Church – The Kingdom of the Heavens

What is a root of bitterness?

Ian Johnson August 30, 2024 0 Comments

A root of bitterness is a grudge that spreads to uninvolved parties, planting contempt for the accused and hindering God’s grace. It leads to unforgiveness, rumor embellishment, and division among believers. To combat this, individuals should forgive offenses and avoid spreading resentment, while the church follows scripture-based conflict resolution without gossip.

Changed treatment of each other, Divisions in the Church, Forgive as we forgive, forgiveness and mercy, Forgiveness and Unforgiveness, God is Love, God's purpose for us, In the Church, Love each other, Meaning of Unity, On speaking terms again, Quarrels, Reconciliation, Repentance, Repentance in community, Restoration of God's Image, Restoration of our Relationships, To be his ambassadors, To live in unity

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What I Believe–stated simply

Ian Johnson July 24, 2022 7 Comments

In this post, I give a short, one web page, summary of what I believe, in language as simple as I can manage. It gives only a quick, “big picture” of my understanding of God, my relationship to him, and my role on Earth. Comments are invited.

Church purpose versus church growth, Complex unity, Conversation with God, Divisions in the Church, Eternity, Free will, God Acts by Speaking, God is Love, God Never Stopped Speaking, God Speaks to Us, God was never our enemy, God's Existence and Nature, God's purpose for us, God's rationality, God's sovereignty, His Children, His Friends, Immanence, Islam as a Consequence, Language and Speech, Male and female, Merit, Omnipresence, Reconciliation, Refusing to hear, Regeneration, Rejecting God, Repentance, Restoration of God's Image, Salvation, Show us the Way of Truth, Sin, Sins versus sin, The Invisible God's Self-Existence, The Kingdom of the Heavens, The Problem of Evil, To be his ambassadors, To be in his image, To live in unity, Transcendence, Trinity, Ultimate reality, Unity, Wars as consequences, What is God's Word, What is sin?

Christian theology, Church, God, God speaks, Holy Spirit, Jesus, Jesus Christ, Life purpose, Son of God, Son of Man

Tradition May Support an Heresy

Ian Johnson May 24, 2021 1 Comment

Heresy cannot reliably be diagnosed by comparing individuals’ or other groups’ doctrinal positions or practices to the traditions of my own group and calling any that don’t match well “heretical.” Religious tradition, even Christian religious tradition, may support a heresy. Heresy is the division, not the disagreement.

Authority Contests, Disputes about words, Divisions in the Church, Heresy, Our Oneness in Christ book revision, Peril of Seeking Power, Religious violence and persecution

Church, Church unity, division, heresy, Religion, Religious tradition, separation, Tradition, Traditionalism

Authority, Submission and Oneness

Ian Johnson November 5, 2020 1 Comment

Authority and submission are important to the unity of the Church. But it does not operate based on a human chain of command. It operates based on respect for leaders under a common head.

A God who Speaks, Authority Contests, Church purpose versus church growth, Divisions in the Church, God Speaks to Us, In the Church, Meaning of Unity, Our Oneness in Christ book revision, The universal Church and local churches, Through others, To live in unity

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From Early Christianity to Islam and Back–2. Negative Developments in Christianity Before Muhammad

Ian Johnson July 14, 2020 7 Comments

Between the end of the First Century CE and the end of the Sixth Century, Christianity grew but also deteriorated in a number of ways. The deterioration arose mainly from the infiltration of Greek philosophy, a change in emphasis to mass evangelism and the politicization of Christianity, followed by the questionable conversion of Constantine. These changes set up many of the specific parts of Christianity that Islam either adopted, or reacted strongly against. They also set up mucj of later European history.

A God who Speaks, Church purpose versus church growth, Compulsory Christianity, God Acts by Speaking, God Never Stopped Speaking, God Speaks to Us, God's Voice, Heresy, Historical Background, Injustice and Lawsuits, Islam and Christianity, Jesus the Son, Other Gifts of the Holy Spirit, Our Oneness in Christ book revision, Peril of Seeking Numbers, Peril of Seeking Power, Peril of Seeking Respectability, Religious violence and persecution, Replacing Relationship with Morality, Social control and statecraft, Son of Man, The Bible, Through the church, Trinity, Unity, Wars as consequences, What Islam borrowed from Christianity

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Unity and Answers to Prayer

Ian Johnson July 2, 2020 5 Comments

Jesus’ promises of answered prayer are directly tied to our unity. Answered prayer does not depend on our goodness or qualifications. The prayers God has promised to answer are those made under his authority, in love, for the good of the whole Church.

In prayer, In the Church, Meaning of Unity, Our Oneness in Christ book revision, Purpose of the Church, To be his ambassadors, To live in unity, To see God's glory, Victory

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“Greater Works than These” was a Promise to the Apostles Together and Victory is Promised to the Church Together

Ian Johnson June 29, 2020 5 Comments

The promises of victory, of spiritual gifts, and of works greater than those Jesus did, were not made to us individually, but as members of a functioning Body. They are given for the express purpose of building us up together, in unity, and so revealing Christ to the world. They only function properly in that context.

A God who Speaks, Church purpose versus church growth, God Acts by Speaking, God Speaks to Us, In the Church, Meaning of Unity, Other Gifts of the Holy Spirit, Our Oneness in Christ book revision, Prophecy, Purpose of the Church, Restoration of God's Image, The universal Church and local churches, Through the church, To be his ambassadors, To live in unity, Victory

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Do We Want the Peace and Restoration of Unity and Mutual Forgiveness, or the “Torturers” of Mental Illness?

Ian Johnson June 28, 2020 7 Comments

Our peace, joy and effectiveness are dependent on our unity as shown by forgiveness and the resolution of offenses between us, God takes division and unforgiveness so seriously because it damages all parties to the offense and limits the Body of Christ. When we neglect this, we are given over to the tormentors–guilt, fear, anxiety and mental illness.

Church purpose versus church growth, Divisions in the Church, Forgiveness and Unforgiveness, Illness as a Consequence, Our Oneness in Christ book revision, Purpose of the Church, Restoration of God's Image, Restoration of our Relationships, Sins versus sin, To live in unity, Uncategorized

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Our Oneness Makes Christ Visible to the World

Ian Johnson June 12, 2020 4 Comments

It is our unity that makes Jesus visible to the world in us. It was practical unity that made the Jerusalem church attractive. Restoration of that unity was a precondition to the effective preaching of Steven and Phillip.

Events and Signs, In the Church, Meaning of Unity, Other Gifts of the Holy Spirit, Our Oneness in Christ book revision, Through others, Through the church, To be his ambassadors, To live in unity, Victory

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Another Consequence of Divisions: Wrongs and Lawsuits Among Us

Ian Johnson June 11, 2020 1 Comment

Our disunity also leads to the multiplication of wrongs and injustices between us, often motivated by our greed. These wrongs lead to lawsuits among us. To our shame, we look just like the world in this matter!

Divisions in the Church, God Speaks to Us, Injustice and Lawsuits, Our Oneness in Christ book revision, Through others, Through the church, To live in unity

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Tag Archive: Church

What is a root of bitterness?

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What I Believe–stated simply

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Tradition May Support an Heresy

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Authority, Submission and Oneness

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From Early Christianity to Islam and Back–2. Negative Developments in Christianity Before Muhammad

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Unity and Answers to Prayer

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“Greater Works than These” was a Promise to the Apostles Together and Victory is Promised to the Church Together

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Do We Want the Peace and Restoration of Unity and Mutual Forgiveness, or the “Torturers” of Mental Illness?

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Our Oneness Makes Christ Visible to the World

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Another Consequence of Divisions: Wrongs and Lawsuits Among Us

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