Priority of the Church?

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Priority of the Church?

Started by Taco Soup 11/4/2009 10:21:10 AM

A question I have been wondering about: What should be the #1 goal or priority of the Church (The body of Jesus Christ here on the earth…)

Most often, I hear the “priority” of Christianity is to know Jesus and make Him known.

However, there is a discrepancy of sorts that we’ve all been hearing about on this board lately, and that is of the LDS/Christian debate.

It’s in the LDS doctrinal statements that the mission or priority of their church is:

The Three-Fold Mission of the church is:

Proclaim the Gospel
Perfect the Saints
Redeem the Dead

So how do I reconcile these two things?

What is YOUR actual priority (as a Christian…..please, if you aren’t interested in Christianity, or you are not Christian, please read—but don’t respond. I’m really interested in the Christian opinion today)

What do you think of these two quotes? And what, if any, is your opinion of them? Which do you think more closely represents Christianity as you know it?

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Reply by jessica

author of Bermudez family 11/4/2009 10:40:34 AM

This is a good question. I think that the #1 priority should be to glorify God in all that we do. Yes, this is broad, and it includes many things, but if we leave the glorify God part out, our purpose can become distorted. If we state that our #1 goal is to evangelize, then as human we will ultimately resort to evangelism that results in more harm than good. I think history proves that (crusades, inquisition, trying to "save the indians), and I think everyone has encountered some form of evangelism that has left us with a bad taste in our mouths. If we think that the first priority is to teach the word on sundays, and we leave out Glorifying God, then the church will become self serving and exclusive. We will no longer worry about serving others and ministering to our communities. This can go for just about any purpose of the Church: leave out glorifying God, and it becomes distorted and sinful.

I'm not saying that Evangelism, preaching, teaching, serving, and ministering are bad things; they are not. I'm saying that if they become our main goal, apart from glorifying God through our actions and words, the church can do more harm than good. This begs the question, how do we glorify God? Well, I think this lies with Jesus's statement that the greatest commandment is to love the Lord with all our heart, minds, soul, and strength, and our neighbors as ourselves. If we as Christians are loving God and neighbors the way that Christ demonstrated, then the word of Christ WILL go forth to all the nations. The church WILL teach scripture, take care of the poor and the widowed, and minister to the world in the way that it should. These actions flow from a heart that is seeking to love and glorify God.

Unfortunately, churches are made up of sinners, and we so often get caught up with things that are not of God. We forget that our ultimate purpose is to Glorify God, and we try to glorify ourselves instead. We focus and harp on nonessentials, and we alienate people because of our own sin. Thank goodness we have a saviour, because I for one know that I need him.

I'm sorry, I don't think I answered your question well, but I did the best I could. :)

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Reply by Keeslermom

author of Keesler Chaos 11/4/2009 11:02:43 AM

What she said!

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Reply by DOTK

author of Bits Of Yarn 11/4/2009 11:52:21 AM

VERY interesting question, indeed, Taco Soup *(and very interesting name...)*

I"d love to answer. I have to go help the kids rake leaves. I'll be back later.
In short, It should be, and always has to be, about JESUS. Nothing more, nothing Less. If it is more or less, it's gone the wrong direction.

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Reply by Susan

11/4/2009 11:58:05 AM

I have always wanted people to get to know me and think, "what is different about her?" They would soon learn that it is my faith. Hopefully this would lead them to seeking the lord.
I serve others by teaching young children and caring for those in need. This to me is making christ known :)
Susan from PA

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Reply by Jen (Mom2my10)

author of 11th Heaven's Homemaking Haven 11/4/2009 11:58:30 AM

Blog pic: (want one?)

Thank you for sharing our three-fold mission, Taco Soup. :) Because God has promised great blessings and happiness in this life and the next for all of those who follow Christ, we really do seek to proclaim His gospel to everyone throughout the world. It is then, once we know who He is, that we can try to apply His teachings into our lives, and begin to work on "perfecting" ourselves and becoming like Him as much as we can in this life.

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Reply by Michelle S.

author of The Gospel Centered Life 11/4/2009 1:11:13 PM

I believe the primary purpose of the Church is to glorify God, by proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ, which is peace with God through the forgiveness of sins.

I found this the other day and don't want to start a whole thread about it, so I'll tack it on here. (emphasis mine)

I believe this:

The salvation of man is entirely a work of God’s free grace and is not the work, in whole or in part, of human works or goodness or religious ceremony. God imputes His righteousness to those who put their faith in Christ alone for their salvation, and thereby justifies them forever in His sight.

I found this on lds.org in their Gospel Library, as the "Plan of Salvation":

In the premortal existence, Heavenly Father prepared a plan to enable us to become like Him and receive a fulness of joy. The scriptures refer to this plan as "the plan of salvation" (Alma 24:14; Moses 6:62), "the great plan of happiness" (Alma 42:8), "the plan of redemption" (Jacob 6:8; Alma 12:30), and "the plan of mercy" (Alma 42:15). The plan of salvation is the fulness of the gospel. It includes the Creation, the Fall, the Atonement of Jesus Christ, and all the laws, ordinances, and doctrines of the gospel. Moral agency, the ability to choose and act for ourselves, is also essential in Heavenly Father's plan. Because of this plan, we can be perfected through the Atonement, receive a fulness of joy, and live forever in the presence of God. Our family relationships can last throughout the eternities.

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Reply by Jen (Mom2my10)

author of 11th Heaven's Homemaking Haven 11/4/2009 1:14:51 PM

Blog pic: (want one?)

Thank you for posting that quote, Michelle. You said...

"I believe the primary purpose of the Church is to glorify God, by proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ..."

This is the first purpose of our church as well.

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Reply by Jen (Mom2my10)

author of 11th Heaven's Homemaking Haven 11/4/2009 1:15:30 PM

Blog pic: (want one?)

We also believe we can receive peace through forgiveness of sins.

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Reply by Shawnee

11/4/2009 1:27:59 PM

My first priority is to get closer to God and Jesus. If I continue to do that, everything else will fall into place.

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Reply by Trisha

author of Precious Moments 11/4/2009 1:29:36 PM

Ok. I didn't follow the other threads but what does it mean by "redeem the dead." The bible seems pretty clear that we have no chance for redemption once we are dead. Unless it is speaking of those not living in Christ here on earth.... Then it kind of makes sense. Anyone care to clairfy?

As far as the mission, I agree with Jessica and Susan.

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