L
lanman87
Guest
Most don’t argue that their views are 100% correct. Only a few denominations will say “my way or the highway”. The only ones who come to mind are some Independent Fundamentals KJV only Baptist and Restorationist Churches such as the Church of Christ.So how exactly do non Catholic denominations of Christianity argue that their views are the correct one?
Pretty much every other Evangelical church teaches that there are basic beliefs that you must adhere to to be part of the body of Christ. While there is no formal list of things I’m aware of, it is a loose consensus of like belief about Christ, Faith, and the inerrancy of Scripture that we recognize in each others teaching that bind us together as the church (ecclesia or people of God). It is hard to describe but we seem to intuitively recognize (some would say because we are led by the Holy Spirit) authentic Christianity. That is why you will not find an American Evangelical church recognize the Mormons or Jehovah’s Witnessess as authentic Christian expressions.
We also recognize that we are falliable humans, and even though we seek to walk in the Spirit, we still have a carnal nature that influences our thoughts, desires, prejudices, experiences, and so forth. We believe that is true for us today, it was true for the apostolic fathers, for Augustine, Aquinas, Luther, Calvin, Edwards, Billy Graham, John Piper and every other preacher or theologian in history.
Therefore, we understand that because we are humans, we will have diverse opinions on different matters. We humans love to have opinions are argue about them. So while we form opinions on things like predestination or prevenient grace or even the correct method and timing of baptism, we also hold that those things, while important, does not prevent someone from being in the church (the body of Christ) if they hold differing opinions. Christ redeems us because we trust in Him for our salvation, not because of what we believe about baptism or if we are reformed or wesleyan in our Theology. We believe that in the end we will find out who is right about what and that we will all probably be shown were we were wrong or presumptuous in our opinions.
That is why you will see Assembly of God and Southern Baptist worship together and work together to serve the community in the name of Christ. That is why you will see Presbyterians and Methodist and Baptist join together in Bible study (I have been part of a men’s study with that dynamic and it was awesome). That is why you will see a Non-Denominational church be supported by other denominations when teaching English as a Second Language.
That is also why we are suspicious of any “church” or “preacher” who claims to right about everything.
Last edited: