Most churches require a confession of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ before you can become a member. In the Scripture there are several instances where water baptism immediately follow a person's confession of faith. If a church wants to require baptism as a prerequisite to membership, they are actually just making sure that the person has accepted Christ and is willing to make an outward confession through the act of water baptism. I see this as a very important step in showing a true belief and confession of faith. Water baptism does not save a person, but it is an act of obedience and outward confession of an inward belief. The normal process would be to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ by faith and accept Him as your Savior and Lord. Followed by water baptism and then committing oneself to a local body of believers through membership in a local church.
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Actually, the Bible does not say how many wise men came to see the baby Jesus. According to the Bible, contrary to most of our nativity scenes, there were no wise men from the east at the manger in Bethlehem. They didn’t show up until almost two years later. We don’t know how many shepherds there were either. But this we know, that “God so loved the word that He gave His only Son”. This we know that His name is Jesus, the only name given among men whereby we can be saved”. This is why we celebrate. Have a Merry Christmas! Sadly, you are not alone. There are many Christian people who are still very immature and self-centered that have hurt those around them. They may have accepted Christ as Savior but need to learn what it means for Him to truly be the Lord over their life. The urge to get back into church I believe comes from God. He wants what the Bibles calls the "members of the body of Christ" to come together. When a member of a body is separated, both the member and the body suffer. Find a solid Bible believing church, talk with the pastor about your concerns, get back into fellowship and realize that Christians are broken people who God is making whole. I know many people who are just as nice during December as they are the rest of the year. But for the rest of those "Christmas Spirit" people, I would say be thankful. Be thankful that their hearts have been touched to act, to say, to do something nice that may seem out of character for them. It is this month that we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The Christmas Spirit that has touched them may very well be the Holy Spirit who always leads us to do what is right. What a wonderful world this would be if we could all be lead daily by the Holy Spirit. |
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