how come there are so many Christian denominations, don't they agree with what the Holy Spirit told them?

Question

if the Holy Spirit is their guide with how to interpret the Scriptures, why can't the Holy Spirit make up His mind about what to teach?

because those different denominations have their own way of understanding the Bible and teach different beliefs. what's up with the Holy Spirit?

Answer 1

A result of rebellion and the Protestant Reformation. The answer to your question falls more on the fallen human nature of mankind rather than on God. The divisions and differences come from individuals who take it upon themselves to interpret sacred scripture on their own instead of it coming to them inspired by the Holy Spirit.

Read in the Bible itself what Peter tells us of interpreting scripture on your own in 2 Peter 3:16 when speaking about Paul. "He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction."

Interpretation of Scripture is not to be done by the individual. This is the root cause of he problem you cite.

Answer 2

The guidance from the Holy Spirit is not varied or indecisive, and the content of the scripures hasn't changed.

The reason there are so many denominations is because people cannot agree on individual interpretations of the scriptures, which were all manifested based on individual interpretations of the Holy Spirit. The variance of scriputures is due to interpretation equally as much as how much or little the people of today can and do interpret the Holy Spirit. Remember, the Holy Spirit has not changed since before the earliest scriputures were created.

THIS IS TRUE FOR ALL RELIGIOUS AND SPIRITUAL DENOMINATIONS THAT HAVE EVER BEEN AND EVER WILL BE, NOT ONLY CHRISTIAN!

The Holy Spirit is always speaking to us; it will never leave you. EVER. The differences occur because some people don't hear The Holy Spirit. And some of those who hear don't listen. And some of those who listen can't understand. And some of those who can understand don't want to understand. And some of those who can understand, and want to understand, are not ready to understand. And some of those who do understand, don't agree. And some of those who agree, don't know how to apply what they hear to their life. And some of those who know how to apply it, still don't want to, perhaps because they can't see the benefits, or because it's too hard. And some of those who can, think that if they make some changes of their own it will be better for everyone, particularly for them. And all of this applies to each and every little concept potrayed metaphorically, and often poetically, in which ever scripture they read, which means everyone has some of the correct pieces, and some incorrect pieces, and noone knows who has what and which is which, and even if someone has a lot of correct pieces they may not even know it for any or all of the reasons above, or know what to do with it, or how, when, where, with who, or why they have it.

So, in truth, everyone is both right and wrong, noone is guilty or innocent of anything, and we as a species will continue to stumble through civilisation till someone figures out what some of the key factors and the prophesized return of our saviour (which some people may call Jesus, Mohammad, Buddha, Mahatma Gandhi, Mother Theresa, or whatever) could be some insignificant hermit from the suburbs that woke up one day with all the answers.

IT COULD BE YOU ... (unless you forget your vision when you wake up LOL). All that's left is your needing to give yourself permission to shine, to brighten up this dark and stark world, and become a beacon of hope and love. Or, as Gandhi said "Be the person you wish to see in this world today."

WE ARE THE PEOPLE WE'VE BEEN WAITING FOR!
RISE NOW, AND BE STRONG!
AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, ...

ENJOY AWARENESS NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Answer 3

I kind of agree with kupiou, you see there are many religions. But most do not practrice, follow, or teach the holy spirit, holy ghost, being baptised of the holy spirit, and the spiritual gifts from god such as speaking in toungues, prophecing, interpreting, etc. etc. I mean it is what the bible teaches, and its what should be done and practiced, the bible says it. If a religion does not support it or practice it, thats where religious arguments come in. If the bible says it, and and jesus tells us to accept it then it should be that way. Too many religions, dont practice it probably because it does seem wierd, it is not normal, but was Jesus Normal, no he was not, he was the only man who was ever perfect, he was the only man that died for your sins willingly, and no one wi9ll ever love you as much as he does, so why not practice what he preaches. I have learned, to accept and practice what he teaches, you have to give him your all, and pray to him with ALL you heart not just mumbling stuff, talk to him like you would if it were the only person on earth that you loved and trusted, after all he is the only person that will forgive you for anything and still love you, even if you murdered one of his children, he will forgive you and still love you and except you. Being a true christian is not easy to start or accept because we are too selfish. Always put him first and seek him more than anything else and he WILL bless you. I hope this has helped, if not I strongly suggets you seek a pastor at holy ghost filled church apostolic pentecostal or four square church.

God bless you. Keep seeking, and you will find the truth

Answer 4

According to religious scholars, belief is the same as opinion. And every religion has some different opinion. That's why there are so many different Christian denominations. It would be different if the Holy Spirit would manifest to everyone the same way, but judging by the number of denominations, that doesn't happen.

Answer 5

The Holy Spirit guides the believer in the fundamentals of faith -who God is, salvation, spiritual growth, service, last days... the Holy Spirit leaves much to inidividuals, cultures, and circumstances (the entire bible is full of cultural differences). Most denominational differences are political (administrative system), cultural (what music to play, bible to use, long hair, short hair, earrings or none...), whims (don't like the pastor so I start one, don't like too ornate church buildings I want a bear one...) - all of these the Holy Spirit gives us much leeway.

The other fellow is right: total unity will come in the last days.

Answer 6

The Holy Spirit is not the cause of the numerous denominations rather it is men who have always misinterpreted every Word sent by the Holy Spirit.

Answer 7

Certain denominations sprung from a reformation movement caused by 'fed up' individuals who were pissed off at the roman catholic church and their 'saved by works' doctrines. Men like John Calvin and Martin Luther saw errors in the roman catholic doctrines and led a revolt against them. Eventually, their doctrines began to dominate most of Europe. And the doctrines came here to America when Europeans began invading the country. Ever since then, God has been restoring certain elements lost throughout the ages by inspiring different movements. After the 'reformation' movement came the Pentecostal movement. This movement is where the Holy Spirit is re-discovered and 'speaking in tongues' and other manifestations of the Spirit are re-introduced. This caused many in the 'reformation' movement (Lutherans and Baptists, who draw a lot of their beliefs from Martin Luther) to criticize them. After the Pentecostal movement came the Charasmatic movement, where healings and other different manifestations of the Holy Spirit were emphasized. Charasmatics were criticized by Pentecostals, just like Lutherans and Baptists (and others) criticized the Pentecostals. And now, the newest movement of the Holy Spirit, the Word of Faith movement, which puts emphasis on prosperity in every area of life. And the Word of Faith movement catches more hell than any other movement ever caught. Every step forward gets criticized by the step before it. But every step is inspired by the Holy Spirit to bring the church back to what it was in the book of Acts.

Answer 8

Nothing wrong with the Holy Spirit but man is still following his own beliefs rather than allowing God to lead them.
The time is coming when the last days church will be united and will demonstrate unity of the faith.

Answer 9

Religion is a business, and there needs to be competition.
Why should everyone agree on what is placed in front of us ?
The world would come to a standstill if people couldn't debate on issues.
We would all be back in the dark ages, if everyone sat there nodding and smiling, just because someone else has made the suggestion. The holy spirit, as you call "it" is our conscience

Answer 10

because it's not the Holy Spirit guiding them. they can only hear their own thoughts and make themselves believe it is the Holy Spirit. their splintered denominations are enough proof that no Holy Spirit had guided them. God is not the author of confusion.

and I'm talking about the protestants of course.