I am not so naive as to think we could do away with all denominations and just be Christians. Though I long for that with all my heart, I know that as long as there is more than one man in the world, there will be more than one way of seeing things. An army is made up of many companies, and each might have its own way of interpreting the field manual. But as long as they are all loyal to the same Captain and follow His orders, then they are all on the same side. And this is the only division that really matters: loyalty to the Captain of our salvation, our Lord Jesus Christ. The Bible only distinguishes between two kinds of people: the church and the world; those who believe that Christ is God, and those who do not. If you believe that Christ is God, and that He came into the the world to save sinners from their sins, that He died and was buried and rose again the third day and accomplished the work He came to do, then there is one thing I can say to you: Welcome, brother.
When the eunuch asked Philip if he could be baptized, what did Philip say? Did he ask him who all he thought was going to Heaven? Did he care whether the eunuch thought they should have harps in the synagogue or not? Did he ensure he understood the five points of Calvinism? No. He asked him a simple question: Do you believe? The eunuch's answer was, Yes, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. And that was enough. Philip stopped that chariot and baptized the man. Why worry about who we think is going to be in Heaven? We'll find out when we get there! And I don't remember seeing the name Calvin anywhere in the Bible, so I don't really care what he thinks. All we should care about is what Jesus said, and then following that.
In Mark 9:38, John comes to Jesus and tells Him that they found a man who was casting out devils in Christ's name, but they told him to stop because he wasn't part of their little group; their little church. How could this guy be doing any good if he's not a member of our church? I mean hey, we're as good as it gets, we've got Jesus right here! But Jesus tells them to leave him alone. He said if the man was doing miracles in Christ's name, then He could not be against Christ. And if he's not against Christ, then he's on our side. What was important to Jesus Himself, the One all of us are trying to please? It wasn't membership, it was His name. He cared about whether the man believed on Him and was doing these works in His name. He then goes on to say that anyone who does a good work, even if it is just giving a drink of water, in the Son's name is worthy of a reward in God's eyes. But the disciples must have touched on something important to Jesus, because He keeps going. He says in v. 42 that anyone who offends (trips up, vexes, rejects) one who "believes in me", it would be better for them in God's eyes to be dead. Because face it, this is what happens when you try to swim with a millstone on your neck. Then in v. 43-49 Jesus sounds like He's chastising the disciples. He tells them that they can worry all they want to about keeping themselves straight. Worry about their own hands and feet and eyes. But not once did Christ say it was alright to cut off another's hand and cast it into Hell. He says His followers should be focused on cutting out of their lives anything that would offend or hinder them, and as they do this, they will work towards becoming that salt of the world, the salt that preserves and flavors the world. But if the children's focus gets off, if they start trying to cut each other up instead of the sin in their own lives, then the salt has lost its saltness, and is good for nothing. So He sums it up in v. 50 and says that we should have salt in ourselves and "be at peace with one another."
"Graham, this sounds dangerously like you are saying, 'Hey, it doesn't matter what we believe, as long as we love Jesus,'" you might say. I do not mean to say that doctrine is unimportant. It is very important. You should strive to learn all you can about what the Bible says about everything, about what you believe and why you believe it, and what the proof for it is. Because there is a truth, and there can be only one truth or it wouldn't be the truth. But don't study the Bible so that you can beat someone over the head with it and win an argument. And don't forget that we should all be searching for the same truth. It seems that Christ is more concerned with you actually doing what He said to do and serving others than trying to convert everyone to your own particular denomination. Actions speak louder than words, so it might be that while the church is going about doing good, that people might become interested and ask what the reason is for the hope that is in us. This is when the knowledge of doctrine comes into play as you explain to this person what you believe and why.
But let me ask you this: will me and you disagreeing with one another about how many mansions there are in Heaven, or about preservation and perseverance really hinder us from doing good works together? Will it stop us from feeding the poor or visiting the sick? Will it prevent us from really doing the Lord's work as one body?
Let's change our attitude. Let's stop viewing fellow Christians who believe differently than we do as the enemy, as a danger. We need to remember that we are all on the same side. Let us have peace one with another.
