I am sorry, but one of the Baptist distinctives is that our local churches are autonomous, rather than required to swear allegiance to a "denominational statement of belief."
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What is a cult
- Thread starter Salty
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You are redefining "denominational wide creeds and confessions" as individually written local church statements of faith.
Mikey
Active Member
No my argument is that a confession can be either a "denominational wide creed" and/or a individaul churches statement of belief. The issue is how they are used. So confessions are good and every church has them the issue is how they are used. So your "what we believe" is a confession held by your church alone.
thats not a redefining, it is what it is. Confession is just a old term that some continue to use.
Mikey
Active Member
again that is an argument against how confessions are used not the confession (statement of belief).
How is it wrong for seperate churches to use the same Statement of Faith? If the statement of Faith expresses scriptural truths in a clear and succinct manner, then why not use it?
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Mikey
Active Member
I have ran into this much more in Presby reformed then we Baptists, as they tend to almost always been using the Westminster Confession all the time!
I see the Confessions as basic guidelines on the major doctrines, to make sure stay within boundary.
A Biblical Cult would be a church or a group that uses biblical jargon, but denies Jesus is God, denies God is a trinity, denies Pauline Justification, and who adds to the scriptures additional sources to them of divine revelation, which in effect renders the Bible null and void!
Mikey
Active Member
Ok. From that would it be accurate to describe a organisation as "Christian" (and therefore not a cult) would be holding to the Nicene Creed plus the 5 Solas of the Reformation?
Mikey
Active Member
For me there are conotations attached to the word cult which i don't think is appropriate to describe some institutions. the phrase "Cultish practices" I'm sure generates a certain image. I think how the organisation behaves matters in what word we use.
Any particular group in mind?
Cult to me really gets to the point are they holding to the real God of the Bible and to real Gospel?
Mikey
Active Member
No. I was think myself what are the minimum doctrines to believe to be called a Christian. I have started anew thread on this question.
Just answered there!
"Cult" is to faith/religion/church as "neurosis" is to psychology. It has a such a broad meaning that virtually anyone in psychology, and any organization in faith/religion/church, qualifies.
Nevertheless, my own meaning would be this in regard to the Christian faith:
An organization, or at least a unified purpose, of religious doctrine and practice characterized by an attack on longer established assemblies and doctrines of Christian faith, by claiming to be the only channel by which the Supreme Being communicates with people today-- either by direct revelation or by possessing the only flawless understanding of the scriptures-- by having a strong emphasis on wedge issues; that is, beliefs and practices that the established assemblies have thought or practiced in the "wrong" way [the sabbath, dietary restrictions, blood transfusions, what happens to the soul after physical death,....], and finally by requiring commitments by members to regard the organization or unified purpose as the top priority in a person's life, including requiring to various degrees that a member cut ties with acquaintances or family members who may influence the member in another direction.
How's that for a sentence?
Nevertheless, my own meaning would be this in regard to the Christian faith:
An organization, or at least a unified purpose, of religious doctrine and practice characterized by an attack on longer established assemblies and doctrines of Christian faith, by claiming to be the only channel by which the Supreme Being communicates with people today-- either by direct revelation or by possessing the only flawless understanding of the scriptures-- by having a strong emphasis on wedge issues; that is, beliefs and practices that the established assemblies have thought or practiced in the "wrong" way [the sabbath, dietary restrictions, blood transfusions, what happens to the soul after physical death,....], and finally by requiring commitments by members to regard the organization or unified purpose as the top priority in a person's life, including requiring to various degrees that a member cut ties with acquaintances or family members who may influence the member in another direction.
How's that for a sentence?
Once again, Y1 has posted a complete and total falsehood concerning adoption.
Now we have the liberal redefining the meaning of redefining. Go figure
The poster was asked to provide a link to a confession (such as the Westminster Confession) but was unwilling or unable to provide a link. Then he sought to discuss how confessions are used, rather than the bogus doctrine contained in many of them.
On and on, Y1 posts false doctrine. Adoption refers to our bodily redemption at Christ's second coming.
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