Question to christians - serious answers only?

Question

I know there are many protestant denominations, there is a catholic and a few orthordox churches.

If someone believes in Jesus in the sense of Salvation through christ alone does the rest matter.

Seriously, does prayers to the saints, infant baptisim, sprinkle or immerse, women pastors or not.

Fully believe the bible or believe it needs to be interpreted by church history and tradition.

Confession or not.

It the core is the same does the rest matter.

If by believing in Jesus you are saved the rest is not an issue as it has then no impact on salvation.

If that is the case why is the protestant chruch so divided, didnt Jesus say that you would know the true chruch because it wouldnt split.

any ideas??

Answer 1

In my opinion only the core belief is the most important. . .the rest is determined completely by how someone interprets things. Everyone has scripture to back up the different views their denomination has. I picked the best church for me, but I don't define myself by it. My relationship with the Lord is the most important thing to me.

Answer 2

To believe in Christ is just the beginning of a long and wonderful journey. Do I still have problems like everyone else? I sure do but dont sweat them. Just like everything here on earth its here today and gone tomorrow. Praying to saints is a not doing anything at all. We pray to only Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. Infant baptism why? You get baptized when you have accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior. They are covered with the blood of Jesus til the age of accountability. Immersion is the only true baptism. You dont read of sprinkling in any of the NT books. Have to say no to women pastors but I think that does not include teachers. Fully believe the Bible. Confession hmmmmmmmmm go with Repent. So no its more than just believing as I stated. There is so much more. Its not some prayer you said once and signed your name Yeah Im saved. Its a lifestyle that only the Holy Spirit can help us to lead. Prayer and Bible reading each and everyday. Protestant church? Those are denominations. The church is its believers. True relationships with Christ not people saying they are Christians. Peace out.............

Answer 3

Jesus did not say that the "true church...wouldn't split" He prayed for unity but all this true church stuff came much later.

As with most things in life, one needs to see things in historical context. Christianity as a movement began as a collection of "churches" sharely a commonly held belief that Jesus was the savior. These churches followed two models...a hierarchial (bishop, priest, deacon, etc.) and a more evangelical model typified in the communities that gave rise to the Gospel of John.

Eventually, these communities coalesced into a more unified expression of the Christian faith as expressed in creeds and liturgical practices. Theological disputes still would keep some churches separate (such as the Coptic Church in Egypt) and eventually broke up Christianity into distinct groups....Orthodox, Catholic and later Protestants.

The "true church" in my opinion is expressed by a faith in the Lord Jesus. While that faith may be expressed in different ways, there is a degree of unity already in existence even while the scholars debate the finer issues of theology.

Of couse there is a hierarchy of beliefs. In other words some issues don't matter as much.

The theology does matter in the sense that now, as in the past, Christain beliefs can get muddied. What is the nature of Christ? Did He preach in North America (I say He did not), What is Sacred Tradition etc.

Without the precision of theology, the Good News dissolves into a meaningless blob.

Answer 4

First of all, believing in Jesus is not the key to salvation. The devil believes there is a Jesus. To be saved, you must believe that Jesus is the Son of God, that he died on the cross, was buried and rose from the dead on the third day. You must admit you are a sinner, separated from God, repent of your sins and allow Jesus into your heart. You must turn from self and turn to Him. Secondly, if you study the Scriptures, you will realize that Jesus NEVER prayed to saints, only the Father, that he was baptized as a grown man, fully capable of recognizing that baptism is simply the outward and public profession of faith. The Bible is the INFALLIBLE Word of God and needs to be recognized as such. The Bible tells us that since Jesus has become the intercessor, there is no need to confess to anyone other than Him. And lastly, the church can split or become divided, because it is made of people. People, who although sanctified, are still sinners while living on this planet. I hope this helps. The church is the Bride of Christ and He will come and receive his bride when it is time.

Answer 5

Protestants formerly are members of the catholics church but they have protest the wrong teachings of the catholics. So they established a religion which they called it Protestants but still they are not in a true religion because they are also following some of the false teachings of the catholics.
Confessions of sin to the priest - wrong
Prayers to the saints - wrong
Infant baptism - wrong
sprinkle in baptism - wrong
women pastor - wrong
by only believing Jesus to be save - wrong

The true church founded by Jesus is the Church of God.
jtm

Answer 6

Bill.... Since I have some relatives whom still are Catholic, I know also that there are many divisions of the Catholic Faith in which though they be "Catholic" they do not follow all that the Roman Catholic Church follows...so, many people err in believing that the Catholic Church is just "one" and has no "divisions".

However, you are very right in saying that by our belief and love of God and Jesus and the Holy Spirit it doesn't matter where we are, if we put GOD FIRST in our lives and not a "church" or a "leader" then all is well. :)

However, we do have some responsibility of where we worship and by what practices we follow... we only have God to answer to about ourselves and WHY we chose to do something...God will judge each church, and each Shepherd and Teacher for what they taught.....as well as each individual whom are members.

As in all things, go to God for the final answer...not man.

Peace be with you :)

Answer 7

It doesn't matter what you believe in as long as you believe. The differences between the different churches is fine because it gives people the option of honoring and praying for God in your own way. Just because person A is a Protestant and person B is a Roman Catholic does not make ones believes better or more important then the others. That goes the same for different religions as well. The sooner we can live together and respect each others differences the sooner we can live as God intended, as a family.

Answer 8

There is ONE church, that church is the body of Christ. The church consists of those who follow Jesus Christ. Let no man tell you what the word (Bible) says!! Open it up and see for yourself!!!!!! If you have Christ Jesus in your life, the Holy Spirit will guide you in understanding and interpretation of scripture. Christ Jesus through his sacrifice on the cross and his GIFT of grace and salvation to us SAVES, not any religion or denomination of an earthly church!

That is not to say that if you find a church that has the teachings of the BIBLE, that you should not partake, as God wants us to fellowship with our brothers and sisters in Christ.

By their fruits you will know them. Simply, does the church follow what the Bible says, or has it been twisted, added into, or omitted from or re-written altogether? By their fruits, you will know them!!!

Answer 9

Salvation in Christ #1. Look to God's word for guidance. God's word never mentions infant baptism, baptism always comes after a person accepts Christ as Lord and Savior. Nowhere in God's word do it say to pray to "saints", once we are believers we are saints according to God's word.We are called to pray to the "Father " through the Son, not to anyone else. We are commissioned to go into all the world and preach the gospel. Women are not called to be Spiritual Leaders, the man is to be the spiritual leader of his family.

Answer 10

Salvation lies with and through Jesus alone. There is no need to pray to saints because Jesus is the mediator between God and man. In fact, it's pretty inefficient to pray to saints when you can pray directly to God.

Baptism is an outward demonstration of your belief in Jesus and is a decision that a Christian must make of his/her own volition. An infant cannot choose to do this because an infant does not know what it means. Baptism is not an act that brings about Salvation, it is just an outward testimony of your faith.

Confession does not need to be confessed to a Priest, and a Priest cannot forgive your sin, only God can forgive sin, so the only confession you need to make is to God. You CAN confess to someone else, it doesn't hurt you to do that; in fact, it CAN lead you to seek repentance from God, but a priest who tells you, Okay, now that you've confessed, go home and do ten Hail Mary's and ten Our Father's is really only telling you, Go home and WORK for what God says He's given you for free because WORKS can't save you.

Protestant denominations are so divided because they are filled with imperfect men and women who interpret things in a faulty fashion because we are imperfect and cannot fully understand God as He is infinite and we are not. The basics are still the same: Jesus is God in the flesh, He died on the cross for remission of our sin, and He rose again on the third day.

Women in the ministry? Why not? Miriam was a prophetess, so was Deborah, Esther was the intercessor for her people, Susannah ministered to Jesus, Eudora and Syntiche ministered to Paul . . . God says He pours out His gifts on His PEOPLE, not on His men.

Answer 11

Yes, believing in Christ is of course the foundation of salvation. Following Christ is equally important. There are certain ordinances that are requisite for redemption. Baptism is the first ordnance as Jesus was baptized by John; not because he was sinful, but as an example, because it is required of all.

The debate seems to arise around the ordinances and how they are to be performed; or even if they are truly necessary.