Be the Bee # 155 | How Should Orthodox Christians Preach the Gospel?
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- Опубліковано 1 лип 2024
- “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:19-20)
Orthodox Christianity is perhaps the best-kept secret in America. Why? And how can we help share the Good News?
We'll change the way we think about evangelism and learn two principles that should shape the way we introduce other people to Jesus Christ.
Because there’s a close connection between being the Lord’s witnesses and being close to the Lord.
As always, we've prepared a FREE downloadable workbook to help you act on what you'll learn.
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End Theme:
"Noahs Stark," by krackatoa
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Questions you might be struggling with, that we'll touch on in the video:
Is Orthodox the first religion
Evangelism and proselytism
Do Orthodox Christians evangelize
Outreach and Evangelism
The Scriptural Call to Evangelize
Why doesn't the Orthodox Church evangelize
The Orthodox Church does not evangelize
How do I preach the Word of God
How do you preach the Gospel with power
Share the Faith
What is evangelism
What is Orthodox Christianity
Thanks for watching. God bless you!
#BeTheBee #PreachTheGospel #OrthodoxChristianity
Download the workbook for this week's episode and dig deeper into how you can preach the Gospel: mailchi.mp/goarch/bethebee155
This link is no longer working to download this workbook. Do you have another link to access it?
I'm really glad we fixed last week's tech glitches and are ready to publish this episode!
Historically, Orthodox missionaries have helped convert entire nations to Christianity, showing them life and light. You mentioned Sts Cyril and Methodius, who did an enormous job in establishing a Christian tradition in my country, indirectly it is thanks to them that I have been baptized in the Orthodox Church. I can only hope and pray that we as modern-day Christians may achieve anything near that. Great video, thanks!
Glory to God!
Glory to God!
My first exposure to Orthodoxy was because of the first COD Modern Warfare on the mission "All Ghillied Up". In that mission you go through an Orthodox church, and when I saw the cross all I could think was "well thats a funny looking cross".
After became Orthodox, what I see is that one of many meanings of Divine Liturgy is very connected with the experience of Apostle in Emmaus in the Gospel of St. Luke, that is, to see Christ in Bread and announce to the others. Evangelize by two acts: preparing ourself to receive the Holy Gifts and this not mean only fast, but be a christian with our whole being and life; and announce this Good News with "come and see!".
Definitely! We've covered that in past episodes, like this one:
Be the Bee #128 | How to Read the Bible
ua-cam.com/video/zFmov78GdBQ/v-deo.html
I'm evangelical but I love your videos
Glory to God! How did you find our channel?
@@stevenchristoforou1667 I found it because my aunt is orthodox so she showed me y2am and even if I'm in a different denomination I still love the channel
Wow that’s really cool when you mentioned about someone coming to Alaska. I’m Alaskan native and I’m Protestant, and I always appreciated the historical aspects of Catholicism but disagreed with some aspects of it. But I just started learning about orthodoxy and really appreciate the Orthodox Church the more I learn about it.
That's super cool, glory to God! Have you been able to connect with a community near you?
@@stevenchristoforou1667 Well not really. it would be cool to talk to someone in the orthodox church about the beliefs and learn more about it in person and visit a church to check out the amazing art and architecture.
I would highly recommend you look up the life of St. Herman then. He's a very wonderful and fascinating man.
@@DJRoll15 Definitely! Here's a link to find a community near you:
www.assemblyofbishops.org/directories/parishes
@@stevenchristoforou1667 ill have to check those out thanks!
My husband and I are looking into converting to orthodoxy and are pretty excited about it your videos have helped us learn more. My 13 yr old has also been watching them and enjoys them
Glory to God! Have you connected with an Orthodox community near you?
How have things developed since you made this comment two years ago? Are you Orthodox now?
As a Catholic I've got a lot of respect for our Orthodox brothers and sisters
It's good to have you here! God bless you!
My attitude towards Catholic “separated brethren” has changed enormously since becoming Orthodox and I now greatly regret the various ways I misrepresented Catholicism in my previous Christian life in evangelical churches.
Thank you for that video. Even though I am protestant I am very happy to see that the Ortodox Church is coming to revival. We are different in our worship, but we have a common goal - to preach the gospel and many people start to belive is Jesus Christ and be saved.
God bless you!
우리 침례교인들과 다른 일부 사람들이
우리의 봉사 활동에 많은 긴급성을 더하는 끔찍하고 무서운 지옥에 대한 과감한 견해를 갖고 있는 것이 사실입니다. 그게 나쁜 것인지 좋은 것인지는 모르겠습니다. 사람들은 지옥에 갑니다. 그러나 우리가 다른 사람들을 대할 때 논쟁을 벌이거나
무뚝뚝할 필요가 없다는 당신의 말씀은
좋습니다. 이는 우리가 복음을 나누는
것을 중단한다거나 영혼이 더이상 죄의식을 가질 필요가 없다는 뜻이 아니라, 우리가 입을 열면 그들도 우리의 삶을
바라보고 그렇게 할 충분한 이유가 있다는 뜻입니다. 어떤 사람들은 평생 신실하게 기도한 후 임종 중에도 우리 주 예수
그리스도께 나아옵니다. 여기에 있는 몇 가지 훌륭한 팁과 이 주제에 대한 겸손함과 투명성에 감사드립니다.
We Ortgodox need to take up the great commission more! Thank you for this video.
Glory to God!
I am from India and I converted to Orthodoxy after being convinced of it's truth but I have to travel to the neighbouring state for communion and have no parish to attend near my place. This is what my protestant friend said about this: if this Church has not been here evangelism for so many hundreds of years then it means that the Holy Spirit has left the Church. This is something I did not know how to respond to him. There is literally every other sect here expect Orthodoxy. Orthodox evangelism is very little compared to what other churches have. I feel that our hierarchy doesn't have a great vision for the future.
I immigrated and went to college in USA in a remote rural community far away from orthodox churches. It was before UA-cam and podcasts in the early 2000’s. Today we can attend services online, I know it’s not the same, and travel when we can to an Orthodox Church. Yes, maybe some people for different reasons may have become lukewarm in their faith and who knows what pressures they’re under. I would raise your concerns with the Orthodox clergy over there and with Indian church hierarchy. See what they say. There must be others like you
Protestants are almost heretics in the eyes of orthodox believers, but in the same time thousands of protestant christians live simple life, give all they have and face persecution while they are evangelizing they neighbours and citizens in countries like china, india, all asian countries and middle east etc. And not only this, but they leave they beloved homelands and go among stange people to preach a gospel. Also many americans and europeans give up all easy live in richness and go to poor countries and live simple life among other people preaching a gospel. I an not saying orthodox are bad but orthodox are saying that only they are real christians but still Holy Spirit is working through simple "heretical" protestants who does not know history or doctrine. I dont think God is mad for protestants for this
If you ever visit Liverpool in England, there is an Indian Orthodox parish there.
I grew up Protestant evangelical and my only exposure to any form of Orthodoxy was My big fat Greek Wedding.....and I can tell you that most Americans think that the Orthodox are just eastern Catholics
Definitely. We've got a lot of work to do, to get the word out.
I've known about the Greek Orthodox Church in my town for a great deal of time a very long time. I assumed that it was Catholics only deeper Catholic squared. I was very wrong and by the time I went to University to study ancient religion I learned exactly what Orthodoxy is and was drawn to it very much so. But I left and lived overseas for quite a long time. Now I am back and all my family is deceased and I've been sitting here with a close Church fasting saying the Jesus prayer I have an icon corner and a prayer rope I like candles and burn incense I have an orthodox cross. I am not a wealthy woman but I bought these things a piece at a time and then they build up! I should be ready for chrismation by the time that the church opens again.
God bless you and your preparations for Christmas!
this was very helpful as I struggle with speaking to non-believers about my faith (I'm quite shy) and I hear protestants speak about spreading the gospel all the time but not so much from my fellow Orthodox Christians. This has encouraged me!
Glory to God! I used to be very shy and self-conscious as well. I found that the more you open up, little by little, the easier it gets.
God bless you!
@@stevenchristoforou1667 thank you for the advise I will try getting out of my comfort zone as following the Word is the most important thing to me
제가 정교회에 대해 높이 평가하는 한 가지는 총대주교가 죄와 현대의 세속적
경향에 맞서 취하는 입장입니다.
Thank you God for your love! ❤️🙏
Amazing video! More people need to hear this!
Amen and Amen!!!!!!!!!! An excellent message!
Great message Steve. God bless you.
Thank you, Steve! Thanks to all the team!
Your words give me courage and light. I feel it is what I need in these depressing time.
Courage and hope to live and spread the love of our Lord!
Keep up the good work :)
By your prayers!
Thank you so much brother! From a french with chinese origins baptized in maronite catholic church... Long story hahaha...God has humor haha.
Thank you, because I love so much oriental lithurgy, and I love so much orthodox lithurgy, it's so beatiful.
I'm always happy to see on the net orthodoxy contents, and we need moreee!
I respect so much some Saints from orthodoxy, like Simon the Tanner.
Learning is the most beautiful thing, you edify my faith in the apostolic church.
May God be always with you, your familly, your loveones!!
By your prayers, thank you!
And yeah, that is a long story! Feel free to share. :-)
AMEN BROTHER STEVEN!
Great job Steve! Let's shout it from the housetops!
Amen to that! You've already been doing such an amazing job.
Well done! Continue the great work that you are doing with these videos informing everyone about our orthodox faith. May God continue to bless you!
By your prayers!
Awesome video 👏🙏
Glory to God!
God bless thank you because I’m orthodox living in a Protestant society and wanted to learn some aspect of my faith I didn’t know well, and your videos really make me understand love and be proud of orthodoxy more 😊
Glory to God! Really glad to hear this is helping you.
Are you also connected to a parish near you?
@@stevenchristoforou1667 no unfortunately I go to church occasionally but they are far away and I don’t understand most of it cause it’s mostly Greek or Russian. I want to get involved but I don’t know how
@@tiere879 It can start with something as simple as a call or email. Or an in-person conversation the next time you visit.
Introduce yourself to the priest. Let him know who you are and where you're coming from.
@@stevenchristoforou1667 sorry for the late response, thank you for your advice I will definitely consider doing that next time I visit. Keep up the good work and videos,
Greetings!
Where on earth there is protestant society? I mean there are lutheran countries but thise are mostly ateists not christian at all. Most protestants are living among non believers, atheits, muslims, buddist etc but i never heard there are actually society that most of people are real protestant christians??
Loving the hair Steve.
Haha thanks, it's been a while since my last haircut.
The world is our greatest evangelist. The world and it's ways practically shoved me into Orthodoxy.
Glad to hear this kind of content, as someone learning, that’s Orthodox Church I have noticed the tendency towards ethnocentrism, and how that could be a barrier to those seeking the faith.
Thank you for these videos. I'm not Orthodox but am eager to learn more. These videos are great!
Glory to God!
Have you connected with an Orthodox Christian community near you?
@@stevenchristoforou1667 I know several people who are Orthodox and I've attended liturgy with them, though not in awhile, and I attend a zoom Orthodox Bible Study.
Did you move closer to Orthodox belief since you made this response?
Great video and workbook that follows. Remind me again, please, the meaning behind the "Be the Bee" slogan. Thanks for your great work.
Glory to God!
Here's an old episode that explains:
Be the Bee #47 | Free as a Bee
ua-cam.com/video/KvHrnSKPOQo/v-deo.html
Be the bee not the fly; Attracted to life giving blossoms not rot and decay.
Can you film again tour of you local Orthodox church?
Amazing videos, greetings from Orthodox Serbia🇷🇸🇬🇷🇺🇸
0:18 thats exactly what my mom told me hahaha
Perhaps the better question is
is orthodoxy Salvational?
Attending church or being religious Saved no-one.
Being transformed into the Image of Jesus; restored to pre-fall value; denying self; taking up your cross; following Jesus *only* is Salvational...
But that begs the question of how that happens.
In the Scripture, that all happens in the Church: we're baptized, chrismated, and receive communion; we receive instruction; we worship together; we grow in holiness by living as Christians; etc.
No one says "attending church" or "being religious" leads to salvation, though.
@@stevenchristoforou1667
Hi Steven
I read a lot of 'we' in your comment but nothing of Him and *that* right there, is the problem.
(Please, i'm not trying to spank anyone, Jesus is The Way.)
The word church is not in scripture, it was coined through the German kirche, probably late 300's.
By your name i detect you may be Greek, so you will know that the word is ekklesia, the called out ones. I cannot see where Jesus intended an orgainsational structure like our churches today. A structure that pays people to teach, preach and make disciples. When you are paid for sharing the gospel you are in the control of the payers; you are no longer free to tell the Truth; no, you must present an "ear-tickling" message in order to not offend your beneficiaries. And so the church becomes self-serving instead of Christ-serving.
Dear brother Steven, please understand, it's *all* about Jesus and nothing about us. If there was no church, there would still be God. But we make the church our God and we make the same mistake as the Israelites who worshipped the Law (and many still do) instead of the Law Giver. How many times did Jesus have to correct them? "You say..., but I say..."
Sacrifice your church and make YHWH *only* the centre of your life. Jesus told us to hate even our brothers and sisters lest they get ahead of Him in our lives. "Seek *first* the Kingdom of God, and *all* these things shall be added unto you." "If a man tries to keep his life, he will lose it, but if he lays down his life for Jesus' sake, he will find it."
Nowhere does scripture command us to build a multi-billion dollar organisation called church. We are the church, the ekklesia, the called out, the separated out ones.
@@chrisneeds6125 I spoke of "we" in my comment because you asked about salvation. So I framed my response in terms of what happens to us to as part of our salvation.
You're making a lot of points, I'll try to break them down:
1. Your etymology is unhelpful. The point is the ekklesia, which is the Body of Christ. This is not merely an organization, but a mystical reality. Though yes, from the very beginning there was organization in it: Apostles, Bishops, Presbyters, Deacons. That's all in Acts and Paul's epistles.
2. Christians have long been supported by the communities for their work proclaiming the Gospel. Paul discusses this in 1 Corinthians. So I don't understand what you're trying to say about people being "paid to share the Gospel."
3. If you create a distinction between Jesus and His Church, then you've separated Him from His Body. It's one thing to ensure that we, the Church, are staying on the right path. But it's another to say the Church is unnecessary.
@@stevenchristoforou1667
Hi Steven. We have both made our points and so we can maybe agree to differ on some, especially where we don't fully understand each other. It's not good for the brothers to quarrel over lesser issues. Our Father will straighten each of us out as and when He deems appropriate or necessary.
In the meantime, be sure to be transformed into His Image and shine Jesus wherever you are.
See you at the wedding feast 😇
Marantha Lord Jesus.
Another important message! Thank you!
Glory to God!
Thank u I been on a journey I'am looking for a good eastern orthodox church in midwest Indiana. If anyone knows please help & pray for me. God bless u all.
We are to humble ourselves and enter the sufferings of others, like Christ who came so that we can meet Him- He repeats this through us. We are the image of God on earth.
Do you have Greek subtitles in your videos, so I can share them with my Greek friends?
You should be able to turn on captions. Google auto-translates from the English captions.
Hey man, when I told my family I was considering "Eastern" Orthodoxy, they thought I was becoming Buddhist.
At least we got that cleared up.
But I admit I would never have truly discovered Orthodoxy had I not worked with a man who was Orthodox. I had nominally known about Orthodoxy thanks to strategy games, but I had no idea what it really was until then. That's why it's important for us to evangelize to the people.
As an inquirer, I find that there is a great beauty in Orthodoxy that no other form of Christianity has. But like you said, Orthodox Christians in America haven't done the best job of showing other people that beauty.
I hope and pray that one day I can become Orthodox by the grace of God, and that I can lovingly show people the beauty and truth in Orthodoxy.
Thank you for all that you do for His Church.
Very interesting points… have you moved closer to becoming Orthodox yet?
What is this good news according to orthodoxy. In Protestantism we teach there is no good news without bad news. And say, because you are a sinner, like all of us. We are under the wrath of God because he is just to repay us. But because God is not only just but is graceful and merciful and shows steadfast love to his creation, he made a way to go to heaven. That he sent his son to die for us and atone for our sins. Pay the debt we owed. So that by repenting from our old way and putting our faith in him. We can experience freedom from sin and a new life being filled with the Holy Spirit to be spurred on to good works for the purposes of his church, the Kingdom of God.
Really looking for clarity on this. What if somebody asked how do I go too heaven? Or what is the good news? How do I inherit eternal life?
This was excellent because it’s a counter to the stereotypical concept of evangelism as obnoxious and/or a tiresome marketing plan.
Definitely!
@@stevenchristoforou1667 I find that the person-centered approach of Holy Orthodoxy in its evangelism efforts is so much healthier. Share some quotes, describe the Liturgy and spirituality, and God takes care of the rest.
Hello from Athens Greece .....I was thinking this issue lately .....I took care my father for 11 years alzheimer..... I search for courses on palliative care theory from Christian perspective....any sites or resources to recommend? I want to combine this theory with my bachelor degree in humanities and my diploma in Coaching ...
What is the church dome at 1:16
That's St Paul's Orthodox Church in Hempstead, NY.
So I have a lot of questions about Orthodoxy. I grew up Protestant and born-again but started questioning things. I struggled with the idea that an all loving God would give us no choice to exist in a universe where there’s chronic illnesses, famines, droughts, starvation etc. and if we believe the wrong things about him he will eternally torture us in fire. Whats the orthodox view?
These are two separate (and good) questions:
1. Yes, God did not consult you when He made you. You didn't exist, and then you did. I'm not sure that's a problem, is it?
2. No no, we're not "eternally tortured in fire" because we "believe the wrong things about Him." That's completely wrong.
This video might help:
Be the Bee #68 | Salvation in Christ
ua-cam.com/video/c1j2oBtOcfw/v-deo.html
@@stevenchristoforou1667 yeah so I think what I’m trying to say is they sort of go together because I already see “hell” in our existence. I’ll give you an example-I have a friend that is 23 years old and she has several chronic illnesses. She spent half her time in high school in the hospital and was life flighted many times as a teenager. She’s still in way too much chronic pain for 23 years old. She said she believes that “there is something beyond our understanding that involves fate, souls and love but she’s agnostic as to what it is”. She’s not an atheist, not a Christian just kind of agnostic. I told my church about this(Protestant non-denominational) and they said that she would go to hell when she dies because she wasn’t a “believer”. This really drew me away because I thought through absolutely no fault of her own she exists and exists in circumstances that are hellish already and if she believes the wrong things about the divine he will continue to put her in pain by fire when she dies when she NEVER chose to exist in those circumstances. Make sense? What’s the Orthodox point of view on people like her?
@@stevenchristoforou1667 basically the argument I’m making is a criticism of the sort of Baptist or Presbyterian view which is, if we never chose to exist in the first place then why should we have to risk a punishment as severe as hell for believing the wrong things about the divine when we never chose to exist in a universe where there is already pain and suffering.
@@connorgoss7489 May God have mercy on your friend!
Salvation isn't a cognitive thing. There's no "test" we have to fill out: check yes if you believe, no if you don't.
One day, we'll come face-to-face with the Lord. Our lives begin setting the stage for how we'll respond to that.
Do we seek love or hate? Mercy or judgment? Kindness or cruelty?
We may be surprised what we actually want when we face the Lord. Even people who think they don't believe in Him may find themselves rejoicing in His presence.
Does being an Orthodox Christian produce more fruit in one's life than being a non-Orthodox Christian?
It depends on how committed one is to either. As someone who became Orthodox after 57 years of evangelical church membership I can confidently say that there is a great deal more help in Orthodoxy in the sacraments, blessings and disciplines of the church, to be able to grow into Christ likeness, than there ever was in the evangelical churches I’ve been a part of, even though they were all lovely Christian people.
I always wonder what Sts. Cyril and Methodious would say about the idea that, as Orthodox, we don't evangelize... 🤔
I became Orthodox in Dec 2017 and haven't shut up, yet. My brother is considering Orthodoxy, now. The great thing about being part of the Church is that ordinary people can change the world at a grassroots level!
I expect they'd be surprised. Especially because we make such a big deal about their feast day!
God bless you, Joshua!
micah 6:6-8 "He has shown you o man what is good...act justly love mercy and walk humbly with your God"
Are orthodox believers like catholics (ie believe in transubstantiation where taking bread and wine is literally to consume the body and blood of Jesus)?
When did you become a Christian Steve? Can you share your testimony briefly?
Not super brief, but here's something:
ua-cam.com/video/SpTetFokrNg/v-deo.html
It's not exactly short, but here's something:
ua-cam.com/video/SpTetFokrNg/v-deo.html
I'm Jewish, I've been looking into the differences between Judaism and Christianity. Honestly, evangelism seems feverishly obsessive to me.
It feels like watching an addict talk about his addiction in an ecstatic, frenzied, and somewhat unhinged manner.
You don't have to act angry to make people think you're crazy when evangelizing, you just have to appear so excited that you seem emotionally unstable.
It's a shame that preaching the Gospel has developed such a bad reputation. Lord have mercy.
우리의 믿음을 나누고 싶은 우리는 그것을 알아야 합니다.
Oi was born into an orthodox religion in Ethiopia, I am now born again Christian .
Orthodox still believes in the tabernacle where Jesus said the veil has been torn , no barrier between man and God . Orthodox still teaches that we should still confess our sin when Jesus said I am the high priest. Orthodox says Jesus is not a mediator but only a judge , when Jesus said that He sits at the right hand of the Father advocating on behalf of us . Orthodox blasphemy when it’s says Mariam “ the mother Jesus “ is the mediator between man and God , I love my people but I feel they r like the son who was in kings house who was man when the father slaughtered the fat caw for the lost son . We under the same kingdom but not knowing their right . As a child of God
You're misunderstanding some important things about the Orthodox Church.
Jesus is fully divine and fully human. We find our salvation in Him.
Mary isn't a mediator in that sense. But she is important because she gave birth to the Son of God. And, as His mother, she has a special relationship with Him.
The Son of the Most High YAH will comeback not for any "Church" but for His Bride, Yashra'el which is not and never has been nor will ever be a part of any church. "Come Out of her My People . . ." 😘✌️
But the Church is the Bride of Christ. And His very Body.
@@stevenchristoforou1667 Shalom to you. Can you show me in Scripture where the Messiah is coming for a "foreign" bride which is the Roman Catholic/Christian Church system? The Hebrew bloodline that YAHusha is derived from has never adhered to such paganism. After His Three-day burial and His ascension His followers didn't think that He had started any new "religion" labeled "church". They continued in the Way that they saw Him behave. Matthew 15:24 teaches that He was sent by Almighty YAH to the lost sheep of Yashar'el and that is who His Bride is. Now, of course there are "grafted in" Believers that are not of Hebrew blood but they're not ones called by the label of Christian.
@@cj7853 I don't understand what you mean. In the Book of Acts, we see that people don't need to observe the Law in order to follow Christ.
I also don't understand what you mean by "foreign bride."
@@stevenchristoforou1667 I just mean that "Christianity" is "foreign" and filled with paganism. The Most High makes Himself very clear that He does not want His people to "imitate the ways of the heathen". Clearly for the unblinded we can see that the images, festivals, rituals , mutilated commands and forbidden doctrine of the Roman Catholic/Christian church are completely pagan. This false way is not the Hebrew Bride. If we look up the Hebrew marriage ceremony we can see that bride must be "pure" untainted for her bridegroom. This is what the True Bride of YAH Must be in order to be taken into the marriage of the bridegroom. The Catholic & Christian church cannot be the True Bride because she is tainted with all forms of what the Most High has forbidden His Bride to be.
@@cj7853 I'm still not following you. What do you see in the Orthodox Church specifically that is pagan?
I'm not a Catholic, so I'm not interested in your arguments about that tradition (or any others).
The gospel is the GOSPEL OF THE KINGDOM!
Jesus is going to return and set up the kingdom of God ON THE EARTH! God’s government ON THE EARTH! The Messiah died for his people! God resurrected the Messiah! The Messiah will resurrect his people! The destiny of the Messiah and his people is to be ON THE EARTH! The renewed restored earth! God also dwelling with them! Rev 21
Matt 24
14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
Jesus said the Father is the only true God!
John 17
3 And this is eternal life, that they know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent.
Gods true church is in the book of revelations HERE IS THE PATIENT OF THE SAINTS THE ONES WHO KEEP THE COMMANDMENTS OF GOD !! ALL 10 YES THAT MEANS THE LEAST POPULAR ONE THE ONLY ONE THAT STATRS WITH REMEMBER . AND HAVE THE TESTIMONY OF JESUS CHRIST AND HE SAYS THINK NOT THAT I'VE COME TO CHANGE THE COMMANDMENTS OF GOD BUT TO FULFIL !! NOT CHANGE CAME OUT IF HIS LIPS AND HE'S ETERNAL .
Sorry about my bad english.
I am orthodox and i know why our church and priests less preach the gospel to the people then other churches , it is because orthodox church are afraid of so called "charismatic heresy".
Oh, what is that?
@@stevenchristoforou1667
Did you saw protestant preachers?? , something similar is in orthodox and of course catholic church where some charismatic personas preach and people just love they personalities not God and the gospel.
We orthodox must be very carefull because , me personaly i saw many beardmen who preaching and men follow him like the semigod or saint specialy women.
They preaching gospel but when you see that kind of atmosphere , you know that something wrong here and that is not orthodox christianity(and catholic).
Of course every christian must preach , but in very.very,very,...control circumstancies.
@@radepiljov7969 Oh, I see what you mean.
The key is that we must preach with a blessing; not from our own will. I'm the Director of Youth and Young Adult Ministries for the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, for example. I do this with the blessing of my bishop.
@@stevenchristoforou1667
That is the only way to preach gospel , God bless you.
Greatest thing wich turns me away from orthodoxy is exactly that "ugly" evangelism. Orthodox do not do evangelism in street but in social media they are calling alll other christians idiots and heretics and they honestly make themself to look like pharisees. They think they are the best. Especcially if they are born in orthodoxy. I am catecumen in orthodox church but i see this same thing in actual church community. From all their words i can hear the message: we orthodox christians are better than all other christians, actually other christians go to hell. This is ugly
You don’t need to evangelize because Orthodoxy is an easy pill to swallow. Does Orthodoxy tell you what Jesus said-“If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.” Also He said ion
Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. Christianity is denying oneself and following Christ not going to church and following a recipe for entrance into heaven. This has never been Christianity. You must read your Bible and don’t trust sinful man. Trust God’s word.
Here’s the best kept secret: open the Bible and trust in God’s word alone. It’s all there. Jesus said you MUST be born again to see the kingdom of God. John 3. Religiosity won’t save you - we must come to Him broken and spiritually poor. What I see in the church today are pride filled false converts who are doing the motions but inside they are dead men walking waiting for their appointment with death. After we die we have an appointment with God where we are judged. I don’t say this to be mean it is because I love you that I say this. I stay far away from the Orthodox Church because God said: “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me” John 10:27. I actually left the Orthodox Church when God saved me. I went from death to life and I followed Him no mater the cost! Saying that a church is 2000 years old does not make it the correct church. There are many truths in Orthodoxy. Orthodoxy takes the trinity very seriously which not something you see in Evangelical churches. However, if you say that you must be in the Orthodox Church to be saved that is incorrect. It is hearing the good news of the gospel- As Paul said: For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. Romans 1:16
Thanks for sharing your story! Though I'll raise two questions with the theological points your raised:
1. You say "open the Bible and trust in God’s word alone." This is something that would have been impossible before the printing press. Going further back, there was no agreed upon canon of Scripture until centuries after Christ (the first time you see the New Testament canon written was by St Athanasios in 367 AD). And, of course, it took decades for all the books of the New Testament to be written. Which is fine if you believe in the Church (which wrote, compiled, and interpreted Scripture). Otherwise, you're offering a definition of salvation that wasn't possible for centuries of Christians.
2. You say salvation is "hearing the good news of the gospel" and then cite Saint Paul on "belief." If this is salvation, then the demons will be saved before any of us. They believe with far greater certainty than any of us.
In other words, I think there are some issues with the theology you're presenting. I say this with gentleness and love. And I'd love to talk about it.
@@stevenchristoforou1667 The Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy in what was probably his last letter:
“from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work,” (2 Timothy 3:15-17).
The early church certainly had the Septuagint- they were Jews!!! (Not Eastern Orthodox or Roman Catholic )
the Christian Church recognized what was Scripture
It did not establish it. This is a very important point. The Christian Church recognizes what God has inspired and pronounces that recognition. In other words, it discovers what is already authentic. Jesus said, “my sheep hear my voice and they follow me…” (John 10:27). The church hears the voice of Christ; that is, it recognizes what is inspired, and it follows the word. It does not add to it as the Orthodox Church and Roman Catholic has done. Therefore, it is not following the voice of Christ.
Third, the Orthodox Catholic Church did not give us the Old Testament which is the Scripture to which Christ and the apostles appealed. If the Catholic or Orthodox Church wants to state that it gave us the Bible, then how can they rightfully claim to have given us the Old Testament which is part of the Bible? It didn’t, so it cannot make that claim. The fact is that the followers of God, the true followers of God, recognize what is and is not inspired.
Fourth, when the apostles wrote the New Testament documents, they were inspired by the power of the Holy Spirit. There wasn’t any real issue of whether or not they were authentic. Their writings did not need to be deemed worthy of inclusion in the Canon of Scripture by a later group of men in the so-called Orthodox or Catholic Church. To make such a claim is, in effect, to usurp the natural power and authority of God himself that worked through the Apostles.
Scripture says, “But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation, 21 for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God,” (2 Pet. 1:20-21). The Bible tells us that the Scriptures are inspired by the Holy Spirit. Therefore, the very nature of the inspired documents is that they carry power and authenticity in themselves. They are not given the power or the authenticity of the ecclesiastical declaration.
The Christian church, as an earthly organization, recognized the Word of God (John 10:27). It didn’t give us the Word of God. Also, it was the Jews who gave us the Old Testament. The authenticity of the New Testament documents rests in the inspiration of God through the apostles - not the Orthodox Church. Furthermore, the Orthodox Church did not give us the Old Testament. The Jews did. How can the Orthodox Church claim it gave us the Bible when it did not give us the Old Testament? Finally, when the Orthodox/Catholic Church claims that it is the source of the sacred Scriptures, it is, in effect, placing itself above the word of God by claiming that through its authority we received the word of God.
2. Demons can be saved by hearing the word? This is a ridiculous statement because we know that the devil and his demons will not be saved even though they knew who Jesus was and He was the son of God.
For assuredly He does not give help to angels, but He gives help to the descendant of Abraham. 17Therefore, He had to be made like His brethren in all things, that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.” (Heb. 2:16-17).
The fallen angels do not have a sacrifice on their behalf. They do not have the infinite God becoming one of them and atoning for them. Therefore, the demonic realm will not be saved.
Side note: We have the completed Bible now as we speak and there is no excuse not to trust it fully since it is God breathed. Why don’t you believe Bible is the final authority for our salvation? Are you born again? The reason I ask is because the Bible doesn’t ever talk about a process of hopefully being saved. That is a terrible thought.
Hopefully this doesn’t sound too argumentative and I love your sincerity. The reason I passionately lay out some examples is because God doesn’t give us any new revelation today. God’s Cannon is closed! This a big deal because you see new revelation all the time with some charismatic evangelical churches. Secondly, ever since our closed canon the Orthodox Church and Roman Catholic Churches have continuously claimed to speak for God in regards to new Dogma etc. I appreciate that you asked and I was able to give a reply.God bless
@@matthewrudolph3514 A few responses. I'm grateful for your thoughtful dialogue!
1. We have to be careful about conflating the early Church with contemporary Judaism. Or of creating an opposition between the Church and Israel. Because the Church is Israel. The reason we have to talk about the "Orthodox Church" is because so many others claim to be the Church. Yet the Church (which is Israel) remains One.
2. You're misunderstanding my comment about demons. You are framing salvation in terms of hearing and belief. Yet the demons believe with greater certainty than any human. There are no atheist demons. And yet, they reject God. So salvation is something deeper than you're suggesting.
3. Nothing in the Bible suggests it's the "final authority." Again, Scripture is something that is written by the Body, compiled by the Body, and interpreted by the Body.
And yes, salvation is a process! We are all called to "the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ." (Ephesians 4:13).
Yes, we are called to be born again. This is baptism. But, if you really are born again, then you're a baby. This is why Saint Paul tells the Christians in Corinth "I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able." (1 Corinthians 3:2). These Christians were all "born again" and yet needed correction and support and they walked in Christ.
이제 우리는 유리를 통해 어둡게 보이지만 얼굴을 맞대고 봅니다. 때때로 우리는
방언을 듣고 싶지 않거나 현대 선지자나 사도의 말을 듣고 싶지 않기 때문에 정경을 닫습니다. 깊은 질문은 ‘언제 우리가 그유리를 통해 어둡게 볼 것인가?‘입니다. 우리의 사랑하는 정교회 친구들은 여러 면에서 근본주의 개신교, 특히 침례교 전도자들처럼 들립니다.
익숙하면서도 다른 느낌이 있습니다.
우리는 단지 다른 방식으로 배타적일
뿐입니다.
This guy has GREAT stuff to say but unfortunately his voice intonations and expressions come across as annoying and hard to listen to for a longer period of time. It sounds like a child’s tv program.
Sorry my voice is annoying!
I mean, a lot of kids do watch. So hopefully they're less put off by it than an adult.
나한테는 좋은 것 같습니다.
False gospel. God calls all men everywhere to repent of their sins and believe the gospel. Without the knowledge of sin, one cannot see the need of the cross. This “I don’t wanna offend people” is chocolate covered poison.