The Nature Of Our Fellowship

[BreakFree]

Dearest Dexter
You do not need to be ashamed for the life that was forced upon you. Do not continue to give CF your dignity. That is the one thing only you can give up. You have left an abusive cult and the strength and determination to do so is admirable. I know from my own experience leaving is one of the hardest decisions to make. Staying out is even harder. As with all cults CF offers a sense of community (even its a twisted and perverse one). You are strong and courageous. The Lord God has done wonderous things in your life. It may not feel like it but you have survived and despite everything that has happened you're still standing (insert Elton John boogie)

Joel 2: 24-32
The threshing floors will be filled with grain; the vats will overflow with new wine and oil.
25 “I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten the great locust and the young locust, the other locusts and the locust swarm my great army that I sent among you.
26 You will have plenty to eat, until you are full, and you will praise the name of the Lord your God, who has worked wonders for you; never again will my people be shamed.
27 Then you will know that I am in Israel, that I am the Lord your God, and that there is no other; never again will my people be shamed.
28 “And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions.
29 Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days.
30 I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and billows of smoke.
31 The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.
32 And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved; for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will be deliverance, as the Lord has said,
even among the survivors whom the Lord calls.

[Dexter]

(insert Elton John boogie)

This made me lol

Thanks for the encouragement. It is hard to fight the inertia of deeply ingrained traditions.

Someone recently shared a song by Keith Green called "So you want to go back to Egypt?" which kind of hit home for me. In some ways it would have been "easier" and "safer" to stay in the cult environment but ultimately it would have gnawed at my conscience and come at the cost of entering the 'promised land', which I'm still doing.

There's an interesting verse in Deuteronomy about the pace at which Israel was to take the promised land:

‭Deuteronomy 7:22 NKJV‬
[22] And the Lord your God will drive out those nations before you little by little; you will be unable to destroy them at once, lest the beasts of the field become too numerous for you.

https://bible.com/bible/114/deu.7.22.NKJV

That encourages me whenever it feels like my progress is "too slow". Maintaining faith is hard work but God gives us grace for each day.

Thanks again

[Helen Pomery]

Christ purchased our freedom and redeemed us from the curse of the Law and its condemnation by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs [crucified] on a tree (cross)”—
Galatians 3:13 AMPLIFIED

This verse was shared at the Good Friday church service this morning.

The minister said, “On the cross, Jesus became the curse so we wouldn’t be cursed and condemned, but rather freed and redeemed.”

I remembered the horrid torture of being excluded and shunned by all at BCF. It felt like I was under a curse. And, indeed the men said I was cursed.

This Good Friday I am grateful and humbled by the knowledge that Jesus became the curse for me. How can we ever praise and thank Him enough for all He has done for each of us?

[guest]

This Good Friday I am grateful and humbled by the knowledge that Jesus became the curse for me. How can we ever praise and thank Him enough for all He has done for each of us?

Amen! Thank you for sharing this.

I sat in today's Easter Friday service and was undone by Jesus' love for me. I sang alongside like-minded Christian brothers and sisters who, with 110% conviction, sang lyrics like, "The work is finished ... Jesus Christ, my living hope". I looked across the congregation, knowing God had miraculously saved many of them from the most dire circumstances; their lives were completely changed. I'm a witness to that fact. There were at least 50 visitors also in attendance. The sincerity, humility, love and conviction of the Christians at that service spoke volumes to those who were visiting or just curious.

During the service, I was left feeling undone by the price Jesus paid for me. But I was also left feeling saddened by the contrast between this and the xCF culture so ingrained in my thinking. Thankfully, God is doing a work in me to bring me back to the simplicity of the true gospel.
Here were some of the contrasts that flashed through my mind during the service:

• The message of the cross, of Jesus' death, and the price he paid was simple. In contrast, so many times at BCF, I heard that, yes, Jesus died for our sins, but there were many bits tacked onto that gospel. Then I would hear the phrase, "His the pain, mine the gain..." as if to say all these other churches believe you can do what you like, so long as you pray the sinner's prayer a few times. How disingenuous! And that was the message on a good day.

• Many people came because they follow Jesus and wanted to share the good news of the gospel, not because they believed they were hearing a superior 'word'. When speaking to people after the service, they shared how Jesus had miraculously turned their lives around. In contrast, I remember speaking to people after a BCF Easter convention. They were compelled to say, "What an amazing word!", even if they didn't genuinely understand it.

• There were visitors! At least 50, in a congregation that's usually a smidge over 200. What an opportunity to share the gospel! In contrast, visitors to BCF were very few. Even though God can speak in many ways, I doubt many people who visited BCF ever heard the gospel.

• The people were sincere, humble and showed genuine kindness. In contrast, I remember that at BCF, showing kindness was sometimes a risky move. You were in danger of being put on the outer yourself. After all, showing kindness may well have undermined the 'right hand of fellowship' administered by the 'presbytery'.

Despite what you hear (or join the dots to understand) at xCF, you could have walked into many Good Friday services today across the city of Brisbane and seen God's love demonstrated by His people.

I'm very thankful for God's mercy to me. His faithfulness has not failed, and I'm learning more and more about what it means to be a follower of Christ. It's not firstly because of a superior 'word' that I've heard from the pulpit, but because God has placed a hunger inside me to find out. I've never read the bible so earnestly, and the more I do, the more I understand the simplicity of the gospel message. So appropriate on a day like today.

[guest]

During the service, I was left feeling undone by the price Jesus paid for me. But I was also left feeling saddened by the contrast between this and the xCF culture so ingrained in my thinking. Thankfully, God is doing a work in me to bring me back to the simplicity of the true gospel.

This is my experience too.


In my church this morning an elderly man who was reading the account of Jesus death in Mark, cried and wept as he read the account. He didn’t think he could go on.

It was such a true response and we all felt humbled.

I am being undone continually.