TELL ME THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN….

Yesterday, I got out of my office into the beautiful sunny autumn late afternoon and walked on six whole blocks of fallen leaves-covered sidewalks into the tiny Lloydminster Mall to get a big bowl of Shrimp Beef Wanton Vegetable Noodle Soup (what a mouthful!~ pardon the pun!) at Wok2Go! That was my lunch–at 5:30PM!

So there I was reading the morning news in the late afternoon having a noontime meal when a young man I have met before walked up wanting to share a table with me. Without sensing a need to build rapport knowing that I am a minister, he asked, “Could you tell me the difference between religions?”

In what I’d call a prelude to the “preaching of the gospel,” I went from one major belief of every major religion to another – from Buddhism’s Eight-fold Path to Hinduism’s Dharma and Karma, hoping that I’d end up talking about what makes Christianity unique from all the works-based religions (the Doctrine of Grace and Faith), when I realized that what he actually really wanted to hear me speak about were the differences between denominations and why divisions so rampantly exist within one religion called Christianity. I explained how denominations and methods began within Christianity, and with his 18-year-old wide-eyed fascination kept asking questions which took us into a cycle of discussions.

From denominations to the centrality of Jesus, God’s grace revealed in the Scriptures and man’s faith was what we ended up discussing, leading to the subject of trusting Jesus alone for salvation. That however, propped us into taking a couple blocks more walk in the cold autumn evening and on to a round of French Vanillas at Tim Hortons and a promise that he’ll show up at First Baptist Church on Sunday!

IN other news along the line of denominational differences:
The General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church USA voted in mid-July in favor of changing ordination standards to remove language requiring ministers “live either in fidelity within the covenant of marriage between a man and a woman, or chastity in singleness.” To a common mind, this means, one can be a minister of the Gospel and be unfaithful to the command to be sexually pure. A man or a woman ordained in the ministerial office may choose to sleep around; a person who is a practicing homosexual may be ordained into the ministry within the Presbyterian Church USA.

Following the vote at the denomination’s convened highest governing body, Seattle’s Bethel Presbyterian’s pastor James Berkley said:

“Today a slight majority of a skewed sample of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) voted by a narrow margin to overturn the enduring moral guidance Presbyterians have always upheld. Other than gaining attention, however, the vote changes nothing. A majority of 173 regional presbyteries must also approve the church constitutional amendment before it takes effect, and their votes will occur throughout the next twelve months.

“The vote today was a disgrace, in that it drags Presbyterians away from the will of God for our sexual expression. We are to obey Scripture, not re-imagine God-defiling teachings.

“The vote today was tragic, in that it offers cold comfort for those caught in sin. We are to proclaim Scripture’s message of hope, not bend its message to prevailing error.

“The vote today was divisive, in that once again, congregations and presbyteries, friendships and families will be strained by the process of defeating yet another General Assembly-produced error in doctrine and practice.”

The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America voted in August 2009 to allow gays and lesbians in committed relationships to serve as clergy, following the Episcopal Church’s reaffirmation in July of the same year of its openness to noncelibate gay priests. Meanwhile, only the United Methodist Church is the mainline group that voted against proposed structural changes that would have opened church leadership to homosexuals.

This just in:
A friend of mine who now lives in Auckland NZ has sent me a message wanting me to converse with him on Skype about the differences between Baptists and Pentecostals….so I’m off to Skype with him right now.