This is what Jesus prayed for over and over again in the bible that His Church be PERFECTLY ONE CHURCH with only ONE FAITH. He said that His Church would be a light to the world, and a city on set on a hill can't be hidden. (Paraphrasing)
Please don't say that we are all united because we are not, there are over 33,000 Protestant denominations (divisions) calling themselves "Christian" but each teaching something totally different about Jesus and salvation and each following it's own tradition by the one who founded it.
Watering down the faith to the lowest common denominator is not an option because it would be pointless to make Christianity just like what rest of the world teaches.
2006-06-05 15:32:13 · 5 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
So you believe the scripture that says the Holy Spirit dwells in us, and that believers are the body of Christ. If so we are one in these ways. one Spirit and members of the same body. Yes in this life there will be struggles and differences but we (all true believers) are one in Christ. Only when He returns and makes all things new will the struggles end. Nevertheless we still are obliged to be peacemakers.
2006-06-05 15:45:02 · answer #1 · answered by beek 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Yes this is a big problem is'nt it! I agree with you, there are far too many churches, and some of them teaching different things, and I believe this is not pleasing to the Lord. He does want us all to be one. Most of the churches that I'm famaliar with that are truly christian do believe in God, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. On these things we all agree. We all agree about God, Jesus being the Son, and coming to earth as God. We all believe in the Holy Spirit too. The fundamental foundations we as the christian church do agree about, it's the rest that causes people to think and believe differently!
This is why we aren't supposed to look at others, or compare ourselves with others either, and just look to the Lord for everything, because people are not what we are supposed to be keeping our eyes on, they mess up too much! "Keep your eyes fixed on Jesus" the Scriptures say. People will hurt us, disappoint us, anger us, confuse us, but if we always look to the Father, we'll be ok. Problem is, not all of us do it. How many of us read the Scriptures and do as they say? A few of us try! I know your dilemma, and I've been there myself, wondering how, why, what for? Only God could love this human race, only He has the patience, and love for us. Try to not let it bother you too much, and remember the Lord loves you. The enemy would like to take your focus off the Lord and put it onto things like this and get you all worked up about it, that's what he does. He is "the father of lies, and the accuser" Jesus said. He loves to divide the church, but we have to be stronger. I hope this helps some.......
2006-06-05 15:49:29 · answer #2 · answered by trainer53 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
im not saying we shouldnt try to be unified, but dont forget that Jesus does NOT ask us all to agree on everything. i dont think its wrong to accept differences between denominations as long as we all stick to the Word of God. read romans 14. its about accepting differences over disputable matters. the key is to stand firm on the important things (like Christs divinity, for an obvious example). this isnt a watering down of our faith. the thing is, the Bible is our only direct resource for truth, but it doesnt explicitly address every little thing in life. so, churches do their best to interpret what it means and what they are personally convicted about. sometimes we're going to br right and sometimes we're going to be wrong, but so often there just isnt a right or wrong! (and no, this is not to undermine the idea of absolute truth)
i guess to get to the point of your question, i dont have a plan, but im convinced its not as critical as you might think. one faith doesnt mean we all have to follow the same precise rituals and the like. its faith, and our faith is only about one thing, which is Jesus. ill say it again, this isnt watering it down, its purifying it! to say that we need to agree on all the details is to forget that Jesus is more important that those things anyway.
and by the way, i didnt mention what you said about making christianity like what the rest of the world teaches because i dont understande exactly what you mean by that. sorry
2006-06-05 16:05:06 · answer #3 · answered by lebeauciel 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The Catholic faith and you ROCK! Preach on, my Brother and may God bless you!
+ BC
2006-06-05 15:40:05 · answer #4 · answered by Brother Charles 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I agree with Brother Charles! He knows what he talks about!
J.M.J.
2006-06-05 19:07:47 · answer #5 · answered by Aliohope25 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋