The True Church

Overview

Which church is the true church? It depends on who you ask ...

• Some baptists think that the Baptist church is the true church and that there have been baptists since the apostolic age.
• The Church of Christ seems to think it is the true church, after all it has the biblical name "church of Christ".
• The Catholic church claims to be the true church while admitting that all other christians are imperfectly joined to the Catholic Church. In their eyes all christians are Catholic — sort of.
• The Orthodox churches claim to be the true church.

Some Christian groups are all too happy to point out which groups are not true Christians ...

• Evangelical, fundamentalists are unsure whether stodgy, religious, so-called "works-based" traditional denominations are valid.
• "Word-faith" (health-wealth) churches think that only they have the Spirit of God flowing in their midst.

"Liberal" Christianity sprang up in part because they think we should all get along and stop bickering about divisive topics.

Featured article: Protestant vs. Catholic Comparisons

Related article: Protestant Errors

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Which Church is the True Church? ...

The answer: they all are — with qualifications. Here are the necessary characteristics for a Christian community to be considered the "true church" ...

• A historical continuity from the apostolic church and the early church in doctrine, practice, lifestyle and perspective.
• Remains true to the doctrines of the early church.
• Concerned with solving the sin problem.

This rules out ...

• Jehovah's Witnesses
• Christian Scientists
• Liberal Christian communities
• The Unity Church
• The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
• Many others

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Phases of the Church ...

I have identified six phases ...

1. Jesus is conceived in the womb of Mary Jesus is baptized by John
   • The silent years.
   • Few really know who Jesus is — Those who do are: his mother, Mary; his step-father, Joseph; and perhaps a few close family members.
2. Jesus begins ministry The birth of the church on Pentecost
   • The 3 to 3-1/2 years of his public ministry
   • Includes his death, resurrection, ascension, and the 40 days the disciples waited in Jerusalem.
   • He trained his apostles, he gave many signs.
3. Church is born Apostles still alive
   • The apostolic church.
   • They teach the faith, write the New Testament, and ordain the next generation of bishops.
   • What an amazing time this must have been.
4. Apostles gone About 400 A.D.
   • Doctrinal development — Trinity, canon of scripture, nature of Christ.
   • Persecution of the church.
   • Church becomes a state-sanctioned church — this has good and bad effects.
   • Many heresies and conflicts.
   • Bishops argue and fight.
   • Early Ecumenical Councils.
   • The church becomes institutionalized with bishops, apostolic succession, clergy/laity, etc.
   • Schismatic churches from this period are missing key doctrines (because foundational Christian doctrines are still being developed).
   • Fanaticism
   • Many differing views of the early church fathers.
   • Roman see (pope) considered orthodox.
   • There are "bad" bishops — faithless, corrupt, sinful, political, worldly.
5. About 400 A.D. About 800 A.D.
   • More ecumenical councils.
   • More schisms.
   • Eastern and western churches start to become divided.
   • Roman see (pope) still considered orthodox.
   • Western (Catholic) church becomes more powerful — thinks of itself as above the state.
   • There are "bad" bishops and popes — faithless, corrupt, sinful, political, worldly.
   • The Bible becomes ever more important as a repository of apostolic authority.
6. About 800 A.D. Today
   • In 1054 A.D. the eastern and western churches split — but the division occurred earlier than that.
   • One global institutional church is no longer possible.
   • Ecumenical councils are no longer possible.
   • Eastern (Orthodox) and western (Catholic) churches each claim to be the true church.
   • There are "bad" bishops and popes — faithless, corrupt, sinful, political, worldly.
   • The Protestant "Reformation" starting in the 1500's illustrates that the western (Catholic) Church is fanatical, troubled, extreme, controlling, off the mark (there were precursers to this hundreds of years earlier — Wycliffe and Huss).
   • "Ecumenical" Christianity is the "true" Christianity — but people are sometimes burned at the stake for believing this.
   • In our "modern" era there is some tolerance for variations of Christian practice and belief.
   • The Bible becomes ever more important as a repository of apostolic authority.

Between 864 A.D. and 1235 A.D the rulers of Bulgaria first chose the western church, then the eastern church, then the western church, then the eastern church. This is evidence that the unity of the church between east and west is no longer possible and that the true church is the "Ecumenical" Church which includes east and west, as well as the various Protestant communities.

Now that the church has fragmented certain things are no longer possible. Examples ...

• Excommunication. People can merely switch denominations. Even before the Protestant Reformation some people were excommunicated unjustly for the wrong reason, sometimes for merely political reasons.
• A single physical, material, human, instutitional unity.
• Ecumenical councils.

Related article ...

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Which is the "True" Church?

There are so many varieties of Christianity (and pseudo-Christianity) . . .

• Traditional / liturgical such as Catholic and Orthodox
• Liturgical / Protestant such as Anglican, Episcopalian, and Lutheran
• Sermon-based; Calvinistic such as Presbyterian and Reformed
• Spirit-filled such as Pentecostal and Vineyard
• Fundamentalist / evangelical such as Baptist
• Liberal Christian or those with liberal leanings
• Non-Christian churches calling themselves Christian such as Mormon, Jehovah's Witnesses, and Unity
• Hymns vs. contemporary music
• Formal vs. informal
• Self-help, seeker sensitive
• Word-faith / health-wealth

To answer the question "which is the true church" we must compare each to the early church.

Article originally written April 6, 2009.

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