When we say we are "Baptist", "Presbyterian", "Pentecostal", "Anglican", "Methodist", "Mennonite", "Quaker" and many others, we are saying we are following a system rather than Christ.
1 Corinthians 1:10-17
"10 Now I exhort you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all agree and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be made complete in the same mind and in the same judgment.
11 For I have been informed concerning you, my brethren, by Chloe’s people, that there are quarrels among you.
12 Now I mean this, that each one of you is saying, “I am of Paul,” and “I of Apollos,” and “I of Cephas,” and “I of Christ.”
13 Has Christ been divided? Paul was not crucified for you, was he? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?
14 I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius,
15 so that no one would say you were baptized in my name.
16 Now I did baptize also the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized any other.
17 For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not in cleverness of speech, so that the cross of Christ would not be made void"
One of the hardest things in our culture is to get people to understand that the body of Christ is not divided. Those who choose to divide over a particular aspect of Bible doctrine, are showing that they are "pickers and choosers", making one element of the Word more important than others.
When we follow Christ, we love all the brethren, we are not divided on the important matters of salvation and holiness. Our response to everyone ought to be to go to the Word, getting out our Bibles when there is a disagreement seeking and praying together. I don't remember the last time I saw this happen. Each one in a discussion tells their opinion, walking away never having cracked their Bible open to discuss it. In other words, all opinions are acceptable and everyone remains in their ignorance, just to keep the peace.
Those who deeply love the Lord cannot get enough of the Word and sharing it with one another. There is no desire to argue, but a quest for the truth so come closer to God and one another. What a blessing it is when believers share in the Word with one another.
