Shouldn't our belief in God and Jesus unite us instead of deciding us into denominations?

[Williame300]

Ok, this is probably a no brain answer because of where I'm posting this, but I'm knew and I wasn't sure where to post it. Anyways, I never understood the idea of there being multiple denominations, I always thought our belief in God and Jesus should unite us not devide us. I understand that people will interpret scripture differently, but ultimately all Christians believe that through the blood of Christ we are redeemed. We are stronger united than we are apart.

 

[nChrist]

All true Christians are members of the Body of Christ, regardless of denomination. In other words, we are brothers and sisters in Christ. Non-Salvation doctrinal differences should be handled with love.

Romans 12:5 KJV So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.

Colossians 3:15-17 KJV And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. 17 And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.

 

[WolfGate]

Belief in God and Jesus do unite us as Christians. Look at the statements of faith and doctrines of denominations and you'll find almost all of them agree on the essentials of the gospels.

Most denominational differences come because of different understanding of the non-essentials. Exegesis of the bible is not a simple, first order thing. Reasonable Christians can view scriptures within in the context of the entire Bible and come to different conclusions on many issues. Add to that some denominational differences are not about faith but about church polity or organization and not really doctrinal at all.

Why does this exist from a theological standpoint? I'm not really sure, but perhaps some of the uncertainty in issues is there to help faith, to cause us to turn to the Holy Spirit for issues not cast in stone, or to help us appreciate the worth of a diverse group of believers and therefore also people who have not yet found Christ.

 

[Omah1970]

I've struggled with this very issue. I was raised Baptist and I love the denomination and it represents the core of my beliefs although I reject Calvinism maybe not all of its teachings but 98.5 percent of it. Nor do I align with Arminian theology I don't know which ones worse. But my family are staunchly Baptists and do not believe there is any other church outside their denomination which is why I left the denomination and haven't looked back since. I do enjoy posting and reading in the Baptist forum I love reading what's being said and miss the denomination terribly at times but I do believe I made the right choice for myself to become non denominational. To many denominations shut out to many people for reason or another the god of legalism has blinded so many and man's certainty over their supposed biblical superiority has become another gospel in and of itself. Men and women in most big named denominations who are in a position of power have become exalted over their creator. What would John Hagee do if people didn't actually clap after every syllable or verb he says, what would John Mcarthur however you spell that last name of his what would he do if somebody actually told him to get off his high horse and shut up for a while and actually listen? I'm very disillusioned with it all. And when you attack people's idols it can get very interesting. These are just my thoughts and opinions on this issue I could very well be wrong and my comments will ruffle some feathers but this is just how I feel and I can only go by my own experiences, what I've seen and heard all my life.

 

[yeshuaslavejeff]

Ok, this is probably a no brain answer because of where I'm posting this, but I'm knew and I wasn't sure where to post it. Anyways, I never understood the idea of there being multiple denominations, I always thought our belief in God and Jesus should unite us not devide us. I understand that people will interpret scripture differently, but ultimately all Christians believe that through the blood of Christ we are redeemed. We are stronger united than we are apart.

from someone's sig, seems ap pro pro : "To learn who rules over you, simply find out who you are not allowed to criticize."

..... "people interpret....."...... God never said to , in fact, He forbids interpretting His Word.

.....
Matthew 11:25New International Version (NIV)

25 At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children.

 

[yeshuaslavejeff]

Or, to see what God's people live like, when they are born again,

look in Scripture, search terms "in union" (found frequently in OT and NT , especially NT )
as in
they lived in union with Jesus (not like Jesus was gone or far away) AND in union with one another....and the Father....
every day. Every day. Every day.

 

[Job8]

I always thought our belief in God and Jesus should unite us not devide us.

In a perfect world, that is what should be evident. Unfortunately we will not see the end of divisions until the coming of Christ.

 

[Omah1970]

from someone's sig, seems ap pro pro : "To learn who rules over you, simply find out who you are not allowed to criticize."

..... "people interpret....."...... God never said to , in fact, He forbids interpretting His Word.

.....
Matthew 11:25New International Version (NIV)

25 At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children.

I never realized Mathew 11 meant that. Thank you for pointing that out

 

[MotherFirefly]

People would die of boredom and feel inadequate if they couldn't argue with eachother about technicalities.

Meanwhile, God is shaking his head in dissapointment.

 

[yeshuaslavejeff]

...Meanwhile, God is shaking his head in dissapointment.

He sorrows over the death of the wicked. Billions of wicked.

Not one falls to the ground except God permits it.

God sent His Son Jesus TO DIE, a horrible death, crucifixion plus great humiliations and whipping and stoning until His bones showed visibly , His flesh torn asunder....

So no one has to fall to the ground apart from God.
But they choose to.... in spite of the PRICE HE PAID. JESUS BLOOD.

 

[Goatee]

We are human and thus we will differ in opinions and beliefs.

There is but one God. One Church. We are all members of that one church even though we are all members of different 'denominations'.

1,000s of protestant denominations each with differing beliefs and interpretations of scripture. Simple passages but with differing views / interpretations.

If only we could all beat with the same Christian heart, that would be awesome!

Being a member of this fine forum will hopefully help you on your journey. Here you will find friendship and a wealth of knowledge. Ask God for guidance daily. He will help you, me and anyone who ask in their search for the right and true path to heaven.

God bless you

 

[Omah1970]

Just a question how are we to apply scripture to our lives if we aren't supposed to interpret it. Is it more for personal interpretation than public? Thanks bro

 

[Goatee]

Personal interpretation can come from the Holy Spirit or from evil sources i would say. We are told about Lectio Divina which is a good way to read scripture. Its one way the Catholic Church recommend even though we use the church too to interpret Holy Scripture.

I guess the problem is trying to figure out if what you get from the reading is from God or not. If it is the truth or the right interpretation? Some people have some very weird interpretations of passages in scripture while others have more main-stream views.

For me, i like to see several different interpretations and line them up against the CC beliefs and then see how that fits with how i see things. I am very new to Bible reading so its a big learning curve for me.

 

[dayhiker]

I've been apart of quite a few denominations over the years and of course known a lot of Christians from other churches.
To me we all loved Jesus, so we were all Christians and I had no problem fellowshiping with them. So I don't see division.

God loves variety as seen in all the diversity of created animals and landscapes. I think God loves diversity among people also.
That diversity means we love certain types of worship, certain types of sermons, etc. Denominations often create one type of
church culture. So we chose other churches to find the church culture we want. I don't see that diversity in church culture means we are separated.

 

[Goatee]

God loves everyone yes, but he wants everyone to be on the right path.

 

[dayhiker]

Yes, and I'm talking about people that love God back ... and so are on the right path.

 

[Goatee]

Yes, and I'm talking about people that love God back ... and so are on the right path.

Problem with the vast amount of denominations is the vast amount of interpretations / beliefs on scripture. Plus some have some very 'odd' general beliefs! Yes, they may believe in God but when you look into some denominations its not that straight forward!

 

[dayhiker]

From my point of view most denomination believe the basics of the Gospel which is enough truth to get the saved and into an eternal relationship with Jesus.
the stuff each denomination adds to make them unique is secondary. Those things to me can fun, create interesting discussions or cause me to shake my head.

 

[WolfGate]

From my point of view most denomination believe the basics of the Gospel which is enough truth to get the saved and into an eternal relationship with Jesus.
the stuff each denomination adds to make them unique is secondary. Those things to me can fun, create interesting discussions or cause me to shake my head.

Yes, it can make for interesting discussions and even learning opportunities.

Where it can get frustrating is when some denominations make "essential" those things which to me clearly are not. Growing up we had a church near us which insisted that anyone not in their denomination was not truly saved. Never understood that one. Recently I was discussing with someone whether or not women could be elders or deacons. He insisted that he would question the faith and salvation of any church that allowed it. I actually agree that I interpret scripture to say women should not serve in that capacity, but I understand how and why true believers might understand differently.

 

[retlaw]

It's not quite fair to compare human Churches to other organizations because other organizations are not under 24/7 attack from Satan. I believe we are not unified because such unity would be bad for business for Lucifer. This won't work forever though.

For one every church I visit now I see falling into two groups. One group is the church that just says we follow the word of God and don't care what anyone else says. The other are churches that are just becoming more like secular social clubs. Those churches that are making an effort to live biblically I see their messages becoming more and more identical. I believe this is an extension of the process the bible describes at the end where the true believers will be separated from the weeds.

Finally Jesus will return, not as a child, then servant and finally a sacrificial lamb as before, but as a conquering king. At that time there will be one church focused entirely on the lamb and all the nations will be ruled by Jesus. That rule will be with an Iron Sceptre. My guess is that some won't like it, but the church will love it. I'm not sure who will be on the earth during that time. The bible isn't clear.