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Paul says Christians are translated into the kingdom of Jesus Christ:


Colossians 1:12.  Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:
 13.  Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:
 14.  In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:


John says he is in it:

 Revelation 1:9.  I John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ.
John was in the kingdom.


The kingdom of Christ must then be the faithful in Christ.

Ok, I agree.  Can I ask you another question?  (I asked a couple in another thread.)

The congregation you get together with; is it the faithful in Christ?  I mean, are all of them, or close to all of them, the faithful in Christ, or do you meet with a mixture of sons of God and sons of the this world, like I've seen in pretty much every other congregation I've ever been able to find.

I've taken note that the sons of this world, according to Eph 2, walk by the spirit of this world.  Thus, a mixed congregation is a  mess.  "What fellowship has light with darkness?"

You have talked about being born into the Church by the Spirit.  Now you have talked about being translated into the kingdom of God.

Do you have any practical way for a person to actually be a part of the assembly of that Church, which is, as you also pointed out, commanded to assemble together.

I do, but since my answer is pretty radical (though it is tested and is working), maybe you have a better or easier one.

It is the faithful in Christ.
Donot meet with those not in Christ.
However an occasional stranger might come to the public assembly of the church.
The assembly is public and open. However strangers to the congregation usually are not strangers by the end of the assembly.


True.

One is added to the church by God such as one should be saved. The kingdom is another term for God's people. Christ is King.

Be in Christ and obedient to God Through Him. Find that assembly of Christians which can be identified in accordance with the bible and strictly adheres to God's word. The church is Christ's and he is the head of it. The church is identified with that name according to God's word. It does not wear denominated names of men.

Hear, Believe, Repent, confess Christ, be baptized, receive the Holy Spirit, one is a new creature in Christ. Assemble with those of like Godliness.
If it isn't in accordance to the will of God it will not work.

Great, that was a bit more practical, but I have to be honest and go ahead and read between the lines like everyone else will.

The people who do what you say at the start:


are very unlikely to end up agreeing with you.  You will write them off as not Christian, and they will write you off as not Christian.

I am now ready to believe Bronzesnake or whoever it is that said you belong to the Church of Christ, although my guess would be the Boston movement, not the one formed by Campbell and Stone that he mentioned.

Watchman Nee gave a lot of the same advice you are giving, but Watchman Nee made a place that others could come into, and when they needed it, he would start something where they were.

That something Nee started was not likely to be dependent on doctrine.  You seem very dependent on interpretations of Scripture.  You can claim you don't interpret it, just quote it, but the fact is, when challenged to prove the Scriptures were the Word of God, you resorted to "accepting in faith" and to repeated statements of your belief, not Scripture, all the while ignoring the Scriptures I gave you against your belief.

Where the Word of God is honored--all of it, not just the small portion that could be contained in the Bible--there the saints can dwell together in unity and are not held together by trying to interpret Scripture the same way.  Where the Scriptures are upheld as the end all, only division and arguments can arise.

[quote[Great, that was a bit more practical, but I have to be honest and go ahead and read between the lines like everyone else will. ???



???

Thank God, my words have caused an ID that God intended through His Son and word.
The church of Christ is the church of the Bible.

 The church is God's people, the ecclessia, the called of God out of the world. One is added to it by God when one accepts Jesus Christ.
What does the Boston movement or Campbell and Stone have to do with any of this? ???

What or who is watchman nee?
What does he have to do with obeying God and being added to God's people?

One should depend on the word of God. What does it say?

  It is all because of FAITH IN GOD, HIS WORD, AND HIS SON JESUS CHRIST AND HIS POWER TO REMOVE MY SINS AND REDEEM ME TO GOD!

 What scriptures did you give against my belief? By the way it isn't my belief but what God says is!


The word of God and adhering to what it says is unity in God.
Where man tries to add to and manipulate the word of God is where division begins.
There can never be division if one rightly divides the word of God.

Have a very good first day of the week,
Ollie

By the way? What does any of this have to do with "The Kingdom of Jesus Christ"?

Luke 17:20  And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation:
Luke 17:21  Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.

The Kingdom of God is a spiritual kingdom, and is truly not of this world in the sense that flesh and blood will not enter into it (John3:3). Those not born spiritually remain dead and in their flesh (1Cor:15:50).
The same as we are born into this world, we must be born into God's kingdom - John 3:5 "Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God."
Man was supposed to be triune in being, but with the fall, was dead spiritually and born without spirit.
With the rebirth or new birth, man is restored to having a spirit. Sin still dwells in the flesh, as Paul attests to in Romans 7:17 - "Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.", but it is not him but the sin that dwells in the flesh. That which is of the spirit does not sin and cannot. 1 John3:9 "Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God."

Thanks for your reply and getting this thread back on topic.

Gosh, Ollie, do you just like being cryptic.

I said that the Bible says Christ is the Word of God.  I didn't bother giving the addresses, because I assumed you knew at least some of them.  John 1:1 and John 1:14 are very good ones, but the Scriptures say repeatedly that Christ is the Word of God.

You and a lot of other people say the Bible is the Word of God, but there is no Scripture for that.  There is Scripture that says the Scriptures are inspired, or that this or that verse is spoken by God.  However, what you are saying, when you say that the Bible is all that the Church goes by, is that the Bible is all of God's Word that is available.   This is false.  The Bible can contain only a very small portion of God's Word, who is Christ.

In answer you have said you have faith that the Bible is God's Word.  I asked you what you have faith in to believe that, since the Bible doesn't say that.  You haven't answered.

A also mentioned the Scripture, from the Master's mouth, that says that men shall live by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God, not just a few words that once proceeded from his mouth.

And all of this IS about the kingdom of Christ.  You keep talking about something that is not practical or real.  You mention doing things that only lead to the same results that everyone is already getting, division, because the kingdom you speak of is a kingdom of interpretation of Scriptures, not the kingdom of Christ, who is the Word of God.

I have done the things you suggested.  I did them for years.  What I found was that there were no churches of Christ in any of the cities that I looked in.  I suffered for years searching like that.  That is why I am complaining about your impractical and ineffective advice when I asked what could practically be done with what you are saying.

How does one actually find members of the kingdom of Christ gathered together???  In most cities, it is impossible, in my opinion.  In fact, I'd have to hear the exception and go look in order to believe there is one, outside of the one I found after long, long searching!

 Isaiah 9:6.  For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counseller, The mighty God, the everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
 7.  Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.


 Acts 2:14.  But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words:
 15.  For these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day.
 16.  But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel;
 17.  And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:
 18.  And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:
 19.  And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke:
 20.  The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come:
 21.  And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.
 22.  Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know:
 23.  Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain:
 24.  Whom God hath raised up, having loosed the pains of death: because it was not possible that he should be holden of it.
 25.  For David speaketh concerning him, I foresaw the Lord always before my face, for he is on my right hand, that I should not be moved:
 26.  Therefore did my heart rejoice, and my tongue was glad; moreover also my flesh shall rest in hope:
 27.  Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.
 28.  Thou hast made known to me the ways of life; thou shalt make me full of joy with thy countenance.
 29.  Men and brethren, let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us unto this day.
 30.  Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him, that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, he would raise up Christ to sit on his throne;
 31.  He seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption.
 32.  This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses.
 33.  Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the Promise of the Holy Ghost, he hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear.
 34.  For David is not ascended into the heavens: but he saith himself, The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand,
 35.  Until I make thy foes thy footstool.
 36.  Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ.


Joel 2:28.  And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions:
 29.  And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit.
 30.  And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.
 31.  The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the Lord come.
 32.  And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the Lord hath said, and in the remnant whom the Lord shall call.


 Matthew 13:36.  Then Jesus sent the multitude away, and went into the house: and his disciples came unto him, saying, Declare unto us the parable of the tares of the field.
 37.  He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man;
 38.  The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one;
 39.  The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels.
 

I forgot how Christians resort to chanting Scripture when they can't answer what's said to them.

Ah, well.  Have a nice day and a nice life.

???

Wasn't the word made flesh? That flesh died for your sins and mine, was resurrected, went to heaven, and now has all power and authority in heaven and earth and promises eternal life to all the faithful . Being faithful does not mean worldly but righteous doing the things God expects of His people. Many of them you quote from Acts.


Yes I know these Scriptures, but Christ is now head of His church, King over His kingdom, high priest over His priests, and has gone in to the true holy place once by his own blood for our redemption.

Hebrews 9:11.  But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building;
 12.  Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.
 13.  For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh:
 14.  How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
 15.  And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance.

True, God's word was compiled into a book we call the Bible many, many, years after the facts of it being word of mouth in the first century. This talk is begining to go in circles. I think I answered this before and told you that it is faith.???
What is the Bible if not the word of God and contains His will for us to live by and obey???????

  It is all that is needed and it claims this fact from beginning to end. The word contained in the book known as the Bible will redeem one back to God and one will be rewarded by God if one is obedient to God.

 SIGH!  Where are you going with this sphere of conversation?
It contains all that is necessary to come into Christ's Body and be saved from this untoward generation.
Answer my question. What else is needed by man for man to obey and know what he must obey to be right with God?

I have faith in God, His Son Jesus Christ, His Holy Spirit, and His word.
The Bible contains the words given through the Holy Spirit all one needs and completion is found in Christ.
What does one need besides Christ? Anything else would be adultery, and idoltry.


When does one start? Have you started?


Christ is King over His people, the obedient to HIm. His people are the kingdom. It is real. It is physical and spiritual.
I donot say these things from my own mind. These are things contained in the Bible.  

There are locations where God's people are not. All one can do in my estimation is perhaps go among the heathen and teach the truth as did the apostles and preachers in the first century. They went even under the threat of death. Can you? Can I?
The preachers, teachers, evangelists of the first century as told in the Bible were not always assembled with Christians. They went inti the synagogues, the pagan temples, the public forums, etc., etc..

Start with the scriptural descriptions God gives us of His people in His word, the Bible. An assembly hall is not the church but the Christians that assemble there are. Many assembly halls can be identified with names that just identify the building, but the church will meet inside. So it takes a lot of searching and time to find that group trying to live as God would have them.
I would avoid Churches most specifically that wear the names of men, or names that do no describe the true ecclessia according to God.

In His love,
Ollie

[qs]This talk is begining to go in circles. I think I answered this before and told you that it is faith.???[/qs]

I don't think this talk is going in circles.  I had given up on it, but this is the first time you've answered me clearly.  Earlier, all the statements you made could mean different things if they were said by different people, and the Scriptures you gave are interpreted differently by different people and different church groups.  I don't know you, so I had no way of knowing even what you were talking about when you were answering me.

Even your "it's by faith" was pretty meaningless.  This post was a lot better, thank you.

[qs]True, God's word was compiled into a book we call the Bible many, many, years after the facts of it being word of mouth in the first century.[/qs]

This you just accept by faith?  I'm a little surprised.  I can't accept this by faith, and I'll give you some reasons.

1.  Neither the apostles nor anyone who personally knew the apostles saw fit to compile all the Scriptures into one book, nor even to tell the churches which books were Scripture.

2.  The people who finally decided on what was Scripture were paid by the government for their position and their churches had wandered far from the life and faith of previous churches.

3.  The people who finally decided on what was Scripture were so divided that to this day different churches use different Bibles; not just the Catholics and Protestants, but also the Orthodox churches, so that there are a number of different canons.

Note:  The Ethiopian Orthodox church includes the Book of Enoch in their canon, which is quoted in Jude's letter.

4.  There are quotes in the New Testament you own that are taken from versions of the Law and Prophets that no one uses except the Orthodox churches.  Thus you have quotes in your "Word of God" which are from versions you no longer accept as the "Word of God."  This is terribly contraditory.  (For example, Jesus quoted "You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve," which is from the Septuagint.

[qs]What is the Bible if not the word of God and contains His will for us to live by and obey[/qs]

It is the writings of holy men and prophets whom we trust as spokesmen of the Word of God, who can help keep us on track and provide direction for specific circumstances.  They are not a replacement for the Word of God that proceeds from his mouth that we need today!

[qs]It is all that is needed and it claims this fact from beginning to end.[/qs]

I don't believe it claims this.  In fact, it claims quite the opposite, that we must live by the Spirit of God.

[qs]When does one start? Have you started?[/qs]

I don't understand this question.  One starts now, and yes, I've started.

[qs]It contains all that is necessary to come into Christ's Body and be saved from this untoward generation.
Answer my question. What else is needed by man for man to obey and know what he must obey to be right with God?[/qs]

The Spirit of God is needed.  The words that are currently proceeding from the mouth of God are needed.  The church in Acts needed God's Word through Agabus to know what to do about the famine with their brothers.  We need prophetic words now.  People "pray about" things all time.  Don't they think that if they get direction, then that's the Word of God coming to them, and they need to live by it?

Because people don't know how to obtain the Word of God, they don't know what to do, which brings us to:

[qs]There are locations where God's people are not. All one can do in my estimation is perhaps go among the heathen and teach the truth as did the apostles and preachers in the first century. They went even under the threat of death. Can you? Can I?[/qs]

No, I can't.  I doubt you can, either.  I've met very, very few who could.  It's a gift, and most people need that gift in another person to come to them, they don't have it themselves.

People looking as I've been talking about need the Word of God.  They need the portions of the Word of God that are not found in the Bible, but are found in their heart, planted their by the Spirit of God.  They do not need some preacher telling them to "go into all the world," because that Scripture was for the apostles, not for an untrained, spiritually wimpy American Christian, who doesn't even know what the Word of God is, much less the tremendous warfare they would be entering if they actually had the ability to build a church, which they surely don't.

God told me, "Wait, keep looking."  I did, and I found.  Others need to go somewhere, or to do something different in their workplace, or to find a new job, or to start a new hobby.  Who knows what way God can direct to put someone in his will, but if they don't know that they must live by the Word of God which proceeds from heaven to them, they will perish themselves and help Christianity continue as the embarrassment to God that it is in the West today!

Everything must change for what we see around us to change, our beliefs, our interpretations of Scripture, our behavior, etc.  There is no power in the modern usage of Scripture that can deliver people from sins, bind them together in an inseperable unity, and cause them to see the church and the purpose of God.

As many as are led by the Spirit, these are the sons of God.  A people willing to live by the Word of God, which is Christ and not the Scriptures, and are willing to follow him wherever he leads, will find themselves outcast by modern Christianity, because modern Christianity has changed so much from the Truth that they are what everyone including themselves see them to be: weak, divided, and powerless.

[qs]So it takes a lot of searching and time to find that group trying to live as God would have them.
I would avoid Churches most specifically that wear the names of men, or names that do no describe the true ecclessia according to God.[/qs]

This is practical, solid advice; the first I've heard from you.  One problem with it.  Why are you afraid to say where your search led you and what congregation you found, so that others don't have to repeat your same search, or so that others can put your search to the test?

 1 Corinthians 15:20.  But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.
 21.  For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead.
 22.  For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
 23.  But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming.
 24.  Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power.
 25.  For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet.
 26.  The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death


Jesus Christ is reigning now over His Kingdom, but His reign will come to an end when He has conquered all enemies. Then He delivers the kingdom up to God and puts down all rule, authority and power given to Him.

[qs]Jesus Christ is reigning now over His Kingdom, but His reign will come to an end when He has conquered all enemies. Then He delivers the kingdom up to God and puts down all rule, authority and power given to Him.[/qs]

And to think you put a  ??? when I referred to you as cryptic.  This really addresses my post, eh?

Well, have a nice life.

Pay attention! Sometimes the answer to a question is in the Scripture "chanted"!

However I cannot chant but just speak or write.

Thanks, you too!

And here is another  ??? since you did not explain it the first time.

Bless you,
Ollie

I wasn't addressing your post in reply # 12 but just adding more scripture about the Kingdom of Jesus. That is what the thread is about.
Your last post is very long and much of it seems redundant and discussed previously.

Faith in God, His Christ, and the word of God given through the Holy Spirit, obeying and living that word through the authority of Jesus Christ adds one to the kingdom of Jesus Christ.

Afraid?    ???  Do not understand this question.

It is not a problem to reveal the search.

I studied and met with many organizations and groups. Many of them leading religions of the day.

Upon studing the Bible and coming to the conclusion that this was the only authority from God and Christ for us; and not the additions and traditions that men have added to the word.
So throwing out all the things of man, it was discovered that Christ's church is the church revealed in the Bible. It is God's people, not man made institutions. So the search began for a group of people that fit the pattern of the church revealed by God in The Bible. People obedient to God and trying to live their daily lives Christlike. This was a very difficult task as there are so many deviants out there.