Choosing a denomination...

[alexsonofmatthew]

G'day, I have recently come back to the Christian faith after many years exploring different religions and philosophies. The problem I have now is which denomination to associate with. I am open to any except , Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches. Protestantism appeals to me so any church within that I would look at.

Any assistance would be appreciated.

 

[Ladybythelake]

I ended up at a non-denom church. I had been looking for one that preached the KJV and preached the whole Bible. 10 months later, I read the HCSB translation but found out that the pastor went thru a similar experience I did and encourages me to trust the Bible and not him.

My advice? Ask for God's Guidance and take your Bible with you. Compare what they say to what you know it says. I'm reading the Gospel of John, which is helping me immensely.

 

[timf]

There does seem to be a confusing array of protestant denominations. In Galatians Paul contrasts the flesh and the Spirit. He lists the works of the flesh and one of them is HERISIS in the Greek which word gives us heresy today, but at the time simply meant divisions.

You can divide denominations into roughly two groups. The first and largest group presents the Christian with a sort of USDA minimum requirement for Christian life. People in this group often derive their assurance of salvation from their status as regular members, some act such as a prayer or baptism, or having otherwise achieved denominational certification. The second group is a smaller group and they often present salvation as conditional upon achieving or maintaining some activity. The second group is often more sincere but can be striving to follow rules and modify their actions such that there is a lot of frustration with self and others.

Here is a link on finding the right church that does not give a specific answer but rather more clearly defines the problems.

Christian Pioneer - What is the right church

If you have a sincere desire to grow closer to your Savior, it is a gift from God. You don't want to be diverted into ignoring this call or having it changed into achievement. The key is to find older wiser Christians who clearly show the light and love of Jesus in their life and ask them to help you learn to know Jesus as well as they do. Many seminary students start their Christian path with a sincere love of Jesus and end up disputing abstract academic ideas about Jesus instead of having grown to know him or be like him. A big problem for Christians is seeing the living "light of the world" changed into a series of doctrinal postulates that have no power to change our lives or help us spiritually mature.

Pick a denomination that not only believes the Bible is true, but that you should grow in understanding it. Any denomination that is ashamed of the Bible, usually on things like evolution, the flood, social issues, etc. may not be able to help you grow as close to Jesus as you would like.

PM me if I can be of any help.

 

[1watchman]

Hello friend. The Word of God must be our only authority for the Christian faith --not the religious ideas of men. You might find the site at www.biblecounsel.net to be helpful in understanding something of what God intends for His testimony in the world. Look up always!
- Sincerely in Christ forever, 1watchman

 

[football5680]

Well, if you have already eliminated the Church Jesus created and promised to protect then go with whatever floats your boat. Write down what you want in a church and I'm sure you will be able to find a Protestant denomination which will conform to them.

 

[jannikitty]

Not all Protestant churches are alike. Simply pray, ask someone who you consider a good Protestant Christian where they go to church, and visit a few before you determine where you think God wants you to be. Usually there is a feeling of safety and having 'come home' when you find the right one. And you just may be surprised at which one that turns out to be.

 

[graceandpeace]

You could try this quiz:

Christian Denomination Selector

It is generic, but may lend some insight.

Personally, I think it is important to seek the truth vs. our own preferences, which is no easy task. I would suggest learning Christian history, reading the Early Church Fathers, and research any church you look into.

Good luck.

 

[jannikitty]

You could try this quiz:

Christian Denomination Selector

It is generic, but may lend some insight.

Personally, I think it is important to seek the truth vs. our own preferences, which is no easy task. I would suggest learning Christian history, reading the Early Church Fathers, and research any church you look into.

Good luck.

The above are good suggestions, especially about researching any church you look into. But be careful of negative comments on the Internet regarding any church or denomination. Most churches have their own websites where a history of the church is usually included. Also Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia is good for researching anything, church denominations included. And they are objective.