postlaestadianrevival

I have discovered a new online resource that I am excited about. Beth Moore has two bible studies online. Beth is a gifted teacher and has taught me and millions of others, I am sure, a great deal about God through the study of His word. I have listed the direct link to one of the studies in the online resource category of this forum.
www.lifeway.com is her publisher's site. There is a Beth Moore button on the navigation bar on the left of the page. Lifeway publishes a lot of bible study resources, so you might want to cruise around the site a bit. You may find something interesting!

I am finishing my first week of Beth's study. Day four deals with the subject of legalism and since that seems to be topic of interest here, I thought I would post some of the points she made. She begins with Romans chapter 4."Abraham believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness." The chapter continues to emphasize that FAITH is credited as righteousness. Then she points out that Isaiah 64:6 says that our righteousness is as filthy rags to God. Going on to Romans 4:13-14, which says "If those who live by the law are heirs, faith has no value and the promise is worthless." she makes the point that LIVING BY THE LAW MAKES FAITH WORTHLESS!

Righteous acts motivated by legalism have no value, the are empty,void. Faith on the other hand has value greater than gold. (1 Peter 1:7.)

It is Faith we need to seek, pursue, and ask for. God provided the righteousness in his son... That has been accomplished.

Hi Soapbox. Looks pretty good. There are quite a few good websites out there. There are credible ministries out there. I have CDs and literature from them, also check their websites. I used to have my own website, but due to circumstances, it was removed(I was permanently outsourced from being an Internet technician and I lost my priviledge of course to have a website not to mention a job, but such is life, and God has now provided me with a much better job.)

Regarding legalism, you bring up an important point....Faith. Anyway, I believe there is a verse which says faith is the fulfillment of the law. And also it says "Without faith it is impossible to please God." My basic guideline is that if the Bible doesn't clearly state something, then it is not an absolute requirement, certainly not a test of one's salvation or spiritual grade level. Salvation is by grace through faith, not of works, that no man may boast. We are saved unto good works and apart from faith any good works are filthy rags. Christians will mature and bring forth good works as they read the Christian's basic instruction book...the New Testament. Legalism attaches easily and I certainly want to be sure such in my life is kept in check by the word of God and not man's ideas. Faith alone is the basis of salvation. There are myriads of religions out there with salvation codes. Some say you finally get saved after works all the way. Others say you are saved but then keep saved by works, etc. but the big question: Which code is right? This certainly deserves an honest answer. The answer I get is what the Apostle Peter asked: "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life." Yes, the Lord's words stand above all other words and by His words shall all opinions be tried for truth or error. It's also my observation from reading early Laestadian literature that the first Laestadians were not plagued by legalist codes of conduct. They preached the law(which all have broken) but then declared freedom by faith in the atoning work of Christ and the power of His word. Honestly I see many non-Laestadian ministries today which seem to be more like the first Laestadians in this regard, preaching Jesus and letting God do the clean-up and transformation without a lot of law-based intervention.

Question for you: If I think of any sites that may be of help, may I submit them? Also, do you know of any good free web hosting companies? It would be nice to get my site up again. Thanks and thank you again for welcoming me here.

If you want to start your own forum you can go to freeforums.org. There are other free hosting sites as well--just do a google search.
It would be better if you posted your resources on your own site than here as this is a forum for those leaving Laestadianism and your views on this topic are somewhat different . I would be happy to post your web address here, however. Good luck!

Thanks Soapbox. I'll play by your rules since this is your domain. My website is not about Laestadianism and it's defense and when exactly I will publish my website is unknown at this time. There are more important and crucial issues...basic doctrines such as the authority of Christ, Scripture, Faith Alone, Grace, God's glory vs. man's boasting, etc. and a few doctrines important to my walk(the security of the believer, the believer's authority and position in Christ, faith in God's promises, etc.) These issues are at stake and deserve to be defended in the public domain so these are on my personal website. I posted a Bible study website link (crosswalk) on another thread. I hope that is OK. If not, I don't mind if you remove it. Take a look for your viewing: http://www.crosswalk.com

I am open to digesting a lot of what I have read here, because it has given me a glimpse into another part of the Laestadian movement which I haven't known much about. I can't imagine going without music instruments, being told you can't whistle, curtains, etc. What about dancing and folk music? I love this stuff

Hoo, boy! All dancing is considered to be a big sin, and the only folk music allowed would be what you SING, not any instrumental music that would accompany it or that you would listen to! This was a strict rule in both the Laestadian groups I was a part of.

Free at Last,
Thanks. I kinda figured that. Even in the Laestadian Lutheran Church to which I have the most familiarity, dancing is off limits along with a lot of music, but instruments are allowed. I tried to follow all the rules, but gave up. I am of the position that unless it is clearly forbidden in the Bible, I won't worry about it. I understand why soapbox said all the rule following was leading to insanity. Following rules is what filled my mind and feeling condemened if I didn't follow.

I have found this site to be inspirational. You can watch online and possibly get the TV program in your area. My favorite program is simply called Worship and that is what the purpose of it is---to create an atmosphere of worship with songs, scriptures and a short message from a pastor. It is my favorite Christian channel and program.
http://www.worship.net