Man. Your point about the murkiness of some Evangelical spaces hit right home for me. I've been in a season (I pray I'm near the end) where everyone around me has something wrong with my walk with Jesus yet they can't just come out and say it, it's been very discouraging and confusing for me. It's even clouded my view of God, so I really appreciate you calling that out.
I have found, in listen to BEMA, that I have become much more comfortable sitting with the Questions then I was in trying to have all of the answers. Thank you so much Marty and the BEMA Team!
You articulated my thoughts. I have chosen the Jesus way. It doesn’t look the way that some people think it should but I’m growing and this is exciting to me!
I grew up in a school and church that operated by the "If you do/say [insert list here], then you will be saved and have this sort of feeling/experience that will show you that you did it right. If you don't do/say [insert list here], then you're out. And if you don't have such-and-such feeling/experience after you do/say our list, then you did it wrong." That was the message I received from all of my spiritual leaders from ages 5 to 40. Since embarking on my journey of de- and re-construction (which has mostly been under your teachings through Bema) I have been able to unravel some of that bondage. But I still find myself feeling this need to DO THE LIST or SAY THE THING to know that I'm "saved" and "in." I hear you say "Just follow Jesus...do that," and in my head it sounds right; but the echoes of my spiritual trauma ring in my ears: "What does 'just follow Jesus' really mean?" "How do you know you're doing it right?" "What if you're doing it wrong?" Thank you for continuing to speak these things into my life. I still have a lot of baggage to sort out, but having you and the rest of the Bema team in my corner has been an immense help in getting me started.
I’m half way thru Mark Baker’s book Centered-set Church, which talks about how to have a community that doesn’t define itself by who’s in and who’s out. When I was younger, I appreciated line-drawing and building fences. It made things clear and made me feel secure. But you get to a point where your own deep interaction with God’s grace makes you realize that every denomination is putting God’s presence, mercy and activity in a box. The Mystery is bigger than any systematic theology
I think about this all the time! After completing my theology degree the only thing that I was positive of is that we need humility in droves as we discuss what is 'correct'
Do I have to believe? Didn’t God answer us in John 3:16, and didn’t God lay it out in His written Word … without question marks? Did God give us authority or suggest that we are to decide how we believe and follow Him? We don’t have conversations about God’s authority and what He told us to do. Do not divide the church! Unfortunately it has been divided because traditions of man took over God’s church.
Man. Your point about the murkiness of some Evangelical spaces hit right home for me. I've been in a season (I pray I'm near the end) where everyone around me has something wrong with my walk with Jesus yet they can't just come out and say it, it's been very discouraging and confusing for me. It's even clouded my view of God, so I really appreciate you calling that out.
I have found, in listen to BEMA, that I have become much more comfortable sitting with the Questions then I was in trying to have all of the answers. Thank you so much Marty and the BEMA Team!
That’s the main thing I’ve learned from BEMA. It’s ok. It’s ok to have questions. It’s ok to not know. Love God. Love people. Trust God for the rest.
You articulated my thoughts. I have chosen the Jesus way. It doesn’t look the way that some people think it should but I’m growing and this is exciting to me!
I grew up in a school and church that operated by the "If you do/say [insert list here], then you will be saved and have this sort of feeling/experience that will show you that you did it right. If you don't do/say [insert list here], then you're out. And if you don't have such-and-such feeling/experience after you do/say our list, then you did it wrong." That was the message I received from all of my spiritual leaders from ages 5 to 40. Since embarking on my journey of de- and re-construction (which has mostly been under your teachings through Bema) I have been able to unravel some of that bondage. But I still find myself feeling this need to DO THE LIST or SAY THE THING to know that I'm "saved" and "in." I hear you say "Just follow Jesus...do that," and in my head it sounds right; but the echoes of my spiritual trauma ring in my ears: "What does 'just follow Jesus' really mean?" "How do you know you're doing it right?" "What if you're doing it wrong?"
Thank you for continuing to speak these things into my life. I still have a lot of baggage to sort out, but having you and the rest of the Bema team in my corner has been an immense help in getting me started.
I’m half way thru Mark Baker’s book Centered-set Church, which talks about how to have a community that doesn’t define itself by who’s in and who’s out. When I was younger, I appreciated line-drawing and building fences. It made things clear and made me feel secure. But you get to a point where your own deep interaction with God’s grace makes you realize that every denomination is putting God’s presence, mercy and activity in a box. The Mystery is bigger than any systematic theology
I think about this all the time! After completing my theology degree the only thing that I was positive of is that we need humility in droves as we discuss what is 'correct'
Yes!!! I love this teaching!!
Help us Marty, these systems are toxic!!
“Run hard after Jesus” 💕🙏🏽🏃🏽♀️
Do I have to believe? Didn’t God answer us in John 3:16, and didn’t God lay it out in His written Word … without question marks? Did God give us authority or suggest that we are to decide how we believe and follow Him? We don’t have conversations about God’s authority and what He told us to do. Do not divide the church! Unfortunately it has been divided because traditions of man took over God’s church.