The Litmus Test of a Genuine Church

There has been a lot of talk in the past about what constitutes genuine faith inside of Christianity. Denominations have battled it out for quite some time concerning what it is that truly marks the faith of not only believers, but of entire denominations. One of the biggest complaints skeptics express against Christianity is that there is so much divide and a lot of the divisions lead to wars that cost people their lives. What is it that marks genuine faith inside of a Church denomination?

Let's first establish what it is that marks genuine faith inside of a believer. Frankly, I think that the most credible source for understanding this topic in today's context would be Ray Comfort's ministry, The Way of the Master. Where many people will say that faith/belief marks genuine conversion and others say works are what marks a true believer's life, Ray Comfort contests that Repentance is what marks genuine faith in Jesus Christ. I think that there is some depth to this teaching, but to simplify it by avoiding What comes next? someone who hears the Gospel message must acknowledge his or her sins, admit their guilt, turn from sin, confess Jesus as Lord and Savior, and follow him as he or she forsakes a sin cursed lifestyle. Once again, I think there is some depth to this, but I can't find anything I can disagree with regarding this teaching. Regarding denominations, I think it is a little trickier.

There are so many other doctrines that confound what genuine faith ought to look like. Let me rattle off a list of doctrines that have historically muddied the waters in relation to faith: Baptism, Communion, Tongues, Signs and Wonders, Snake Handling, Worship Style, Baptism of the Holy Spirit, Divorce, Gay Marriage, Abortion, Personal Holiness, Procreation, Polygamy, Biblical Authority, Biblical Interpretation, Eschatology (Understanding the End of Days), Predestination, Free Will, Authority in the Church, Modern Day Prophecies, and the list could go on for quite a while. The majority of denominations, according to my understanding, have some sort of a defining characteristic that they expect to be exemplified through individuals in order to acknowledge that their faith is genuine. Not everyone can be right, so how do we know what denomination is right?

To begin, I don't think that churches that claim exclusivity are necessarily doomed to condemnation if they are wrong. A question that recently arose on the internet got me thinking about this topic a little more in depth than what I had in the past and helped to connect some dots, as I thought about its answer. The root question was, "Do Christians and Muslims worship the same God?" My immediate response was "No." But then a naughty boy followed the question up with, "Why is it always about Muslims? Why don't you ever question whether Jews and Catholics worship the same God as Christians?" That really got me thinking. Do Christians worship the same God as Jews and Catholics?

Concerning Jews, specifically, I used to think, "Of course they worship the same God as Christians. After all, we share the same Old Testament" (Not that Jews call it the Old Testament). But as I read Romans 9:30-32, it became clear that we do not:

 "What then shall we say? That the Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have obtained it, a righteousness that is by faith; but the people of Israel, who pursued the law as the way of righteousness, have not attained their goal. Why not? Because they pursued it not by faith but as if it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone."

I think this makes it clear that Jews and Christians do not worship the same God. The Gentiles that became Christians placed their faith in Jesus. Righteousness is what gives us the ability to enter into God's presence, but mankind is inherently unrighteous and unable to enter into God's presence because of sin. The Jews relied upon their own works to make them righteous before God and refused to place their faith in Jesus. Jesus fulfilled the Law of the Jews, given to them by God, and cleansed those who would place their faith in him. Without faith in Jesus, there is no salvation.

Make your own conclusions concerning what I am getting at here, but let me sum it up the best that I can, briefly. There are many denominations with bad theology. No matter how bad of theology (within reason) that a denomination might have, if that denomination teaches that Jesus Christ died for your sins  and rose from the dead and that faith in him ensures eternal life (despite all of the particulars) I believe such a denomination is genuine. They might condemn some of the doctrines inside of your church but that does not undermine the reality that their denomination recognizes Jesus as the Savior of the World. I believe that there is depth to this teaching that might exclude some of the denominations/sects within Christianity, but as far as I can tell, faith in Jesus as the One True God, is the litmus test to determine whether or not a church denomination has genuine faith.