Finding your denominational home

Have you found your denominational home? I have not and I just don't know why. I grew up Lutheran and when I became a believer I went back to the Lutheran church and then left after a few weeks. I really wanted to get involved there but I could not find myself telling people to trust in their baptism.

From there I was in the Assemblies of God and church of God. 8 years under all of that and today, I don't agree with that. I have been to the Nazarene church and the one I attended is going the way of Joel Osteen. Baptists seemed the closest to me and yet I went to visit one for 4 months, a mega church, and I heard questionable things in it.

I currently go to a Presb and it is the first time I heard of Reformed theology. I don't agree with it either but I stay because they use hymnals and the preaching is very good though I noticed they don't preach on the forgiveness of sins alot.

So I found a little quiz to take to give me an idea of what I may ascribe to. I originally guessed Baptist. It told me Orthodox Quakers and then Free Will Baptist?

I was scratching my head on that one. Truth be told if Lutherans held a few things different I would probably ascribe to Lutheranism. I can't believe baptismal regeneration or infant baptism. I also don't agree that Communion is the literal Blood and Body of Jesus but I have read that it is gnostic to believe that it is anything other then the literal Blood and Body.

So what are your comments? How did you arrive within a denomination?

John

John it certainly is not gnostic to reject the actual presence of Christ on the elements of communion. Safely reject that idea.

Blaine

Sometimes without a church home I feel like an orphan. Do you have a church home?

dolfan

Do you know anything about Gnosticism?

The Presb church I attend is a great church but I find I don't agree with reformed theology. I also don't agree with infant baptism that they practice. I am there for 2 reasons. They use hymnals to sing from and I do analyze the words to see what is being said and the preaching is good though I do recognize that more is said about the Sovereignty of God than forgiveness of sins though the pastor does make an appeal to everyone about repentance.

Reformed theology is what stops me from being a member of the church.

In central FL there must be a lot of nondenominational evangelical churches. Why not try one of them- just read their statement if beliefs first. Most have websites.

Greg

You echo my sentiment. This Presb church is by far the best one I have attended as far as what I hear from the pulpit. I am not hearing alot of the pastors life or how you fit in to the bible like the modern preachers are doing. It is the reason I stay there because I literally takes notes in this church. Pastor will sometimes give out a word from the original language and talk about it briefly and so forth. He even uses one of those old fashioned pulpits like D James Kennedy did. Where you walk up into it with a huge bible on top of it. God is very revered in this church!

Brothers,

Although I understand the factors leading to the establishment of different denominations and that men have had to leave certain expressions of local churches for various reasons throughout history, I am pretty sure that if we dig deep enough, the reasons were fleshly and human.

To me, the very fact that we name a local church / denomination different from another, we are contributing to divisions in Christ's church.
There is one Christ, one Savior, one Lord, one Baptism.

Men are the ones who decided to divide and name and shame etc.

Surely heresy and wrong doctrine etc. can be confronted and dealt with without starting a new denomination?

I know we will probably never visibly reach perfection in this area and most of us, for now, need to take the good with the not so good in the local churches we are attending.
Let us be a force for good, godly and biblically faithful teaching and practice wherever we are.

Blessings,

Unfortunately, it is difficult to "know" a church by its name nowadays. Many of the denominational churches where I live have launched themselves into a moral and doctrinal abyss that is devoid of essential biblical doctrines.

Just this week, one of the congregations was featured in a local newspaper for holding LGBT square dances at the church. Another church in our neighborhood hung up a "Black Lives Matter" vinyl banner last year and hasn't taken it down since (despite, oddly enough, the congregation consisting of primarily Caucasians). Yet another local denominational church has opened up their buildings for Muslim prayers so that they could "take a stand" against Trump's recent immigration moratorium.

I was reading a conversation between some "Christian" people on a message board. They were taking turns lambasting President Trump for "pushing religion" at his inauguration and even in a few speeches. They spoke about how he should be "impeached" -- until one of them mentioned that he was more afraid of Vice President Mike Pence taking over because he is a "religious zealot" who is "more dangerous" because he truly "believes" his faith.

Over the last eight years, we've seen people trying to lump churches with traditional biblical stands into the same group as vile hate-mongering groups like the "Westboro Baptist Church" cult. If you believe in the biblical view of marriage, divorce, sexuality, modesty, etc., such people will try to lump you with radical ideologues or hate-filled congregations.

When it comes to fellowship with a local church body, I would definitely pray for the Lord's guidance. Since we are all flawed on this side of the "glass darkly," we won't find a "perfect church." Our very presence might pollute it (if one actually existed). We don't go for indoctrination. We don't go for compliance. We don't go out of some formal compulsion. Rather, we go to encourage and be encouraged. We go to fellowship with others that long to know and walk with Christ Jesus.

...the visible church is not doing very well, is she?

We really need to pay attention to the writings of ministers like AW Tozer. who, although part of a "denomination" was not ruled by this but tried to remain faithful to God and his Word, and His purpose with the church.

Judgement will begin, and has begun, in the house of God.

The tares and the wheat grow up side by side....

Let us pray...

YOU WILL NEVER FIND A PERFECT CHURCH OR PASTOR.

Why? Because neither are you perfect, nor your beliefs. That little nugget took some time to sink into my skull!

Bro, God created us "imperfect" and still loves us knowing this. So if you and I are imperfect, what is the chance of every pastor and preacher also being imperfect?! Yep, 100%?!!

Bro, it's like looking for a spouse, you will never, ever find a perfect spouse but you can find someone you can live with and love all the days of your life!

Find a church and LOVE THEM!!

God bless,
Lisa

This may be a silly question but have you prayed about what church the Lord wants you to offer your gifts, services, thanksgivings and praises up to Him ?
At the end of the day do the few things you dislike/disagree with outweigh all the things you like? If so better to move on sooner than later....

One more thing.... we're in a spiritual war and when we look at it in these terms it helps to remind us of how we are to proceed- for instance in a war zone if a solider gets disconnected from his platoon he is (for the most part) ineffective, however when he is reconnected and his training (gifts) is identified then he can be utilized/mobilized.
So identify your gifts and seek to offer them to Gods glory and the "platoon" or church home will find you in the sense that you will meet with them out in the battle and fellowship will flow from a common purpose which in my experience supersedes semantics of maturity and theology-

Hope that helps and pray your talents are put into service to our King that He may be glorified in all you do:)

The prayer of our Lord in John 17 is for unity:
"That they all may be one; as Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be one in Us: that the world may believe that Thou hast sent Me. And the glory which Thou gavest Me I have given them; that they may be one, even as We are one." (John 17:21,22) The Apostle Paul says this: "Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:” (Ephesians 4:13).

Many Denominations were founded in times of revival by men of God that had a revelation of certain truths in the Word of God. However, the same thing that ended many revivals, also choked the life out of these denominations, and that is that man attempted to organize what God had began, and certain truths in the scriptures were emphasized while others were neglected.

Denominations have not brought unity to the Body of Christ, but are the cause of much disunity. "For while one said, I am of Paul (Baptist, Methodist,
etc.); and another, I am of Apollos (Pentecostal, AOG,
etc.); are you not carnal?" (1Cor.3:4)

The dissatisfaction of Christians with the Denominations has resulted in many believers breaking fellowship with other believers and being cut off from the true fellowship within the Body of Christ that the Lord desires for us all. "Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching." (Hebrews 10:25).

We should hold fast to the Head and seek the true fellowship of the Body of Christ, that is not an organization but that is a living, breathing organism that is alive, having it's life in Jesus Christ and functioning by the Spirit of God.

As we relocate and leave our home fellowship behind, sadly, we are open to re-enter the world of Sunday brick and mortar churches. This thread is helping me to pray specifically that we will quickly find one or two like minded believing couples that the Lord fastens us to in love within such a "church". Jesus only gave Himself fully to 12 and most fully to only 3 or so it seems. My heart wants to be pliable in the Lord and not proud, but also to be wise in Him and to cut away from the current of the American church. I believe that such a close bond with only a few believers with long lives in the faith will help offset and make small those splinters I find in the eye of the American church and to remove the planks in my own. That is my prayer of "Lord, at least this please, or redirect my prayer to what pleases you."