Expert: Scott Talbot - 6/16/2005

Question
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Follow up To
Question -
How do people come to their particular religious denominations and do their beliefs square with church teachings?
Answer -
Wow, what a great question! I could spend hours discussing this with you.

Let me see if I understand your question. Are you asking why I believe people choose a particular denomination? Assuming that's your question, let me take a stab at it.

First, I believe that there is something inside of everyone which attracts them to God to some degree or another. It has been referred to as "a God-shaped vacuum." Throughout history, this urge has been demonstrated by an almost universal interest in religion of some kind. Pick any time in history, any region of the world, any culture, and you will find a common draw towards "God," however defined. Romans 1:18-20 sheds some light on this phenomenon.

Many seek to fill this desire for God by looking simply to religion, ritual, and tradition. They are satisfied with a religious feeling, but may not be particularly interested in the truth of who God is. And, as human beings, we tend to resist subjecting ourselves to God, and to deny our accountability to Him. Therefore, many pursue religion, but not necessarily God, as ironic as that might sound.

You asked about denominations. I'm guessing that you're referring to conventional Christianity. What would cause one to choose a particular denomination within Christian circles?

The reasons for this are many. They may include family upbringing, personal preferences, geographical location, pet doctrines, theological position, or even a genuine quest for the truth.

The primary reason that there are so many Christian denominations is that there have been differing positions on various theological issues. Some differences are as significant as liberal vs. conservative, i.e., is the Bible really reliable, and does God really exist? Other differences are as minor as the specific mode of baptism--sprinkling, pouring, immersion, triple immersion, forward, backwards, etc. Following a particular denomination is often a matter of either a) Pursuing what you believe to be truth, as God reveals it in His Word, or b) Subduing the truth in exchange for other preferences.

Both Christians and non-Christians, well-meaning and otherwise, can get caught up in a denomination (or religion) that does not follow the truth or pursue God. Sometimes one sees things differently over time as he matures spiritually, or even discovers that He is outside the family and accepts God's gift of salvation and is born again into God's family (John 3:1-21, Romans 10:9-13).

One thing is clear. When we seek God, He will reveal Himself to us. Hebrews 11:6b says, "... anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him." And James 4:8a says, "Come near to God and he will come near to you."

So what OUGHT to prompt us in our choice of denominational affiliation is a genuine quest to know the God of the Bible and all that He chooses to reveal to us about Himself and our relationship to Him. Unfortunately, however, we do not always act with such pure motives. We often include selfish motives, or even act in ignorance by not fully pursuing God's revealed truth.

In the second part of your question, you asked if one's beliefs square with church teachings. I'm not quite sure what you were asking, but I'd be happy to attempt an answer if you clarify.

I'm not sure if I'm answering your question or not. It would help me to know more--such as your own personal experience, and the specific reason(s) for your asking. Are you seeking? Do you need some guidance? If so, I would love to offer further guidance from the Bible.

Scott

The first part of my question refers to a particular religious organization like  Episcopalian, Catholic, Hindu and you have answered that: "family upbringing, personal preferences, geographical location..."
The second part of my question refers to that particular religious organizations positions on issues like the number of deities, what is a sin, existence of heaven and hell or those wonderful hot button items like abortion, gays, stem cells, etc.  Do we actually know what our religious organizations positions are and do we share those positions?

If I may comment on "a God-shaped vacuum."  Pre scientific method, I might suggest that our quest for knowledge demanded answers.  I don't know if it was Zeus with his lighting bolts or the tribal leader chucking a spear at the guy asking to many questions but somewhere in the melee it became evident that the guy with the most spears, best aim became god with a small "g" soon to be capitalized.  At that time we may not have gotten all the answers as is the case even today but when it became clear that the spear chucker didn't have the answers either we went on to guys like Zeus and eventually monotheism with ideas and arguments replacing spears.  Those ideas we are working our way through even today.  May I suggest that religion is leading the way to the answers we seek with our own subjective sense of right and wrong and that we are refining those answers with only just less subjective and just slightly more objective reasoning. Sometimes thankfully and sometimes unfortunately we still have a final authority in God.

VR
Don

Answer
Hi, Don. Thanks for clarifying the second part of your question.

You asked whether or not one understands the position his religion or denomination takes on various issues. I guess that would depend on the individual. Most religions, denominations, cults, whatever, have specific beliefs which they attempt to convey to others. If a (potential) follower of that belief system does not know his organization's position, he should do a little research and find out. Most religions have formal statements regarding their position on certain issues. Having said that, there are some issues that are somewhat controversial, and there are differences within the organization on those points.

There's an important point I need to make. While there are many religions and denominations and belief systems, there is only one truth. Simple common sense tells us that there are objective, absolute facts that are not dependent on one's believing them. One person believes that the earth is flat, another that the earth is round. They cannot both be right simply by virtue of their belief. Sure, they each have a right to believe whatever they want. But that does not make them both right. In fact, they could both be wrong. The fact that the earth is round is a matter of absolute truth, and still remains true, regardless of what one believes.

The same is true of religion. There are varying beliefs about many important topics, the most significant of which are God's identity and our relationship to God. However, only one truth exists. There is only one true God. And the truth about who He is, whe we are, what He expects, etc., is objective, absolute truth unaltered by man's belief.

In other words, while we all have the right to believe what we choose, we may not all be right. The question is, Does my belief system measure up to what is true, real, factual?

How we define God, and how we relate to God isn't something we are entitled to invent. God is who He is. And God's terms are God's terms. Either we embrace them or replace them with counterfeits.

The process of finding God and following Him, and enjoying a personal relationship with Him, is not a matter of subjectivity or personal interpretation. God told us that He rewards them that diligently seek Him (Hebrews 11:6), and that, if we draw near to God, He will draw near to us (James 4:8).

Fortunately, we are not left to ourselves to guess at these things. God has revealed Himself to us. He has done so in several ways. He has revealed Himself through the created universe (Psalm 19:1 "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands." Romans 1:20 "Since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities--his eternal power and divine nature--have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.")

He has revealed Himself through the God-man, Jesus Christ (Colossians 2:9 "In Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form." John 1:14 "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.").

And He has revealed Himself to us through the Bible (II Timothy 3:16 "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful ...." II Peter 1:21 "Prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit."

So not only does objective truth exist, but God chose to reveal it to us, if we only embrace it. Now granted, God is infinite and complex, as is His truth. It may be challenging to fully grasp it at times and to faithfully apply it to life. But it's there, and it's our responsibility to turn to God, and to let HIM be our authority, rather than relying on our own subjective notions.

The bottom line is this. We are responsible to pursue the truth. The truth has been made available to us, so it is, indeed, possible. On any area of belief, practice, lifestyle, decisions, etc., we should seek GOD's answers by going to the source--specifically the Bible. The alternative is a man-made religion which replaces the authority of God with the authority of man. What good is that?

I welcome any other questions or input.

Have a great day, Don.

Scott