Different approach in organisation of services #3

Radio calls and booklets

Today the Jehovah Witnesses are the biggest known Bible Student Group in Belgium. At first they could find Bible Students groups associating with them and start growing from the previous preparations of those groups. But they too had to see members leaving them.

Français : Jumet (Charleroi – Belgique) – Chapelle Notre Dame de Heigne (XIIe siècle) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

As result of the broadcastings in the mid 20° century, in French and sponsored by the Brethren of Dawn from the U.S; 3 Belgian families were interested in the Present Truth. It was Brother Armand Lechien who got in touch with Brother Félix Pilarski through the mail service of Radio Luxemburg: Brother Félix aimed him towards Jumet. These 3 families left the movement they were members of (the Jehovah Witnesses) because they thought the teachings they heard were not in harmony

with the Scriptures. The Polish-Belgian Brother and Sister Wlodarski had got French brethren and sisters in their circles and found more brethren from the French Association des étudiants de la Bible coming more and more frequently to serve the Word of God (brother François Wozniak, Kosmalski A. Liszka, T. Kubiak, J., Osorowski S.,TF et Ed. Pilarski, Speil, a few from Saint Etienne and many others …..); the family Kula, their younger daughter and one son attended the meetings, in the following years just like in France, pilgrim brethren came from the United States and later from Poland.

Courcelles coal mine ” 6 périer ” Souvret

The families – Armand et Louise Lechien – Ernest et Helena Duchateau –  Edmond et Jeanne Henrioule decided to have meetings during the week (on Wednesday and Thursday) to study the Figures of the Tabernacle. With their agreement, the families Wlodarski and Kula joined them. The studies were held in two languages with the help of a translator (2 languages were spoken French and Polish).

Brother Félix Pilarski and other brethren worked a lot for these meetings because they spoke French perfectly.

Brother Félix Pilarski made a handsome contribution to the development of the meeting of Courcelles with edifying biblical discourses and his visits. He was also personally active in the country of Liège and in Brussels where he had a deposit of booklets. Other brethren also paid many visits; among them we can mention Brother Joseph Wozniak, Adolphe Debski, and others.

After Brother Ernest Duchateau died suddenly, meetings continued for some time. When Brother Lechien died after a quite long disease, we could see a repetitive thing around the house churches, the ecclesia of Courcelles disappeared in the mid 70’s.

Former town hall of Jumet, where the film “Why did He come to earth?” of the Bible Students was given.

On October 24th 1987, the ecclesia of Jumet organised two projections of the film “Why did He come to earth?” in the community City Hall of Charleroi. Those shows were announced with advertising: posters in public places, advertising in the city with loudspeakers, spots on local newspapers radio and TV, display on electronic screens, distribution of leaflets.

More than hundred persons attended these film projections. Leaflets and tracts were given to the participants but only few asked for further information and other booklets.

Soothed to sleep with man’s talk

Very soon in history the majority in Christendom went running after the false teachers. The myths were more pleasing to the ear than the actual truth. They were soothed to sleep with it. Early on the Brothers, as true followers of the Lord Jesus Christ, were in the minority. Their faith of the true gospel was of ‘origin’ pure, by the human impurities it was swung back and forth by the years gone.

In Belgium and the Netherlands remained Bible Faithful following Jesus’ command and continued preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God.
The first nor the second world war had kept them from it, even though many of them were anxiously looking forward to the action of the two warring camps, because they were against fighting, and because they adhered to a faith that was not liked by anyone.

That Jesus and his apostles spoke about the news that there would be established a Kingdom on earth, that would be ruled by Jesus Christ and in which the faithful of all ages would have a place alongside their Lord: i.e. as co-rulers, this sounded obviously not fine in the ears for them (the German Fuehrer wished to be the only ruler). But the cheerful message for humanity survived now the fight under people and brought unprecedented peace in some families.

The doctrine of Christ’s reign on earth was first treated as highly symbolic, gradually became labelled as a very questionable and useless thought and was ultimately rejected as an absurd invention of heresy and fanaticism.
God’s light happily extinguishes not; it is an eternal flame. The people of Israel in ancient times also reached detritus. They even served other gods. Nevertheless, there remain at this time believers in the One God and history now could repeat itself. Faithful to God those bible students wanted to share their findings and in spite the continuous opposition dared to go against the most popular doctrine of men.

Getting a base in Holland

After attempts from the Netherlands were made to bring Truth to England (in the 16th Century) and having a flight of truth seekers to the New World in the 19th century, now letters of truth seekers from the New World could again send truth to Europe.

The teachings of Elias Smith and John Thomas now, the time was ripe, an opportunity was given to a ‘resurgence‘ of Bible Faithful. They also found their way across the ocean and in all English-speaking countries they could find a foothold.

Through the centuries, the Gospel of God’s Kingdom, which was preached by Jesus and the apostles, showed a dynamic force which has all the opposition of powerful religious groups defied and still serves as the sole basis of faith for those who want to search God.

Website of the Brothers in Christ or Christadelphians in the Netherlands – Website van de Nedrlandse Broeders in Christus

In 1956 in the Netherlands finally the group of Brothers in Christ could get solid and communities as “de Broeders in Christus“, arose in Den Haag (The Hague), Amersfoort, Ede and Groningen.

From 1957 officially recognised, seeing it as our duty to our Lord to make his name known among the people in our area, as well as among other nations, they made work of it to go around billing leaflets. They kept their focus on the Bible as the source of all knowledge and followed the guiding principle of the word of our Lord, “Freely ye have received, freely give.” They also began to spread the magazine “Met Open Bijbel” (With Open Bible) of which Rudolf Rijkeboer was the driving force.

Vanishing interest

It clearly appeared that after the ‘golden age’ with the children boom and citizens of Belgium having their life becoming better, the interest for the biblical message of Truth is vanishing with time passing on.

The Bible Students saw their number of members in ecclesiae decreasing.The visiting brethren and sisters from the Christadelphian Bible Mission (CBM) for 25 years made regular visits to put leaflets and pamphlets in the postboxes. Their short visits trying to get people on the street interested in the works of Christ and in the promises of God, did not work out. At the time (early 21° Century) they wanted to give it all up and several Christadelphians left Holland to return to England or to go to Australia.

At the end of the 20° Century some Bible Students with ex-Jehovah Witnesses formed the Vrije Christenen or Free Christians. In that movement was also the non-trinitarian Baptist Marcus Ampe very active. Even before he himself became a Christadelphian he had already brought others to the Christadelphian faith. In Flemish Brabant and in Hainaut, plus on the net, with him, again an effort was made to bring the Good News of the coming Kingdom.

The Belfry in Mons, one of the meeting places of the Free Belgian Christadelphians

Last year brother Marcus tried to get several Bible Student groups together, but failed because of their will to have a certain power and the will to keep everything in control themselves. Plus some, like our confrères which we ourselves could not get over the bend to join the other Christadelphians in Belgium, made it impossible to have the different bible Students exchanging ideas, meeting sessions and information about their where-about and working. For our Australian brothers, of the Australian Bible Students, the CBM members were not close enough in following the teachings of brother Dr. John Thomas and mixing with the too loose teachings would dilute the whole system (they thought).

The man from the North and his organisation, have most of the Bible Students (except the JW) living in Belgian. But they resisted in giving the addresses of their ecclesiae in Oostende, Gent, (Brussels) and Antwerp. this made that the few but very active Christadelphians from Brussels, Leuven and Mons, could not meet with more Christadelphians in Belgium.

We too had to face the difficulty of bringing people together in peace and where confronted with a loss in our ranks, but our invitation is still open to join as members of the Body of Christ, united in the love of Christ.

We are convinced that our preaching work is important and that even when we do not reach so many people in Belgium, we do hope we can reach some others far away from us. We do hope that our voice may also sound in the darkness and bring some light to people we do not know, but who we do hope to meet in the Kingdom of God. We look forward to meet many new faces, happy to be under the Guidance of the Lord and not bounded by single people, but constructed on the cornerstone Jesus Christ.

Though we may have a different approach in organisation of services we do believe we all should go for the same truth and for the unification under Christ, by which each group might have a different name, but is willing to be united in spirit, sharing to build up and construct positively working to help each other entering the gate of the coming Kingdom.

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Preceding articles:

Different approach in organisation of services #1

Different approach in organisation of services #2

Dutch version / Nederlandse versie: Andere aanpak in de organisatie van de diensten # 3

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Please do find out more about the Christadelphians and find further related articles:

1. Not all christians are followers of a Greco-Roman culture
2. Two new encyclopaedic articles
3. Who are the Christadelphians
4. What are Brothers in Christ
5. Discipleship way of life on the narrow way to everlasting life
6. Christadelphian people
7. Christadelphians or Messianic Christians or Messianic Jews
8. About the Belgian Free Christadelphians
9. What Christadelphians teach
10. Small churches of the few Christadelphians
11. Priority to form a loving brotherhood
12. 19° Century London Christadelphians
13. Breathing and growing with no heir
14. Commitment to Christian unity
15.  Parts of the body of Christ
16. What part of the Body am I?
17. The Church, Body of Christ and remnant Israel synonymous
18. United people under Christ
19. Fellowship
20. The Ecclesia
21. The Ecclesia in the churchsystem
22. The ecclesia or Christadelphian church
23. Our relationship with God, Jesus and each other
24. Our ecclesia or Christadelphian-church
25. Intentions of an Ecclesia
26. An ecclesia in your neighbourhood
27. Communion and day of worship
28. Christadelphians today
29. Small churches of the few Christadelphians
30. Who Celebrates Easter as Religious Holiday
31. Eostre, Easter, White god, chocolate eggs, Easter bunnies and metaphorical resurrection
32. Learn how to go out into the world and proclaim the Good News of the coming Kingdom
33. Harvest in Belgium
34. Building up the spirit of the soul
35. No reconciliation possible between CBM and Duncan Heaster from Carelinks
36. Priority to form a loving brotherhood
37. Change of name
38. Quibbling siblings united or allied children of an organisation or a church
39. Small churches of the few Christadelphians

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Philippians 4:4–7 – Do Not Be Anxious

Last year the Christadelphians and several Bible Students in Belgium had a lot of worries and tried to get more and better contact with different believers in the Low Countries. They wanted the different communities sharing ideas and working more together.

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From all up the North (Riga) there was real sabotage which ignited also opposition from the United Kingdom and Australian bases, making the Belgian Christadelphians even more isolated.

We only now came acroos this interesting writing by Phillip J. Long which also looks at the writing of the apostle Paul which we also took as our guide in this difficult time of making church.

Often we as simple humans forget the role of the guiding or directing hand of the Most High in His time period. We so often want to hurry up things, not taking into account that it is perhaps not according to God His Plan or time scheme.

Often we worry too much about worldly matters, getting enough people at the meeting, being able to pay the bills, getting the publications ready in time, etc. instead of letting it come like it comes…

The difficulties we encounter today or nothing compared to the difficulties of the first followers of Christ. In our civilised industrialist democratic countries we are not imprisoned for our beliefs and do not have to worry to be executed for our faith, yet we are so often afraid about what others might think and how others react. We should learn more from the examples of the apostles, like Paul who rejoiced in his circumstances, modelling the kind of attitude not only he desires from the congregation, but which Christ would like to see as the ignition key for a trusting Christian congregation.

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You may read also:

1. A rebellious movement founded on a fake?
2. Are you religious, spiritual, or do you belong to a religion, having a faith or interfaith
3. Inculturation today calling for a different attitude
4. Problems attracting and maintaining worshippers
5. Others that hinder the message
6. Vision blurred by cumulative burden of divisions
7. Church has to grow through witness, not by proselytism
8. Let us not forget it was God who chose us
9. Faith because of the questions
10. Fear of failure, and fear of the unknown
11. Disciple of Christ counting lives and friends dear to them
12. Aim High: Examples of Godly Characters to follow
13. Follower of Jesus part of a cult or a Christian
14. Being Christian, following Jesus Christ
15. Parts of the body of Christ
16. What part of the Body am I?
17. The Church, Body of Christ and remnant Israel synonymous
18. Being Missional
19. Flowing out from a genuine spiritual “heart”
20. Our openness to being approachable
21. Words in the world
22. Looking from different perspectives
23. Belonging to or being judged by
24. Jerusalem and a son’s kingdom
25. Anti-church movements and Humanism
26. Quibbling siblings united or allied children of an organisation or a church
27. No reconciliation possible between CBM and Duncan Heaster from Carelinks
28. Delay in publications because attack from outside
29. A man from the North wanting to have control in Belgium
30. Our openness to being approachable
31. Let us not fret or worry about next season
32. Fearing the right person
33. God’s Time is Best
34. Together tasting a great promise
35. Change of name
36. New Name a fact
37. To whom do we want to be enslaved
38. Are you being swept along by the world
39. Encouraging one another
40. A participation in the body of Christ
41. Disciple of Christ counting lives and friends dear…
42. Priority to form a loving brotherhood
43. Not words of any organisation should bind you, but…
44. Gods hope and our hope
45. Fixing our attention

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  Since the beginning of time, mankind has formed beliefs of the unexplainable and unknowable. Over thousands of years, these beliefs became traditional, customary, and institutionalized within regional societies. People continue to express an interest in spiritual matters from all corners around the world. Everybody has pondered the meaning of life, what happens after we die, what existed before us, and whether any other life exists in the universe. Mankind may never know concrete answers regarding the spiritual. In fact, humans may destroy the planet before we can discover the remaining life in unexplored regions. Nevertheless, we continue to seek spiritual enlightenment and a connection with our Creator.
• Without the Spirit one is not lead and guided into all truth (reformedontheweb.wordpress.com)
  Since the imagination of man, like all the other faculties of his moral being, is permeated and vitiated by sin, the ideas it suggests, even when pondering the Divine oracles, are prone to be mistaken and corrupt. It is part of our sinful infirmity that we are unable of ourselves to interpret God’s Word aright; but it is part of the gracious office of the Holy Spirit to guide believers into the truth, thereby enabling them to apprehend the Scriptures. This is a distinct and special operation of the Spirit on the minds of God’s people, whereby He communicates spiritual wisdom and light unto them, and which is necessary unto their discerning aright the mind of God in His Word, and also their laying hold of the heavenly things found therein.
• About us / Over ons/Belgian Church (muchadoaboutbiblicaltruths.wordpress.com)
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• Not bounded by labels but liberated in Christ (christadelphians.wordpress.com)
  As followers of Christ we should have taken on new clothes and though we may have the same old physical brain, we should have been transformed in a new being. Every day again we should be working on our new construction and should we learn to think an entirely new way.
• 5 Reasons to Join a Small Group – An Introduction (mycrosspointechurch.wordpress.com)
  In a matter of weeks, God had brought exponential growth the church.  What so astounding is that, even with that many people, there were no needs among the people (which was the reality by the end of Acts 2).

  How was it that the church met those needs?  How was it that there was such a unity in their midst.  The answer is tucked away for us, I believe, at the end of Acts 5.  Acts 5:42 reads, “And every day, in the temple and from house to house, they did not cease teaching and preaching that the Christ is Jesus.”

• Prayer for the Whole Church and Those in Authority (prayerfromtheheart.net)
  Give grace, O heavenly Father, to all ministers and all your humble servants, that they may all, by their lives and doctrine set forth Your true and lively Word, and rightly and duly administer Your holy Sacraments.
• VATICAN – Pope: Conform to Christ and not this world, and follow His path (asianews.it)
  At the Sunday Angelus Pope Francis warns against becoming “worldly” and “tasteless salt”. “Watered down Christians” are like watered down wine, “you do not know whether it is wine or water”. Read the Gospel every day. Gospel, Eucharist, prayer help us to safeguard the newness of Jesus.
• When The Sin Of Contention Comes (Bible tools commentary by John W. Ritenbaugh) (prophecynewsandviews.wordpress.com)
  A quarrel that could be easily settled if both parties were humble continues indefinitely when parties are arrogant. Why? Because pride plows the way for contempt for the others opinion. Pride inflames passion and wounds feelings. Because of competitiveness, also an aspect of pride, a person feels he has to fight back. And so the argument goes back and forth.
• Let us not fret or worry about next season (belgianbiblestudents.wordpress.com)
  Last season we like the Belgian Christadelphians perhaps had set our hopes to much on human beings, hoping they would not be as partial to prohibit brothers and sisters in Christ to join hands and have meetings together.

  In the midst of our many activities our minds should have been on the eternal and the magical ways of the universe, trusting God He would be the One Who brings the Chosen ones unto Him.

Reading Acts

While the following commands from Paul seem unrelated to the theme of unity, Frank Thielman argues they ought to be read in the context of persecution (Philippians, NIVAC, 217-9). While this is not an Empire-wide systematic persecution of believers, we have already seen several times in the letter than the church at Philippi was a small community of believers who are in many ways “different” from the Roman culture around them. The existence of a group of people who “have the mind of Christ” is enough to be suspicious, and suspicion easily gives way to gossip, wild accusations and pressure to conform. This sort of social pressure can be difficult to accept and a source of great fear for the church. Paul’s series of short exhortations in these verses are therefore designed to give comfort and encouragement to endure.

First, Paul encourages the church to set aside worry…

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Pleased to find Christadelphian World on the net

MSN Groups (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

We are pleased to find that the older articles of the MSN Groups and later Multiply Bijbelonderzoekers and Christadelphians, having been transferred to Blogger.

We also would like to recommend our readers to have a look at the new website of  the Belgian Christadelphians in addition to their older ones. Though the links to Multiply in the articles shall not work any more from 2012 December 1, people always could copy and paste the title into the search window of Christadelphian World.

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Transfer site opened to the public

Ending Multiply relationship

 

Life is too precious

In 1999 Marcus Ampe got his second near death experience and was literally paralysed for 6 months. After ten years revalidation he started feeling again as ‘the old Marcus’ and started kicking again.

He never could resist to have some comments on our society in his artistic works. His ballet on the First Chechen War with Russia and the inhuman conditions in  Chechnya, making a lot of commotion. As choreographer and dance teacher he was never afraid to say what was on his lips. As Christian preacher he wanted to follow the task Jesus had ordered to his disciples, spreading the Good News. But such Good Tidings and warnings about how to make something of our life were not exactly welcome, so he had to endure many difficulties, also at his work. Not afraid so much of people, but more fearing God, he always continued to spread the message of peace and human respect.

Having had 2 nearly death experiences in his life, he knows what it is to be alife, and would like to get people to understand the importance of having the opportunity to be alive and kicking well.

According to him prediction is not easy, but in case we would know the past much better we could have an idea where the world is heading to in the the future. As teacher of the history of ballet, he always wanted his pupils to compare the past with the contemporary time and to have an open mind about evolutions in the world of art but also in the world of politics, because there shall always a connection between them.

To predict the future one needs to know all of the past and the now. But he is aware that knowledge will always be partial, and therefore (according to him)  predictions will never be reliable except when they do come from people send by God, namely the prophets speaking in the name of God. But we should always be careful not to fall in the hands of false teachers and false prophets.

“To make something of our life we should have an open mind.” he says. “We should be aware of what happens in the world but also of which position we would like to take in that world. Often we do think we can not change anything, but that is not believing in the possibility of the complementary rules that all small bits can make one bigger unit, and can make a difference.”

For Mr. Ampe it is clear that we do have to take our responsibility. He does not agree as so many other Christian preachers preach that we as Christians should stay politically neutral and should stay away from any discourse. ‘Though making up a mind and taking stance does not mean we do have to go into a political party, that is something totally different.” According to him we should give to the system what the system demands (giving Caesar what the emperor asks said Jesus). “Having a democratic system people are or should be given the right or/and duty to vote. In Belgium it is compulsory to vote, so we should bring out our voice and vote for those who come closest to our opinion, our Judeo-Christian values, even when we do have to chose the best one from the bad ones.”

“We only live once. It is all in the Now, that we do have to make it. We can not take anything into our death. All will end up in the grave or in the incinerator.” The Christadelphians do believe that there is no spirit that leaves the body to go to a heaven, a hell or a purgatory. “Once death it is finished. With death we have paid for our sins.” Which should be a warning “We do have to make it here on earth. In case you postpone everything until a later date, it can well be the date you wanted to do it shall never come into your life. There is no time like the present.”

For some years Marcus Ampe said that we had to be careful not to listen too much to all those doom-preachers and lots of American mega church preachers who may count a lot of followers and really succeed to fill their enormous meeting-rooms. But they could well be the falls teachers Jesus warned us for.  Several evangelicals try to frighten people for the end of the world, which is near. Mr. Ampe agrees that we clearly can see signs that the End-times are near, if they did not start yet. “But before we shall hear the final whistle we shall have to face a third world war. People shall not be able to leave over the Plan of God and Armageddon. Though they should be aware that it is know that they can prepare themselves and that they should be trying to get as many people ready.”

On several occasions he told people not so much to fear the end of the world, because it will come when it is destined to come. “At the moment we do see that somehow some people started to become afraid of what is going on in the world. Some even prepare themselves by doing exercises to survive, building stock, building bunkers, you can’t image how crazy it can be.” Instead of wasting no time worrying about what can not be changed or avoided we should be conscious of what we do can change and on what we can work to have a better world to live in. “We do not have to work to have a better heaven. Those who will be judged to enter the Kingdom of God, shall be judged for what they have done in their lifetime on earth, and not on what they had planned to do.”

“When we get too involved with the fear of the end of our lives and the world, we forget to enjoy the time we have been blessed with.” Out of experience he is assured that we got the chance to live on this earth and should be thankful to the Creator for being allowed to be here on this earth.  “So many people never see the blessings they receive every day of the Most High. Often they do not think about God, but as soon as something goes wrong they accuse Him of letting something go wrong and wonder ‘Why?’.”

“Instead of blaming God, people should think more about what went wrong in the world and what really caused it. There  are so many things we do have in our own hands. Even elements of nature. Instead of taking care of avoiding pollution and respecting the environment, we continue our selfish  behaviour, destroying gods Creation, of which He asked men to take care of” (Editorial note: At the beginning of humankind in the Garden of Eden.)

“We should be pleased that we can live and thank God for our blessings as well. Fear for what is around us and for what might come in the future distracts us from our relationship with God. We should work much more at making that relation as best as we can, while most people are putting most efforts in trying to be accounted for the world, having a place high on the ladder in the community. Their position in the world is much more important for them, and as such they walk away from faith in the Only One God.”

For him it is clear that we can fix the problems of the world ourselves, but to do so we shall need to be humble enough to recognise what we are doing wrong and what others can do better. According to him we also can not expect everybody to believe in the same values or things like we do. In case people want to believe in other gods than our God, we should allow them. Also those who do not want to believe in any God, we should give them a proper place in the world, because God allows all of them to be here. “We should respect Gods choice. It is He who allows plants, animals, human beings, governments to be on this earth. In the Garden of Eden man disputed Gods right to govern, so He has given men the right to look for solutions and systems to govern the world himself. In case we can not come up to the challenge we do not have to accuse God of being unrighteous.”

Living creatures given unto us for joy

Life is to precious to have let it be wasted. So we should take care that those in charge shall also be respectful to everything God has given to humankind for its best. “All the living creatures including ourselves should be our main focus.”

“Having local and provincial elections we should be conscious that it is this year not about electing those in charge of the whole country, but for those who are going to direct the guidelines for the future of the village, city and for those in charge of the province. But we should also follow what is happening in the world and get others to know our idea about governing a small unit, a city, a country but also a state. We should be aware of the consequences when people are going to vote for a president, and what implication this could have not only on their community but also on other people everywhere in the world. All the small countries are just a ping-pong ball in the global game. The world has become so complex that we cannot avoid any interaction between all the states. What happens in the United States of America, for example, shall have a major influence on what is going to happen in Europe.”

“We also see that many conservative Christians are willing to turn back the clock for many centuries. They do think it are only the Judeo-Christian values which can bring prosperity. I also do believe we would be able to live in a better world if more people would keep to those Judeo-Christian values. But Paling enthusiasts seem to have a total different idea of liberty than the Founding Fathers of the United states of America had. They seem to prefer getting a system where their values and ideas shall have to be the rule for everybody in the community. But they do not question which denominational rules shall take over the power, and will result in that what the Pilgrim Fathers tried to escape in the 18th and 19th century.”

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You can find more ideas from Marcus Ampe on his website: Marcus’s Space

Additional reading:

1. Christian values and voting not just a game
2. Which back voters in the US wants to see
3. The trigger of Aurora shooting
4. Built on or Belonging to Jewish tradition #1 Christian Reform
5. Built on or Belonging to Jewish tradition #2 Roots of Jewishness
6. Built on or Belonging to Jewish tradition #3 Of the earth or of God
7. Built on or Belonging to Jewish tradition #4 Mozaic and Noachide laws
8. Judeo-Christian values and liberty
9. Faith related boycotts
10. Right to be in the surroundings
11. Bumpy road to success
12. Religious Practices around the world
13. Obama campaign expands faith effort
14. People of Faith for Obama video

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Also of interest:

God gave us a wonderful home and we should cherish it
With the Mayan Calendar countdown to zero pending in our minds and all the shows pushing doom and gloom there is a lot of people living in fear of the end.

Was the Apostle Paul the Original Preacher of Toxic Christianity?
The prominent religion in America is Evangelical Christianity. Belief in an inerrant, inspired Bible that is meant to be read literally is common in most every American denomination. I agree wholeheartedly with Rand that the Apostle Paul, based on his writings, would be a member on an Evangelical church.

True Christianity is a Relationship not A Religion
Any serious observer of Christianity can see that most Christians live lives opposite of what the Bible teaches.
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According to the Catholics there is One God, One Jesus, One Church, One Bible. As much as Protestants might like to say otherwise, the Catholics have the upper hand on this issue. The Protestants are the new-comers, the new kids on the block, kids who showed up 1500 years after Jesus and the first pope Peter got the whole shebang rolling.

The bottom line is this…….Christianity has ALWAYS been a religion. Christianity started as a subset of the Jewish religion, morphed into the Catholic religion, and splintered into the Protestant religion. Those trying to make a personal relationship with Jesus what REAL Christianity is have history, the Bible, and God himself against them.

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  Mortal death, and its accompanying ills, is a certainty. That is the bad news, and that is why we need good news. There is a solution.
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  The solution is found in an historical person: Jesus the Chosen One (the Christ) from Nazareth. The good news is that this special person, God’s own Son, has conquered death. We read in the New Testament that he was put to death on a cross by an antagonistic world, but that God counted this tragic event as a perfect sacrifice offered to Him (Isa. 53). Those who identify themselves with this sacrificed Jesus now have hope: The hope of life.
• “Is There A Wrong Way To Be Right?” (carrythecross156.wordpress.com)
  My heart is aching, because in many respects I see my brothers and sisters in Christ, who, against their own will, are beginning to look a lot like the world. These are Christians who hold the right views on many important subjects. However, the attitudes that they have display are anything but Christ-like. It seems as though the very same people who complain about the “mud-slinging” done in the political campaigns are every bit as quick to sling a little spiritual mud when it will help them in their cause.
  +
  Even if I have the right doctrine, if my motives and my attitude are wrong, I will not win my brother, which is the ultimate goal!
  +
  If our sincere desire is to win our brother, and promote unity within the brotherhood, strengthening one another on our way to heaven, I would recommend just a few practical things for you and I to implement in our own lives.
• ‘Unworthy slaves’: Listen to Jesus and do what he says (markkelly.wordpress.com)
  Pretty much everyone today feels they deserve better than they are getting, and here is Jesus talking about not just being a slave, but seeing yourself as an unworthy slave!
• A different perspective on Christianity (amustardseedsurlaroute.wordpress.com)
  

  “In Christianity neither morality nor religion come into contact with reality at any point” Friedrich Nietzsche

  The quote is from Nietzsche, but it could have come from anyone. This steadfast idea that we, Christians, life in our own world, close-minded and blind for what happens in society.

• What Tone Is Appropriate in Christian Discussion? (christcenteredteaching.wordpress.com)
  Christians today need to find their voices!Our insight as to when to speak up and which tone to use may make the difference as to whether we speak up at all.Unlike the message we are all getting from our Post-modern world today, God never meant us to keep silent, He said ,”Go and Preach the Gospel.”

Welkomstwoord

Wij wensen allen welkom die hier op deze pagina’s terecht komen en hopen dat zij geïnspireerd mogen geraken om verder de Bijbel ter hand te nemen en zelf op onderzoek te gaan wat er in de Heilige Schrift werkelijk staat.

De artikelen die u hier bij de Belgische Bijbelstudenten kan vinden welke gepubliceerd waren van 2005 tot november 2009 op Bijbelvorsers Blogspot worden hier voor het ogenblik gedeeld sinds mei 2011. Zo lang de reeks over de Geschiedenis van het Christendom niet volledig geplaatst zal zijn zullen zij hier ook ter beschikking blijven.

YAHUAH:Jehovah YHUH Modern Hebreeuws voor Jehovah of Jahweh

Sommige mensen denken dadelijk aan Jehovah Getuigen als zij Christenen Gods Naam horen noemen of horen dat deze Bijbelonderzoekers zijn. U mag er gerust op aan dat er gelukkig nog andere Christenen zijn die Gods Naam kennen en loven. Alsook zijn er ernstige Bijbelonderzoekers of Bijbelvorsers die niet behoren tot de Getuigen van Jehovah.

Graag houden wij er van om gedachten uit te wisselen en onze kennis te delen met diegenen die houden van en die geïnteresseerd zijn in het Woord van God.
De Belgische Bijbelstudenten willen graag met andere ernstige Bijbelonderzoekers of Bijbelvorsers het Woord van God bestuderen en met elkaar overleggen om tot betere inzichten te komen. Onderlinge uitwisseling van gedachten kan elkaar enkel maar verrijken. Daarom willen wij ook ruimte geven aan anders denkenden om hier met ons van gedachten te wisselen en hopen wij zodanig een platform te kunnen creëren waar mensen samen op weg kunnen gaan naar de Ene Ware God Elohim Hashem Jehovah.

De Belgische Bijbelstudenten zijn wel verbonden met de Internationale Biblestudents en maken deel uit van een wereldwijde gemeenschap van Bijbel studenten wiens genootschap op een gemeenschappelijk begrip van de Bijbel is gebaseerd maar werken wel onafhankelijk en staan niet onder een centrale organisatie  die oplegt wat te doen en te geloven. de verbintenis met onze broeders en zusters over heel de wereld ligt in het onderscheidende gemeenschappelijk overeenkomstig  geloof.

De Belgian Biblestudents, Bijbelonderzoekers en de Christadelphians of Broers in Christus geloven dat Jezus of Jeshua, de Nazarener, de Messias of Christus de zoon van God is, die kwam volgens de Oude Testamentbeloften en om de overeenkomsten van God met de mensheid te volbrengen, hoofdzakelijk de overeenkomsten met Eva, Abraham en David.

Wij geloven alle Bijbelse leerstellingen, inclusief dat:

1. * De Bijbel, als Boek der boeken, het enige ware bericht van God is welk door Hem aan de mensheid werd volledig  gegeven.  De Bijbel is het Woord van God.
2. * Er slechts één enkele Ware God is, de Vader, die de wereld maakte en er een geweldig doel voor heeft.
3. * De Heilige Geest de eigen macht van God is , waardoor hij Zijn eigen heilige wens to volbrenging brengt.
4. * Jezus de zoon van God is. Hij is ook zoon der mensen door zijn geboorte uit de maagd Maria.
5. * Jezus alle verleidingen overwon en stierf om de gehele mensheid van zonde en dood te redden.
6. * Jezus werd van de doden door God verhoogd. Later steeg hij op naar de hemel, maar zal terugkeren.
7. * Wanneer hij terugkeert zal hij oordelen en de verantwoordelijke doden verhogen en hun sterfelijkheid aan banden leggen en de getrouwen voor eeuwig laten leven.
8. * Hij zal Koning zijn over het herstelde Koninkrijk van God in Israël en over de hele wereld.
9. * Wanneer de mens sterft stopt met hij te bestaan. De enige hoop van leven is door herrijzenis aan de terugkeer van Christus.
10. * Geloof in de beloften van God over het Koninkrijk van God en het werk van Jezus Christus is essentieel.
11. * Berouw en doop in Christus door onderdompeling in water en het daarop dagelijks volgen van Christus zijn allemaal noodzakelijk voor ultieme redding.