By Mike Tappa
OVER the last several years, I have been spending a lot of time praying and working on developing unity within the church of Jesus Christ, especially among pastors. I believe strongly that being united is what will allow us to be successful in our call by Jesus himself, to make disciples of all nations. This was the prayer of our Lord in John Chapter 17, where He prayed that we (the church) become one as He and the Father are one. I feel that the separation that has existed between denominations must be broken down or the church will never have the power it needs to reach the world with the message of hope that we in Jesus Christ. Anyone who knows me knows that my desire is to see unity in the church; however, as much as I desire unity in the Body of Christ, I also believe that there are certain doctrines within the church that produce unity and some that have become so inclusive that they diminish the very essence of Christianity. Christian church unity must be based solely on the work of Christ, or it is no longer Christian unity.
First off, I want to say that I believe in the free will of men and women to believe in and worship whatever god they choose and that I am commanded in Scripture to love and respect them regardless of their belief system. But, as a minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ, I also believe that the essence of “Christian Unity” can only be in Christ. The apostle Paul states it well in Ephesians 5: “There is one faith, one Lord, one baptism.” I also believe Jesus when He declared in John 14: “I am the way the truth and the life, and nobody comes to the Father except through me.” This statement from Jesus allows for no other way to the Father, which is exactly what He intended.
What troubles me is when people like Oprah Winfrey state publicly that they are a Christian and yet teach that whatever path you decide to take to whatever you call god, will get you to “the God.” I do agree with her that the path you chose will lead you to the god of your choice; however, if you claim Christianity, then faith in Jesus Christ is the only path to your Heavenly Father. I was also deeply troubled when I read what a local “Christian” pastor wrote regarding this issue. He stated recently in this very column the following: “We can agree with Paul that it makes no difference which great teacher leads us to the sacred — to the God of all people — the Christ-Spirit, the Buddha Spirit, the Spirit of the earth and sky from Native American traditions. What matters is that we work together to bring order out of the chaos, to bring peace among the people, to bring comfort to the afflicted, and to rescue our neighbors from poverty and homelessness.”
I have no idea which Paul he was referring to, but it was definitely not the Apostle Paul. Please don’t be deceived by this teaching. The supremacy of Christ is the foundations of Paul’s writings. I don’t understand how someone claiming the name of Christ could teach someone that it doesn’t matter whose teachings you follow, as long as you have a sense of spirituality or that the main reason for connecting spiritually is simply to make the world a better place. The purpose of believing in Jesus Christ is to be reconciled to God through the forgiveness of sin.
The Bible teaches that the only true peace anyone can have in this world in the midst of chaos and the only real comfort comes solely from the Holy Spirit through a relationship with Jesus Christ. I know this pastor meant well, but good intentions won’t help people find what they really need and most of the time leads them away from the one true God and to a god of their own design.
Peter was pretty clear when he said this in Acts 4:11-12: “For Jesus is the one referred to in the Scriptures, where it says, ‘The stone that you builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.’ There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.”
As the Christian community, let us celebrate our unity this Easter season by acknowledging the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus as the ONLY means of reconciliation with the one true God. Otherwise, as Paul says, “If our hope in Christ is only for this life, we are more to be pitied than anyone in the world.”
Mike Tappa is pastor at Life Bridge Christian Church, 2496 Glendale Ave., Howard.
This article first appeared in Green Bay Press Gazette
