Ok i was just wondering if anyone has notice how divided the church is? I mean like the people who have suffered from drug addictions and have been freed look down on the youth group people who have been in church all there life. Its just really annoying cause we get to wrapped up in an idenity like I am a Christian metal baptist gothic believer!!!(i'm not i don't no what i am and neither do i care) why can't we all just be called Christians???I am just wondering here! like do u think its possible for a 13 kid who GOES TO A PRIVATE CHRISTIAN school and has never encoutered drugs, violence or achool in there life to understand death and drustrucion and what the enemy is doing to the body AS A WHOLE(no not just the youth or the 16-18 yr old corwd EVERY SINGLE LIVING CHRISTIAN)well it is!!! and i am just sick of people going o ur a prep u shouldn't listen or do this or get away from us or someone telling a gothic what they can(talking about Christian gothics prep w/e is the thing to call everyone now i give up) and can not do and listen to!!!!! Like people who are sheltered and stuff have bad days and suicidual thoughts here I know it is probally not as bad as what a ex-drug addicte went through but that still does give the ex-drugaddicte the right to cirtize and dismiss the "minor" problems of the shelterd church kid. I know this problem offened someone and I am sorry this is just my view and I feel like God is really speaking to the body about how we need to unite as a body and stuff. also belive me i have done it all the time and just about 3 hrs ago was convicted about critizing the people who listen to like Point of Grace and stuff. I know i might be too overly lsensitive about the issue but its out there and seems to cripple us more than anything. does anyone else have an opinion on this issue? ???

yea! i am so glad someone else besides me seeshow bad it is! whats really sad is its sometimes worses at church than it is at school! im glad that my church is fianlly breaking through that junk but other churches its really bad... i can go on and on about religon and this stuff but o well! i am so happy some else sees it too

yeah, there is no doubt that the church is divided in a lot of issues. it is really sad.

but let's fine the things we do have in common, come into unity there, and let God move and cleanse us.

"i pray that one day our unity will be restored. and they'll know we are christians by our love."
-jason upton

ya i wish it were that easy..........

it can be hard when people are not wanting to change...

i believe prayer is the answer.

Amen to that!

I've seen that soo much of that and it's such a stumbling block to the whole church, If we can't learn to love for what's in the inside instead of judging for what's on the outside the church as a whole is going to be hugely crippled forever. I've been dealing with that myself, too, Sometime it's all you can do to remember that these "preps" as we label them are our sisters in Christ...

I think that there should be unity yet some separation. I do not prefere the traditional style of worship music, but there are other christians who do, some my own age too. Would it be right to take the traditional people and put them in a contemporary/modern worship service? It would be like making everybody here attend traditional services (some probably wouldn't mind). BUT... we must do things with other people (not other youth or people your age, but people 10, 20, 30 years older or in people in their 60's, 70's, even 80's) in our church so that the youth can absorb the wisdom of the elders, and the elders can feel the energy and excitement of the youth (and the people in-between can get both wisdom and energy/excitement).

I have no concern if we have diffrent goals or diffrent ways of achiving those goals, as long as the main goal is to glorify the LORD! The Body has many parts, and just because they aren't doing the same thing doesn't mean that they are working against each other. the legs move, the lungs breathe, the heart pumps, the intestines absorb, the eyes see, the ears hear, and the brain thinks, all together as we run as one for the goal!

I am a little careful when it comes to diffrences in theology and doctrine though. Mormons claim to be Christian, and so do JWs, but their theology is completely off and they are not Christians. that was obvious, But there are some denominations that believe diffrent things about that can inhibit there worship/fellowship with each other. one example is communion, Catholics believe (this is what I have been told, correct me if I am wrong) that the bread and wine become the actual body and blood of Christ, on the other extreme, Baptists (and maybe some other denominations) believe that Communion is only symbolic (but still important). But I don't want to get off one of these rabbit trails (by the way, It's not that I don't like people of diffrent Denominations, it just I realize that it can be hard to cooperate when you believe opposite things about the same subject)

I would love to see all Christians unite. Currently, I think this union wouldn't last long because of major diffrences in doctrine would cause strife. so in some ways, it would help that there is some separation, but in between denominations not within a church. division of this sort is distructive (this is a little diffrent than the worship style issue and other similar issues).

Then there is the petty personal division, sort of like the prepie vs. goth type situation. there is no theology behind what has happened, rather it is the situation when two people (or groups) conflict because of an issue that is not about the church. There can be conflicts between people about the ministries that are in progress or how someone handles a ministry, but those usually caused by differing veiw points and priorities (within the ministry). These conflicts can be benificial, the two opposites balance each other out (as long as they avoid getting into the power struggle and all that other junk). but there are the more superficial conflicts that get me, "your a goth, and you are not welcome to this youth group" (said by a preppy student to a goth-like student) or, "You are hitting on the girl that you know I like, so quit it" and, "he thinks that he is above the law, why does he get to tell me to stop doing that when he is only a student" (said by a sophmore who disrupted a student lead bible study, but was told to stop by a respectible senior of the group)... I can probably remember hundreds of things said (due to a conflict) where someone (one or both) involved was wrong, but wouldn't admit to it. Some of these could have easily been solved if the person who was wrong would have stepped back, prayed, and given up the issue.

For those who read all of that, thanks for hearing me out. I some times get into a rant like mode that will not stop till I am either tired or have finished what I have said (The guy who leads the college group at my church is like this ;))

I know exactly what you're talking about! I have seen it again and again! I've had Christians turn to my sister (who isn't saved) and tell her they don't trust her because of the way she dresses (mild gothic) and I was like, Yeah thanks very much moron I've been praying and working to have my sister turn to God and its all been wrecked by a stupid nasty prat like you! Now I have to start all over and its gna be even harder this time!

Thank God I have not been able to get my hands on arrogant critical Christians like the ones that've been described. I cannot keep my cool with such ppl. Their whole spirit is so anti-Christ. (not saying they're the anti-Christ just that they're actions aren't Christ like)

I've been on the wrong end of the stick from these things to know not to criticise like that.
If ppl have problems with lust or wicca or secular music or homosexuality I don't go condemning them for their actions! sin is SIN!
People have their own problems which in comparisson to some1 elses may same trivial and unimportant but did they ever think how the person enduring it feels? Bet they don't think it's trivial!

Christians should think how the other person may be feeling before they speak!

Anyway back on topic. I believe it IS possible for all Christians to have a unity. We all believe in Christ's atoning sacrifice, salvation is through faith etc. There is a unity there of sort. But critical natures and arrogance are inexcusable. christ died to forgive our sins. Doesn't matter what those sins are or how hard you've had to struggle against them in God's eyes sin is the same.

All sin is unbelief and rebellion. From the ex-drug addict to the overprotected Christian boy. Both have sinned both deserve hell. Both are instead saved.
The Christian boy should Praise God that the addict is freed likewise the addict should Praise God that the boy ISNT assicted and that he teach the boy to stay away from the drugs!

I have no concern if we have diffrent goals or diffrent ways of achiving those goals, as long as the main goal is to glorify the LORD! The Body has many parts, and just because they aren't doing the same thing doesn't mean that they are working against each other. the legs move, the lungs breathe, the heart pumps, the intestines absorb, the eyes see, the ears hear, and the brain thinks, all together as we run as one for the goal!


exactly! i think that is the whole bottom line. as long as we have the same goal, love and know the same God...different approaches don't matter. God likes diversity! knowing that the body of Christ has different functions and learning to accept that is the first step toward unity [imo].

i agree with difference in doctrine being a slighty different issue. somethings being added to the bible that aren't even there.

and then also realizing that no one person or group has a 'corner on truth' [so to say]. no one knows everything. we see through a glass darkly. when we get to Heaven it will all make sense.

i really agree with all yal but like i think we do like need to stop making little comments on like the ols peoples music and stuff. ya'll aren't bu i've just heard alot of that and also like instead of being so wrapped up in like im a youth group chirctain or w/e just saying im a chirstian. i really do agree about how we all do things differently and we do need to do things together... i just wish that we would stop making fun of the other parts of the body u no? like i don't know if its this way in your church but its not the preps that are making fun of the people who are more on the gothic side but its the gothic side thats making fun of the preps.. its just really sad how all this works also i've been seeing Christian bands doing the same thing and sutff.. like one band i can't remember who it was was likle i don't want to be a band for those stupid young preppy youth group kids. i can totally understand what he is saying but that doesn't mean you have the right to insult the those teens they have issues too... but any thanx for reading on this it just gets me really mad lol and i can type alot more about it and then get into some other stuff lol but don't worry i won't

o i forgot to add about how alot of bands an d churches are like forgeting about what really matters, just loving God, and getting into all this theology i mean some of its good but its just another way that the enemy uses to divide us if we r not careful. also i think we should really be praying HARD for like bands like skillet, pillar , and even like point of grace. cause imagine how hard it must be for them cause if you go to far one way ur considered not a Christian any more but if you go to far the other way its hard to reach anyone. then on top of that your always trying to keep up with the fast moving Christain music sece and begin making comprimises... but thats a whole other issue about how Christain bands forget God and go for the religousness of it all disguested and mixed into all this other junk... its just so sad but don't worry im finished for now anyways

i agree with difference in doctrine being a slighty different issue. somethings being added to the bible that aren't even there.


I wasn't really talking about things that weren't in the Bible (like how to observe Christmas) rather I was talking about things that where in the Bible but have diffrent interpretations (like the comunion example above, I only provided both extremes but there is a range of diffrent beliefs on communion). That was the issues I was talking about. Just to be clear.

ok, cool, thanks for the clerification. i still agree with your point. :)

Yes... churches are divided! haha 3 year-old thread reborn!!!

Two and a half year old, not even. And you can't call it reborn if you don't add to the discussion. You can just call it exhumed.