundered against Luther and eventually excommunicated him. Luther was stunned He still thought the Pope was head of the church and considered the document.
(The book of Revelation is not only a symbolic book, it is also acted out by John, he represents the church throughout the book.)

• 4 And when the seven thunders had uttered their voices, I was about to write: and I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Seal up those things which the seven thunders uttered, and write them not.

Luther must have prayed about that during the next month or so before he burnt the papal books and the Bull. By the time he burnt the Bull he had learnt the truth, and called the Bull "The execrable Bull of Antichrist." Others had learnt that before the reformation, Waldenses, Lollards, Hussites etc.

• Revelation 10:8-11 And the voice which I heard from heaven spake unto me again, and said, Go and take the little book which is open in the hand of the angel which standeth upon the sea and upon the earth.
• 9And I went unto the angel, and said unto him, Give me the little book. And he said unto me, Take it, and eat it up; and it shall make thy belly bitter, but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey.
• 10And I took the little book out of the angel's hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter.
• 11And he said unto me, Thou must prophesy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings.

The little book, the New Testament was as sweet as honey to the reformers, but resulted in bitter tribulation.

• Psalms 119:103 How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth!

Luther testified before the emperor and princes, the English reformers testified before kings and queens, including queen Mary, and that was bitter to them.

A bit short on the historical facts?

 

[agedman]

I disagree. Our pastor talked about the Sola's and why the Reformation mattered.

Really did it matter?

Or, was it all God’s plan all along?

 

[Covenanter]

I have held the Reformed faith for 60 years, as an independent, evangelical Christian practising the baptism of believers.

So do we celebrate the Reformation?

Our Pastor 'celebrated the Reformation by preaching on "justification by faith" from Romans 1.

A neighbouring church had a special open meeting about Luther, his 95 theses & the 5 'solas' with a special guest speaker. A tremendous benefit was the translation, printing & wide distribution of the Bible.

The informal discussions afterwards were rather more interesting than the lecture. The 5 'solas' are true, but don't go far enough.

How did the Reformation affect Christians who were practicing their faith under RC persecution? Persecution by Protestants instead of RCs; baptist leaders were drowned & many 'anabaptists' & others whose conscience prevented them conforming were killed. Jews also were savagely presecuted. Freedom of religion - certainly NOT.

The 'Elizabethan Act of Uniformity required everyone to worship according to the Book of Common Prayer, with fines & prison for offenders. 150 years after 1517 the father of the hymn writer Isaac Watts was in prison for preaching when his son was born in 1674. Mummy used to take baby to the prison wall so Daddy could hear his baby. Only in 1689 was the Act partially repealed.

I took centuries for a measure of Christian freedom to be attained in some countries - a freedom where -

render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, & to God the things that are God's​

was applied generally. A freedom that is now being replaced by the dominant religion of 'political correctness' that allows freedom for all sorts of sins & abominations, & false religions, but no freedom for those who condemn sin, stand up for the Gospel & the ONE way of salvation.

And now Lutherans & RCs have an agreed formula for 'Justification by faith.' BUT what is a Christian in the paedobaptist denominations?

 

[Felipe Rios]

Its Reformation Sunday tomorrow and my church plans to go all out. Will your church do the same or will your church just passively mention the event but not celebrate it? Or will your church ignore it?

The true NT churches of Christ existed before the reformation so no need to celebrate a Protestant tradition.

 

[Reformed]

We celebrate Christ and His works, not men and their works.

I feel the same about Christmas and Easter. There is no warrant in scripture to celebrate these days on the Lord’s day. Christians have 52 special days each year. Celebrating specials days on days other than the Lord’s day? Fine.


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[Reformed]

I think his church claims to be Christian, not Calvinist.

I wonder what Calvin would have thought about the Church celebrating the Reformation.

The same thing he felt about celebrating Christmas.


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[Reformed]

True Baptist's Faith and Practice was in place and viable 1600 years before Luther or Calvin were born.

The so-called Protestant Reformation was a failed attempt to reform Catholicism from within. There was a counter refomation which is recorded in the Council of Trent. True Baptists were not involved.

New Testament Churches, among whom are many called Baptist, have been persecuted by the so-called reformers, some say even more than the Papists. The bone of contention: authority to baptize and baptismal regeneration. This is an issue which has yet to be resolved. They cannot be resolved: one view is apostate.

This is a bit of a dilemma in the world of Christendom. If the Vatican has God given authority to be Church, she has not delegated this autholrity to anyone. If the Vatican is a usurper, all those who came out from her are without authority as well.

Just who the real heretics might be is an interesting study. No one celebrating protestantism here. Do not celebrate Mass of Christ or Goddess of Estrus either.

Luther and Calvin were paedobaptists with state owned religions, completely contrary to Baptistic doctrine. Why would we want to celebrate that?

Even so, come, Lord Jesus.

Bro. James

Gotta love Landmarkers.


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[TCassidy]

I don't think anyone "wins souls for Christ" we preach the gospel to them and the Father draws them to the Son.
John 6:44

Take it up with John, he said it, not me. He also implied the apostates can prevent the elect from being saved.

 

[TCassidy]

He thinks he has won hundreds of souls to Christ.

I have seen hundreds come to Christ, drawn by my Holy Spirit empowered preaching Christ and Him Crucified (not Calvin, not Luther, not the Reformation, but Christ and Him Crucified).

How many have you seen come to Christ via your powerless street screeching?

 

[TCassidy]

Never let the Bible and scripture get in the way of a good modern Calvinistic talking point.

Souls are won (drawn to Christ) via the preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. To deny that is to deny the Great Commission.

 

[TCassidy]

Gotta love Landmarkers.

Especially when they are right.

Jude 3 Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that you should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.

Not delivered, lost, and redelivered. Once delivered. True bible doctrine has been around since the 1st century AD. Nothing new was invented in 1517 - 1535.

 

[Reformed]

Especially when they are right.

Jude 3 Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that you should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.

Not delivered, lost, and redelivered. Once delivered. True bible doctrine has been around since the 1st century AD. Nothing new was invented in 1517 - 1535.

I don't deny that the truth has always existed. There is only one truth. I have an issue with Landmarkism. I do believe that the Baptist movement is a product of the Reformation and Protestantism. Of course, that's a whole other debate.

 

[Reynolds]

Souls are won (drawn to Christ) via the preaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. To deny that is to deny the Great Commission.

I agree with you. I was stating that many of the new breed of "Calvinists" say we don't win souls.

 

[TCassidy]

I do believe that the Baptist movement is a product of the Reformation and Protestantism.

Baptist roots seem to me to be bifurcated between Baptist which trace their linage through the Reformation via the Church of England and those dissenters from the CoE such as the Puritans who preferred Congregationalism over the CoE polity, and those who trace their linage through the Radical Reformation of the Mennonites and Anabaptists.

It is the latter group who see the Anabaptists as successors to Waldensians, Montanists, Petrobussians, Turtulianists, etc.

I believe there is sufficient historical evidence to effectively argue both positions.

I believe my faith/doctrine dates to the time of Christ, but the name "baptist" is most likely a diminutive of "anabaptist" and thus owes its origin to Continental Europe rather than England.

 

[David Kent]

You know half the time people use the Prayer button I an not sure what they are wanting to communicate, but it looks like they are wanting to use it as a means to disagree. What an abuse of it and the idea of prayer.

I didn't even know there was a prayer button. If ever used it it was a mistake.

 

[Revmitchell]

I didn't even know there was a prayer button. If ever used it it was a mistake.

It's the last one on the right

 

[TCassidy]

Landmarkism, when understood in its historic context is, in my opinion, fairly accurate.

1st Mark: The Church and the Kingdom of Christ is a divine institution.

2nd Mark: It is a visible institution.

3rd Mark: It is located upon the Earth.

4th Mark: It is a local, single, congregation.

5th Mark: The membership are all professedly regenerate before baptism.

6th Mark: Its baptism was the profession on the part of the subject of the faith of the gospel by which he is saved.

7th: Mark: The Lord's Supper was observed as a local church ordinance commemorative only of the sacrificial chastisement of Christ for His people never expressive of personal fellowship or of courtesy to others or as a sacrament.

I can't, for the most part, disagree with that.

 

[David Kent]

Baptist roots seem to me to be bifurcated between Baptist which trace their linage through the Reformation via the Church of England and those dissenters from the CoE such as the Puritans who preferred Congregationalism over the CoE polity, and those who trace their linage through the Radical Reformation of the Mennonites and Anabaptists.

It is the latter group who see the Anabaptists as successors to Waldensians, Montanists, Petrobussians, Turtulianists, etc.

I believe there is sufficient historical evidence to effectively argue both positions.

I believe my faith/doctrine dates to the time of Christ, but the name "baptist" is most likely a diminutive of "anabaptist" and thus owes its origin to Continental Europe rather than England.

There were a group near here some of them, at least, mentioned by Foxe who were called a sort of Anlgicised anti Calvinist Anabaptists, due to persecution in this area they went over the water to Bocking in Essex. Eventually the were all caught and eventually all put to death. However someone I read years ago said they all had different views and the only thing they had in common was they were anti Catholic. I can't remember any more or who wrote it. One who gave a good account of himself in front of the Bishop was Nicholas Shetterton.

 

[David Kent]

It's the last one on the right

Oh yes, thanks.

 

[David Kent]

111111

Landmarkism, when understood in its historic context is, in my opinion, fairly accurate.

1st Mark: The Church and the Kingdom of Christ is a divine institution.

2nd Mark: It is a visible institution.

3rd Mark: It is located upon the Earth.

4th Mark: It is a local, single, congregation.

5th Mark: The membership are all professedly regenerate before baptism.

6th Mark: Its baptism was the profession on the part of the subject of the faith of the gospel by which he is saved.

7th: Mark: The Lord's Supper was observed as a local church ordinance commemorative only of the sacrificial chastisement of Christ for His people never expressive of personal fellowship or of courtesy to others or as a sacrament.

I can't, for the most part, disagree with that.

I can't say I agree with the last mark, mainly because I don't quite understand it.