Is This Church Christian?

Watching one of the professionally produced commercials by the Mormons can easily lead the unsuspecting to believe they are Christian. Until you take the time to really read what they believe and teach. I suspect that many church goers do not want to take that time to truly investigate, and choose to assess an organization based on the 'feel good' message they portray.

Up the road from my church is a religious group that also styles itself as Christian, yet upon close examination seems to lack all the creedal affirmation of Christian orthodoxy. Some locally have labeled them a cult. Here is their "Statement of Faith" from the church's website:

It is our belief that God cares much more about the condition of one's heart than in their doctrinal statement. We also believe that it is possible for people to vary greatly in their beliefs and doctrines and each be pleasing to God.

The Bible

We believe that the bible is a very powerful book with great potential for either good or evil, depending on the motives of the person using it. We believe that God intended it for good but man's use of it often falls short of His intention.

God

We believe that God is far greater than any person's or denomination's doctrinal view of Him. We believe that God loves us, gave His Son for us, and will ultimately see His plan to fruition.

Jesus

We believe Jesus is the Son of God and that He died for the sins of mankind, was buried, and rose from the grave. We believe that His sacrificial death on the cross is also an example of how much God can require of those who seek to follow Him.

Mankind

We believe that each person is responsible to use the gifts and abilities that God has given them to serve Him and others.

Sin

We believe that sin is a condition of the heart whereby the person chooses to defy God's will. Sin deals with motives and may or may not express itself in external behavior. We believe that sin is based upon knowledge and choice.

Life

We believe that the only way to have an eternally productive life is to choose to pay the price to follow God. We believe that this life is not black and white but that each individual uniquely follows God. We believe that God leads in many different ways and what may be right for one person, may not be for another person. Therefore, we believe that judgment is reserved for God, for we cannot see another person's heart.

Church

We believe that the church consists of all those who genuinely follow God in their heart, regardless of religious affiliation. We believe that unity is based more on a person's heart condition and desire to follow God, than it is on doctrinal agreement.

Accountability

We believe that God judges on the basis of what a person knows and has, and how that person uses this. We believe that God will hold us personally responsible for the decisions we make based upon what we know to be right.


What do you think? It lacks a clear confession of Jesus' divinity, of the nature of original sin, of salvation by grace through Christ, of God's triune nature, the inspiration of scripture, just to name a few items. I would think those alone should exclude this statement from the Christian faith. In fact, it seems to have more in common with Mormonism than any Christian church.

However, one should thank the church for being honest enough to post this statement. For many groups are not even this forthright. Do you ever read a full disclosure by the Mormons on their beliefs, especially as they reveal their true non-Christian character.? Not at all. Now I can only hope that at least some potential members will be discerning enough to read it and evaluate it against the Bible itself, and if possible, against the orthodox confession of the ecumenical creeds. But that may be too optimistic.

Comments

Presbytera said…
WOW - how they twisted the Gospel into Law with their statement of Jesus. I found it interesting that they do not mention the Spirit. I don't imagine they are Trinitarian therefore they can not be Christian.
September 10, 2007 at 12:40:00 PM PDT
Bob Hunter said…
" We believe that sin is a condition of the heart whereby the person chooses to defy God's will." So only intensional sins are sins? I think I'll pass on this church.
September 10, 2007 at 1:33:00 PM PDT
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Firefighter's Cross

Image
[Note: A similar article to this will be shared with my department at their next meeting. During this Lenten season when we are meditating on the significance and meaning of the Passion of our Lord and the Cross at Golgotha, it seemed like one way to offer a witness to the department that captured their interest and yet was not too heavy.] [Editorial Note: In response to a recent comment on this article I have made some changes to the original version of this article especially in regard to references to the so-called St. Florian's Cross. For any confusion the previous unreferenced information may have caused I apologize. I hope that the changes are satisfactory.] THE STORY OF THE MALTESE CROSS In many ways the familiar symbol to the right requires no explanation. It is the universal insignia of firefighting nationwide. Yet the precise origins of this symbol are less clear. The most popular explanation proposes its beginning in the far distant past of medieval Crusaders fi...
Read more

Historical Roots of the Warham Guild Hood

Image
In doing just a little checking on the internet, it's interesting to see how the Warham Guild hood, which I have as part of my STM degree attire, is actually a throwback to the Medieval hood. One article notes "the work of the Warham Guild in its imaginative renderings of medieval hoods" (reference is from here ). Again, here is my hood: The Medieval hood, which was originally a very practical outer garment to cover a person's head and shoulders, protecting both from the elements, bears striking resemblance to this revived form: This hood was also a part of the garb of monks in that era. The Medieval hood, in some cases, also had what is known as a "liripipe," a long tail hanging from the back of a hood. You can see the modern stylized version of this on my own hood. From an article on "Academic hood development" we read that "By 1463 the favourite dress of doctors was the hood with round bell-shaped cape, and the lir...
Read more

Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed

Image
According to a recent documentary, for all the talk about academic freedom in the world of the large American university system, it would seem that it extends only as far as the system defines it - especially with regards to the subject of origins and science. Noted speechwriter Ben Stein stars as host of the film Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed. Dr. Angus Menuge, professor of philosophy at CUW, highlights the film in an article included in the Concordia University - Wisconsin magazine Concordian , including some seemingly revealing details about the expulsion of talented scientists who apparently were ‘expelled‘ from their positions for mentioning the theory of Intelligent Design: “In the current climate, even when academicians have a relevant doctorate and a track-record of peer-reviewed publication, their careers suffer if they argue that the scientific evidence points to an intelligent source involved in the creation of the world. In 1992, Dean Kenyon, a biology professor at ...
Read more