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Greetings Brethren!
My name is Stephen L. Salaun Jr. I used to post to these boards a few years ago, I believe, under the user name, RevSteve 48, or was it 46? The following is something I posted in 2004:
First of all, let me start out by saying where I am NOW. For the last 2-3 months, I have just RETURNED to NTCC (New Testament Christian Churches Of America, Inc.), after an approximately 3-year long absence. All I can say, it is GOOD to be HOME again. My first time back in the church in Augusta, Ga. & Rev. & Sis.Olson just happened to be there on a visit to the Pastor, Rev. King. Rev. Olson warmly embraced me, said it was good to see me again, and told me the church had been praying for me.
Now, let me backtrack a few months. On Jan. 17 of this year, I was in an auto accident. I was thrown into the back seat, had 4 ribs broken, a broken left scapula shoulder bone, a broken pelvic bone, & a ruptured aorta. During the operation on me, a coma was induced to speed my healing. A week or so after that, my gall bladder got infected & had to be removed. I still have a loooooong scar running from below my navel to my chest from that.
When I woke up from the induced coma, I had no memory of the accident. I had to be told the details of the accident from my Mom. I learned that HUNDREDS of people from a Yahoo chat room I had started, Born Again Christian had been praying for me. I ALSO learned that Bro. Watson had been notified of my accident, he in turn told Pastor Davis. Pastor Davis announced it in the church in Graham, or a conference on Phoenix, or both, and asked prayer for me.
Let me say ALSO, that during the 3 years I was away from NTCC, I saw nothing but a MESS! I saw Charismatic churches that only sang Praise & Worship choruses. I saw MANY people with only a shallow-appearing love for God & the brethren. Yes, I saw a FEW that appeared to have the GENUINE love of God, but not very many. When I heard about Rev. Davis asking the church to pray for me, I realized I needed to go back HOME. Just like the Prodigal Son! Am I ever glad that I did. When I was out there in the church world, I was STARVING spiritually! Now it is like I have a FEAST for my soul. I fellowship with Bro. & Sis.Cantrell & their son Neil, with Bro. Bentley & Pastor Mayers, in the NTCC church in Tucker, Ga., near Atlanta.
In August, I will be going to my FIRST conference since Fall, 2000. I have NOTHING but LOVE & RESPECT for Rev. Olson, Rev. Davis, Rev. Kekel, Rev. Johnson all the OTHER leaders & their wives. I have been saved for 21 years now, and known them for almost as long. NEVER have I EVER seen ANYTHING but the love, comp***ion & mercy of God shown by these men.
Are there rules? Yes, there are, but they are PRIMARILY for the Bible School students, staff & ministers in the church. Any denomination that does not have RULES, is, by definition, CHAOTIC! That is not God's will. Yes, we have an Executive Board that meets to consider sending out or recalling ministers, new by-laws, etc. But they are a Board that is led by the HOLY SPIRIT.
Well, what about the members who do not wish to conform to Holiness standards? That is, ultimately, between them & God, if they are not attending Bible College, or at the Conference & Campground in Central Missouri. NO ONE has EVER. to my knowledge, been kicked out of the church for failing to live by Holiness standards. Yes, Ministers & their wives have been disfellowshipped for such, but that is because they are bringing reproach to the ministry, IF they live in open rebellion against rules.
Ultimately, if a church member wishes to rebel against our standards,, and they believe the Holy Spirit is leading them to do so, they are welcome to try. The Judgment Seat of Christ will ultimately tell who is right who is wrong. But I would not want to bet my SOUL, that rebellion is all right.
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As I stated, that post was written in 2004. However, between THAT time and this, the Holy Spirit has opened my eyes to see that so-called "Holiness," as it is taught by the church that I was saved in, as well as many OTHER "Pentecostal Holiness" churches, is in reality, nothing more than legalism and control by the church's leaders! Do I believe the members and leaders of those churches are saved? Absolutely! Are they sincere in what they believe? Yes! But were they taught wrong? Yes!
True holiness, under the New Covenant of Grace, is NOT a list of "do's and don'ts"! We are not under the Mosaic Law, and its restrictions. Rather, true holiness is found by abiding in Christ, in His grace & mercy, and by walking in the Holy Spirit! If I do this, God the Father applies the righteousness of CHRIST to my "account" of sin, and He justifies me (declares me righteous)! Do I choose to abstain from some things? Yes I do! But do I do it because some preacher told me it was wrong? No I do not! The things that I abstain from, I do because the Holy SPIRIT has convicted my heart that some things are not Christlike, and so I cast them away from me as unclean & filthy! For instance, I do not drink alcoholic beverages, NOT because it would be a sin for me to have some wine with my dinner, but because it is so easy to become drunk on just a few gl***es of wine, beer, or liquor! I do not gamble, not because the Lord said somewhere, "Do not gamble!", but because gambling is pure covetousness, wanting material gain for little or nothing! I do not go to see many movies, because of all of the adultery, fornication, ****sexuality, lasciviousness, and cursing that are in them, and I do not need my heart & mind to be filled with garbage. Likewise, the Spirit convicts me about music that glorifies the works of the flesh and the pleasures thereof.
Now, my family belong to what I call a "Bapticostal" church! They do not speak in tongues, but I only pray in tongues in my private devotions, anyway! But our preacher is definitely filled with the power of the Holy Spirit! He believes in letting the Holy Spirit lead us & guide us as we worship the Lord!
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