Examining Churches and Religions
Part 1
By Allan E. McNabb

Jesus tells us we’ll know false prophets by their fruits (Matt. 7:15-20).

This is a principle we’re taught to use when examining everything (Gal. 5:22-23; Eph. 5:6-10; Ja. 1:26-27; 3:13-18).

So, to examine churches and religions we need to look at their fruits.

In this article, we examine churches and religions by asking questions, eliminating those built on the doctrines of men and identifying the Lord’s church.

Does the church believe Jesus is the divine Son of God?
There are about 4,200 world religions of which Christianity counts as only one.  The largest world religion is Christianity with about two billion adherents.  The second largest is Islam, and the third is Hinduism (theologicalstudies.org/classicalreligionlist.html).

By testing a religion as to whether it believes Jesus is the divine Son of God, we can eliminate all world religions but Christianity.  If a religion is not “Christian”, it can’t be the Lord’s church since it rejects Christ.

This is true because:
God bore witness that Jesus is His Son
through the miracles He performed (Heb. 2:4).
Therefore we must obey Jesus to be saved (Matt. 28:18; Jn. 12:48; 14:6; Col. 3:17; Heb. 5:9).
If we don’t, we’ll die in our sins (Jn. 8:24).

Does the church believe Jesus is the only way to God?
Some religions believe Jesus is the divine Son of God, but don’t believe He is the only way to God.

Religions such as Gnostic and New Age believe Jesus was one of many sent to earth to bring people to God.  Other religions believe Jesus was one of many prophets, equal to someone like Mohamad.  And some religions believe people can be saved, even if they’ve never heard of Jesus.

As Christians, we confess that Jesus is the only way to God.
“Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me’” (Jn. 14:6).

In John 14:6, Jesus uses the definite article three times.  He is the one and only way, the one and only truth, and the one and only life.  There is no possible way to the Father except through Jesus.

We must obey Jesus to be saved (Heb. 5:9).  If we don’t, we’re eternally lost in our sins.

Does the church teach anything different from the doctrine of Christ?
Most churches claiming to be Christian teach things that are different from the doctrine of Christ.

Many of them condone immoral behaviors, such as adultery, unlawful marriage, and homosexuality.  And many have added things to the worship God commands, such as mechanical instruments of music.

Some have embraced latter-day prophets who are dead, such as Joseph Smith and Ellen White.

And some have present-day prophets and apostles, giving instructions to their churches that contradict the word of God.

But from the Bible we learn that anyone teaching a doctrine that’s different from the doctrine of Christ, even in the slightest way, is damned to hell.  His church is not the Lord’s church.
“But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed.  As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed” (Gal. 1:8-9).

And everyone following the false doctrines of these accursed preachers is lost in sin.
“You have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace” (Gal. 5:4).

Is the church a denomination?
A church can be a denomination in two ways.

First, the word “denomination” comes from the word “denominate”, and means to call a thing by anything other than its proper name.  So, when Christians divide and call themselves by a name not authorized by God, they have denominated themselves.  Thus, they’ve become a denomination.

This is one of the sinful conditions Paul addressed in First Corinthians (1 Cor. 1:10-13; 3:1-4).

And this is a sin Jesus addressed regarding the Nicolaitans.  Christians holding to their doctrines had to repent, or they’d be condemned in hell (Rv. 2:6, 15-16).

Second, the word denomination is used of a church with congregations organized under a single administrative head, such as the Roman Catholic Church whose head is the Pope.  This is the apostasy foretold by Paul which began in the second century, when elders began ruling over multiple congregations (Acts 20:28-30).

The Lord’s church is not a denomination.  It doesn’t have a head or administrative body upon the earth.  The head of God’s church is Jesus, who is in heaven (Eph. 5:23; Heb. 1:3; 1 Pet. 3:22).

With this information, we must conclude that none of the nearly 34,000 Christian denominations are the Lord’s church.