Think for a second... Has there been a preacher or church or denomination that you have outwardly expressed dislike for even though they've never directly verbally attacked you in any way?
Let's face it, most of us as Christians are guilty of this.
I'm guilty of this.
Of course, the dilemma is that Christians try to justify this by saying that they are somehow not following biblical principles. But, I'm willing to bet that most of the time what they are against it's not against what Scripture says. It just goes against their personal take on scripture is. They forget that we as human beings are not all-knowing. There are some issues that we will not figure out until we get to Heaven.
Some Christians would respond to that and say, "Well the Bible warns us about False Prophets!"
That is very true and we are supposed to call out false prophets, but the question remains- What is a false prophet?
A false prophet is someone who is deliberately preaching against God's word in God's name.
Unfortunately, I see Christians missusing this term to put down preachers that they do not like, even if they are not necessarily preaching bad doctrine.
We also need to remember that there are differences in denominations. Denominations will disagree.
That doesn't mean that either one is wrong. They just have different ideas on certain topics. I mean it when I say we need all denominations to reach all types of people. Not every church can reach every type of person.
Don't get me wrong, I don't agree with every denomination, but I can recognize that God is still using them in ways that I know God couldn't use me.
For example, I come from a Southern Baptist background, so much of my theological line of thinking is baptist. So I don't really agree with Pentecostals about speaking in tongues being a spiritual gift to all believers. However, I have friends that are pentecostals that I know are rock solid believers and I see God doing great things through them.
I also have friends that are Methodist, Calvinist, Presbyterian, Anglican, Episcopal, and Catholic. There are aspects of each of those denominations listed that I disagree with. I probably would not attend any of those types of churches regularly, because I am just wired with a Baptist line of thinking. It's what I was raised on and it's what I agree most with.
However, I know that my church is not necessarily better or more in line with God's word. It's just a difference in opinion.
So where do you draw the line?
How do you know that it's just another denomination and not a cult?
Well there are what I like to call Primary Issues and Secondary Issues.
Primary Issues
The Trinity - Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit
The Bible is without error (That includes Old Testament and New Testament.)
There is no other God than God
Jesus died for our Sins
There is a Heaven and a Hell
God Created the Universe
10 Commandments
Secondary Issues
Spiritual Gifts (such as tongues)
Predestination (Did Jesus die for everyone or just an "elect"?)
Eternal Security (Can a person lose their salvation?)
Baptism
Tithing
How the Church is run
Preaching Style
Interpretation of Certain Scripture (that which the context is unclear in the Bible)
When you are trying to figure out if a certain denomination is legitimate and not a cult, you only need to look at the Primary Issues. If it violates one of the Primary Issues, it's a cult. If not, you should treat it with respect, even if you disagree with one of the Secondary Issues. That doesn't mean you have to agree with them, just recognize that God is using them.
If they are not against you, they are for you. We need to realize that we are all on the same team. Also, it's not always our place to judge within the church, especially if it is not our church.
We need to remember that God is ultimately in control. He will deal with False Prophets, he doesn't need our help.
Too many times have I seen my fellow Christians spend all their time just looking for Preachers and Churches to put down, when they could have been spending time living out God's plan for their lives.
It looks pretty pathetic to Unbelievers when we fight amongst ourselves.
Rick Warren had some good stuff to say about this topic in The Purpose Driven Church:
"I always refuse to debate which method of evangelism works best. It depends on who you are trying to reach! Different kinds of bait catch different types of fish. I'm in favor of any method that reaches at least one person for Christ- as long as it's ethical. I think it will be very embarrassing someday when critics of a particular method of evangelism get to heaven and discover all the people who are there because of it! We should never criticize any method that God is blessing."
Romans 14:4 says "Who are you to judge someone else's servant? To their own master servants stand or fail. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand.
God Bless,
Jonathan D. Graham
No comments:
Post a Comment