To Encourage You

1 Peter 2:16-17 “Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servantsof God. Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor.”

Have you ever wondered why there are so many Protestant denominations? Do you have any idea of how many there are?  I can think of the following with churches in my small community here in Penns Valley: Baptist, Assembly of God, Mennonite, Amish (at least two types), United Church of Christ, Brethren in Christ, Pentecostal, God’s Missionary, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and Christian and Missionary Alliance.  But do you know that there are over 40,000 Protestant denominations world-wide?  So why is this?  And which one is the right one?  How does one make sense of such things? 

Well, I certainly don’t have all the answers for this, but I do have SOME of the answers for I’ve seen it in some of the churches of which I’ve been a member over the years.  Of course, the founder of a particular denomination is one thing that sets denominations apart, be it Martin Luther (Lutheran), Menno Simons (Mennonite), or John Wesley (Methodist).  But what motivated such men?  Typically, it was their particular view of the Scriptures.  This could be in a broad sense.  For example, some denominations believe the Bible “is” the Word of God. Others believe the Bible simply “contains” the Word of God. There’s a vast difference, for if the Bible simply “contains” the Word of God, who sets the criteria for which of those words are?  Some denominations believe strongly in the concept of inerrancy, i.e., that in the original manuscripts, the Bible was without error. Others believe there are errors.  Some teach that the Bible should be interpreted literally, while others believe that some accounts can be viewed as myths (e.g., the Creation account).  There are many other reasons. However, one particular reason that I would like to focus on here is the way a denomination might emphasize various teachings in the Bible and de-emphasize others. 

For example, the Bible clearly teaches that God is sovereign over the universe and that He has chosen those who will be His.  A word that describes this is “predestination.” This word is found in such places as Ephesians 1:5, which tells us that God has “predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will,” and Romans 8:30, which says, “And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.”  The concept of predestination is emphasized in what are known as the “reformed” churches, one of which is the Presbyterian denomination.  However, the Bible also talks about human responsibility in places like Joshua 24:14 which says, “And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord,” and Revelation 22:17 which says, “The Spirit and the Bride say, ‘Come.’ And let the one who hears say, ‘Come.’ And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price.” As a result, there are some denominations that de-emphasize the concept of predestination and teach that whether or not a person becomes a Christian is completely up to them.  It’s an emphasis on one truth and a de-emphasis of another. 

I believe that the Bible, to keep us from overemphasizing one part over another, tells us that every word is inspired, and that we should study all of it with the attitude that “ALL Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16-17). As we study God’s Word, we are told to “Do (our) best to present (ourselves) to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15).  It’s ALL important.  Paul emphasized this when he told the church at Ephesus, “I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27). 

One example of why it is important to teach all, not just part, of God’s Word is found in the passage above from 1 Peter.  Up until this point in his letter, Peter has been emphasizing that Christians, as part of the kingdom of God, are “exiles” and “sojourners” here on earth (1 Peter 1:1,17; 2:11).  However, Peter wanted to make sure that his readers didn’t overemphasize this truth, for, if so, they might have been tempted to think that they didn’t need to pay any attention to earthly government and the laws of the land.  He tells them in the passage above that although they were to think of themselves as “free” in one sense, i.e., they were those who were set free from sin and its curse on this world (which was so evident in wicked government systems like the one under which they lived), to disobey this worldly government would be a sin. Although they were servants of the most high God, God had commanded them to submit to the worldly government authorities (which He had established, by the way). In fact, He tells them to “honor the emperor,” who at the time was Nero, who was feeding Christians to the lions and crucifying them.

And so we see the whole picture of what service in the kingdom of God looks like, and how an incorrect emphasis of one part over another can actually cause us to sin.  So as we study God’s Word we are called to thoroughness.  We are warned to keep from overemphasizing one area of teaching while we de-emphasize or even neglect other areas.  Something to think about as you come to God’s Word and seek to understand the whole counsel of God rather than focus on some small part.