|
Introduction:
Recently, we held a Gospel
Meeting. When I would tell others about
this event, one of the first questions many would ask is, “What
denomination is your church?” Has anyone ever asked you that?
How did you respond? Did you say, “Church of Christ”? Common
statements I am hearing among Christians are, “I’m Church of
Christ” or “He’s/she’s Church of Christ” or “Church of
Christ preacher.” It almost hurts my ears when someone will
mention being a member of a local church of Christ and someone
else will say, “No kidding, I’m Church of Christ too.” All
of this brings us back around to that original question, “What
denomination are we?” How should we answer that question when it
is posed? Discussion: I.
What is a denomination? A.
Before learning what denomination we are, we must first
learn what a denomination is. 1.
“Denominations
are associations of congregations—Though sometimes it might be
said that congregations are localized subdivisions of
denominations—that have a common heritage. Moreover, a true
denomination does not claim to be the only legitimate expression
of the church” (Donald G. Tinder, Evangelical Dictionary of
Theology, 1984, p. 310). 2.
“Denominationalism – A term for the continuation of the
organizations and emphasis on the divisions and distinctions of
Protestantism” (Donald T. Kauffman, The
Dictionary of Religious Terms, 1967, p 147). B.
Note what a denomination is. A denomination is a
collectivity of local churches. It is bigger than a local church.
It is smaller than the universal church. Further, a denomination,
by its very nature, is an emphasis of division. II.
What are the earmarks of a denomination? A.
Consider one more definition, quoted from The
American Heritage Dictionary, 4th Edition on
Dictionary.com. “A large group of religious congregations united
under a common faith and name and organized under a single
administrative and legal hierarchy.” B.
Creedal or faith statement in addition to the Bible. 1.
I
Timothy 3:15
says Paul wrote to explain how work ought to be conducted within
the church. In I
Corinthians 4:17, Paul indicated he taught the same thing
in every local congregation. The conclusion of this is if every
congregation were strictly following just the intent of the Bible,
then for the most part we would all look the same. We would
worship the same ways. We would work the same ways. We would teach
the same message. Yet, look around, there is no unity, there is
division. How are the divisions maintained? 2.
It began back in the 4th century when
Constantine called the Nicene Council. When they wrote the Nicene
Creed to define exactly how Jesus’ divinity worked, they took a
step away from the Bible. From that point on, it was not enough to
agree with inspired scripture. One also had to agree with an
approved creedal statement. For many, a creedal statement,
determined, written and voted upon by uninspired and ungifted men,
holds as much weight as does inspired scripture. 3.
To be a part of the denominational organization, it is not
enough to be a Christian. It is not enough to believe and obey the
Bible, one must believe the Bible in accord with the
denomination’s agreed and voted upon doctrine. This leads
directly to the next earmark. C.
Organization and official hierarchy beyond the local
congregation 1.
Most denominations began as a single congregation. That is,
a teacher in a certain location began to rebel against a church or
denomination and gathered followers. They worked hard. They
increased converts to their cause. Then they took their cause to
other cities. They developed more followers. There were new local
congregations started. This sounds a lot like what happened in Acts
with the Lord’s church, established in Jerusalem and spread
throughout Judea, Samaria and even the ends of the earth (cf. Acts
1:8). 2.
The denomination is formed when the new congregations look
to the first as a mother church. That mother church is either the
model for how the satellites work or even a source of the teaching
allowed. As more congregations are established under the mother
congregation, an official hierarchy is developed. There will be
officers within a local congregation to make sure the members of
the church follow the creedal statement. Then there will be
officers established over multiple congregations to make sure the
congregations stay in check. As the denomination grows, more and
more layers will be added. Usually, there is finally established
one person or small group of people at the top who govern the
entire denomination by their votes and decisions. I would suggest
this is the heart of what it means to be a denomination. D.
Name to distinguish from other denominations 1.
One of the side points of denominationalism is the naming.
In fact, the etymology of “Denomination” is not about
hierarchy or faith statements, but about naming. To denominate is
to give a name to. Denominations develop a name in order to
distinguish themselves from the other denominations. These names
are, by nature, divisive. They highlight division. If you think I
am mistaken, call a Lutheran a Baptist. Call a Pentecostal a
Methodist. 2.
Having said that, a relatively recent phenomenon is that of
denominational churches not using their denomination’s name.
While there are more independent congregations cropping up, many
times you will learn churches who use no denominational name are
actually members of a denomination and are still being run by the
denominational statement of faith. These often go under the name
of “Bible Church” or “Community Church.” Some who use this
kind of name may well be unaffiliated with a denomination, but
many are still part of one denomination or another but think the
denominational name hinders their impact. Be careful with this
form of deception. III.
What do we find in the Bible? A.
In the Bible, we do not find any of the issues discussed in
the above definitions or earmarks. B.
We find the universal church, the collection of all
Christians, of all locales, of all times. Jesus spoke of this in Matthew
16:18. We find local congregations, groups of Christians
within a given geographical locale who assemble together regularly
under a common oversight—see Romans
16:16; Galatians 1:2. Both groups are a collection of
individuals. However, we never see an intermediate organization.
We can read our New Testaments from cover to cover and not once
see an organization of local congregations. Further, we never once
see congregations banding together to form any such organization
and we never once see any individual Christians as members of some
intermediate organization. C.
In the New Testament, we see no creedal statements besides
the scriptures. We have read II
Timothy 3:16-17. Creedal statements used to govern
churches run into one of several possible problems. They either
add to the word of God or take away from it (cf. Deuteronomy
4:2). Perhaps they are simply the same as the word of God.
But if they are, then the creedal statements are unnecessary. Yet
some would suggest it takes the word of God and makes it
understandable. Are we suggesting God has written his word in such
a way that it cannot communicate to the people He loves? We need
no creed except God’s revealed word. D.
In the New Testament, we see no organization beyond the
local congregation except Jesus Himself as the head. In Acts
14:23, Paul appointed elders in every congregation he had
established. In I
Peter 5:1-4, we learn elders are to shepherd the flock
among them. There is not once single indication of any office or
official role over more than one congregation. There is never once
an indication that overarching councils, judicial procedures,
presidents or popes were ever established in the New Testament.
Each congregation was autonomously governed. I am not saying the
congregations never had anything to do with each other. It simply
demonstrates elders in one congregation did not govern in another.
There were no arch-bishops, cardinals, delegates, emissaries or
presidents. There were no church councils voting on doctrine or
work of the churches. It just didn’t happen in the New
Testament. E.
Here is the kicker. Do you know what name we see given to
the universal church and/or local congregations in the New
Testament? Absolutely none. Never once is the universal church or
are local churches named in the New Testament. They are merely
described. 1.
In Romans
16:16, Paul referred to multiple local congregations as
“the churches of Christ.” Why? Not because that was their
name, but because that is what they were. They were assemblies of
people who belonged to Jesus Christ. 2.
In I
Corinthians 1:2 and II Corinthians 1:1, Paul called
the local congregation to which he was writing, “the church of
God which is at Corinth.” Why? Not because that was its name,
but because that is what it was; the assembly of people who
belonged to God in Corinth. 3.
In Galatians
1:2, Paul spoke of “the churches of Galatia.” Why?
Because that is what they were, assemblies meeting in various
locations in Galatia. 4.
In I
Thessalonians 1:1 and II Thessalonians 1:1, Paul
wrote “to the church of the Thessalonians.” Why? Because that
is what they were, the assembling of Thessalonians. 5.
In I
Thessalonians 2:14, Paul called the churches of Judea,
“the churches of God in Christ Jesus that are in Judea.” Why?
Because that is what they were. 6.
In I
Timothy 3:15, Paul called it “the church of the living
God.” 7.
Interestingly, when Paul wrote to Ephesus, Philippi and
Colossae, he wrote “to the saints who are at Ephesus” (Ephesians
1:1); “to all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in
Philippi, including the overseers and deacons” (Philippians
1:1); and “to the saints and faithful brethren in Christ
who are at Colossae” (Colossians
1:2). 8.
In Acts
24:14, Paul referred to the church as “the Way.” Luke
also used that terminology when he said Felix had “a more exact
knowledge about the Way” in Acts
24:22. Why? Because that is what the church of our Lord
is. It is the Way. That is, it is the group of people who follow,
the Way, the truth and the life to the Father who is in heaven
(cf. John
14:6). It is the group of people who walk on the straight
and narrow Way of Jesus Christ (cf. Matthew
7:13-14). 9.
Just prior to Paul calling the church “the Way.”
Tertullus had referred to the church as “the sect of the
Nazarenes” (Acts
24:5). Paul commented on use of the term “sect” but
didn’t correct the “Nazarene” terminology. Why would they be
called “Nazarenes?” The terminology came about the same way
“Christian” did. We are called Christians because we follow
Christ. They were called “Nazarenes” because Christ was a
Nazarene. 10.
Look at the descriptions in Hebrews
12:22-24. We come to “the general assembly and church of
the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven.” In that text, the
same church is referred to as “Mt. Zion,” “the city of the
living God,” and “the heavenly Jerusalem.” 11.
Most often, it is just referred to as “the
church”—e.g. Acts
11:26; I Timothy 3:15; Philemon 1:2, et al. F.
Having said all of this, what do we find in the New
Testament? What denominations do we read about? None. After Acts
2:41, when about 3000 souls were added to the initial 120
disciples, if you asked them of what denomination they were part,
what would they say? They would look at you like you are nuts.
They would say they were merely the saved. They were merely part
of Christ’s church or kingdom. They were God’s assembly. After
Acts
11:26, they would have said they were simply Christians.
They were not a part of any denomination because no denominations
had been developed yet. They were part of local congregations and
they were part of the universal body of believers. They were not a
part of any intermediate organization. They believed what they
were taught by the inspiration of the apostles and accepted no
other creeds or teachings (Galatians
1:6-9; II John 9). IV.
What about us? A.
I must address two groups as we answer our initial
question. What denomination are we? B.
To our guests: We are no denomination. Not only are we
non-denominational, but not finding the authority for such an
organization, we are anti-denominational. Though we recognize all
other believers who have submitted to Jesus Christ in baptism for
the remission of their sins are Christians and though we recognize
all other congregations who merely use the Scripture for their
authority are legitimate churches, we are not affiliated in any
official or hierarchal capacity with any other congregation. We
have no outside board, council, conference, president or pope
governing us. We have elders within our congregation who shepherd.
We have deacons who serve and we have evangelists who preach. But
we have no offices or officers beyond our own local fellowship. We
are nothing more than a group of Christians from middle Tennessee
who have agreed to assemble, worship and work together under the
oversight of a common leadership. We have the words “Franklin
Church of Christ” on our sign, not because we are the Franklin
branch of some organization known as the “Church of Christ,”
but because we want you to know that is what we are: “a group of
people belonging to Christ in Franklin.” Our sign could just as
easily read “The Franklin Church of God,” “The Way in
Franklin,” “The Church on Franklin Road,” “The Saints at
Franklin,” “The Lord’s Church,” etc. The fact that other
congregations have the words “Church of Christ” on their sign
does not say they are like us or in affiliation with us. The fact
that they don’t have those words on their sign does not mean
they are not like us. C.
To our members: We must not forget this. We are not a part
of “The Church of Christ” Denomination. There are
denominations with these kinds of names. There is “The Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints” denomination and we are not
part of that. There is “The United Church of Christ”
denomination and we are not part of that. There is the “Church
of Christ (Holiness) U.S.A” denomination and we are not part of
that. There is the “Church of Christ, Scientist” denomination
and we are not part of that. There is the “Church of God”
denomination and we are not part of that. There is the “Church
of Jesus Christ” denomination and we are not part of that. On I
could go. If there is a denomination that calls itself merely
“Church of Christ,” we are not part of that either. We are a
local body of Christ. Our faithful members are individually a part
of the universal church of God. Individually, we are not “Church
of Christ;” we are Christians, saints, disciples of Christ. We
do not follow “Church of Christ” doctrine. We strive to teach
Christ’s doctrine and gospel, using the Bible alone as our
source of authority and teaching. We do not enlist the teaching of
“Church of Christ” preachers. We seek only those who are
preachers of Christ’s gospel using only the Bible as their
source book for teaching. Just because someone attends a church
with the words “Church of Christ” on the sign does not make
them a Christian or in a right relationship with God. It does not
make them “one of us.” Just because they attend a church with
something different on the sign does not mean they are not “one
of us.” We are part of no denomination and are utterly opposed
to denominations under any name, creed or conference. D.
When someone asks us what denomination we are, we should
tell them we are part of no denomination. “Oh,” someone will
protest, “but Edwin, we know what they mean and they won’t
understand. It is just so much easier to say we are ‘Church of
Christ.’ They’ll get the idea.” No, they will get the wrong
idea. It is true that teaching and furthering error has always
been easier than explaining the truth. Instead of abandoning the
teachable moments and furthering the widespread misunderstanding
among others and even ourselves, let us stand up and speak the
truth. Let us forever ban from our vocabulary the phrases,
“I’m/he’s/she’s Church of Christ,” “He’s a Church of
Christ preacher,” “There were Baptists, Methodists and Church
of Christers present,” “the other denominations” (a subtle
statement that we are one denomination and the rest are the
others). These kinds of statements further misunderstanding and
error. E.
Allow me to conclude with a story that saddened my heart. I
was talking with a sister in Christ about a local congregation
that was abandoning the faith. The congregation was embracing all
manner of false teaching, was unifying with churches that do not
teach the gospel of Christ as found in the Bible. But what upset
this sister most of all was that she happened to look in the phone
book and saw that the congregation had their name listed not under
the “Church of Christ” heading, but under the
“Non-denominational” heading. It is sad that an erring church
might teach us something about the nature of local congregations.
Further, it is sad that Bible-believing Christians think there is
something wrong when a local congregation proclaims it is
nondenominational. That is what we are. If it is not what we are,
it is what we had better become because that is what we find in
the Bible—non-denominational Christianity. Conclusion: What is the answer then? What denomination are we? No denomination. We are simply Christians who make up a local church that belongs to Christ. We are simply Christians who have been added to the universal body of the saved. We want to be nothing more and nothing less than just generic, Bible Christians. Would you like to be that? Would you like to be just a Christian, nothing more and nothing less? Leave denominational Christianity behind, simply be part of Christ’s church. Obey Christ’s gospel and God will add you to His church (Acts 2:47).
Glory
to God in the church by Christ Jesus
|
||||||||||
