oh the commonplace of division...
This is halfway in response to Mr. Capozzi's post, it at least inspired me to write.
The church has undergone many changes throughout history based upon different hermeneutical understandings, or interpretations of the Holy Scriptures. It has been brought to my attention that the more I read the Bible the more I have to have faith in what I believe. Why? Our Bible, is a makeshift document, it is not laser beamed down from heaven written in greek, aramaic, KJV, or the NIV. The word of God exists in fragments, the N.T. has 53,000 seperate manuscripts alone, all in which are studied and "pieced" together to bring us our greek and aramaic bibles, which we say are the original languages...true, but. This is not a new insight for many, but with that said, this information prompts us to investigate our different denominations that are all brought about from different interpretations of the bible!
So what do we do with denominations? A house divided against itself cannot stand Jesus says, for to understand Jesus' fulfillment of the prophets he was to unite Israel under God, in which we are all recipients of this blessing. Where it seems that the lines between many denominations are hardlined, it is also important to note that many denominations do not recognize themselves as the "true church" outside of other denominations (this would indicate a cult following or such), but rather many state their purpose in the Church of Christ universally with an emphasis or bent towards a particular doctrine. For me to say I am Nazarene does not indicate that I think I am better than baptists, or catholics or methodists. It simply means that I believe in holiness as the foremost theme throughout the OT and NT as the fulfillment of the Imago Dei. So what you might say...
Did Jesus intend for his church to experience a reformation? Did Martin Luther want a reformation to result in a billion denominations? Did Phineas Bresee want a new form of methodists called Nazarenes? The answer is no. Jesus came to make available the presence and power of God outside the temple, for he embodied the temple. The problem with denominations comes from people like us who think of ourselves higher than we ought...for if we are to be ushering in the kingdom of God we must be focused on deciphering the love of Christ. I like to think I know that Jesus was love but I must acknowledge that I fall short of knowing how to properly interpret and love like Christ. The world is divided, christianity is divided, and yet so was Israel from God - this is why Jesus fulfilled and redeemed Israel...this is why the Holy Spirit conitnues to lead us towards unity. IT may not be the best or most concise answer to our problem, but I/we must have faith that God is still working in the life of his Church.
The church has undergone many changes throughout history based upon different hermeneutical understandings, or interpretations of the Holy Scriptures. It has been brought to my attention that the more I read the Bible the more I have to have faith in what I believe. Why? Our Bible, is a makeshift document, it is not laser beamed down from heaven written in greek, aramaic, KJV, or the NIV. The word of God exists in fragments, the N.T. has 53,000 seperate manuscripts alone, all in which are studied and "pieced" together to bring us our greek and aramaic bibles, which we say are the original languages...true, but. This is not a new insight for many, but with that said, this information prompts us to investigate our different denominations that are all brought about from different interpretations of the bible!
So what do we do with denominations? A house divided against itself cannot stand Jesus says, for to understand Jesus' fulfillment of the prophets he was to unite Israel under God, in which we are all recipients of this blessing. Where it seems that the lines between many denominations are hardlined, it is also important to note that many denominations do not recognize themselves as the "true church" outside of other denominations (this would indicate a cult following or such), but rather many state their purpose in the Church of Christ universally with an emphasis or bent towards a particular doctrine. For me to say I am Nazarene does not indicate that I think I am better than baptists, or catholics or methodists. It simply means that I believe in holiness as the foremost theme throughout the OT and NT as the fulfillment of the Imago Dei. So what you might say...
Did Jesus intend for his church to experience a reformation? Did Martin Luther want a reformation to result in a billion denominations? Did Phineas Bresee want a new form of methodists called Nazarenes? The answer is no. Jesus came to make available the presence and power of God outside the temple, for he embodied the temple. The problem with denominations comes from people like us who think of ourselves higher than we ought...for if we are to be ushering in the kingdom of God we must be focused on deciphering the love of Christ. I like to think I know that Jesus was love but I must acknowledge that I fall short of knowing how to properly interpret and love like Christ. The world is divided, christianity is divided, and yet so was Israel from God - this is why Jesus fulfilled and redeemed Israel...this is why the Holy Spirit conitnues to lead us towards unity. IT may not be the best or most concise answer to our problem, but I/we must have faith that God is still working in the life of his Church.
posted by Levi at
8:33 AM
1 Comments:
a topic close to my heart, as you know! in reference to my post, i am not really as much against denominations as i am against the "conversion" between denominations or other forms of the christian religion.
i don't care what we call ourselves as long as we can all be called followers of Christ by our Father in Heaven. ya know? so, to me, whether i am a nazarene amidst a baptist congregation or vice versa, what matters is that we are sharing a common faith in the same Lord of Creation.
this is a solid and fruitful discussion though and i think it should take place more frequently.
i was recently told about a book called "Pagan Christianity?" that apparently deals with this topic...i will check it out and let you know what i think...
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home