What’s Wrong With It?

Is God the Designer of It?

BAPTIST

METHODIST

CATHOLIC

PRESBYTERIANLUTH

ERAN?

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?

???

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One of Two Choices

• EITHER:you accept the denominational explanation of denominationalism and the church

• OR:you accept the Bible’s explanation of the church and reject denominationalism

One of Two Choices

• EITHER:God designed and approves of denominationalism

• OR:God did not design and does not approve of denominationalism

Mt 15:13, “But He answered and said, "Every plant which My heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted” (NKJV)

“Denominational Concept”

• the church is composed of different denominational churches

“Denominational Concept”

• Jesus = Vine; Churches = Branches

CHRIST

Catholic

Presbyterian

Lutheran

Baptist

Methodist

“Denominational Concept”

• Jesus = Vine; Churches = Branches

TheChurch

CatholicBaptist

Methodist

Lutheran

Pentecostal

THE INDIVIDUAL!

John 15:4, 54 "Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.5 "I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.

(NKJV)

WHO?

BIBLEVIEW

Biblical Concept

• Jesus = Vine; Individuals = Branches

CHRIST Paul

Phoebe

Peter James John

INDIVIDUALS!

Acts 2:47“praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved”

(NKJV)

BIBLEVIEW

WHO?

1 Corinthians 12:27

“Now you are Christ’s body, and individually members of it.”

(NASB)

BIBLEVIEW

“As the Body is One”

12 For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ.13 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and have all been made to drink into one Spirit.14 For in fact the body is not one member but many.

(NKJV)

These passages present problems

• With those who want to cling to a denominational church

• With those who are content with the modern denominational world

• With reconciling the present denominational world to the New Testament’s “body.”

A Denomination

• was built by man away from truth

A Denomination

• was built by man away from truth• large falling away predicted (man of sin)• “Let no one deceive you by any means; for that

Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God” (2 Thess. 2:3, 4)

A Denomination

• was built by man away from truth• large falling away predicted (man of sin)• Judaizing element (Acts 15, Galatians, etc.)• Gnosticism (1 & 2 John)• Caesar Worship (Revelation, esp. 13)• Roman Catholicism

A Denominational Church

• was built by man away from truth• was built after the Lord’s Church

• Roman Catholic ~325 A.D. • Council of Nicaea• “In settling the dispute over Arianism, the First

Council also adopted a creed--a confession of orthodox faith--that all Christians would be required to assent to. This Nicene Creed was enforced by the state as well by the church” (www.essortment.com)

"I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of Heaven and Earth, and of all things visible and invisible, and in one Lord Jesus Christ His Son, the only begotten of the Father, God of God, Light of Light, true God of true God, begotten not made, being of the same substance with the Father, through whom all things were made both in Heaven and on Earth; who for us men and our salvation descended from Heaven, was incarnate of the Holy Ghost and of the Virgin Mary, and was made man; and was crucified also for us, under Pontius Pilate, suffered and was buried; and on the third day he rose again according to the Scripture, and ascended into Heaven, and sits on the right hand of the Father, and shall come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, of whose Kingdom there shall be no end. And I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and Giver of Life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who together with the Father and the Son is to be glorified also, who spoke by the Prophets. And in one holy, catholic, and apostolic church. We confess one baptism for the remission of sins. And we look for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen” (The Nicene Creed)

Why A Council?Why A Creed?

• Why not just ask Arius and his supporters if they believed in Philippians 2:5, 6?• “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ

Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God.”

• If they don’t believe it then “note” and “avoid” them (Rom. 16:17)• one could have the authority to publish it to other

churches (cf. Gal. 2:10ff)

A Denominational Church

• was built by man away from truth• was built after the Lord’s Church

• Roman Catholic -325 A.D.• Lutheran -1530 A.D.• Episcopalian -1534 A.D.• Presbyterian -1534 A.D.• Baptist ~1607 A.D.• Methodist -1729 A.D.• Mormon -1830 A.D.• Adventist -1831 A.D.

A Denominational Church

• was built by man away from truth• was built after the Lord’s Church• may accept most of what the Bible

teaches• “All Scripture” (2 Tim. 3:16)

A Denominational Church

• was built by man away from truth• was built after the Lord’s Church• may accept most of what the Bible

teaches• is full of good people

A Denominational Church

• was built by man away from truth• was built after the Lord’s Church• may accept most of what the Bible

teaches• is full of good people• has earthly headquarters

A Denominational Church

• was built by man away from truth• was built after the Lord’s Church• may accept most of what the Bible

teaches• is full of good people• has earthly headquarters• is larger than the local church and

smaller than the universal church

LutheranMethodist

BaptistPentecostal

AdventistPresbyterian

C

C

C

C

C

C C

SMALLER THAN THE UNIVERSAL

LARGER THAN THE LOCAL CHURCH