denomandsects

DENOMINATIONS AND SECTS

Questions and Answers

1. Why is there so much doctrinal difference between the denominations? What would be the true Christian doctrine?

To facilitate sequencing, we will reverse the order of these two questions:

1. Doctrine, according Houaiss, is "a coherent set of fundamental ideas to be communicated, taught." The Christian doctrine is, as the name says, the doctrine of Christ. He himself left nothing written, but instructed the disciples chosen by him, called "apostles" to "teach all nations" (Matthew 28:19).

After returning to heaven He chose one more "apostle", Paul, whom he particularly instructed supernaturally and it was he who gave us the bulk of the doctrine in written form. The apostle Peter had no doubt in vouching for the teachings of Paul as an integral part of the Holy Scriptures (2 Peter 3:15,16).

The "gospel of Christ" is another name for the Christian doctrine, and the four "Gospels" at the beginning of the New Testament contain narratives about the coming of Christ, the Son of God and the Messiah prophesied in the Old Testament, His ministry, His death, resurrection and ascension into heaven, made by witnesses present at the events, and presented in different ways.

Above all, the Christian doctrine is what was inspired word for word in the original by the Holy Spirit of God, and which we call the Bible, which includes the Old and New Testament, for the Lord Jesus Christ confirmed and fulfilled in His life, the Old Testament law and prophecy. Paul teaches: "even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed" (Galatians 1:8). Therefore, the Christian doctrine was sealed and did not allow for any changes.

2. Doctrinal difference: Before answering the second question, let's define what we mean by "church", "denominations" and "evangelical":

"Church" in the Bible is not a building, but a translation of the Greek word "ekklesia", which really translates as "those called out". "Ekklesia" was the name given in ancient Greece for a group of citizens who gathered to handle the affairs of the state: they emerged from among the people to gather in an assembly (as in Acts 19:39). By extension, the Greek word is used in the New Testament for what was called the "assembly of the upright," or "congregation" in the Old Testament (Psalm 111:1), having two aspects:
1. it is the assembly of all the redeemed throughout the Christian era, which is the sense in which Christ said "I will build my church" (Matthew 16:18), later described as "the church which is His body" (Ephesians 1:22, 23).
2. in the singular (church), a local group of people who claim to be believers in Christ (Matthew 18:17, Acts 20:28, 1 Corinthians 1:2, Galatians 1:13, etc..) and in the plural (churches), more than one local church (Acts 9:31, Romans 16:4, 6, 1 Corinthians 14:33, etc.).
"Denominations" are the names used to designate the local churches or church groups gathered by ecclesiastical institutions that, without heeding the biblical significance, also call themselves "churches".
"Evangelical", this adjective applies to what is presented in accordance with the principles of the Gospel.

The question then concerns the doctrinal difference between local churches and church institutions designated by names, which comply with the principles of the Gospel. If, indeed, all were in complete accordance with the principles of the Gospel, there should be no difference between them. The reality is that they differ to the extent in which they comply or move away from biblical teaching. The very fact that they use a denomination to distinguish themselves is already a proof that they are not equal.

A congregation of faithful disciples of Christ need not have its own name, being only distinguished from others by its geographical location, as happened in apostolic times. The apostle Paul rebuked the use of group names in the Corinthian church, and wrote, "Now I say this, that each of you says, 'I am of Paul,' or 'I am of Apollos,' or 'I am of Cephas,' or 'I am of Christ.' Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?" (1 Corinthians 1:12-13).

Every Christian is really baptized in the name of Christ, and this is the name we use. Taking the name of a denomination in itself is a disobedience to Christian doctrine, for He Himself said, "that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. " (John 17:21).

Finally, look beyond denominational, local churches are different in that it obey the biblical doctrine. May declare that they have the Bible as their only rule of faith, but not always faithful to obey its precepts. There are other pressures, from outside or inside, because not everyone who says the believer in Christ is the reality, and the church yields resulting in disobedience.

In fact, every church is like an individual, and the difference between them was evident in apostolic times, due to the seven churches of Revelation (chapters 2 and 3). As we say "nobody's perfect", we can also say "No church is perfect." The church is the sum of the individuals who compose it, and it behooves each of us to do their part to "our" church is truly evangelical, obedient to the doctrine of Christ.

2. I am very bothered when I see a part of the body of Christ claiming to be better than the other. (...). There are instances when a brother does not greet another if he belongs to a different denomination. What is your opinion about that?

Unfortunately the denominations separate the flock of Christ, just as within a single church there can be parties and dissensions. This is carnal and the Bible warns us against it. The Lord Jesus desires "one flock and one shepherd" (John 10:16).

The "hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies," rank among the "works of darkness", and "they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God." (Galatians 5:21,22).

As a part of the body of Christ boast of being better than another, see Philippians 2:3: "Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory, but in humility, each counting others better than himself."

As you see, is not a matter of opinion, but to obey the Holy Spirit inspired the apostle Paul to write this.

I recommend reading the article " Love between churches . "

3. I would like to have a study on the doctrine of the Christian Congregation of Brazil.

The Christian Congregation of Brazil is an institution formed by one of more than one hundred names used by "Pentecostal" believers. They have in common the doctrine that, after his conversion, the believer must still receive the "baptism of the Holy Spirit": they say that this extra baptism is accompanied by spiritual gifts, especially the gift of tongues, prophecy and healing.

Their doctrines vary widely among themselves, which explains why they are so divided, some even coming to the most absurd ideas in order to captivate the unwary. For lack of space, we will limit ourselves to their basic heresies, which they all teach:

The baptism of the Holy Spirit, they say, is a gift given to those who request it. The understanding of when such baptism takes place varies from one group to another: for some, it does not matter if the person has already been converted to Christ, to others, it is possible only for the converted, and for others still that baptism can only be obtained after a dedication. The manner of baptism also varies between individual experience and collective experience, or through intercession or laying on of hands by ministers or elders. (NB: The Word of God teaches us nothing about a "second" baptism: by its immense importance it would no doubt be mentioned clearly and repeatedly in the New Testament epistles. Rather, the apostles' doctrine teaches that there is only one baptism by which the believer is included in the body of Christ; the Holy Spirit is bestowed by God's grace to all believers, without exception, at the time of their conversion, this act of God unites the new born to Christ in His death, burial and resurrection, not only making him a member of the body of Christ, the true church, but also giving him the basis for sanctification and the life of victory in Christ.)
They teach that the believer feels, through a physical and emotional experience, when the Holy Spirit descends upon him, causing him to go on to speak in "tongues." (NB: This is just a generalization and distortion of what happened, in special circumstances, in the early church: the gift of foreign languages was given to the first members of the church in groups: to the disciples in Jerusalem, to the Gentiles, and finally to the disciples of John the Baptist as a sign to the Jews. There is no record in Scripture of receipt by anyone else of this particular gift! Peter, when defending himself for having entered and eaten in the house of gentiles, stated that "the Holy Spirit fell upon them, as upon us at the beginning [eight years earlier]" - a suggestion that it had not happened again, individually or collectively).
They argue that we have reached a new period in which God pours out his Spirit upon his people, with signs and wonders, as gifts of prophecy, tongues and science, now in the same way as it happened at Pentecost (hence the Pentecostal denomination that many of them take.) As a model, they take Chapter 12 and 14 of I Corinthians. (NB: They forget Chapter 13 where the Word of God tells us that "whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away", "...when that which is perfect has come", ie, the complete revelation of the Gospel by the apostles, culminating with the revelation of Jesus Christ in Revelation.)

4. How should I act with the "Jehovah's Witnesses"?

The "Jehovah's Witnesses" (name that Russelitas like to assume, although they are false), the main target of their attention are people who are not very firm in their faith.

For more details of that sect, read the article of mine titled " The Russelites .

The Bible that the followers of the sect use is a misleading translation made to suit their erroneous doctrines. Those who are seduced are brainwashed and then can hardly leave the environment in which they are. Those who take to the streets from house to house to proselytize walk in pairs so that one controls the other, and they arm themselves with leaflets designed to whet the reader's curiosity, using persuasive language to conquer the unsuspecting.

Discussions between them and someone who knows well and is firmly standing on the Word of God, usually do not produce any positive results, and they usually move away because they know they are wasting their time.

I suggest that when a believer is sought by them he declares at the outset that he knows and believes in the Bible and in the divinity of Christ and has Him as his personal Lord and Saviour, that he also know their doctrines and is unwilling to discuss them. According to their reaction it may be useful to give them some good literature (fighting them with their own weapons) and to invite them to attend a meeting of Gospel preaching if they want to hear more.

The Word of God tells us: "... there are some who trouble you and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel than that preached unto you, let him be accursed. So as I forewarned you, now again say to you: if anyone preaches any other gospel than that ye have received, let him be accursed. "

5. I would like more information about the Seventh-day Adventist Church

"There will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction" (II Peter 2:1). This institution originated in the United States in the mid 19th century, being a woman, Ellen Gould Harmon White, one of the founders, whose visions, initiated in 1844 and of which she said she had about two thousand, were the driving force of the sect.

Ellen White said she had a vision in which she was raised to heaven, and the Lord Jesus lifted the lid of the ark and showed her the tablets of the law: the fourth commandment stood out from others, appearing in the center with a gleaming halo around it! She concluded from this that Christians are still under the Law of Moses, should keep even the smallest of its provisions, including the Sabbath.

According to her, it was a Roman Catholic institution that changed the observation of the Sabbath (seventh day) to Sunday (first day) in 364 AD. (NB In reality the Sabbath was given by God as a sign and perpetual covenant between Him and the children of Israel (2 Chronicles 2:4), the tablets with the commandments in the Bible are called "ministry of death" (2 Corinthians 3: 7) and "ministry of condemnation" (2 Corinthians 3:9) and, the Holy Spirit teaches us, they faded away upon the appearance of the permanent glory of the "ministry of righteousness" (2 Corinthians 3:9-11), a new covenant of the Spirit, not the letter; the Sabbath never appears in the New Testament as something that should be observed by Christians. Sunday has not replaced Saturday: being the first day of the week in which the Lord Jesus rose from the dead, Christians since apostolic times have met on that day to remember Him at the Lord's Supper).

The interpretations of Scripture that came to her, and her prophecies, were readily accepted, coming to fill nine volumes, called "Testimonies for the Church." The institution also put into practice her ideas on health, especially her opposition to the use of coffee, tea, meat, and medications.

Obviously a dissertation on all their doctrines does not fit here, nor do we see much use in it, but we will provide some illustrative examples of their heresies:

The denial of absolute and complete atonement for sin made by Christ: according to Ellen White, when Christ ascended to heaven he began ministering in the sanctuary of the heavenly temple as the priests did in the earthly temple. For eighteen centuries He occupied the first apartment of the sanctuary. The blood of Christ assured forgiveness and acceptance by the Father of repentant believers, but their sins were still registered. It was necessary, she said, for a work of atonement for sin from the sanctuary, and this happened after 2.300 days, in 1844, when Christ had entered the heavenly Holy of Holies to complete the last division of the work of cleansing the sanctuary. Thus, the sins of the repentant are placed in Christ, which deposits them in the sanctuary. Later, before being transferred to the Holy of Holies, to be completely erased, an investigation is made in the records to determine who is entitled to the atonement, by repentance and faith in Christ. This theory was invented to justify the non-fulfillment of the prophecy of another sect's founder, the "prophet" William Miller, who flatly predicted Christ's return in 1844 (hence the name Adventist). Here we have the following unbiblical heresies:

That there is a heavenly sanctuary where Christ is high priest;
That sins are deposited in heaven;
Tht in an inexplicable manner the sanctuary is a kind of mediator, carrying the sins of the believer for some time;
That this sanctuary is to be cleansed;
That this purification began in 1844.

Satan is the bearer of sins, along with Christ, and is a substitute to take the sins of the repentant with him when he is banned from the presence of God, and he is destined to cease to exist when sin and sinners are finally destroyed.
Christ at birth inherited a sinful human nature.
In common with some other sects, including the "Jehovah's Witnesses," this institution teaches that at death the soul physically and spirit of the people are unaware they can not "work" without the body.
Also as "Jehovah's Witnesses," the institution maintains that eternal punishment, in the sense of eternal suffering, does not exist: the impenitent sinners as well as Satan and his rebellious angels, demons, etc. are doomed only for annihilation, which is to reduce to nothing and cease to exist. Immortality, eternal life, or endless existence is all the same to them, and it shall be given only to those who have salvation (it is obvious that life and existence are not the same thing, for example, a chair exists but has no life! )
The institution wants to submit the Christian to the yoke of the Law given to Moses, away from the grace of God. Having materialized a sanctuary in heaven, it feels compelled to materialize everything else: in addition to a sanctuary in heaven, with chandeliers, curtains, table of unleavened bread and ark of the covenant, it had to place in the ark the two tables of stone with the ten commandments, and to urge everyone to submit to them.