Norm Sharbaugh Ministries ©2011 Finding a Church

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8 Finding a Church Joining the right church is of paramount importance to your spiritual growth and that of your family. The very early Christians did not have the problem that we have in finding the right church. They were easily organized into local churches without much difficulty. Christendom is now jam packed with all types of denominations and apostate cults with Christ's name on their lips. In this Bible study we will look at a number of Scriptures that will narrow down the choice. With this foundational knowledge of Scripture you will be able to follow the leading and direction of the Holy Spirit. At the very beginning of this study there are two groups of people that seem to show up unannounced as soon a person accepts Christ: the cults and those that believe you need a second “experience” of tongues to receive the Holy Spirit.

Finding a Church  Beware if a group of people does not believe that Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God (capital G), the second person of the Trinity. 1. What does the Word of God warn about in 2 John 9-10? 2 John 9-10 "9Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son. 10 If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God-speed."

2. If one does not believe in the teaching of Christ or doctrine of Christ (which importantly includes His deity—that He is the eternal Son of God), and you receive Him into your home and give him a greeting or God‟s speed, what does 2 John 11 say that you have done? 2 John 11 "For he that biddeth him God-speed is partaker of his evil deeds."

Note: One of the teachings or doctrines of Christ is His deity. (He is God) I have found that you can flush out a Mormon, Jehovah‟s Witness, or any other cult member by asking them if

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Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God—capital G. They will say that He is a god—little g. But when you press them, they do not believe that Christ is the eternal God. (For example, the Mormons believe that Jesus was a created being that became God. That is denying Christ's eternal deity. Micah 5:2b, speaking of Christ the Messiah, says, "whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting." Jesus Christ is declared to be God in Matthew 16:15-17 and Matthew 3:16, 17. He is declared to be God by the attributes that are attributed to Him: He is eternal (Micah 5:2); He is omniscient—“In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” (Colossians 2:3), He is omnipotent—Jesus says that He is, “the Almighty” (Revelation 1:8). These are just a few of the many Scriptures that declare the deity of Christ.

 Beware of any church or group that tells you that you did not receive the Holy Spirit when you trusted Christ as your Savior! 3. Read 1 John 5:11-13. What do you know that you have from receiving the Son? 1 John 5:11-13 "And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God."

4. Ephesians 1:13 says that you heard the Word of truth which is the gospel of salvation. This caused you to believe. (Christ is now your Savior.) As a result of this who sealed you? Ephesians 1:13 "In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also, after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that Holy Spirit of promise."

The Holy Spirit from within is keeping you saved through to the day when your entire being will be gloriously changed—the sin nature will be gone and you will have a perfect body—this is future and will take place on the Day of Redemption. We will talk about the Rapture and other subjects related to the day of Redemption under the Prophecy Bible Studies. In Ephesians 4:28-32 we are taught that because we are indwelt with the Holy Spirit, we have to be careful of our speech and conduct. 5. We have to be considerate so that we _____________ __________ the Holy Spirit of God. Ephesians 4:30 "And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption." Comment: The point I‟m making is that the Holy Spirit is a Divine Person indwelling us and we take Him every place we go. Nowhere did Paul in any of his epistles say that we need to speak in tongues as the evidence that we have the Holy Spirit.

Norm Sharbaugh Ministries ©2011 Finding a Church

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Not Everyone had the Gift of Tongues Tongues were one of the early gifts to the church. But not everyone had this gift. It was basically used in communicating the gospel in a known language to those of that language. Read Acts 2:6-8. It was also used by the Holy Spirit to speak truth in the early church because the New Testament at that time had not been completed and gathered together as the only authority of faith and practice. Read again 2 Timothy 3:15-17. I have found first from Scripture and second from experience that the Spirit behind a tongue can be tested. “1Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world. 2Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: 3and every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is the spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is in the world.” (1 John 4:1-3) First John chapter 4 and verses 1, 2, and 3 were very important scriptures taught in the early church. The books of the Bible were not gathered together yet. I believe demons would speak through false prophets even in real languages (tongues) to lead astray and deceive Christians. Since the church did not have the complete Bible to determine truth, these scriptures gave them direction and showed how the spirits could be tested.

The Spirits are to be Tested Note that the spirits are to be tested. As a person is speaking in a tongue, you ask the spirit behind the tongues if Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. They have to be commanded to speak in English. A demon will evade the question or give you something that sounds good. They will say for example that Jesus is the center. Referring to the three crosses of the crucifixion. When you pin them down they will not confess that Jesus has come in the flesh. They (demons) will also not confess that Jesus is their Lord. I was holding a revival meeting in southern Indiana. This was in the early days of my ministry. The only open date I had was a Monday through Friday and the pastor took it. By the end of the week, the main auditorium and all the overflow rooms were packed out.

Tongues Group comes Face to Face with Reality In the course of the week I became friends with a small group that was always at the altar at the front of the church on their knees praying or appearing to pray. As I inquired, they informed me that they were speaking in tongues. I told them that they needed to check to see if the spirit behind their tongues was of God. At this point they all looked at me like the sons of Jacob in the famine. I instructed them on what to say and what to do and they assured me they would. The next night they came to me immediately before the service and had realized that they had been duped by Satan. The “baptism of the spirit” with evidence of speaking in tongues which they had received was not of God. The spirits behind the tongue evaded them but when they were pinned down, said no to the question, “Has Jesus Christ come in the flesh?” Not one in the group had a legitimate tongue! I was

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told that one of the demons got very nasty with the group. I could tell that this experience they had was somewhat terrifying. You might ask why didn‟t you go with them and help them. My answer is that I did not want to get involved. There were approximately 100 professions of faith that the Lord gave in this meeting and I didn‟t want to get sidetracked. Dr. Kurt Koch, one of the world‟s foremost authorities on the occult, said in a conference I attended, “For every tongue that gives the right answer there has to be 10,000 that give the wrong answer.” I‟m personally not sure that there are any today that are real ones. When I was first saved God led me to a Baptist pastor and his associate. These men shared many scriptural things with me including an introduction to the reality of demons. I‟m so glad that I didn‟t have to wander in the wilderness for 40 years bumping around as many young Christian‟s do today. I’m sharing things in this Bible study series that are not generally taught to any Christians let alone young Christians—but I believe they should be.

 If a church has “sacraments,” in love, avoid it. These are manmade works. The whole idea of sacraments is to accumulate supposed grace as a means of working your way to heaven. 6. What does God‟s word say in Ephesians 2:8-9 that refutes the above notion? (Also consult Titus 3:5 and Galatians 2:16) Ephesians 2:8-9 "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast."

 The scriptural church baptizes by immersion. (Colossians 2:12; Romans 6:3-5; John 3:23; Mathew 3:16; Acts 8:38-39) The word baptism means "to dip or immerse." It indicates going under the water. 7. What in Colossians 2:12 indicates that baptism is by immersion? Colossians 2:12 "Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead."

Did you see the imagery of going down in the water and up out of the water? Read it again. Also read Matthew 3:16 and Romans 6:3-5.

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 The scriptural church treats the Lord’s Supper as a memorial service. 8. 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 uses the phrase “…this do in ___________________ of Me.” (vs. 24) “…this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in ____________________ of Me.” (vs. 25) 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 "23For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus, the same night in which he was betrayed, took bread: 24 and when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat; this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me. 25After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me. 26For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord's death till he come." Memorial Service: We are looking back and honoring the Lord Jesus Christ and His death that paid the price for our salvation.

 The ideal church does not have a rigid liturgical structure to it. There is informality about it. There is organization in the worship service, but there is left room for the Holy Spirit to work. Everything is not all planned out to the very smallest detail given by the preacher. John 4:24 says, “God is a Spirit: and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth.”

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The preaching of the Word of God should be central to the entire life of the church.

9. How does God want to be worshipped? John 4:24 "God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth." The Book of 2 Timothy is a pastoral epistle. It was written to teach pastors what to do. 10. What command did Paul give Timothy? 2 Timothy 4:2 "Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long-suffering and doctrine."

Comment: "Preach the Word." That most certainly should be the central theme of the New Testament local church. When you find a church where the pulpit is on the far left or right and not in the middle, beware. I know this may seem strong for you to hear, but as denominations progressed through history, they began to turn away from the Word of God. In many cases, this can be seen in where they place the pulpit.

Norm Sharbaugh Ministries ©2011 Finding a Church

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11. The commandments of men cause us to turn from what? Titus 1:14 "Not giving heed to Jewish fables, and commandments of men, that turn from the truth."

12. What kind of worship will the doctrines or dogmas of men produce? Mark 7:7 "Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men." (also Matthew 15:9)

In the church I grew up in, there was an altar in the middle and the pulpit on the side. This was saying that the altar was more important than the Word of God. This altar was a place where they unscripturally re-crucified Jesus Christ for our sins. (Please check the following scriptures. (Hebrews 10:10-14 "...he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever..." (v. 12) "...once for all..." (v. 10) "For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified." (v. 14) These scriptures show that there is no need for any other sacrifice for our sin. Christ's sacrifice on the cross was complete. If the church doesn't have a pulpit, it means that they have placed contemporary music or drama as their center of worship. I've noticed recently that in some contemporary churches they have moved the pulpit out of the way and let music have the center stage. 13. From the above note, what reason would there be for moving the pulpit out of its central place in the auditorium?

Comment: Read the following passage of Scripture in 1 Corinthians 1:18-25. "18For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God. 19For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.20Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? 21For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. 22For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: 23but we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; 24but unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God. 25 Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men." Note that God has chosen the "preaching of the cross" (v. 18); "the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe" (v. 21); "but we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness" (v. 23); "but unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God" (v. 24); "because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men" (v. 25). The point is that God chose the preaching of the cross to reach the world. He didn't appeal to worldliness or to what men consider a wise way to do it. He chose a way to reach the world that the world views as foolish. Today many of the churches have chosen worldly

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contemporary ways to attempt to reach the world because they don't want to look foolish. The preaching of the Word is paramount to reaching this world for Christ.

 Look for a church that has a very strong desire to reach the world with the gospel of Christ. Is the church concerned about witnessing for Christ? This is the Great Commission. It is described in Matthew 28:18-20. 14. List the things that we are to do to carry out the Great Commission. Matthew 28:18-20 "18And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. 19Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen."

The above are just a few of the important things you should look out for or look for in choosing a church. When a young Christian seeks to find the church that the Lord wants them to attend, they need some fundamental Scripture knowledge and a sensitivity to the Holy Spirit‟s leading. When I received Christ as my Savior, I was by myself and had to piece together what to do from a tenmonth study of the Scriptures, and several individual contacts. I marvel at the Holy Spirit‟s leading in my life during that early vulnerable time.

Summary We covered the following in this Bible study:  In this Bible study we saw the importance of completely avoiding anyone or group that denies the deity of Christ (2 John 9-10). Watch out for the cults.  Beware of those that tell you that you did not receive the Holy Spirit when you trusted Christ as your Savior. By following their instruction you may be inviting error and demons into your life. No New Testament writer inspired by God ever taught that speaking in tongues was the evidence that a Christian has the Holy Spirit in his life. This early gift of tongues was of no use after the Bible was complete. History seconds that, “No genuine manifestation of tongues were seen in the postapostolic period through the Protestant Reformation” (Gromacki, Robert G., Modern Tongues Movement. Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing Company, 1967, p 139).

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It should be noted that Pentecostal and Charismatic denominations are the primary supporters of the modern tongues movement. Television evangelists such as Kenneth Copeland, Benny Hinn, and members of the Trinity Broadcasting Network are charismatic and strong proponents of Dahe Annotated Reference Bible. It has been said that Dahe‟s notes in this Bible are the „staple‟ (the principal element or feature) of modern Pentecostal congregations. The notes contain many heretical views of God and true biblical theology. Here are just a few: Of God the Father, Dahe says, “He has a voice; breath; and countenance. He wears clothes; eats; rests; dwells in a mansion.” He further said that "He has body parts such as back parts, heart, hands, and fingers, mouth, legs and tongue, feet, eyes, ears, hair, head, face, arms, loins, and other body parts." The Bible teaches that God the Father is spirit! The above statements are heretical. Benny Hinn, a strong supporter of Dahe, said that there were nine in the Trinity (?) Huh? Let me conclude by saying that any group that follows feeling and goose bumps instead of solid theology is dangerous.  We took a look at the fact that sacraments are man-made works to earn salvation. Yet, the Bible declares the fact that salvation is a gift of God‟s grace. (Ephesians 2:8-9)  A Scriptural church baptizes by immersion and perform the ceremony of the Lord‟s Supper as a memorial service with no saving power. (Acts 8:38; John 3:23; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26)  The ideal church has an informality about it leaving room for the Holy Spirit to work. (John 4:24)  The preaching of the Word of God has center stage in a New Testament church.  Obedience to Christ's command to preach the gospel to the entire world is extremely important to the New Testament local church.