• Embed Doc
  • Copy Link
  • Readcast
  • Collections
  • CommentGo Back
Download
 
34,000 differing denominations or Unity Within Diversity UNITY IN ESSENTIALS byDamon WhitsellThis question was asked of me,,,,,, “there are 34,000+ different Christiandenominations today. Who is to say which churches constitute the congregations of'true Christians'?” What follows is my response_____________________________________________________I seen someone else make a similar statement about two weeks ago and have not hadtime to comment but would like to do so. The post I am commenting on used 19,000+as the number of Christian denoms.I would like to postulate a question that I believe statements like this beg toask! I believe this is what people mean when they make such comments,,,"With between 19 and 34 thousand different Christian denominations,,,is it notludicrous to think there is anything but confusion among christians as to whatchristianity is? Why should I consider joining such a confused bunch? Is therereally any logical reason to consider Jesus Christ?"It is my belief that people who make such claims, as there being 19 - 34 thousanddenominations of Christianity, in a sense that there are that many differentversions are really saying "you guys are fools and can't even figure out ya'llsown religion". Some may actually believe that there are many different versions ofChristianity but I believe that most prop up such bogus ideas in there head tojustify their denial of Jesus Christ.FALSE TEACHERS, PROPHETS, GOSPELS AND A DIFFERENT JESUSEvery New Testament book except Philemon contains warnings against falseteachings, false prophets and false gospels that teach a different Jesus andSpirit. Paul said there where false teachers among the Corinthians and Jesus saidbeware for many come false teachers have come to lead you astray. We are told thatthere are men who secretly introduce destructive heresies and that Satan and hisministers masquerade as servants of righteousness. We are even told that there aredoctrines of demons.To the church at Galatia Paul said "you are being thrown into confusion by peopletrying to pervert the gospel of Jesus Christ, I am astonished that you so quicklyturn from the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to adifferent gospel". We are told to not accept any other gospels than the onepreached by the apostles, even if they come from angels or the apostlesthemselves.Satan is rightfully decrypted as adversary. Christianity is not dualistic ( thereis not a bad god and a good god battling it out) and because God is sovereign,Satan cannot be rightfully viewed as an adversary to God. He is just a createdfallen angel. Satan opposes Gods plan of redemption. He does this by pervertingthe simple gospel of Grace and certain truths about the nature of God, Man, Angelsand salvation.ORTHODOXY VERSES HETERODOXYThe new testament and church history shows that Christianity has always made avaliant effort to keep the gospel from being perverted in the midst of constantattempts to redefine the essence of Christianity from both terrestrial andcelestial sources. The book of Galatians notes that some where trying to lure theChristians in Galatia back into the legalistic systems of Judaism and the epistlesof john tell us that Gnostic teachings where already on the rise.
 
Detractors always like to claim that Christianity was not a codified belief systemuntil the creed producing church councils,, which they wrongfully say was thebeginning of what we call the Church. Dan Brown claims that it was at thesecouncils that Christianity was invented. But anyone who knows church history willtell you that these councils where required because false teachings came toattention and had to be dealt with. The church councils where not held toestablish real or essential Christian doctrine but to refute false hereticalteachings that had risen up in the church. Establishing essential doctrine was aby product of some of these councils and as Gnostic writings continued to appearon the scene these councils also established what is the (cannon) measure of orfor inspired scripture. Christians have always struggled to keep out the heterodoxbeliefs and to the keeping in of the orthodox.SOLA SCRIPTURAHistory shows that Christianity was institutionalized as the state religion of theroman empire by Constantine. The Christians had been persecuted, even to death,for their beliefs about Jesus for many years and the reprieve was welcomed butwrought it's own problems. The major problem was that religious belief cannot bemandated by a state since religious belief is soulish in nature and law cannotdictate personal belief. You can make a pagan say he believes in Jesus but youcan't make him actually believe in Jesus through force. In the generations afterConstantine people where said to be Christian by virtue of the place of theirbirth (i.e. in Rome) not by virtue of their beliefs. All roman citizens wheredecreed to be Christians because of their birthplace but that did not make allRomans non pagans or actual Christians. Christianity was temporarily redefined bysome.I am not at home so I don't have the specifics handy, but at one point a Pope madea decree that church tradition would be given as much emphasis as scriptureregarding Christian beliefs. By elevating church tradition to the level ofscripture as the authority for defining and living the Christian faith, thecatholic church perverted the gospel as it had never been perverted before. Thedeification and worship of Mary, salvation by penance and works and many otherheretical beliefs arose which required the protesting of the protestant movement.Once perverted the catholic church remained apostate and Christians required aseparation and reformation. It was a return to the essential doctrines of Jesusand the apostles themselves.UNITY WITHIN DIVERSITYA few months ago I was engaged in debates at factnet ( a cult watch ministry )with followers of Arnold Murray and the Shepard’s Chapel. They can be called aChristian cult because they do not hold to essential doctrine. They cannot becalled a denomination or a true church. They have nothing in common with othersthat call themselves Christian except for the name Christian. They hold anunorthodox view concerning the nature of God, man, sin and salvation. From nonessentials such as the heresy of pre-existence to the heresy of anglo-isrealism,to the essentials of God, man and salvation by grace not works or genetics, theyare unorthodox to the core. They are not unified within diversity as realChristians are. They are isolated and don't have unity with those who hold toessential doctrines. Let me explain what I mean by unity with in diversity.My phone book list about 20 different local Christian churches. Among them aredenominations and non denoms and Christian cults. I can go to most of thosechurches and have much unity in beliefs with them, especially concerning Jesus. Inessentials unity, in non essentials liberty and in all things love. Some I couldnot attend at all because they are diametrically opposed to essential orthodox
 
Christian beliefs, but we must remember that they are cults by virtue of theirunorthodox teachings.Christians churches and denominations enjoy a shared unity within diversity aboutbeliefs concerning God, man, sin and salvation amongst all non cult denominationsand non denominational churches. But a follower of Arnold Murray and the Shepard’schapel cannot enjoy that same unity with other local churches. To fellowship theyhave to travel to Arkansas or do their fellowshipping online with other Shepardchapelers. They are isolated, exclusive and authoritarianistic because of theirbeliefs.There are beliefs that are essential to orthodox Christianity. There are beliefsthat are important but not essential. And there are beliefs that have no relevanceat all concerning orthodoxy such as eschatology. Because most of these churcheshold to essential doctrines they could be called essentially Christian but somewould have to be called Christian cults because they are not Christian by virtueof the essence of their beliefs about Jesus Christ yet still apply the termChristian to themselves.THE VISABLE AND INVISABLE CHURCHWho is to say which churches constitute the congregations of 'true Christians'?I think it is fair and right to say that there are two real churches of JesusChrist. The visible and the invisible. The cooperate and the spiritual. We mustrealize that the church is personal and spiritual and it is not an institution.There is not one denomination that is totally doctrinally correct. Denominationsarise out of non essential matters such as which day is the Sabbath (SDA) andshould we be baptized by immersion (Baptist) or sprinkling. If a denominationarises out of a misconstrued essential doctrine, it is not a denomination but aChristian cult.It is safe to say that no church organization has the corner on True Christianity.There are true Christians within all Christian denoms and non denoms. There arefalse Christians within all denoms and non denoms. But there is exactly zero falseChristians in the invisible church.CONCLUSIONMy conclusion is that it is not appropriate to say there are many Christiandenominations and try to link any and all proclaimed denominations with trueChristianity. The bible is full of warnings about false teachings, prophets,gospels spirits and even false Jesus‘.The bible even claims that it is a fallen angels agenda to pervert the truthscontained in the bible. History shows the fight to keep Christianity from beingredefined. It is absurd to say I will not consider Jesus because there is no unityin his followers because there is unity within diversity among the people ofJesus.There are many individuals and groups that call themselves Christians but youdon't become a car by parking in a garage. You have to become a car to be a car bynature. A Christian is a Christian by virtue of what they believe about JesusChrist. I have avoided defining what is essential Christian doctrine because Idon't have time but I will say it is safe to say if you don't think Jesus is TheWay, The Truth and The Light,,,, ,your not a real Christian. It is safe to saythat not all, but close to all Christian churches listed in my phone book believehe IS The Way The Truth and The Light. It is safe to say that of 19 - 34 thousand
of 00

Leave a Comment

You must be to leave a comment.
Submit
Characters: ...
You must be to leave a comment.
Submit
Characters: ...