Denominationalism is a plague on our society. Not simply because the division of religious beliefs causes us to be divided in other things (think of the political division in our country, the majority of it stems from moral disagreements founded upon the differing religious beliefs of each side's adherents), but because it causes mankind to leave God's Way for our own opinions. It divides families in much the same way the Civil War did, just using words instead of musket balls. It tears long-time friendships apart. It produces allegiances to man rather than to God. 

It is a disease that all of us battle at some point in our lives. 

All members of the church have someone in their family, friends or at the very least Facebook friends list that is forever against them because of their faith in Christ. 

I myself have lost family members to the world because of my persistent belief and obedience in Jesus and His Way.

But, what is the foundation of denominationalism? From where does this evil grow? 

The explorer Richard Burton, a man well traveled and studied, once said:

Paul said it like this:

The Apostle prophesied, in a sense, of a coming time in which the love of self and selfish ambitions would cause division within Christ's body and warned Timothy to fight against it "tooth and nail". 

But the fact is, denominationalism stems from a worship of self. Ever religious group outside of the church built by Jesus Christ has been founded out of this very fact. 

The moment we begin to think ourselves as something special, our thoughts as improvements on the Standard, our traditions as equal with His commands, we have begun the process of forming our own denomination. And that denomination may not ever get to the point of having a world headquarters or its own hierarchy but a denomination can be made of a single person if we allow it. 

So far in this blog series we have noted that God has not left us in the dark, not knowing who He is or how to please Him. He has left His will as an open book, ready for us to read and understand. Today let us look at His word to notice that He has left wide open for us, the means to have unity in a world of  division.

Wikipedia, which I would not consider to be significantly reliable would tell us there are over 41,000 "Christian Denominations." You might be saying the same thing I said when I read that; that is, there is no way! And although I wish it weren't the case, I don't have any proof that Wikipedia is incorrect in this matter. Despite what ever the exact number of churches may be, the fact of the matter is: If there is more than one that is too many! If there were two churches in the world that claimed to be Christian, that would be one too many. The reality of this matter is that God and Jesus intended for there to be one church, His church.

Jesus said on one occasion that, I will build My church and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it (Mat. 16:18). That denies all speculation that might be made. In John 15, Jesus spoke concerning His disciples (what would be the church) that, I am the vine and ye are the branches. Did this mean that Jesus was the vine and the many branches were the different "Christian Denominations" in the world? No, certainly not because that would mean there was a contradiction with what Jesus said previously in Matthew 16. Additionally it would mean a contradiction between Jesus the Lord and Paul the apostle. Paul said in Eph. 4:4, There is one body. Consider also Paul's words in Eph. 1:22-23, And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all. Combining what Jesus said and what Paul said, knowing that the Bible is from God and contains no contradiction, but rather passages that complement, we have a complete thought. Jesus built His church, of which He is the head, which is His body. 

What a blessing it is to have God lay bare the things concerning His church. We don't have to worry about not understanding what the role of the church is in our lives, we don't have to worry about not understanding how to enter the church; He has left it open for us to view. Acts 2 teaches that the saved are added to the church (v. 47). In order to be added to that church we must be obedient to His word. We must hear the word (Romans 10:17), we must believe that Jesus is the Son of God (John 8:24), we must confess that belief with our mouths (Romans 10:9-10), we must repent of sins (Acts 17:30), and we must be baptized into Christ (Gal. 3:26-27; Col 2:12; 1 Pet. 3:21).

We can have religious unity in a world of division because the conditions for salvation and addition to the church have remained the same since the time they were first preached. Our responsibility is to take what God has laid bare and open for us to know and to do it and teach it. May God bless us with unity in this world so that His work is done to the effect that He desires. To God be the glory!

Photo Credit: Google Images

     There've been excellent materials coming from the internet for Christians to utilize in their faith and walk with God. Here are 5 of my favorites from the recent past. 

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     I'm a huge fan of the United States of America. I don't always agree with what the powers that be do, say or believe in but for the most part I'm cognizant of the fact that my country is one of the best in which a person can live and thrive. I hope that always continues to be the case, while I know that it probably won't given the history of our world and its governments. 

     My family was once very powerful in Ireland and England (I also love genealogies by the way). Nicholas Snow was one of the few people able to say that they were on the voyage across the pond with the Mayflower in establishing these United States as a territory of England. 

     It's amazing to think of the history that is the foundation of this place! Some have families who have recently come to America while others have been here for centuries. Some came of their own free will and some came as a product of slavery and mistreatment on the part of their fellow man. Some came from Europe where the culture is somewhat like ours, others from distant lands which are very different from the culture that is extant here in the United States. 

     I absolutely love it! However, being an American, I fail to see the point in hyphenated patriotism. 

     I know, some of us are proud of our roots and family history, I am too. But living in a world of political correctness, we’ve become jaded. No longer are we Americans but Irish-Americans, African-Americans, Iranian-Americans and so on! 

     Why? I’m not going to get into the political repercussions of a ideology such as this, but I believe it is because we have failed to give ourselves fully to our country. 

     Woodrow Wilson once said,

     I agree! 

     Now, what does that say about hyphenated-Christianity? The exact same thing. 

     The reason why some hold to Baptist-Christianity, Catholic-Christianity, Methodist-Christianity or any other hyphenated form of Christianity is because they have failed to give themselves completely to the Lord. 

     Instead of living for Christ and being a sacrifice for Him (Romans 12:1-2), they have created a hybrid form of Jesus and man-made thoughts, opinions and doctrines. Instead of giving their lives for faithfulness to the Lord (Revelation 2:10), they have given their lives over to following some sort of modern day usurper of the deity of Christ. 

     It’s all about self and none about salvation. They’ve failed to see God and have substituted His will of unity in Christ (John 17:21, Ephesians 4:4-6, 1 Corinthians 1:10ff) for a man-made concept of unity in which all of these different hyphenated-Christianities are pleasing to God, then they in fact are not. 

     So, how do we stop this? It’s rather easy. All it would take to destroy the epidemic hyphenated-Christianity is to give ourselves completely to Christ and simply follow His word. - No more catechisms, no more manuals or declarations of faith. Just the Bible and Jesus’ authority (cf. Matthew 28:18). 

     While that is harder than it looks, it’s possible. After all, the first century Christians were able to do so and if they can do it, so can we. 

     I've struggled with this in the past and I know many brethren do as well. At what point does a child of God have the ability to say that another human being has either failed to reach or has fallen from the salvation in Christ because of his religious beliefs or actions?

     Many believe that any person having some inkling of a belief in Jesus and some rendition of the faith in Him is to be called a Christian and is to be inside the scope of fellowship of fellow Christians, but is this correct?

     We've all heard the normal tests of fellowship - worship, church organization, authority in the Scriptures alone, etc. but are these the only things one must believe and obey in order to be unified in the Spirit? 

     However, being a person who is always yearning to test all things (cf. 1 Thessalonians 5:21) we must ask the question, WHY? - I believe the reason is very simple, because the other things are not visible! 

     Take conviction, for instance. There is an aspect in which conviction in Christ (personal belief/faith) is able to be seen outwardly like when Paul wrote that the faith of the Colossian brethren was able to be seen in that he knew that they were "faithful" (Colossians 1:2) and that they had learned of their faith (Colossians 1:4). But, in a very real sense of the word, my faith and conviction is deep within my heart which no man can know save me (1 Corinthians 2:11). 

     My love for the lost and for my brethren is the same. While my teaching the lost shows my love for them and my fellowship with the brethren shows the entire world that I am a follower of Jesus (John 13:35), no one can definitively know whether or not these things are done out of true love or a pretentious love which is bent on getting society's accolades except me. 

     So, why do we use things like whether or not a person worships in spirit and in truth (cf. John 4:24) forsaking man-made traditions and worship practices like mechanical-instrumental music or flawed roles in worship as a test of fellowship? I can assure you, it isn't because we just want to feel superior to him (although a minority might have this in mind and it is really impossible to tell definitively). No, the reason is because we can openly see that. 

     That doesn't mean, however, that a person seeking to be a part of the restored church of Jesus Christ can simply stop at the outward signs of faith and be done in his restoration process! Just as it is important to restore the authority of Jesus and the knowledge that the Bible and it alone give the words for eternal life (John 12:48, John 6:68), it is likewise important to have the inner man restored in order to be in fellowship with Christ and walk in His light (1 John 1:7-9) whereby the fellowship between mankind can be defined as "Christian" as well. 

     Have you ever pondered why denominationalism, homosexuality and abortion seem to be the main three when it comes to social media posts, blog articles, sermons and even small talk coming from members of the body of Christ? Practically every day, hundreds of pictures, links and quotes come streaming across the page as brethren voice their opinions and Biblical beliefs regarding these things, and for good reasons! I have often found myself trying to ascertain why these things seem to be at the forefront of our public teaching of the Word of God, sometimes to the point of ignoring other equitable topics. 

     Don't get me wrong! I believe that these three things are vital to our evangelism. You see, in our society, they are some of the most widespread and even controversial problems that one might face as he goes about doing the work of the Lord (2 Timothy 4:5). 

     But, I think I've finally, somewhat, figured it out. The reason these three things are the front lines of the war against Satan is because... they pervert Godly institutionalism!

     In the society in which we live, social science (the thoughts "concerning society and relationships among individuals within any given society") is shifting to something ungodly! 
     
     Homosexuality takes the Divine institution of marriage (cf. Genesis 2:24, Matthew 19:4-6, Ephesians 5:22-33) and turns it into nothing more than a den of fornication and idolatry. Denominationalism takes the blessing of the church, wherein is salvation and fellowship (Ephesians 1:7, Romans 8:1, Ephesians 2:19-22) and turns it into a house of false doctrine and ignorant sin. Abortion takes the original institution, that of life given by God (Psalm 127:3, Genesis 1:26), and turns it into nothing more than a blob of cancer-like cells bent on eating away at the "good life" of the parent(s). 

     See, they all have something in common, they take something so precious to our existence and attempt to turn the world's thinking of it into something that is a burden and even something which is upsetting to "happiness"! That's the reason that we, as members of the body, have taken so strong and outspoken a stance on these things, and rightfully so. 

     There are other institutions given by God which are perverted in today's world of relativism and sinfulness (worship, righteousness, understanding of our beginnings, eternity, etc.), but these three take the cake because they take what I would say are the three main things God has given to us and twist them into something for physical pleasure whether it be the pleasure of having followers (denominationalism), having the fulfillment of sexual desires (homosexuality) or having fornication without the worry of being held accountable for another human's life (abortion). 

     Next time you see some image scroll across your Facebook feed or some controversial statement so eloquently stated in 140 characters of less dealing with one of these topics, don't wonder why these have become the "Big Three," wonder how you can help the fight to turn these institutions back to God in our society.

     I'm convinced, if we could get the world to see these three things the way our Lord sees them, there would be a lot more brethren wandering the streets of our country.