WHAT ABOUT DENOMINATIONS?
- Pastor Greg
When a person is genuinely saved by faith in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, God doesn’t place them into any one of hundreds of denominations. He doesn’t say “Sam, I think I’ll make a Pentecostal of you, or Susan, I think I’ll place you in the Presbyterian group, or Larry, I think you would fit into the Baptist clan very nicely, etc. No, when you were saved (now hang on to your spiritual hats) God placed you into the .......
FAMILY OF GOD. PERIOD.
I think I’ve made this statement before. Billy Graham was arguably one of the greatest souls winners God placed on this earth (if you disagree, please keep it to yourself. We don’t need the unfounded judgements of a man of whom I’m not worthy to shine his shoes).
Billy Graham, to my knowledge, never went around bragging on being a part of a boxed-in denomination. Because of that, he would draw thousands of people of all denominations to his great tent revivals, and as a result, God’s Spirit moved greatly among people and thousands upon thousands received Jesus Christ as Savior. Graham thought it more important to emphasize Jesus Christ rather than a denomination. He thought the shed blood of the Lamb of God was far more critical than publishing his rally’s as “Baptist” only. You see, the ground level at the foot of the cross is perfectly even, the same Savior for all mankind.
This can also be seen in the early Church. The Bible says that “souls were added to the “CHURCH” such as should be saved. Denominations did not exist until much later. In fact, it was over one year before Paul and Barnabas started calling the early converts as Christians because they had learned and conformed to Christ through the teachings of the early Pastors. Before then they were called such names as disciples, brethren, or simply followers of Christ.
To me, denominations are like little boxes where we separate believers into certain beliefs and ideologies, most of which are petty and childish at best. What I’m trying to convey to us all, is the indisputable fact that we are ONE IN CHRIST JESUS even though we may vary on certain biblical opinions and belong to certain denominations. Christ and Him crucified is the paramount message.
I personally believe we have accentuated the boundaries of denominations so much, that we have alienated ourselves from one another. That is not the original plan that God designed for his church to follow. I should not avoid you simply because of what church you belong to. Maybe we don’t see eye to eye on some things that are NOT ESSENTIAL to salvation, it certainly doesn’t mean we can’t be friends and share our faith together. That was God’s original plan, to be a huge family with blood tied through Jesus Christ.
Having said the above, that’s why, to the best of my knowledge, I have never associating myself with any denomination on Facebook. Just as Billy Graham, I want to be friends and share the Gospel with everyone. For everyone needs to hear and receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.
Of course, those of you who have known me for many years know what denomination I was raised in, and I respectfully ask you not to even mention it. My mission is to be like Paul, to preach the un-searchable riches of Jesus Christ to every soul who will listen.
I don’t want to allow myself to place God in a box and set limits on what He can, or can’t do. God
ALWAYS WORKS OUTSIDE OF MAN-MADE BOXES.
As Paul said:
“There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are ALL ONE in Christ Jesus.” - Galatians 3:28
Think about these things and see if it’s worth friendships being destroyed over petty differences. I guarantee absolutely none of us is perfect in the knowledge of the Scriptures. Other than God Himself, Satan knows the Scriptures far better than all of us put together.
You know I love you all!
“Keep on Praying, Praising, and Proclaiming the Truth of God’s Word!”
IMPORTANT NOTE: This message is discussing ‘denominations’, not various ‘faiths’. That is entirely a different subject altogether. If you are unsure about the two, look them up and research the difference. If you still don’t quite understand, send me a message.
- Pastor Greg
When a person is genuinely saved by faith in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, God doesn’t place them into any one of hundreds of denominations. He doesn’t say “Sam, I think I’ll make a Pentecostal of you, or Susan, I think I’ll place you in the Presbyterian group, or Larry, I think you would fit into the Baptist clan very nicely, etc. No, when you were saved (now hang on to your spiritual hats) God placed you into the .......
FAMILY OF GOD. PERIOD.
I think I’ve made this statement before. Billy Graham was arguably one of the greatest souls winners God placed on this earth (if you disagree, please keep it to yourself. We don’t need the unfounded judgements of a man of whom I’m not worthy to shine his shoes).
Billy Graham, to my knowledge, never went around bragging on being a part of a boxed-in denomination. Because of that, he would draw thousands of people of all denominations to his great tent revivals, and as a result, God’s Spirit moved greatly among people and thousands upon thousands received Jesus Christ as Savior. Graham thought it more important to emphasize Jesus Christ rather than a denomination. He thought the shed blood of the Lamb of God was far more critical than publishing his rally’s as “Baptist” only. You see, the ground level at the foot of the cross is perfectly even, the same Savior for all mankind.
This can also be seen in the early Church. The Bible says that “souls were added to the “CHURCH” such as should be saved. Denominations did not exist until much later. In fact, it was over one year before Paul and Barnabas started calling the early converts as Christians because they had learned and conformed to Christ through the teachings of the early Pastors. Before then they were called such names as disciples, brethren, or simply followers of Christ.
To me, denominations are like little boxes where we separate believers into certain beliefs and ideologies, most of which are petty and childish at best. What I’m trying to convey to us all, is the indisputable fact that we are ONE IN CHRIST JESUS even though we may vary on certain biblical opinions and belong to certain denominations. Christ and Him crucified is the paramount message.
I personally believe we have accentuated the boundaries of denominations so much, that we have alienated ourselves from one another. That is not the original plan that God designed for his church to follow. I should not avoid you simply because of what church you belong to. Maybe we don’t see eye to eye on some things that are NOT ESSENTIAL to salvation, it certainly doesn’t mean we can’t be friends and share our faith together. That was God’s original plan, to be a huge family with blood tied through Jesus Christ.
Having said the above, that’s why, to the best of my knowledge, I have never associating myself with any denomination on Facebook. Just as Billy Graham, I want to be friends and share the Gospel with everyone. For everyone needs to hear and receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.
Of course, those of you who have known me for many years know what denomination I was raised in, and I respectfully ask you not to even mention it. My mission is to be like Paul, to preach the un-searchable riches of Jesus Christ to every soul who will listen.
I don’t want to allow myself to place God in a box and set limits on what He can, or can’t do. God
ALWAYS WORKS OUTSIDE OF MAN-MADE BOXES.
As Paul said:
“There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are ALL ONE in Christ Jesus.” - Galatians 3:28
Think about these things and see if it’s worth friendships being destroyed over petty differences. I guarantee absolutely none of us is perfect in the knowledge of the Scriptures. Other than God Himself, Satan knows the Scriptures far better than all of us put together.
You know I love you all!
“Keep on Praying, Praising, and Proclaiming the Truth of God’s Word!”
IMPORTANT NOTE: This message is discussing ‘denominations’, not various ‘faiths’. That is entirely a different subject altogether. If you are unsure about the two, look them up and research the difference. If you still don’t quite understand, send me a message.