Greetings Forum

[Ryan07]

Hello,
Thank you for providing a forum. I have become a regular Narrow Path listener over the past several months and have begun exploring more in depth some of the topical audio teachings. Of these my favorite so far has been Church History and Understanding the Prophets. I find eschatology rather fascinating and thank you Steve Gregg for providing some tools to sort of peel through the layers of dispensationalism I have dropped from my mind. I also rather enjoyed the ones on Cults and Mormonism. Perhaps the only thing I disagree with you on for certain is where you don't believe 100% that the papacy is the institution of Satan prophecied! Having said that anyone who loves Jesus is real to me, any demonination or not, dispensational or not, and perhaps even Aryan or not. It seems to me that if the Bible speaks of God as separate from Jesus and as the same in two separate modes then so can we. Anyway, thank you for such a great collection of Bible stuff. Have a good day.

[Bud]

Hi Ryan07, greetings brother, I've been in touch with this ministry for 7? or more years. It has been a blessing! See you around the boards I hope.

[Ryan07]

Thanks, Bud. So, what do you have to recommend regarding this forum and studying scripture and fellowship? I appreciate the reply, I hope God is with you.

[Bud]

Hi Ryan, thank you,

You wrote:

Thanks, Bud. So, what do you have to recommend regarding this forum and studying scripture and fellowship?

Recommendations regarding:

This Forum?
What your doing Ryan, plus stick around. Also, I like to read almost all of the "New Posts" by clicking on that link daily.

I can highly recommend Steve Gregg as a gifted teacher.

Studying Scripture?
Keep at it as the Holy Spirit leads. Others might have suggestions here too.

I am currently reading through the New Testament plus, referred verses as led.

Fellowship?
I might not be the best person to give you an answer to this as I'm disabled and unable to attend gatherings. I'm getting fellowship however I can, like coming here, and, "visiting" our brothers and sisters in the Bible and visiting a few fellows on the phone. This is not ideal but I do desire the ideal.

God bless you and yours Ryan,

[Ryan07]

With regards to fellowship(and thank you for the reply), I work on Sundays and have stopped going to weekly church for a couple weeks as a result. This doesn't really perturb me too much as Mosaic law requires keeping the Sabbath day holy, but the new covenant seems to only require fellowship with Christians. So while I would classify a forum as a means of fellowship I will not say that Sunday Church is required. Is it? My aunt is disabled and she uses her transportation service for disabled people to go to church every Sunday! I have a book by a man with no arms or legs and I think he goes to Church regularly. Anyway, I am also not very satisfied with these churchs. They are almost all dispensationalists and perhaps even elitist. For example I heard one on the radio talking about how there is a hierarchy of believers based on how long they have been believers. That new believers should be treated differently than long time believers. If this was true it would seem to me that Paul the Apostle perhaps should have spent several more years in service before his ministry began! Anyway I hear you on Steve Gregg being a good teacher. He is. Puts me to sleep sometimes.
But in my months of study my understanding of scripture has been revolutionized by using these study tools. I could have spent ten years or more studying scripture and not have learned half of what I learned in months! So thank you Steve Gregg, and thank you again bud for the responses.

[Bud]

Hi again Ryan,

No I don't believe Sunday fellowship is required.

Maybe a Wednesday or Saturday group could be found?

Myself, I would like to live in a fellowship. Or, I'd like to find a house church and go.

I have 2 major afflictions:
1) Schizophrenia or something like it
2) Sacroiliitis or something like it

It would take pages and pages to explain the disability these afflictions cause me. I won't try that but I will give a short answer:

I can't sit much (wheelchair no help)
Can't stand much
Alternating doesn't help much
Supplements, no help
The whole stretching n' various exercises thing, I did it for 1 n' 1/2 years, results; pain increased permanently by about 300 percent

I'm doing and have done what I can do by the Grace of God.

Thanks though Ryan for being bold enough to try n' nudge a brother

Blessings,

[Ryan07]

Well, I hope God is with you all the more for it! I am reading Caffeine Blues right now and am getting off caffeine for a little while now in order to improve my mood, health and mental function, and hopefully lower my overall physical pains. It is really amazing to me, and I am not saying this is the cause of your problem although I suspect if you have all that going on and also are a caffeine drinker it would make it significantly worst, but it is amazing to me how for instance one of my Christian brothers is an adamant insister on the idea that something like smoking marijuana is bad because it supposedly makes you high, even if you use it for legit medicinal purposes, and is also a volunteer with his wife for working the coffee dispensors at the local church. I think coffee is a little bit like dispensationalism. We can do without it! The subject caught my attention after I noticed how much varying information I could find on researching whether caffeine is healthy or not. It appears, in my opinion, that scientists are supported by big time soda and caffeine fueled industries. But that when one really digs into the issue there is some serious misinformation going down. The same appears to be the case with dispensationalism, and also people will not change their minds, scientists or pastors, as they are entirely invested in the mainstream opinions. Anyway hope you can somehow feel better one of these days!

[Bud]

Thanks Ryan, God sustains me and takes me through every trial. I know and appreciate Him more than ever "Before my affliction I went astray, now I keep thy Word". Psalm 119:67
I drink 1 mug of coffee a day now, didn't used to, doesn't seem to make a difference in my case, good luck (grace) in yours. I did quit dispensationalism . Though, sin is what I concentrate the most on hating.

Blessings,

[Ryan07]

Well, in the case of dispensationalism, I think it is only a sin in the instances where it is being taught and known to probably not be true, which apparently happens amongst pastors and teachers who are afraid to lose their jobs by going against the norm. Thank God for radio.

[Bud]

Thanks for unpacking a bit your thoughts on dispensationalism/sin.

What do you think, Ryan, about believing Disp. is probably not true yet teaching it anyway but with the qualifying inclusion that there are other ways of understanding the related verses and then laying out opposing views? Would you think that would be sin. Myself I wouldn't teach Disp. But I'm trying to be careful of what I call sin.

You know, I stopped coming to The Narrow Path Ministry for over a year including the radio program for awhile b/c I felt like God might be nudging me not to put too much trust in one teacher. I came back after I was sure I wasn't being idolatrous and also I was sure this was a very good Ministry.

Bud