Why isn't there only 1 Church?

Jesus is the One who established His Church ()

The New Testament teaches that the Church is not about buildings, but is a gathering of those who have experienced regeneration through saving faith in Christ. Christ is the head of His Church (). It is made clear that Jesus is the Supreme leader of His Church, not men. And notice in these passages (and there are others) the noun form for Church is singular

Jesus designed His Church to function as a unified Whole (; )

The tenth chapter of John highlights Jesus’ role as the Good Shepherd. Many aspects of Jesus’ role are brought to light in this chapter, but of note to this study is His design to shepherd one flock. At this point in His ministry, the Church has not come into existence - that occurs in . Jesus is speaking to His Jewish disciples and foretelling of His “other” sheep (the Gentiles) that must be brought into the fold.

And while there are many other passages that support unity in the Church, the passage of is instructive. There exists only “one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all ().

And while there are many other passages that support unity in the Church, the passage of is instructive. There exists only “one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all ().

Where do all these different denominations and beliefs come from if all of us are using the same Bible?

A Brief Look at the Apostles’ Creed

I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; [he descended to the dead.] On the third day he rose again; he ascended into heaven, he is seated at the right hand of the Father, and he will come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen. (“9 Things You Should Know about the Apostles Creed, by Joe Carter; Dec 12, 2018; thegospelcoaltion.org)

This document (while not written by the Apostles) is a very good formalization of Christian belief. With the noted exception of the reference to Christ descending to Hell, as there is no biblical support for this position. It is however, interesting to note that many modern day Protestants have problem with the phrase, “I believe in the holy Catholic Church. That is not an real issue in that the word Catholic simply means universal.

As the Southern Baptist theologian Timothy George explains, “When we say that we ‘believe in the holy catholic church,’ we are confessing that Jesus Christ himself is the church’s one foundation, that all who truly trust in him as Savior and Lord are by God’s grace members of this church, and that the gates of hell shall never prevail against it.” (ibid)

As the Southern Baptist theologian Timothy George explains, “When we say that we ‘believe in the holy catholic church,’ we are confessing that Jesus Christ himself is the church’s one foundation, that all who truly trust in him as Savior and Lord are by God’s grace members of this church, and that the gates of hell shall never prevail against it.”

The Journey from the Catholic Church to the Roman Catholic Church

The Journey from the Catholic Church to the Roman Catholic Church

The Journey from the Catholic Church to the Roman Catholic Church

The process from being the One True Church that Jesus founded to the sacrilegious and blasphemous institution now known as the Roman Catholic Church (RCC) is a long, arduous, and tedious one. Without going into the history of how deceptive doctrines and teachings developed over time, suffice to say the biblical abuses of the RCC are legion.

Even a cursory reading of the New Testament will reveal that the Catholic Church does not have its origin in the teachings of Jesus or His apostles. In the New Testament, there is no mention of the papacy, worship/adoration of Mary (or the immaculate conception of Mary, the perpetual virginity of Mary, the assumption of Mary, or Mary as co-redemptrix and mediatrix), petitioning saints in heaven for their prayers, apostolic succession, the ordinances of the church functioning as sacraments, infant baptism, confession of sin to a priest, purgatory, indulgences, or the equal authority of church tradition and Scripture (What is the Origin of the Roman Catholic Church, gotquestions.org)

The unbiblical practices of the RCC led to the Reformation

The major doctrinal issue that sparked the movement known as the Reformation centered on how a lost person is justified by God. Martin Luther was a RCC priest and heavily invested in the religious system, but he could not find peace in the answer provided by the Church. As he studied Romans, God opened his eyes to see the position of Justification by Faith. This teaching that the unrighteous are made righteous by the imputed righteousness of Christ through the gift of faith went against the teaching of the Church.

The Need to purify the unbiblical practices of the RCC led to the Reformation

Consider the ramifications of Sola Scriptura & Sola Fide:

: if a lost person is saved when he or she accepts the gift of Jesus by trusting solely in Him (), what is the need of a priest to serve as a go-between

if a lost person is saved when he accepts the gift of Jesus by trusting solely in Him (), what is the need of a priest to serve as a go-between?

If Christ completely saves (), and to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord (), why should a person need to purchase indulgences to free a loved one from a place that doesn’t even exist?

If the sacrifice on the Cross was a one-time event (), what need is there for priests to conduct the unholy and unbiblical Mass in which Christ is re-sacrificed repeatedly? Not to mention Transubstantiation, a philosophical doctrine not even understandable without Aristotelian metaphysics?

The Reformers understood that living according to the truth and application of was more important than preserving power structures, empty traditions, and idolatry. This is why there is not just one Church in the visible sense, although we are confident in the Universal Church and the reality that Christ knows His own, regardless of the denomination (cf 2 Tim 2:19)