Denominations & The Body of Christ

I define myself simply as a Christian. That title alone (the mark of a follower of Christ) is an honor, a responsibility, and privilege. While I don't wear this title perfectly, I strive to do so with the grace, humility and perseverance modeled by Christ. In the past few years, the Lord has led me to call non-denominational churches my home. All I look for in a church is biblical truth, grace, accountability and fellowship. The actual denomination makes no difference to me. My ultimate relationship is with Christ.

I wrote those words in July 2005 shortly after I began attending WABC. I was reminded of them during Bible study last night.

Did you know that there are 22,000 Christian denominations in the world today? Is this a good thing? No. While some denominations were created to up hold the truth of scripture (as is often the case when a denomination splits over issues of doctrine), others are formed around issues of culture and worship styles.

Why are denominations detrimental? Take the Episcopalian church for example. One local body petitions for a homosexual minister to be ordained. One governing board (made up of individuals whose opinions may or may not represent the denomination as a whole) approves his ordination. Now the whole Episcopalian denomination has been tainted. If this one local body weren't part of the Episcopalian church, it would just be seen as one church (and certainly not the only one) that is straying from scripture. Instead, the Episcopalian church will probably split over this issue.

The other danger in denominations is that believers tend to identify more with their denomination than with the body of Christ as a whole. Christ wanted us to be one as He and the Father are one and yet some believers are often more interested in the church that I attend than the Lord whom I serve.

"I would be, as I hope I am, a Christian. But for those factious titles of Anabaptist, Independent, Presbyterian, and the like, I conclude that they come neither from Jerusalem nor from Antioch, but from Hell or Babylon."
-- John Bunyan

"Father Abraham, whom do you have in heaven? Any Episcopalians? No! Any Presbyterians? No! Any Independents of Methodist? No, no, no! Whom have you there? We don't know those names here. All who are here are Christians..... Oh, is this the case? Then God help us to forget party names and to become Christians in deed and truth"
-- George Whitefield

"Though I am an Episcopalian by birth, I yet feel such a oneness and sympathy with the cause of God at large that nothing would be more delightful than communing once a year with every church that holds the Head, even Christ."
-- William Wilberforce

I grew up in a Methodist church, and though I left that particular church over its departure from scripture, I don't look down on the denomination as a whole, though I might be more cautious before joining another Methodist congregation. I then spent six years at a Presbyterian church and though I never officially became member, it was there that I began to learn what it truly meant to be a member of the body of Christ at the local level. After moving to Chandler, I was a member of a large non-denominational church (2,000+ members) for 2-3 years and though I made plenty of friends and loving acquaintances, and while my relationship with Christ and His church did mature over that period, this particular congregation proved to be much too big for me. Church service and other activities often felt more like a large family reunion than Sunday dinner. It was too easy for me to just blend in. When I moved back to Phoenix, the Lord placed it on my heart to find a smaller congregation and then He faithfully led me to WABC. While, WABC has roots in the Apostolic denomination, it is now much more non-denominational. I don't attend WABC just because it's non-denominational, but rather because Christ is the center and scripture is its foundation.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not asking that people abandon their denominational church, just their allegiance to it. May our allegiance be to Christ alone!