— Sincere message to all on this forum —

[The Light Within]

Where to start? Well, regarding the recent events taking place on this board my heart has been deeply grieved, saddened, and burdened. Last night I spent many hours on my knees in prayer for each and every member that has been a part of this forum that my mind would allow me to remember. Most of all my night was spent in humble recognition of the sin in my own heart, and the fact that I'm in need of the Lord's strength, as there is no way I can continue on persevering on my own. As the evening pressed on many questions ran through my mind. What's really going on in this forum now? Are we essentially ceasing to be a body and becoming a disjointed group of individuals? Our we taking our focus off Jesus Christ and using this forum for our own ends?

You know, Jesus’ plan for His church is people unified in the faith, however we are seeing something quite different on this board. It's understandable to a degree as there are many people here from all walks of life, but when professing believers are acting in ways that Christ has set us free from, it's a little more than concerning. You see, we are to consider others’ needs before our own. In all modesty, humility and lowliness of mind, we are to be completely humble and gentle; patient, and bearing with one another in love. If we are truly humble we should see our own faults in light of the perfections of Christ; we should not seek to see the faults of others, but when we do, we should speak the truth in love, and desire their sanctification so they will be built up in the image of Christ. We should see our own heart and the corruption that lies hidden there, along with impure motives and evil ambitions. We should not seek to notice the errors, defects, and follies of others. We should see the depravity of our own hearts and should hope charitably in the goodness of others and believe their hearts are more pure than ours. Not always easy to do, hey?

Now looking back, during my time over the years here, I've learned a great deal. In fact my first encounter with the doctrines of grace was right here on HC! I was challenged a great deal, but in time, the Lord revealed Himself to me in an even greater way. And while I still don't adhere to all teachings concerning Calvinism, the Lord gave me such a love for my brothers and sisters in Christ who do. Now, don't get me wrong, we absolutely should divide over disagreements regarding the core doctrines of the Christian faith. Sometimes, division over non-essential matters is necessary as well (although division to a lesser degree). But, the blame for division should never be placed on doctrine, and never should it lead to a bitter heart causing us to lash out at one another.

At this moment there are other pressing matters at hand as discussing doctrine has been put on the back burner and has been replaced with topics much more controversial in nature. The sad reality of this is that it has caused much bitterness on the board for quite a few members. So, what to do? Yes, there is definitely sinful behavior that needs to be addressed, but most importantly, as Christians, we are to see one another in the light of the cross. Fellow Christians are those for whom Christ died a horrible and painful death so that He might exchange His righteous perfection for their sin. How can we not extend to them the love, compassion, and grace of our heavenly Father? How can we demean, criticize, and defame those covered with the precious blood of Christ? Were we not slaves to sin when He called us, hopelessly lost, dead in our own transgressions and sins? But we are now slaves of Christ, slaves to righteousness, and as slaves of the Master, the task before us is not to quarrel and demand our needs be met but to reflect His grace and love to those who are also His by His mercy. Is this much to ask for? Can what's broken still be fixed? Where do we go from here?

Holy Culture members, I want to say it has been a real blessing conversing with you over the years, and hopefully there's many more to come. We've definitely had our ups and downs, but overall, the Lord has been working through it all to produce greater character in us. In fact, He has used many of you to help me in times of need. Forgive me if I've come across in a manner that is hurtful, rude, insensitive, or critical. You are all precious to me as you aren't simply usernames and a post count. Behind every name is a human being to be loved in a way that brings honor to Christs name.

Thank you all for taking the time to read this. Thank you for letting me express what's on my heart. May you all have a blessed walk with the Lord in the years to come. Eternity will be wonderful when we can finally meet each other not seeing dimly as we do now.
— Your brother in Christ, Jordan

[Tarii_2sweet]

Awww Are you leaving because of me

[JoshGordon]

Awww Are you leaving because of me

The Light didn't mention he was leaving. Light, you are awesome bro. You always type out what's on your heart and always post how you feel, always appreciate that about you. I think what's been happening with all the disagreements has been mainly the racial disagreements. Its hard for people to see eye to eye with someone because we all come from different upbringings, different backgrounds, and even different countries. I'm OK with people having disagreements and it not being totally resolved, it's when we tend label people and name call them is when we cross the line.

[Tarii_2sweet]

The Light didn't mention he was leaving. Light, you are awesome bro. You always type out what's on your heart and always post how you feel, always appreciate that about you. I think what's been happening with all the disagreements has been mainly the racial disagreements. Its hard for people to see eye to eye with someone because we all come from different upbringings, different backgrounds, and even different countries. I'm OK with people having disagreements and it not being totally resolved, it's when we tend label people and name call them is when we cross the line.

I can't really express and put what's on my mind in words Everything has been so confusing and very frustrating. I appreciate your apology Light don't let me or any one you feel sad and burden I can tell you are a very sweet and sensitive person you were the first person that reply to my post and active on board enough to make my boring day go by I fast. I can tell some of your statements are referring to some of my behaviors, but please don't let that make you upset. You are a fun person. God bless

[Tarii_2sweet]

The Light didn't mention he was leaving. Light, you are awesome bro. You always type out what's on your heart and always post how you feel, always appreciate that about you. I think what's been happening with all the disagreements has been mainly the racial disagreements. Its hard for people to see eye to eye with someone because we all come from different upbringings, different backgrounds, and even different countries. I'm OK with people having disagreements and it not being totally resolved, it's when we tend label people and name call them is when we cross the line.

The reason I said that is because he made a comment on one of the post that we may be losing another brother on this board. Then this post I have a feeling he's about to stop coming on here.

[The Light Within]

The Light didn't mention he was leaving. Light, you are awesome bro. You always type out what's on your heart and always post how you feel, always appreciate that about you. I think what's been happening with all the disagreements has been mainly the racial disagreements. Its hard for people to see eye to eye with someone because we all come from different upbringings, different backgrounds, and even different countries. I'm OK with people having disagreements and it not being totally resolved, it's when we tend label people and name call them is when we cross the line.

Josh, there is a tension between a God-centered approach to social justice and a man-centered approach to social justice. The man-centered approach sees the government in the role of savior, bringing in a utopia through government policies. The God-centered approach sees Christ as Savior, bringing heaven to earth when He returns. At His return, Christ will restore all things and execute perfect justice. Until then, we as Christians express God's love and justice by showing kindness and mercy to those less fortunate.

With that being said, there still seems to be this huge ugly divide between us, and as Christians this shouldn't be. These walls must be torn down so that we can love each other as Christ loves His church. We simply can't write off this forum and tell ourselves that what's happening here doesn't matter, because it does. It matters because people are communicating what is in their hearts, whether they are deceived or not. Each one of you sitting behind that computer screen is a person that is real, with feelings that are real, with emotions that are real. And what I've been seeing here lately is emotions running rampant. Allowing our emotions to control us is not godly. Denying or vilifying our emotions is not godly, either. We should thank God for our ability to feel emotion and steward our emotions as a gift from God. The way to manage our emotions is to grow in our walk with God. We are transformed through the renewal of our minds and the power of the Holy Spirit—the One who produces in us self-control.

You know what we need? We need daily input of scriptural principles, a desire to grow in the knowledge of God, and time spent meditating on God’s attributes. We should seek to know more of God and share more of our hearts with God through prayer. Christian fellowship is another important part of spiritual growth. We journey with fellow believers and help one another grow in faith as well as in emotional maturity. We shouldn't separate this from our life in the church and our life online. So this applies to this forum as well.

I'm grateful for your presence here Josh, so thank you for remaining steadfast in the Lord. I'm praying that what has been taking place on this board lately will come to an end. I'm praying that people will take a long hard look at their actions. As previously stated there is a time for discipline. What that will entail will be entirely up to the administration of this board. However, if nothing is done to put an end to what has been going on I'm afraid that a man-centered approach to certain issues will reign supreme and more hatred will ensue.

Regardless of all this, I'm still on my knees in prayer concerning myself and asking that the Lord guide me in my activities here. I don't have all the answers, but I'm definitely trying to go to the One who has the answers. I've been growing weary over the last few weeks, however on the flip side He's working in me a bigger love for all of you despite the constructs we've set up for ourselves. You all have a special place in my heart.

[The Light Within]

I can't really express and put what's on my mind in words Everything has been so confusing and very frustrating. I appreciate your apology Light don't let me or any one you feel sad and burden I can tell you are a very sweet and sensitive person you were the first person that reply to my post and active on board enough to make my boring day go by I fast. I can tell some of your statements are referring to some of my behaviors, but please don't let that make you upset. You are a fun person. God bless

Thank you for these words. You know, we need to be ever so careful in how we deal with each other here letting the Holy Spirit guide us into all truth. 'We' means every single one of us. It can be much easier to act out in the flesh, but as we draw nearer to God He will work within us what He desires for us to be. We should have an attitude of submission and concern for others on this forum. As we submit to God, read His Word, and pray for grace, we will find that the critical spirit we may have gives up control to the Holy Spirit of Christ.

I know only Christ can fill what I'm so desperately lacking, so my eyes are centered on Him and Him alone.

God bless.

[JoshGordon]

Light, I honestly believe that we should all have one big google chat video conference. What do you think? I find it a lot more intimate, and that people would be to relate better. Some things can be misunderstood by text alone.

But I wholeheartedly agree with you on Utopianism. Honestly, I believe its our responsibility as the Church to bring in Refugees, help the poor etc. I don't believe that the government should be forcefeeding as much as it intends to do. Countries like Venezuela, Greece, and Spain should be in reference to that caution.

[ServantOfYAH]

Light, I honestly believe that we should all have one big google chat video conference. What do you think? I find it a lot more intimate, and that people would be to relate better. Some things can be understood by text.

But I wholeheartedly agree with you on Utopianism. Honestly, I believe its our responsibility as the Church to bring in Refugees, help the poor etc. I don't believe that the government should be forcefeeding as much as it intends to do. Countries like Venezuela, Greece, and Spain should be in reference to that caution.

Please expand on your view of taking in 'refugees?'

[JoshGordon]

Please expand on your view of taking in 'refugees?'

I personally think that the government has no business telling States that they need to take in certain amounts of Refugees, especially ones that are not fully vetted. There are thousands of disabled veterans and homeless in this country that we also should consider accommodating. I think churches should put together their resources and have Church members being able to sponsor the Refugees and help accommodate them in this Country (if the Refugees wish to).

[The Light Within]

Light, I honestly believe that we should all have one big google chat video conference. What do you think? I find it a lot more intimate, and that people would be to relate better. Some things can be misunderstood by text alone.

But I wholeheartedly agree with you on Utopianism. Honestly, I believe its our responsibility as the Church to bring in Refugees, help the poor etc. I don't believe that the government should be forcefeeding as much as it intends to do. Countries like Venezuela, Greece, and Spain should be in reference to that caution.

You're on to something here. Maybe one day we could get together and have a chat, however with everyone's schedule it may not be that easy.

You know Josh, the belief that human beings can change themselves and create a heaven on earth is a form of utopian-ism, and unfortunately this secular idea is still bought into by some believers. The truth is that the Christian notion of social justice is different from the contemporary notion of social justice. The biblical exhortations to care for the poor are more individual than societal. In other words, each Christian is encouraged to do what he can to help the least among us. Yes, Jesus showed deep compassion for the poor, the sick, the dispossessed, and the outcasts of society. He healed them, but before taking care of their physical or emotional needs, He first took care of their spiritual needs. He was most concerned about the state of their souls and preached the gospel of repentance from sin through Him so they understood that their eternal destiny was far more important than their circumstances here on earth. Several of His parables conveyed this truth, including Lazarus and the rich man. The rich man, who had every possible social advantage, spent eternity in hell while Lazarus, the poorest of the poor with dire social needs, was comforted in heaven.

Our focus then should be centered around Christ and his teachings rather than secular men and their teachings. Ultimately, even more so in the days we're living in our focus should be turned upon Jesus. This can't be stressed enough. Every other method is and always will be utterly futile.

[The Light Within]

I'm currently in the section of my Bible discussing redeeming the time. You know, we need to treat time as something precious that must be rescued from being lost to fruitlessness. And we are to do this circumspectly—that is, exactly, carefully, or diligently. To paraphrase, because the days are so evil, we must take great care to prevent any of our time from going to waste. It would be foolish to knowingly spend time on unprofitable actions.

Are you bearing fruit? Do your actions advance the gospel of Christ? Are they serving to edify a brother or sister, or communicate God’s love? If not, why are you doing them? As Christians, everything we do ought to be for the purpose of serving God and serving others.

It's time to love each other as Christ loves His church.

[The Light Within]

Lord, right now I come to you in prayer asking that you touch each and every person in this forum. Please help us as we need you. We need you to mend what has been broken, as only you can do this. Please help us to look at the interior rather than the exterior of a person. We need to begin to see everyone as you see us. Clear our minds of all negative thoughts against our brothers and sisters. Remove all separations of skin colour in our lands. Help us all to live in peace and harmony with one another. Remind us that we are all created equally and we are all children of Your mighty kingdom. Help us to be meek and humble, for those are the ones who will inherit Your earth. Amen.

[The Light Within]

Hey Josh, when are the best times for you to have a live discussion?

[Tarii_2sweet]

Hey Josh, when are the best times for you to have a live discussion?

I will have one with you because I need to know what's going on here? im ready now.

[JoshGordon]

Hey Josh, when are the best times for you to have a live discussion?

Saturday, Afternoon more than likely.

[The Light Within]

“I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice: ‘Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb’” (Revelation 7:9–10).

[d@v!d]

I just listened to this sermon sent to me by a friend of mine who attends the church where this was recorded. His speaking style is a bit drab, but he really hits a lot of great points. It's an hour long, but well worth the time. The church needs to be in public prayer. It also talks a lot about some of the foolish things that divide us here. Very convicting and making me think. I hope this blesses you all too.

[The Light Within]

I just listened to this sermon sent to me by a friend of mine who attends the church where this was recorded. His speaking style is a bit drab, but he really hits a lot of great points. It's an hour long, but well worth the time. The church needs to be in public prayer. It also talks a lot about some of the foolish things that divide us here. Very convicting and making me think. I hope this blesses you all too.

I've just watched this. You know, hatred is a poison that destroys us from within, producing bitterness that eats away at our hearts and minds. While sin is to be hated (not excused or taken lightly), I don't want a root of bitterness to spring up in my heart. This will also severely hinder our prayer life.

Thank you for sharing.

[hollafestradio]

Where to start? Well, regarding the recent events taking place on this board my heart has been deeply grieved, saddened, and burdened. Last night I spent many hours on my knees in prayer for each and every member that has been a part of this forum that my mind would allow me to remember. Most of all my night was spent in humble recognition of the sin in my own heart, and the fact that I'm in need of the Lord's strength, as there is no way I can continue on persevering on my own. As the evening pressed on many questions ran through my mind. What's really going on in this forum now? Are we essentially ceasing to be a body and becoming a disjointed group of individuals? Our we taking our focus off Jesus Christ and using this forum for our own ends?

You know, Jesus’ plan for His church is people unified in the faith, however we are seeing something quite different on this board. It's understandable to a degree as there are many people here from all walks of life, but when professing believers are acting in ways that Christ has set us free from, it's a little more than concerning. You see, we are to consider others’ needs before our own. In all modesty, humility and lowliness of mind, we are to be completely humble and gentle; patient, and bearing with one another in love. If we are truly humble we should see our own faults in light of the perfections of Christ; we should not seek to see the faults of others, but when we do, we should speak the truth in love, and desire their sanctification so they will be built up in the image of Christ. We should see our own heart and the corruption that lies hidden there, along with impure motives and evil ambitions. We should not seek to notice the errors, defects, and follies of others. We should see the depravity of our own hearts and should hope charitably in the goodness of others and believe their hearts are more pure than ours. Not always easy to do, hey?

Now looking back, during my time over the years here, I've learned a great deal. In fact my first encounter with the doctrines of grace was right here on HC! I was challenged a great deal, but in time, the Lord revealed Himself to me in an even greater way. And while I still don't adhere to all teachings concerning Calvinism, the Lord gave me such a love for my brothers and sisters in Christ who do. Now, don't get me wrong, we absolutely should divide over disagreements regarding the core doctrines of the Christian faith. Sometimes, division over non-essential matters is necessary as well (although division to a lesser degree). But, the blame for division should never be placed on doctrine, and never should it lead to a bitter heart causing us to lash out at one another.

At this moment there are other pressing matters at hand as discussing doctrine has been put on the back burner and has been replaced with topics much more controversial in nature. The sad reality of this is that it has caused much bitterness on the board for quite a few members. So, what to do? Yes, there is definitely sinful behavior that needs to be addressed, but most importantly, as Christians, we are to see one another in the light of the cross. Fellow Christians are those for whom Christ died a horrible and painful death so that He might exchange His righteous perfection for their sin. How can we not extend to them the love, compassion, and grace of our heavenly Father? How can we demean, criticize, and defame those covered with the precious blood of Christ? Were we not slaves to sin when He called us, hopelessly lost, dead in our own transgressions and sins? But we are now slaves of Christ, slaves to righteousness, and as slaves of the Master, the task before us is not to quarrel and demand our needs be met but to reflect His grace and love to those who are also His by His mercy. Is this much to ask for? Can what's broken still be fixed? Where do we go from here?

Holy Culture members, I want to say it has been a real blessing conversing with you over the years, and hopefully there's many more to come. We've definitely had our ups and downs, but overall, the Lord has been working through it all to produce greater character in us. In fact, He has used many of you to help me in times of need. Forgive me if I've come across in a manner that is hurtful, rude, insensitive, or critical. You are all precious to me as you aren't simply usernames and a post count. Behind every name is a human being to be loved in a way that brings honor to Christs name.

Thank you all for taking the time to read this. Thank you for letting me express what's on my heart. May you all have a blessed walk with the Lord in the years to come. Eternity will be wonderful when we can finally meet each other not seeing dimly as we do now.
— Your brother in Christ, Jordan