Actscelerate.com

Seriously Randy?

Friendly Face Posts: 406 **12/30/13 9:56 pm**

Re: Seriously Randy?

Hon. Dr. in Acts-celeratology Posts: 5923 **12/30/13 11:49 pm**

Oh! He was being sarcastic. I didn't catch that. Maybe...

Friendly Face Posts: 406 **12/31/13 5:14 pm**

They should add an emoticon for sarcastic.

Or perhaps this one could represent sarcasm....

Rolling Eyes

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"Without process there will be no progress"
www.mikeburgner.com

Re: In response to the "Reasons for Banners" post

Hon. Dr. in Acts-celeratology Posts: 5923 **1/1/14 4:33 pm**

Re: Dancing and flag waving in church.....input please...

Acts-dicted Posts: 9027 **1/1/14 9:09 pm**

Acts-dicted Posts: 9027 **1/1/14 9:16 pm**

Re: I honestly heard one teenager compare it to...

Acts-dicted Posts: 9027 **1/1/14 9:19 pm**

Acts-dicted Posts: 9027 **1/1/14 9:30 pm**

Dancing, singing, praying, playing instruments, waiving flags, painting, writing and many other expressions of joy and love for God are not prohibited anywhere in scripture.

Private worship is a great place to do these things. However, there is often a different and uniquely powerful momentum created in corporate settings. Folks ought to have the opportunity, within reasonable bounds for order sake, to express their joy and love to God (or war in worship by overcoming their own personal distractions, fears, pride, etc). Whether someone's expression of joy - a song, a dance, a message or a waived banner - distracts you is many times a factor of (1) how new the expression is to you, (2) how "into worship" you are in the moment or (3) how disciplined you are at directing your own focus to God.

I personally enjoy watching people worship and intentionally enjoy worshiping with them in a corporate setting. I rarely try to block other worshipers out of my consciousness in a church setting - I say "let's do this together".
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I'm not saved because I'm good. I'm saved because He's good!

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David wasn't naked!

Golf Cart Mafia Associate Posts: 2109 **1/1/14 11:08 pm**

2 Sam 6:14 states David was wearing a "linen ephod" and when Michal expressed her displeasure with David's worship her reference to David as uncovering himself, she was irritated that David laid aside his kingly attire and was adorned in the priestly linen ephod.

Her problem? Instead of retaining the royal dignity of his kingship, he got down and danced like a commoner.

The degel [דֶּגֶל] is a pole that is used to hoist an distinguishing emblem, usually shield, a figurine, or even an animal. It is used in Numbers to indicate that each tribe had their identifying degel.

The nes [נֵס] is a high pole that can bear a flag or ornamental cloth as a leader’s signal, or a tall signal pole. The serpent was affixed upon a nes and the nes is a popular word used by the prophets Isaiah and Jeremiah and often with Messianic overtones.

There is no scriptural reference to using either in worship.
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01000001 01100011 01110100 01110011 Posts: 24285 **1/2/14 1:11 am**

Re: In response to the "Reasons for Banners" post

Hon. Dr. in Acts-celeratology Posts: 5923 **1/3/14 6:49 am**

Praise and Worship are hijacked words.

Hon. Dr. in Acts-celeratology Posts: 5431 **1/3/14 10:16 am**

We have taken the words "praise" and "worship" out of their elementary setting and applied them to behaviors we participate in and observe in our assembled meetings.

Have you ever noticed that in the New Testament we do not have the detailed rules for approaching God that they had in the Old Testament?

We are given much more freedom in the New Testament on how we approach God and express ourselves to Him.

The only caveat is that we do things in a way that will not bring reproach upon God. (e.g. an unbeliever or one who does not understand coming into our meeting hearing everyone speaking in tongues without interpretation so that they say we are "mad" (crazy, not angry)).

It is notable that in most of our Protestant doctrinal statements we only have two "ordinances" that Jesus commanded we practice in our assemblies - water baptism and the Lord's Supper - the rest of what we do in our meetings in left up to us, but whatever it is we do, it should bring glory to God and not confusion.

Flag waving and dancing do nothing for me, personally, but if someone is blessed and is blessing God by using their entire body's expression, I do not judge them. At times I have found certain flagwavers annoying, but at those times I close my eyes so I cannot see them, and concentrate on God, not man.

Worship is not defined by what we do in religious meetings. Worship is defined by what we do in life, how we submit ourselves to God's authority in our daily activities and treatment of people around us. Worship is "nevertheless, not my will, but Thine be done", 24 hours a day, seven days a week, anywhere and everywhere we find ourselves.
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Randy Johnson, Pastor
Ickesburg Church of God
85 Tuscarora Path
Ickesburg, Pennsylvania

Golf Cart Mafia Underboss Posts: 3944 **1/3/14 7:30 pm**

I have wanted to say something about Tom's post about being slain in the spirit. I have waited for two reasons, Randy's post just above this needed to be read more than anything I can say, and my first excursion into the topic did more harm than good.

Like Tom, I can make no Bible case for it, unless you really stretch Paul's Damascus road experience. I'll leave that to others.

I have only experienced it once. I can only say how it felt to me. The speaker that evening was quite accustomed to laying his hands on people and them falling out. My last thought was that I wasn't going to give anyone a courtesy drop. I did not lose consciousness. I did not speak. I don't recall hitting the floor, even though as I said, I was completely aware of time and space.

I felt completely calm. Not one muscle was the slightest bit tense. I didn't speak, it was almost as if I was suddenly in a dream like state, able, but not interested in observing what other people were doing.

I came out of it gradually.

Now then. I do not know what benefit it was to me. I do not crave experiencing it again. I would never seek after it or follow anyone around for another taste.

I have heard stories of an occasion where my great grandfather was taken home after church in a wagon, taking several hours to come out of it.

Another event which means much more to me occurred driving home from Goodyear in my truck with Rod Stewart singing Van Morrison's "Have I told you lately" on the radio. I did not know it had been written as a prayer. but as I began singing along as if I were singing it to my maker my heart melted and ran out my eyes.

Just me and him. Nobody to impress as to how righteous I was.

I really truly question our grasp of why God would care about what we refer to as praise for him. But I do think he missed Adam after the fall. I think he liked being involved in his daily life. Walking and talking with him in the cool of the evening. I think he enjoyed having Abraham for his friend.

These are experiences I aspire to.