The Internet Church.

[Bob]

• 

I have noticed a trend on the Internet of people complaining that they can't find a decent church in their local areas. I believe this situation be very common in the American society at this time. The tragedy is these people are resorting to the Internet to replace the church.

The arguments that I hear from those that have left their churches is that they left only after the Holy Ghost departed. Of course I hear complaints of false doctrine being preached in the church straying away from the true gospel.

The Internet is a great means of communications between Christians, and in some cases a good way to get the gospel out to people who've not had the chance to hear it where they live. But it does not replace the Fellowship that you get from assembling in person with other believers. I find it hard to believe that any of us are the only true believers in our towns. I think that you would have much better luck seeking out others living in your area that share your beliefs, than going to the Internet and rolling the dice on what kind of group or cult you're going to connect with.

By the way you can even Google Internet churches and come up with some of these sites these people are using. You will see it can be quite scary 

I think the Internet is a good place for interacting with each other and discussing the different doctrines that we have derived from the Scriptures. But I do not see that the Internet is really a place of worship but more of a place of communications.

[michaelf]

• 

The main issue as i see it is that message board work on any time but church really needs to have people with similar time zones.

I am in Australia and operate in the +10 time zone

for many people in USA I will be on the next day.

[Theodore A. Jones]

• 

I have noticed a trend on the Internet of people complaining that they can't find a decent church in their local areas. I believe this situation be very common in the American society at this time. The tragedy is these people are resorting to the Internet to replace the church.

The arguments that I hear from those that have left their churches is that they left only after the Holy Ghost departed. Of course I hear complaints of false doctrine being preached in the church straying away from the true gospel.

The Internet is a great means of communications between Christians, and in some cases a good way to get the gospel out to people who've not had the chance to hear it where they live. But it does not replace the Fellowship that you get from assembling in person with other believers. I find it hard to believe that any of us are the only true believers in our towns. I think that you would have much better luck seeking out others living in your area that share your beliefs, than going to the Internet and rolling the dice on what kind of group or cult you're going to connect with.

By the way you can even Google Internet churches and come up with some of these sites these people are using. You will see it can be quite scary 

I think the Internet is a good place for interacting with each other and discussing the different doctrines that we have derived from the Scriptures. But I do not see that the Internet is really a place of worship but more of a place of communications.

Since it is true that only a very few ever find the gate into God's kingdom anyway; the churches really can't have much value.   

[Bob]

• 

The main issue as i see it is that message board work on any time but church really needs to have people with similar time zones.

I am in Australia and operate in the +10 time zone

for many people in USA I will be on the next day.

That's true and that's a very big plus, but can it replace church worship?

[Bob]

• 

Since it is true that only a very few ever find the gate into God's kingdom anyway; the churches really can't have much value.

And without the church how do you accomplish the great commission given to us by Christ? Have you ever heard of the Internet baptizing anyone?

Don't you believe a proper church, biblically sound, could aid those who are looking for the narrow gate? Most missionaries receive their financial support from churches, do you believe this to have some value?

I understand how you feel about today's churches, many of them have become more like social clubs and places of worship and fellowship.

[Francis Drake]

• 

And without the church how do you accomplish the great commission given to us by Christ? Have you ever heard of the Internet baptizing anyone?

Don't you believe a proper church, biblically sound, could aid those who are looking for the narrow gate? Most missionaries receive their financial support from churches, do you believe this to have some value?

I understand how you feel about today's churches, many of them have become more like social clubs and places of worship and fellowship.

You don't need a church to baptize anyone. You just need a bath, a river, the sea, or a pond. Plus of course faithful believers to do it. Churches spend forever examining and training people in preparation for their version of baptism. In fact they are being baptized into their particular christian club. The Ethiopian eunuch was baptized at the first water they came to after Philip met him. The church today makes it into a complicated ceremonial rigmarole, way beyond scripture.
I thank God I was baptized in the sea.


As Jesus said, "woe unto you scribes, Pharisees, hypocrites. You shut up heaven to men, you neither enter in yourselves and those who are trying to enter you prevent." My experience of the Institutional church is that there are more leaders that match this description than don't.

[Bob]

• 

You don't need a church to baptize anyone. You just need a bath, a river, the sea, or a pond. Plus of course faithful believers to do it. Churches spend forever examining and training people in preparation for their version of baptism. In fact they are being baptized into their particular christian club. The Ethiopian eunuch was baptized at the first water they came to after Philip met him. The church today makes it into a complicated ceremonial rigmarole, way beyond scripture.
I thank God I was baptized in the sea.


As Jesus said, "woe unto you scribes, Pharisees, hypocrites. You shut up heaven to men, you neither enter in yourselves and those who are trying to enter you prevent." My experience of the Institutional church is that there are more leaders that match this description than don't.

True baptism requires a confession of passed sins and belief in the cross. It also needs someone to teach about Christ and the cross. This can be done in a small home church but it is still a church (assembly of believers). The fact that there is at least two of you at the  baptism is proof that at some point you became a church.

[calluna]

• 

You don't need a church to baptize anyone. You just need a bath, a river, the sea, or a pond. Plus of course faithful believers to do it.

Or anyone else. Ever since water baptism became required by pagan governments posing as Christian, it has been more or less meaningless. Before that, it was a brave thing to do. After it, water baptism became a fashionable thing to do, especially for the affluent; or perhaps a sign of submission to a false church. At any rate, it does not usually require any more than token assent to a set of undemanding tenets. It is quite true that a) anyone can baptise, and b) any water will do. But it is also true that water baptism now lends validation to the practice of the enemies of the church. The real church needs a far better standard than one used by the carnal without even realisation of that fact. One that will make it both loved, for the best reasons, and hated, for the best reasons.

So water baptism is irrelevant to any church; but an internet church open to all is an absurdity, impossible to credit as a church. Antichrist, if not criminal elements would immediately invade it, like vultures to a cadaver.

If the reader belongs to a group that does not closely monitor its membership for the everyday presence of the fruits (not the gifts) of the Spirit, then that reader is not a member of a church.

[clark thompson]

• 

While I love serving along with other believers over the internet and starting joining in a church service and have enjoyed preaching online, I also love meeting other believers face to face for worship and teaching.

[Theodore A. Jones]

• 

And without the church how do you accomplish the great commission given to us by Christ? Have you ever heard of the Internet baptizing anyone?

Don't you believe a proper church, biblically sound, could aid those who are looking for the narrow gate? Most missionaries receive their financial support from churches, do you believe this to have some value?

I understand how you feel about today's churches, many of them have become more like social clubs and places of worship and fellowship.

Just because a religious entity is noted as a church does not mean that is something the Jesus Christ is head of. Lest you forget Jesus did predict that his arch enemy would sow bad seed. What you see today, internet or not, are products of the bad seed.
There are no contemporary churches that Jesus Christ is head of.