Ntrf.org provides information about churches and their beliefs
Title
New Testament Restoration Foundation Home Page
Description
NTRF is part of a growing body of believers who have come to see the importance of following New Testament patterns in church practice. We have taken to heart the evangelical belief that the Bible is our final authority, not only in matters of faith, but also in matters of practice. We see theological significance in the distinctive practices of the apostolic church.
Our desire is to provide resources and training in how the early church met together in community. We seek to aid others in recapturing the intimacy, simplicity, accountability and dynamic of first century church life. Thus far we have been blessed to be able to travel and present these concepts to believers in Peru, China, Russia, England and throughout the United States. While we are firmly convinced that God’s best is for all His people to organize their churches according to New Testament patterns, we are not “against” everyone else. What we are against is divisiveness or the blanket condemnation of our brothers who see things differently than we do. Our desire is not to come across as judgmental or overly critical. Matters of church practice are much in the same category as the issue of believer’s baptism versus infant baptism. People of faith can be found in each camp. Assuming that the Lord prefers one approach over the other, then the other method is “wrong.” Is the wrong group therefore in sin? Are they thus not a true church? Will God refuse to work in and through them? Heaven forbid! While they may be in violation of God’s best, it is an honest, sincere blunder in a completely different category than moral failings such as lying, theft, murder, rebellion, etc. We understand that sincere, Godly saints sometimes understand the same Scripture passages differently. We hear Paul when he asked, “Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand” (Ro 14:4).
We advocate orthodox, historic, classic Christianity poured into the wineskin of New Testament church practice as established by the twelve apostles. Thus, what we promote herein concerns orthopraxy (right behavior), rather than orthodoxy (right theology). We argue strongly from Scripture for such things as living room sized churches, the Lord’s Supper as a full meal, church leaders as servants (rather than lords), government by consensus, the right and responsibility of the brothers to make decisions corporately, no clergy-laity distinction, and interactive (participatory) church meetings. An emphasis on simple, home-based, relational, family integrated church does not mean that careful attention to order and organization are unimportant. Our goal is to be Christ honoring and thoroughly biblical in every area concerning our church life.
Languages
English
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