July 17th
2011 PM
Pastor Craig Ledbetter
I.
Introduction
A.
There are lots of different
churches today – they all claim to be “churches”
1.
Baptist Churches
2.
Roman Catholic Churches –
allegiance to
3.
Presbyterian Churches –
protestant, and baby sprinklers
4.
Methodist Churches – believe a
Christian can lose their salvation
5.
Church of England,
6.
Pentecostal Churches –
emphasis on miracles and experiences
7.
Non-denominational Churches
a.
“Bible” Churches
b.
Most promote no real doctrinal
stand at all
B.
Then there are others – which
are clearly cults:
1.
Mormons – all of them are
working at becoming gods
2.
Jehovah’s Witnesses – working
their way to heaven without the new birth
3.
Seventh day Adventists –
keeping the Sabbath
4.
C.
Never mind the fact that there
are lots of different religions
1.
Buddhism –
2.
Islam –
3.
Hinduism –
4.
Shintoism – Japanese - believe
in dead ancestors
5.
Judaism –
6.
Evolutionism – belief in
almighty dirt!
7.
Atheism – believe only in
almighty SELF!
D.
And that translates into a lot
of different churches and ways to worship God
E.
Let’s try and answer some
important questions:
1.
Is God a God of “Choices?”
Pick and choose the Church that you “like” best?
2.
Does it really matter the kind
of church you attend?
3.
How do you pick and choose a
right church?
II.
Message – What Makes
Churches Different From Each Other?
A.
Some Basics
1.
There is only ONE way to
God (John 14:6)
2.
There are only TWO
Religions in the World:
a.
Either it is it is DO, DO, DO,
and then DO it some more
b.
Or all work is DONE – Christ
is the END of the law, NOT of works!
3.
Some differences are okay -
Some are not (John 15:5a).
a.
Some gather and worship on
Saturday – but not in the Bible
b.
Some have women preachers –
but not in the Bible
c.
Some have drums and base
guitars – but not in the Bible (stringed and wind instruments)
d.
Some have Texans, some do not
– that’s okay
e.
Some meet in rented schools,
some in barns – that’s okay
f.
Some sing very little, some a
lot – that’s okay
g.
Some preach short and sweet,
some longer – well, that’s okay
B.
The Devil is a
Counterfeiter (Isaiah 14:12-14)
1.
All of us are wired to worship
God
2.
So the devil makes as much
variety for us to worship so we don’t worship God
C.
Different Bibles Make for
Different Churches (1Cor 1:10)
1.
“Being saved” – Pentecostal, and
non-denominational churches
2.
“Do penance” – Catholic
3.
“In the beginning the Word
was, and the Word was with God, and the Word was a god.” – Jehovah’s Witnesses
4.
The Mormons have to add their
own testament
5.
Bible believers have held to
the King James Bible, and their churches have been pretty much the same across
the board
6.
220 new Bibles just in English
has fuelled such a range of opinions and churches – a “me” generation
D.
Different Gospels Make for
Different Churches (Gal 1:6-9)
1.
There are many modern gospels
a.
Prosperity Gospel –
Pentecostals
b.
Works based Gospel – Catholic
c.
Sovereign Grace Gospel –
Calvinistic Churches
d.
Social Gospel – Forget
theology, and just help the poor – inner city churches
e.
Baptism Gospel – Churches of
Christ / Disciples
f.
Universalism – that all will
ultimately be saved
2.
There is only one Gospel that
saves!
a.
The Gospel of the grace of God
(Acts 20:24; Eph 2:8,9)
b.
Belief in the death, burial
and resurrection of Jesus (1Cor 15:1-4)
3.
There is right doctrine that
cannot be changed (1Tim 1:3)
4.
You had better find out what
Gospel a church preaches before just joining up with it
E.
Different Focus Makes for
Different Churches (Romans 6:16)
1.
Emphasis upon Holy days (
2.
Elevation of Traditions to the
level of the word of God (Mk 7:8,9,13)
3.
Emphasis upon the Holy Spirit
(John 16:13) instead of the Son of God
4.
Emphasis upon the Gifts (1Cor
14:32) instead of the Giver!
5.
But there is to be only ONE
focus – the pre-eminence of Jesus Christ (
a.
Our reason for getting saved
b.
Our reason we can pray
c.
Our reason to read and study
the Bible
d.
Our reason why we love one
another – as Christ loved us
e.
Our reason why we give
f.
Our reason why we endure
hardness – as good soldiers of Jesus Christ
6.
If you have any other focus
other than the lifting up and admiration of Jesus Christ, you will have just
another church, with another focus
F.
Different Cultures Make for
Different Churches (Matthew 6:33)
1.
The African culture makes
churches very African
2.
The American culture makes
churches very American
3.
The Jewish culture can make a
church very Jewish
4.
Irish culture
5.
Not all of that is wrong – God
is not against cultures
6.
Again, a church SHOULD be
local
7.
But it should not be SO
different from another Bible believing church
8.
We do NOT seek to promote our
national culture – we seek to promote the
a.
Be careful that your culture
is dominated by Scripture – not the other way around!
b.
Pastors should not seek any
glory
c.
Women should not be in charge
d.
People should not just do as
Christians what the culture accepts – ie drinking, etc
e.
The people should be like
family
f.
The music should be spiritual
g.
The preaching should be
central and powerful
G.
How to Be the Right Kind of
Church (John 17:20,21)
1.
Make sure the Bible THE
authority in the church (Acts 20:32)
2.
Make sure Jesus the reason for
everything (
a.
That He is pleased
b.
That He is worshipped and
thanked
c.
That He is in charge – not
your feelings
d.
That He is loved and spent
time with
3.
Follow His Design, His Pattern
(Matthew 16:18)
a.
A Pastor
b.
Disciples
c.
Working together as a body
(1Cor 12)
4.
Be Different – Peculiar (1Pet
2:9)
a.
In Locality
1)
The New Testament kind of
church is very local – no headquarters
2)
Jesus was very local
3)
The disciples went everywhere,
starting churches
b.
In Worship (John 4:24)
1)
Simplicity of worship (2Cor
11:2)
2)
Simplicity of giving
3)
Simplicity of loving
4)
Simplicity of preaching – the
most important part of church worship
c.
In Membership
1)
Regenerated Membership. Only
Born Again, Baptized, Committed, and Clean Living people
2)
Regulated Membership. Are
expected to continue to live Godly
d.
In Purpose
1)
To obey all things Christ
commanded (Mt 20:19,20)
2)
To walk in the light – live
according to the Biblical worldview
3)
To evangelise the world around
us (Acts 1:8)
e.
In Effect
1)
Philippians 2:15
2)
Matthew 5:14-16
3)
John 5:35 – be like John the
Baptist was
4)
Hinder the devil
5)
Upset the carnal
6)
Feed the Christian
7)
Bless the Saviour
5.
Be Careful
a.
To NOT take it for granted
b.
To NOT damage anyone in it
c.
To NOT ignore your
responsibilities to your church
1)
Tithing to it
2)
Loving everyone in it
3)
Praying for one another
III.
Conclusion
A.
There are lots of different
churches today – they all claim to be “churches”
B.
Then there loads of cults
C.
There are lots of different
religions
D.
But, is God a God of
“Choices?” Just pick and choose the Church that you “like” best? No!
E.
Does it really matter the kind
of church you attend? Yes
F.
How do you pick and choose a
right church? Get to know the real thing first!
G.
We have learned that…
1.
Some differences are okay -
Some are not (John 15:5a).
2.
The Devil is a
Counterfeiter (Isaiah 14:12-14)
3.
Different Bibles Make for
Different Churches – better get you the right
Bible
4.
Different Gospels Make for
Different Churches - There is only one Gospel that
saves!
5.
A Different Focus Makes for
Different Churches – make sure it is Jesus Christ!
6.
Different Cultures Make for
Different Churches (Matthew 6:33)
H.
How to Be the Right Kind of
Church
1.
Make sure the Bible THE
authority in the church
2.
Make sure Jesus the reason for
everything
3.
Follow His Design, His Pattern
4.
Be Different – Peculiar
5.
Be Careful
a.
To NOT take it for granted
b.
To NOT damage anyone in it
c.
To ignore your
responsibilities to your church