A Kingdom Divided Cannot Stand

While on the earth, Christ taught a lesson as important today as it was when He first taught it. Through the years, people have brought their own beliefs and interpretations into Christ’s church, causing division within the body of Christ. The Bible does not need any personal interpretation to explain it. The Holy Spirit will teach Christians all things (John 14:26). When the Holy Spirit begins to teach a person, God’s Word will come to life and answer any questions that he asks of Him. Personal interpretations of the Bible have caused today’s churches to divide into countless denominations, each with its own independent teaching and beliefs. Many denominations believe Christ was a part of their denomination, although there were no “denominations” in His time. Another common misconception is that Christ built a physical church building when He walked on the earth. In truth, Christ walked through Israel teaching and demonstrating in synagogues, as well as in the streets. The church Christ built, however, was not a physical building but the people who followed Him. Paul taught that Christians are the body of Christ. As in any body, all parts must work together (1 Cor. 12:13). God gave His children the gifts of the Spirit to assist them during their battles of spiritual warfare. Spiritual warfare occurs in each person’s life, even when that person is unaware of it. One person’s gifts complement another’s, helping the body of Christ grow and work together. Christians today put too much emphasis on their church building, rather than on their membership in Christ’s church. After establishing several churches, Paul constantly reminded the churches of the importance of unity in the body of Christ. Two different types of people congregate within today’s churches. Some know of Christ, while others know Christ personally. Once a person begins his or her relationship with Christ, that person will be set apart from the rest of the congregation. As the body of Christ, Christians need to “get back to the basics” both of the Bible and of Christianity.

While teaching, Christ encountered a man with severe demonic possession who needed healing. The possession left the man both blind and dumb. Christ healed him and restored his ability both to speak and see. Jesus’ power over the spirit world caused the crowd to question, “Is not this the son of David?” The people of Israel had known Jesus as the son of Joseph, a man, and not as the Son of God, a savior. Israel knew a savior would come from the root of David (Jer. 33:15). The people who witnessed this event and others were amazed. They wondered if Jesus could be the savior they had been looking for. When Satan recognized the wondering of the crowd, he attempted to capitalize on the situation by deterring the people from following Christ. He used the Pharisees and the Sadducees to accuse Christ of casting devils out by the power of Beelzebub, whom they believed to be the prince of the devils (Matt. 12:22–24).

This attack was Satan’s attempt to confuse the multitude and draw them away from Christ. By discrediting God’s act of healing, Satan could lead some of them away from following Christ. Instead, Christ defended His authority by explaining that a kingdom divided cannot stand (Matt. 12:25). In other words, Christ could not cast the devil or demonic spirit out of a person by the authority of Satan. If Christ were to cast out a demon by the authority of Satan, there would be division in Satan’s kingdom. If Christ cast devils out by the power of God, however, the kingdom of heaven would have come to the earth. Christ expounded on this by saying, “Or else how can one enter into a strong man’s house, and spoil his goods, except he first bind the strong man? And then he will spoil his house (Matt. 12:29)”.

Christ uses this analogy to prove His authority over the powers of Satan. Unless the strong man is bound, it would be impossible for anyone to spoil his goods. If Christ were not superior to Satan, He would not be able to cast a spirit of Satan out of a person. His power from God removed the demon and cleansed the possessed man. Satan often uses spiritual warfare as a tactic to divide people’s minds, families and even Christ’s church. Satan wants to exalt himself above God by turning His people away from Him. He is always looking for a way to confuse people and ultimately, turn people away from God. God gives His children power to silence and defeat Satan and his demonic spirits in their attempt to separate those children from God (Matt. 12:26–30).

This lesson about God’s authority over spirits applies to both to the children of God in ancient Israel and to Christianity today. Christianity is divided into almost countless denominations. Each has its own teachings, doctrines and interpretations of the Bible. Remember, the Bible will interpret itself if one seeks the answer from God! In my experience with several denominations, I have been amazed by the variety of beliefs. What one denomination considers is correct, another teaches is incorrect.  Each one attempts to recruit anyone, Christian or not, to its system of beliefs. The result is a competition among denominations to bring as many people—even other Christians—to their “faith,” for lack of better term. The goal of any church should be to win souls for Christ, instead of winning souls to its beliefs. The body of Christ should work together to further the Word of God, instead of fighting among its various parts over personal beliefs. Some—but not all—members of denominations will fight, almost to the point of coming to blows over which is “right.”

Most denominations hold similar beliefs about the nature of their doctrines, even though their doctrines differ. These common beliefs include several thoughts:

• They think their denomination’s beliefs are the true ones.
• They think they are the only people going to heaven.
• If people are not members of their denomination, they need to be converted, whether they are Christian or not.
• If people speak out against their denomination, they are automatically of the devil and are wrong.

While some denominations hold similar beliefs, most doctrines share almost no common ground. This brings several questions to mind…

• How can each church be made up of Christians if only one denomination is truly Christian?
• Why are there several denominations if only one is right?
• Are not all Christians the children of God and saved through Christ?
• Would people not still be children of God if they admitted they were sinners, believed that Jesus died and rose again for them, confessed their sins through prayer to God, and were baptized as Christ was?
• If the steps to salvation are the same, and people follow them, how can they not be allowed to go to heaven if they meet in different buildings twice a week?

When a person follows the biblical steps to salvation, it makes no difference which denomination that person belongs to. He will remain a child of God, even if he chooses not to attend a church. Any person who follows the biblical steps to salvation is a Christian and when baptized, becomes a part of the body of Christ. The reason for the variations in doctrine is simple: One individual’s personal interpretation does not agree with the teaching of his church. He will then begin to teach others his interpretation. This would lead to meetings of like-minded individuals and eventually lead to the formation of a new church based upon these beliefs.