I see so much division in the church body. I don't understand that. People are divided over everything, every little thing. Who then can make it?
If we can't get along here and be unified, how will we spend eternity together?
That is why I pray to love my brother AND my enemy. (We are commanded to love our enemies too.) Is the love word used in both of these commands the same root word?
What are the things scripturally that we should be divided over? Besides the obvious stuff. Is it every little thing?
I just feel such a deep despair over this right now and it's grieving my spirit. Why are we so divided? Does this grieve the heart of God?
Are there scriptures about this? Why do we have so many different denominations? Does that grieve the heart of God?
Hi Donna. GiGi has shared very well here, covering my similar thoughts. Though I wasn't sure whether your concern was about 'divisive thoughts' on this Site or you were referring generally to the Church, or maybe both.
I don't believe our differences in understanding the many biblical themes, manner of conducting Church meetings, or engaging in vigorous discussions about Bible teaching & doctrines, come as a surprise to our Heavenly Father. If the apostolic Church had problems & differences of opinion that needed highlighting & correction, one can be assured that the Church two thousand years later will have those same issues, only exacerbated.
What concerns the Father's Heart is whether we have been regenerated by His Spirit, living holy lives, sensitive to His Spirit, doing the Will of God. Those with such lives can only be passionate about the One Who gave His all for us, dealing with sin's fiery darts as they seek to cause disruption to that holy relationship. And I believe that such people can be found in all denominations, & where there is falsehood entertained, the Spirit of God will teach the true believer of the error & to withdraw from them. Many do leave such places having been convicted - many do search the Word for themselves to learn the Truth - many do find true liberty in Christ when they were once in bondage to ungodly teaching/practises. The Spirit's Work in His children cannot be bound - His Work is perfect. The Body is still visible & alive - it's just spread over the many groups as individuals meet all over the world. One day, we'll all come together in Truth, joy & our common hope.
I realize that the world might see the Church's divisions more than they see those who have been truly changed inwardly. But as the Church (i.e. each member of the Body) lives out their lives in the world, the world must also see the difference that Christ can make as no religion can. We are His witnesses & His light, & to shine that Light to all.
I did mean globally, not on this site. I'm just a baby Christian pretty much. I really want to find a good Bible study so I can fellowship in the word someday like y'all. God bless you:Thank you for your reply.
While I think is it fine to have differences of viewpoints on spiritual matters and it is fine for us to discuss these things respectfully (as this is not arguing or divisive). But it is another thing for someone to come here with a penchant for stirring up contention.
Some people are more sensitive to differences of viewpoints being expressed than others. I understand that. I have often wondered why God allowed the church to divide into so many denominations since the times of the Reformation. Luther did not want to divide the church; he wanted it to be reformed (as did Calvin and Zwingli and Huss). There was a lot of persecution and killing of Protestants by the Roman Catholic Church. Some say more were killed by the Roman Catholic C
Church than in all of the persecutions in the early centuries by pagan Rome.
Then Protestants (in a much smaller scale) persecuted and killed each other, too. So, that is very sad to me. Over the past 600 years the body of Christ has split and divided continually. Within Denominations there are splits into different wcts of the same denomination. I wish that our history was different. I wish that the church could have been reformed, purged, purified and remained in unity. I trust that God is at work in all of this and He will bring it to a good end.
This forum happens to include people from many different denominational and theological backgrounds, so the comments will not be all of one accord. We should understand that and accept this. We can learn from each other, perhaps better in this way than if we all were from the same denomination and the same theological viewpoint. We can be very isolated in our own little corner by this, unaware or the wide variety of thought on theological topics. on here, we get exposure to more and I think it is good and helpful.
I hope that you are growing, too. Thank you for sharing your feelings about this. It helps us to be more sensitive to one another.
If we can't get along here and be unified, how will we spend eternity together?
That is why I pray to love my brother AND my enemy. (We are commanded to love our enemies too.) Is the love word used in both of these commands the same root word?
What are the things scripturally that we should be divided over? Besides the obvious stuff. Is it every little thing?
I just feel such a deep despair over this right now and it's grieving my spirit. Why are we so divided? Does this grieve the heart of God?
Are there scriptures about this? Why do we have so many different denominations? Does that grieve the heart of God?
I don't believe our differences in understanding the many biblical themes, manner of conducting Church meetings, or engaging in vigorous discussions about Bible teaching & doctrines, come as a surprise to our Heavenly Father. If the apostolic Church had problems & differences of opinion that needed highlighting & correction, one can be assured that the Church two thousand years later will have those same issues, only exacerbated.
What concerns the Father's Heart is whether we have been regenerated by His Spirit, living holy lives, sensitive to His Spirit, doing the Will of God. Those with such lives can only be passionate about the One Who gave His all for us, dealing with sin's fiery darts as they seek to cause disruption to that holy relationship. And I believe that such people can be found in all denominations, & where there is falsehood entertained, the Spirit of God will teach the true believer of the error & to withdraw from them. Many do leave such places having been convicted - many do search the Word for themselves to learn the Truth - many do find true liberty in Christ when they were once in bondage to ungodly teaching/practises. The Spirit's Work in His children cannot be bound - His Work is perfect. The Body is still visible & alive - it's just spread over the many groups as individuals meet all over the world. One day, we'll all come together in Truth, joy & our common hope.
I realize that the world might see the Church's divisions more than they see those who have been truly changed inwardly. But as the Church (i.e. each member of the Body) lives out their lives in the world, the world must also see the difference that Christ can make as no religion can. We are His witnesses & His light, & to shine that Light to all.
While I think is it fine to have differences of viewpoints on spiritual matters and it is fine for us to discuss these things respectfully (as this is not arguing or divisive). But it is another thing for someone to come here with a penchant for stirring up contention.
Some people are more sensitive to differences of viewpoints being expressed than others. I understand that. I have often wondered why God allowed the church to divide into so many denominations since the times of the Reformation. Luther did not want to divide the church; he wanted it to be reformed (as did Calvin and Zwingli and Huss). There was a lot of persecution and killing of Protestants by the Roman Catholic Church. Some say more were killed by the Roman Catholic C
Church than in all of the persecutions in the early centuries by pagan Rome.
Then Protestants (in a much smaller scale) persecuted and killed each other, too. So, that is very sad to me. Over the past 600 years the body of Christ has split and divided continually. Within Denominations there are splits into different wcts of the same denomination. I wish that our history was different. I wish that the church could have been reformed, purged, purified and remained in unity. I trust that God is at work in all of this and He will bring it to a good end.
This forum happens to include people from many different denominational and theological backgrounds, so the comments will not be all of one accord. We should understand that and accept this. We can learn from each other, perhaps better in this way than if we all were from the same denomination and the same theological viewpoint. We can be very isolated in our own little corner by this, unaware or the wide variety of thought on theological topics. on here, we get exposure to more and I think it is good and helpful.
I hope that you are growing, too. Thank you for sharing your feelings about this. It helps us to be more sensitive to one another.
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