If one could ask a billion people within professing Christendom if they are Christians one would hear something akin to, “Yes. I belong to the ———— church (denominaion).”  Regardless of the response, the responder would at some point let the questioner know the name of the organization to which he/she “belongs.”  The possibilities number in the hundreds.  Was this the way the first church was organized by the One Who founded it?  Or has the church evolved in form and function over the past 2000 years ago?  And if so, how has it changed, who changed it and why?  And most importantly, did God approve of the change?

When the Almighty created the New Testament Church He created it perfectly.  The first church was organized exactly as He wanted it to be organized: “And He made some apostles and some prophets and some evangelists and some pastors and teachers for the PERFECTING (not numbering) OF THE SAINTS, for the WORK (teaching) of the ministry, for the edifying of THE BODY (not bodies) of Christ until we ALL come to THE (one) unity of THE (one) FAITH and of THE (one) KNOWLEDGE of the Son of God unto A (one) perfect MAN (symbolic for church), to THE measure (not measures) of the stature (not statures), to THE fullness (not fullnesses) of Christ (not the founders of the different churches)” (Eph. 4:11-13).  God created the church as ONE unified body with ONE set of rules which had been taught by Jesus of Nazareth to His 12 disciples.  Prior to His death He issued A (one) command concerning the spread of THE (one) GOSPEL upon which the apostles were to build THE CHURCH (not churches): “THIS (one) gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for A (singular) witness to all nations (people) ….” (Mat. 24:14).  Note that there was only ONE gospel (good news) and IT was to be preached throughout ALL nations.  Nowhere in the Bible are told that there would be more than one message from God to man–His (one) gospel of (concerning) the Kingdom of God.  What Jesus preached was as perfect as He was perfect.  Perfection cannot be improved upon and therefore does not need to be changed.  The apostles were commanded to preach THAT ONE PERFECT, UNCHANGEABLE GOSPEL TO PEOPLE IN ALL NATIONS.

The Apostle Paul had written to the church at Corinth about a problem that was causing divisions within that congregation.  He wrote that: “the (one) body is one (in number) and (it) has many members, and all the members of that ONE body, being many, are ONE BODY, so also is Christ”–Christ has only one body (church) (1 Cor. 12:12).  In verse 14 Paul reminds them that the (one) body has many members.  He then compares the members of God’s church to the parts of the human body.  Note that the physical parts (eye, hand, etc.)  are all parts of the SAME BODY, not different bodies.  In chapter 1 Paul chastises the Corinth congregation for allowing contending groups to exist in her midst: “For it has been declared to me that one of you says, ‘I am of (follow the teachings of) Paul;’ and (another says) ‘I am of Apollos;’ and (another) ‘I am of Cephas;’ and (another) ‘I am of Christ.’  Is Christ divided …?'” (vss 11-13).

In his letter to the Ephesian church Paul addresses this same problem.  He uses different words to deliver the same warning: “There is one body (of Christ), and one (Holy) Spirit … one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all ….” (4:4-6).  In that chapter Paul tells the Ephesus church not to be led away from Christ’s ONE gospel by the “sleight of men and (their) cunning craftiness by which they (false prophets) deceive.”  He goes on to say that there is THE (only) truth and THE (one and only) HEAD which is Christ (vss 15,16).  Recall that in John 17:17 Jesus said that God’s Word is Truth.  He made no allowance for the changing of that Truth by man.  Man took it upon himself to “improve” God’s singular church by dividing it into two conflicting parts: Catholicism and Protestantism.  Man further divided Protestantism into hundreds of divisions called “denominations.”

Denominations were created by power-hungry men in search of followers.  Each one had received from God “a new revolation concerning God’s Word.”  The evolution of their “new knowledge” has led to the church’s rejection of the Scriptures as God’s Truth.  This rejection became public information when a Texas pastor admitted what the whole of professing Christendom had been doing for centuries.  He admitted that his church was: “… stepping outside the Bible in search of truth.”  I was stunned to hear someone actually speak the truth about so-called Christianity today.  This ministry is dedicated to exposing that truth.  In summary, Catholicism (the great whore–mystery, Babylon) and her Protestant (harlot) daughters (denominations/churches–Rev. 17:1-5) are abominations to God.  For this reason He commands true God-seekers to: “Come out of her and be ye separate … touch not that unclean thing.”  Then, and only then, He will be their God and they will be His people (2 Cor. 6:14-7:1).  L.J.