The Authority of God
The source of all religious division
January 12, 2012
Does God have authority over the wind? If you ask this question among those who profess to believe in the one true God, the obvious answer is, yes He does. If you ask the question, does God have authority over the universe, then again the obvious answer is, yes He does. But if you follow this up by asking the question, does God have authority over you, then you might notice some hesitation before the question is answered, but the obvious answer is, once again, yes He does. So if that is the case, and it is, then what would you expect to do if God asked you to do something? This is such a simple and basic progression of logic that hardly anyone could fail to follow it and understand it. Herein lays the basic foundation and plea of the church of Christ.
With all this in mind, and with the understanding that obedience to the authority of God is the natural order of the universe and everything in it, then we have to decide what we will do with the knowledge of some of the things God has instructed us to do. One such thing and one of a high degree of importance is the prayer of Jesus on the night He was betrayed. As Jesus was making this prayer to God, He was fully aware that He was about to die. In John 17:20-22, Jesus had been praying for His apostles and He expanded His prayer to include “all those who would believe in Me through their word”. This includes you and me and all who today believe in Christ. Look at what this verse says;
John 17:20-22 (NKJV)
20 “I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word;
21 that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.
Could there be any clearer way to tell us that all Christians are to teach the same doctrine? While the concept of obedience to the will of God is fresh on our minds, what does this scripture do to the pattern of religious division we find in the world today? People who claim to have a reverence for some form of Christianity in today’s world somehow have been led to believe that division in religion is proper and acceptable and even approved by God. And even though there exists hundreds of different denominations of churches who all teach different doctrines and even though many of these doctrines actually contradict each other, people have been taught and conditioned to believe that this is somehow approved by God. And in spite of this scripture which teaches clearly that God’s instruction to us is for all to teach the same doctrine and to be one, as God and Christ are one, people still teach and believe that one church’s doctrines are as good as another and in some unknown way all are true and approved by God. With these 2 verses of scripture in plain, full view, what an amazing, deceitful, and successful lie the devil has influenced people to believe. Now this scripture is clear and precise and plain enough. And if this was the only one we had to explain this subject it would be enough.
But it is by no means the only scripture we have that tells us in no uncertain terms that our responsibility and duty as part of God’s creation is to be subject to His authority and to be obedient to His instructed will. Among the many verses that tell us to be subject to God’s authority and to obey His commandments is 1 John 5:2-3.
2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments.
3 For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments.
And just so we can know how serious it really is to be obedient to God’s authority , and to know that our salvation depends on it, look at Hebrews 5:9.
9 And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him,
Now this verse gives the positive side and offers eternal life to those who obey God. But there is a negative side as well.
Ephesians 5:6 is the negative side and tells what to expect for disobedience.
6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.
There are many other scriptures we could quote that show beyond doubt that just like all of God’s creation, man is subject to the authority of God and is expected to obey the commandments and instructions found in the word of God, the Bible. And with all of this evidence and all of these instructions in God’s Word, what does this tell us about all of the religious division found in the world today? For one thing, this tells us clearly and without doubt that this religious division is neither authorized nor approved by God. The churches of Christ have always recognized this and the plea has always been that all those who profess themselves to be Christians and have a desire to submit to the authority of Christ should join themselves together and teach the same doctrines and become part of the one body described in the Word of God. We need to all be of the same mind and be united as one, just as God and Christ are united as one.
Many would ask, how can unity be possible as divided as we are? And this, too, has been considered and studied for many years within the churches of Christ and the answer is much simpler than you might guess. Why are we divided in the first place? Don’t we all have access to the same Bible? How do we read the Bible and yet have all these different and conflicting doctrines and denominations? Well, the problem is not with the words within the Bible. The problem is with books and words of men. Different churches and denominations have been starting for 2000 years and new ones are still starting even today. In all these new types of churches their beginning is always the thoughts and desires of one individual. There are many reasons for starting a new denomination. Some are more sincere than others but all share some things in common. All are rebellious and all promote division and disunity and conflicting doctrines one to another. And all need some way to show a distinction and difference with other groups. How does one denomination perpetuate their church from one generation to the next and how do they show their members that they are distinct and different from all the others?
All these different denominations do this with a document usually referred to as a creed or “a statement of faith”. This document lays out the statement of beliefs and doctrines that makes this denomination who it is. Without this document the denomination would soon cease to exist. The members would not have the doctrines that designate what makes the group have a separate identity to all the others.
Is this beginning to tell you something? I think most people can readily see that the books and teachings that cause religious division among people who profess to love Christ are not the Bible but are the statements and creeds that are written and intended to highlight and show the differences and the divisions of different denominations. Long ago this was recognized and it was understood that if all religious creeds written by men were discarded and believers in Christ returned to the Bible and only the Bible as the only guide to religious doctrine from God, then denominations would cease to exist. Can you imagine the unity that could be generated if the only book we turned to for instruction in God’s word was the Bible? Now, of course we know that this would never be perfect and nothing ever will be. The Bible tells us in
Matthew 7:13-14 ;
13 “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14 Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.
But do we have a desire to submit to the authority of God? Do we have a desire to be obedient to the will of God? Then what will we do with the words Jesus spoke as His last dying desire for our unity? The plea of the churches of Christ is for unity among those who have a professed reverence for Christianity.
Carl O. Cooper
issues and opinions 