Subject: Why is the Christian Church so divided? |
Bible Note: Hi, Keith... You said that very well. Remember that these churches represent Christendom in its infancy. They certainly were messed up! Even in that specific historic context, Paul asserts that divisions -- where we get our modern word heresies -- must occur so that God's work becomes differentiated from other things (1 Corinthians 11:19). This is partly how our Lord is glorified. As I said before, any individual church is somewhere along the orthodoxy/orthopraxy spectrum. It is a blessing that we, as individuals, have a choice, so that we may choose a congregation in accordance with our convictions. Can you imagine what it would be like to live somewhere that only had a single place to worship, take it or leave it? Oh my! Can you imagine what kind of disunity would exist in such a single city-wide (state-wide?) church? Furthermore, a diverse set of churches -- none of the perfect or pure, of course -- allows us to walk out our Christian liberty per Romans 15 and elsewhere. Consequently, I am persuaded that God has blessed this nation with a diversity of churches. It was not that long ago that empire-wide, nation-wide, and city-wide churches were deemed essential. The notion that a city might contain several churches, is uniquely American. The unity in those congregations -- and even between them -- is thereby increased. Therefore, "Does God approve?" Think about it. Finally, I would suggest that there is less division among Christian churches than people imply. Our fundamental doctrines are very heavily the same. There are differences in particulars, but those particulars do not necessarily cause us to break fellowship. I am a credobaptist -- by study, forethought, and reason. That does not separate me from my paedobaptist brothers. We choose to congregate separately, but we work together in the community to spread the gospel. We each deem the other in error in the question of who is the appropriate party baptized, but we wholly agree that salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone. Keith, you might want to read through church history -- even on a general level. You will find many brethren through the centuries, although you won't see eye-to-eye with them on every point. Many of them have done this very study that you are suggesting. You might benefit from their perspectives. In Him, Doc |