sword said:
Is it just the nature of religion or what? Why do people feel everyone else must adopt their view or position on doctrine, standards or even methods. I see this on both sides. The IFB churches get mad & criticize when other churches choose to do things in a different way and the more progressive churches get mad when Old School churches choose to continue to do things there way.
Why can't people accept that people are not always going to share your views.
We spend too much time worrying about what every one else thinks or what they believe and not near enough time looking in the mirror. Reminds me of an old hymn on this subject.
https://youtu.be/90C-Wx_uGdM
When one is dealing with holiness and righteousness it matters to an extent what other people do. It is critical that believers don't go beyond the Scriptures: many personal preferences are preached as if they were Biblical standards - the list is legion, but I'll mention a couple: pink shirts (on men), and what time the services are. We must give one another liberty where the Bible is silent.
Having said that, there are a lot of topics about which the Bible is NOT silent, and about which we will disagree. The Bible DOES speak about the need for modest dress, and that men should have short hair, and many other topics.
If a church wants to preach that it is a sin for a woman to wear trousers, they need to back it up with Scripture. Others (many others) will disagree with their interpretation of Scripture, but if they have a reasonable basis, I am willing to allow them their interpretation. Sometimes I imagine the following conversation between (P)reacher and (V)isitor:
P: At our church, we don't believe that women should wear pants.
V: Why?
P: Because they are immodest
V: Where does it say that in the Scripture?
P: Brings up well-known passage in Duet... reads it.
V: That verse does not say that pants on women are immodest
P: No, but it says that a woman shouldn't wear "men's apparel"
V: Actually, it says that a woman should not wear that with "pertaineth to a man", and those pants belong to my wife, not some man.
P: But pants are associated with men, not women
V: It used to be so in American society, but not today.
P: But society has gone downhill.
V: We seem to disagree about what "pertain" means; let me ask you a couple of questions: Is your church air-conditioned?
P: Yes!
V: And do some women get too cold?
P: Some do.
V: And do kind husbands let their wives have their jackets to keep warm?
P: Yes, we have many such thoughtful men
V: I submit to you that in this case, it is a much clearer violation of that verse: the woman is wearing something that actually belongs to a man AND it is associated with men. Or perhaps (somehow) that verse only refers to what is worn on the lower part of the body?
P: You liberal you! Get out of here!
Music is another hot topic. One either believes that music is amoral or not. To some churches, music is music; to others, certain types of music are sensual and worldly and don't belong in church. We won't agree with each other - just make sure that we have a Scriptural basis for our position. We should be able to disagree with one another without claiming that the dissenter is "of the devil".