A reader asks: "If the Bible provides all of God's words why are there 1000 different Christian churches all believing in the Bible, but all having different doctrine? Who's right? Who's wrong?...How do all these churches come to ' unity of the faith' (Eph. 4:13)?...The only way to find truth is to ask God, who is the source of all truth!"
There as a vast difference in "believing in the Bible" and believing the Bible. One may believe "in" the Bible, but not believe THE Bible.
There may be 1000 different denominations but Christ built only ONE church and no denominations. He said, "I will build MY church" (Matt. 16:18). Paul said: "There is ONE body [church], and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all" (Eph. 4:4-6). There are the same number of churches as there are Gods: ONE. Man may teach 1000 different ways to be saved but there is only one gospel plan of salvation. If there are 1000 different plans taught, there are at least 999 of them wrong.
The question: "How do all these churches come to 'unity of faith'?" People can come into "a unity of faith," without coming into unity of "THE FAITH." "The faith" is the gospel. In Gal. 3:23 we read where Paul said: "But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed." The faith that was revealed was the gospel of Christ. "But after that faith is come [the gospel], we were no longer under a schoolmaster [old covenant]. For ye are all the children of God by [the] faith in Christ Jesus." How did they become children of God Paul? "For as many of you as have been [past tense] baptized into Christ have put on Christ" (Gal. 3:25-27).
They became "children of God" by having been baptized into Christ. that is the only means by which one can get into Christ. There are no children of God outside of Christ. To be in Christ is to be in his church. "And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be head over all things to the church, which is his body..." (Eph. 1:22-23). It is not possible to come into unity of THE faith outside of Christ.
"The only way to find the truth is to ask God, who is the source of all truth." "Sanctify them through thy truth thy word is truth" (John 17:17). Of course, God is the source of truth, but he says his word is the truth (singular). He is the source of only one truth, and that is the gospel of Christ, the New Testament.
God does answer prayers, but He does not directly reveal truth to anyone by means of prayer. We are commanded to, "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth" (II Tim. 2:15). If the only way to know truth is to ask God, why the command to study the word?
"If ye continue in my word, then ye are my disciple indeed: And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free" (John 8:31-32). In order for one to be "free," he must know "the truth." But we are commanded to study in order to know "the truth."
The Bible is all-sufficient to show one what to do to be saved from past sins. It is all-sufficient to show man how to live the faithful Christian life after being saved from his past sins. The Bible shows man that he must ever recognize the authority of God by submitting to God's word. He must neither add to nor take away from God's word (Deut. 4:2; Rev. 22:18-19).
"If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God" (I Pet. 4:11).
Don H. Noblin
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