By Dr. Derek Thomas
We should begin by noting that we share some of your concerns over the current split among Christian denominations. The New Testament does speak about unity among believers, of cooperation, of a corporate nature that belongs to all believers, because all true believers are really united to the same Head, and together form the body of our Lord, Jesus Christ. As you note, we find evidence of unity in Acts 2, in Jesus’ High Priestly prayer of John 17, and in the Pauline Epistles. But that is not to say that we believe that this language of unity precludes the realities of denominations, at least not necessarily.
While the New Testament does speak of Christian unity in abundance, the concept of unity is not devoid of meaning. That is to say, that when the New Testament speaks about unity, it is speaking about a unity based on truth. The truth of the gospel. The historic account of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Of a Trinitarian God who has made us and sustains us and who redeems His people from their sins. So while we long for Christian unity among all believers today, we must begin by stressing that there are certain requirements that the New Testament places on our unity. It is not enough simply to claim the title Christian; that claim must be accompanied with some basic beliefs held common by all Christians. And so the early church, recognizing the importance of unity based upon revealed truth, formulated certain doctrinal statements clarifying what it means to be a Christian. We have the Nicene Creed, the Apostle’s Creed, that Athanasius Creed, all given as statements that outline what the Bible teaches as the requirements for admittance into the fellowship of believing Christians. Christian unity in the 21st century must also start by defining and defending the corpus of beliefs that one must hold in order to be a Christian. For there are all sorts of groups, purporting to be “Christians,” but who flatly deny some of the basic tenants of the faith. Think of groups like the Jehovah’s Witnesses or Mormons, who profess to belong to the Christian faith, and yet deny the very basic concepts of the Christian faith. Surely the New Testament knows nothing of a common ecclesiastical unity with those who deny the divinity of Jesus! And so we must begin by having a clear understanding of what a Christian is before the question of unity can be decided. It would be foolish to attempt to unite Christianity by admitting those who claim to be Christian despite their clear denial of what is central to the Christian faith. And in fact, that reality has directly resulted in the proliferation of denominations today.
After we have dismissed those who claim the title Christian in name alone, we are left with still a large number of groups professing the Christian faith. What are we to do with all of these denominations who, while disagreeing over certain secondary matters (i.e., how to organize the church, whether or not to baptize infants, whether or not the extraordinary gifts of the New Testament continue today, etc.), agree on the central issue of faith (the divinity of Christ, the Trinity, substitutionary atonement, faith as the instrument of salvation, etc.)? We start by recognizing that devout, sincere, mature, intelligent Christians can and do disagree over their understanding of what the Bible teaches about these things. True Christians, seasoned Christians, reasonable Christians have for nearly two millennia read the same Bible, and yet not always arrived at the same understanding on every point of theology. That is not to say that the Bible says conflicting things, or that nothing in the Bible is clear. Far from it! The Bible is crystal clear with regard to the essentials of the faith. And the Bible speaks authoritatively on these secondary matters as well. But creatures, tainted as we are with sin, and in possession of finite and fallible minds and reasons, can and do draw varying conclusions from the same biblical material. It is this reality that has also led to the establishment of a variety of denominations.
But the presence of denominations does not deny the essential unity Christians enjoy. Our unity with one another, despite denominational differences, remains un-severed. It was purchased at the cross, prayed for by our Savior, and spoken of as a reality by the inspired Apostle Paul. We are united to one another. And because that is the reality, it should shape our actions.
The Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals is one example of an outward manifestation of a spiritual reality. Because we are united to one another, we strive to walk together, shoulder to shoulder, as we engage in the work of the kingdom of God. We purposefully strive to stress those common beliefs which we have together, the essentials of the faith, those things passed down by our spiritual fathers, in such a way that we go together as far as we can—recognizing that there may be a time when conscience will no longer allow it—and remain committed to maintaining our progress together. To put it another way, we consciously decide to focus on our sameness instead of our recognized differences. In this way, we reflect our unity with one another while still recognizing and respecting the differences which we have.
Dr. Derek Thomas is an Alliance Council member, the editorial director of reformation21, and the minister of teaching at First Presbyterian Church in Jackson, MS.
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