Seeing God Behind the Veil | Heritage Compass with Asahel Adams

“East to West” by Premium Beat QCTU5YZ4LWEDBF8S

[@user-tr5jd8rj6z]

That's an interesting response to a simple suggestion that it might helpful for you all to clearly define your beliefs. This, so we can see and engage with them and I would agree with you whole heartedly that we ought to examine our presuppositions and beliefs in general. I might remind you that 1 Peter 3:15 calls us to be ready to "give an answer" but to do so with "gentleness and respect." My intentions were in no way meant to "insinuate" anything let alone heresy to "terminate the argument". Obviously, I'm here to engage the arguments. While I do believe some of your church doctrine to contradict scripture, it can be difficult to draw a conclusion when the needed information is hard to find or ambiguous. Requiring one to sift through hours of video or volumes of text doesn't seem exactly fair. But from what I have learned, I would caution Christians( and your community members) against some of these teachings, just as you likely would against certain Christian teachings. I'm no historian but it'd be great if you could point me to the literature supporting the claims that "well over ten million" deaths were cause by doctrinal disputes. There's also no need to make assumptions about what I believe, you can simply ask me and I'd be happy to respond. I never said that Christian doctrines have always been unified but i do believe there is a common thread of unification within the church that goes back to Christ. What we might consider the core Christian Tenets. This is what we see with the various creeds and confessions that formed along the historical timeline. Incorrect ideas came in and were rejected by the church. And they were deemed incorrect not because of an invocation of "orthodoxy" or merely claims to historical authority but because the bible lays these truths before us. Certainly there has always been disagreement within the church regarding secondary issues like pedobaptism but those are not my concern with the discussion here. We can see the same scriptural truths today that our forefathers saw in theirs. As for Karl Barth and Alister McGrath i have to admit I'm not well versed in their positions (nor them in general) but from what I've seen so far they do not hold to "Classical" trinitarian views. Id be curious to see how your beliefs are consistent with theirs. Is there a paper or discussion somewhere I could read about this? Lastly, and with all due respect you didn't answer my question... Was Blair Adams formerly a Onesness Pentecostal preacher?

[@heritage_press]

You raise several important points, and I appreciate the respectful tone of your response. The idea of a contiguous and pristine core of belief is a comforting myth, but nothing more. Instead, as prophesied by Jesus and the apostles, ravenous wolves entered the church, led people astray, and perverted the way of truth. As a community through the millennia, Christianity has been on a long odyssey of restoration, which we pray will continue until the return of Christ. Historically, the conflicts over Christian doctrine, especially from the 3rd century through the Reformation, involved intense persecution, violence, and even wars. For example, during the 4th century, the Arian controversy-a debate over the nature of Christ-led to major conflicts within the church and the Roman Empire. The Council of Nicaea in 325 AD was convened to address this conflict, but the aftermath was anything but peaceful. The dispute led to decades of excommunication, banishment, and violent confrontations as emperors switched sides between Arianism and Nicene Christianity. Theodosius I eventually declared Nicene Christianity as the official state religion, but not before a significant amount of bloodshed. (We categorically reject Arianism and its entire framework, which denies the full divinity of Christ and misrepresents the biblical teaching about His nature.) Fast-forwarding to the 16th century, the Protestant Reformation was one of the most violent periods in Christian history, with doctrinal disputes leading to the deaths of millions. The Thirty Years' War (1618-1648), sparked in part by religious tensions between Catholics and Protestants, resulted in an estimated 8 million deaths. Combined with other religious conflicts and persecutions throughout the centuries-including the suppression of Christian groups such as the Cathars, Albigensians, and Anabaptists-this brings the estimated death toll related to doctrinal conflicts well over 10 million. You are welcome to research these facts, which are readily available online and in historical encyclopedias. A valuable reference for the Thirty Years' War is Peter H. Wilson's Europe's Tragedy: A New History of the Thirty Years War. In summary, history shows that Christian disputes were far more complex and bloody than simply being resolved by peaceful councils. Extensive violence and persecution often accompanied historical Christian disputes. As for your question about Blair Adams, he encountered Jesus for the first time as an atheist within a Oneness Pentecostal context, which significantly shaped his nonsectarian view of God and Christian belief. However, he parted ways with that organization in 1979 and immersed himself in broader Christian theological thought and discourse. Regarding our clear statement of belief, we encourage you to explore the relevant books in our bookstore on God's nature-particularly those addressing the Godhead (Messianic Incarnation)-as well as our statement of faith and numerous blog posts on this topic. We strive to consistently and unequivocally articulate our position.

[@dikvleesachterhoofd]

Thank you for sharing ❤ had it on my heart to share it with friends and family. This is well spoken and full of truth!

[@FollowingtheFibers]

I think it would be more fair and better to lay out your doctrinal beliefs explicitly. Who is Jesus, who is God, what is salvation, what is the gospel, etc… I’ve read your statement of beliefs on your website but don’t feel they reveal completely your beliefs. And these videos often seem to hint at your beliefs but don’t fully illuminate them. There may be people who do not quite understand that the Homestead community rejects a number orthodox Christian beliefs. Christian’s should take care to study through what Christianity teaches and has taught from the beginning and be cautious of these teachings. While I know you all do not consider yourselves Oneness Pentecostals it seems that a few of your beliefs align with them quite congruently. I’m also curious, was Blair Adams formerly a Onesness Pentecostal preacher?

[@heritage_press]

It appears you believe Christian doctrines have always been unified, implying any deviation might introduce heresy. We believe the dire, fragmenting, disunified condition of the current evangelical church forces us to challenge unexamined beliefs and scriptural interpretations that have confused believers’ relationship with God. I might remind you that during the Wars of the Reformation, from the 16th through the 18th centuries, subscribers to "orthodoxy" managed to cause the deaths of well over ten million people in arguments over doctrine. Hardly exemplary of a supposed unified orthodoxy. If "orthodoxy" merely represents traditions upheld by the majority over time, should we also accept doctrines like the papacy or transubstantiation that prompted the Reformation? These one-time ”orthodox" beliefs distorted essential Christian teachings, such as justification by faith, leading to practices like the restriction of Scripture reading and the use of indulgences. The core tenets of Protestantism arose as protests against these "orthodox" practices. So, why should we dismiss scriptural re-examination of accepted doctrines by invoking "orthodoxy"- just to terminate the argument with insinuations of heresy? Our economic view of the Godhead is consistent with definitions from respected Trinitarian theologians such as Alister McGrath, and Karl Barth.

[@FollowingtheFibers]

@@heritage_press That's an interesting response to a simple suggestion that it might helpful for you all to clearly define your beliefs. This, so we can see and engage with them and I would agree with you whole heartedly that we ought to examine our presuppositions and beliefs in general. I might remind you that 1 Peter 3:15 calls us to be ready to "give an answer" but to do so with "gentleness and respect." My intentions were in no way meant to "insinuate" anything let alone heresy to "terminate the argument". Obviously, I'm here to engage the arguments. While I do believe some of your church doctrine to contradict scripture, it can be difficult to draw a conclusion when the needed information is hard to find or ambiguous. Requiring one to sift through hours of video or volumes of text doesn't seem exactly fair. But from what I have learned, I would caution Christians( and your community members) against some of these teachings, just as you likely would against certain Christian teachings. I'm no historian but it'd be great if you could point me to the literature supporting the claims that "well over ten million" deaths were cause by doctrinal disputes. There's also no need to make assumptions about what I believe, you can simply ask me and I'd be happy to respond. I never said that Christian doctrines have always been unified but i do believe there is a common thread of unification within the church that goes back to Christ. What we might consider the core Christian Tenets. This is what we see with the various creeds and confessions that formed along the historical timeline. Incorrect ideas came in and were rejected by the church. And they were deemed incorrect not because of an invocation of "orthodoxy" or merely claims to historical authority but because the bible lays these truths before us. Certainly there has always been disagreement within the church regarding secondary issues like pedobaptism but those are not my concern with the discussion here. We can see the same scriptural truths today that our forefathers saw in theirs. As for Karl Barth and Alister McGrath i have to admit I'm not well versed in their positions (nor them in general) but from what I've seen so far they do not hold to "Classical" trinitarian views. Id be curious to see how your beliefs are consistent with theirs. Is there a paper or discussion somewhere I could read about this? Lastly, and with all due respect you didn't answer my question... Was Blair Adams formerly a Onesness Pentecostal preacher?

[@FollowingtheFibers]

@@heritage_press not sure why my response to this isn’t showing…?

[@FollowingtheFibers]

@@heritage_press Just in case this was a youtube glitch ill post my response again: That's an interesting response to a simple suggestion that it might helpful for you all to clearly define your beliefs. This, so we can see and engage with them and I would agree with you whole heartedly that we ought to examine our presuppositions and beliefs in general. I might remind you that 1 Peter 3:15 calls us to be ready to "give an answer" but to do so with "gentleness and respect." My intentions were in no way meant to "insinuate" anything let alone heresy to "terminate the argument". Obviously, I'm here to engage the arguments. While I do believe some of your church doctrine to contradict scripture, it can be difficult to draw a conclusion when the needed information is hard to find or ambiguous. Requiring one to sift through hours of video or volumes of text doesn't seem exactly fair. But from what I have learned, I would caution Christians( and your community members) against some of these teachings, just as you likely would against certain Christian teachings. I'm no historian but it'd be great if you could point me to the literature supporting the claims that "well over ten million" deaths were cause by doctrinal disputes. There's also no need to make assumptions about what I believe, you can simply ask me and I'd be happy to respond. I never said that Christian doctrines have always been unified but i do believe there is a common thread of unification within the church that goes back to Christ. What we might consider the core Christian Tenets. This is what we see with the various creeds and confessions that formed along the historical timeline. Incorrect ideas came in and were rejected by the church. And they were deemed incorrect not because of an invocation of "orthodoxy" or merely claims to historical authority but because the bible lays these truths before us. Certainly there has always been disagreement within the church regarding secondary issues like pedobaptism and disagreement in general but those are not my concern with the discussion here. We can see the same scriptural truths today that our forefathers saw in theirs. As for Karl Barth and Alister McGrath i have to admit I'm not well versed in their positions (nor them in general) but from what I've seen so far they do not hold to "Classical" trinitarian views. Id be curious to see how your beliefs are consistent with theirs. Is there a paper or discussion somewhere I could read about this? Lastly, and with all due respect you didn't answer my question... Was Blair Adams formerly a Onesness Pentecostal preacher?