Pentecostals

[Scotty_Aussie87]

Hey I was just interested in what sort of opinions i'd get on this topic. I've been to one pentecostal youth service before n I wasn't quite sure of it. the worship service was good and the message of the sermon was about living for Jesus.

but what made me unsure of them was how they prayed. hands on head, falling over stuff if u get what I mean. but yeah it seemed like a good bunch of youth who wanted to live for God. Just wondering if there is any reason why I shouldn't go to these types of services along with my normal Baptist church service.

[SonOfThunder]

hi there fellow Aussie

Have you thought about praying and asking The Holy Spirit to guide you where you should be?

James

[Oxygen]

I have to agree...Pray, Pray, and Pray some more. My first experience with a pentecostal youth service was similar. It was very Christ-centered, but when prayer started, all the kids rushed the stage and began pouring out their prayers verbally and at about a million miles a second. My friend, who had invited me, began to twitch and people started laying hands on him and praying more loudly and much faster. I must admit it was truly frightening and I never went back.

[Scotty_Aussie87]

I have no problems about where I want to be, i'm quite happy in my church. The main reason i want to go is I want to find fellowship with more Christians (their youth service is on a saturday nite and my church is on sunday nite).

I was mainly wondering if their is any reason I should definitely avoid a pentecostal service. My dad calls them the Happy Clappers, but anyway I was kinda skeptical (kinda freaked too) about their prayer thing I mentioned earlier. I spose i'd like to go to understand more why they worship that way.

[Oxygen]

My personal feelings, after my experience and reading some material, is that I would stay away from such groups. There is a book with an interesting perspective on Pentecostal practices like slain in the Spirit, Tongues, etc. called COUNTERFEIT REVIVAL by Hank Hanegraaf. I think that it is a great read and will tell you about this modern-day miracle movement and all of its accompanying signs (barking, falling over, twitching, tongues, etc.). It helped to cement my uneasiness about such Pentecostal "miracles" into a belief that such things are real, but aren't of God, and are very dangerous. As I said before...Pray, Pray, Pray.

[brotherjim]

. . . Just wondering if there is any reason why I shouldn't go to these types of services along with my normal Baptist church service.
For years I went both to, say, a fundamentalist/Evang. church service on Wed. night or Sunday morning, and a charismatic/Pent. church on Sunday or Sat. night. I was immensely blessed by both, and further balanced in my walk. (But of course the earlier response was the best: go where God leads you.)

And there are, of course, errors and abuses in EVERY congregation: sift, sift, sift.

We should start out each day, putting God in remembrance of His Word, standing upon it by Faith: "Lean not upon your own understanding, but in all your ways acknowledge Him, AND HE WILL guide your paths." Thank you Jesus!

bro. jim

[HumbleMan]

My family and I recently left a pentecostal church (Church of God), but not for any doctrinal differences. In my experience, the main pentecostal denominations (AoG, CoG) and the Charismatic ones, like Vineyard, have members who truly want to and enjoy worshipping the Lord.

The laying on of hands for healing is biblical, but with the understanding that it is God who heals, not us. Being "slain in the Spirit" is matter that is always being debated. All I can say is, it happened to me, and that is what brought me to seek Christ.

I would say go, and enjoy, but as with any teaching, match it up with the bible.

[Scotty_Aussie87]

Thanks for all your answers, I know I should seek God first and seek further Guidance in pray. thanks again

[arunma]

Well, for the most part I don't mind Pentecostals. They're certainly a valid Christian denomination, but I find their theology a bit wanting.

That said, I am a theology fiend, so maybe it's me.

[Andyman_1970]

Well, for the most part I don't mind Pentecostals. They're certainly a valid Christian denomination, but I find their theology a bit wanting.

Agreed. They are wonderful people, but their teaching tends to take God's Word out of it's orginal context to "make" their idea or doctrine work........sometimes not all the time.

[arunma]

Agreed. They are wonderful people, but their teaching tends to take God's Word out of it's orginal context to "make" their idea or doctrine work........sometimes not all the time.

Indeed they are wonderful people. It was a Pentecostal who led me to Christ by giving me my first Bible. While I praise God for her, that still doesn't make me agree with her theology.

But like I've always said, I simply think that God is going to enroll many of these people in remedial theology when they're brought to heaven.

[brotherjim]

Yeah, most blacks, too, are okay people. (Satirical, of course.)

How magnanimous of me to say so, too--yes?

[PJ86]

Ive met some real awesome pentecostals, some are so on fire for God. But some of their teachings seem off. I cant give a good opinion on them, since i do not know much about what they believe. God Bless

[JPPT1974]

Ive met some real awesome pentecostals, some are so on fire for God. But some of their teachings seem off. I cant give a good opinion on them, since i do not know much about what they believe. God Bless

Their teaching do seem extreme off. But I agree that they are set on fire for Jesus.