ALL denominations are cults to one degree or another!
I am not playing it safe. I said what I said. It is what it is.
A cult is a group (religious or non-religious) that follows a particular set of beliefs or theological system. While there are the more obvious cults (the low hanging fruit), like the Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormons, Christian Science, Christadelphians, and the Moonies, there are also cults within Christendom and among Christians. For example: the KJV-Only group is a cult. Here are some characteristics of a cult:
- Dictatorial: Restricts the freedom to analyze for yourself or to question.
- Controlling: Controls people. Employs emotional manipulation to effect control over members by twisting the Scriptures, threatening loss of salvation, or resorting to guilt at the supposed disappointment of God.
- Speculative: Encourages unquestioning commitment to its leadership (whether alive or dead) and their teachings, which are typically bogus, to the point of discouraging studying the teaching of others.
- Arrogant: Claims special revelation or special authority converging on one individual at the ultimate head of the organization.
- Legalistic: Indirectly and subtly insists that dependence on their teachings and methods is a condition for salvation, usually based on a perversion of the Scriptures.
- Formularized: Asserts rigid uniformity to their direction, which must be identical for all members, as the only way a person can enter into or maintain an undefiled relationship with God.
- Restricted: Restricts access to information. Contrives an additional mediator, either directly through the leaders of the group or indirectly through the instruction of the group, as necessary in order to have relationship with God, thereby effectively making the group's leadership, instead of Jesus, the gatekeepers to God.
- Isolated: Restricts access to family members who are not part of the group. Minimizes contract with people outside the group with some perverted instruction on purity and remaining undefiled; pushes for a polarized us-versus-them mentality, even and especially against others within the Body of Christ.
- Elitist: Displays self-righteousness by claiming to be the only group discovering or maintaining the "truth" and the only group that has the authority to credit others with faithfulness to the "truth."
- Abusive: Domineeringly forces women and children into duties warped with the absence of compassion, justice, and mercy, thereby creating the ideal environment for sexual exploitation.
- Passive Aggressive: Embeds the practice of unmerciful shunning and disdainfully avoiding those who question the teachings of the group as the social norm through a perversion of ex-communication.
- Cowardly: Avoids publicly addressing the challenges and scrutiny brought by leaders and elders of other congregations.
- Superficial: Perverts modesty through dictatorial uniformity for all members according to misinterpretations of the Scriptures or culturally invented standards not specified in the Scriptures.
A cult does not need to possess every one of the characteristics above in abundance in order to be a cult. The more of these characteristics and warning signs that are present, the more cultic and dangerous the group is, especially to your relationship with the Lord Jesus.
Much of our experience of “church” is unbiblical and indefensible from the Bible, save for twisting specific, random, isolated verses ripped out of their immediate context the way the devil quoted Scripture to Jesus.
Were you aware that you cannot “go to church”? This kind of language was foreign to Jesus’ apostles and other disciples. You cannot “go to” something that you are! Ponder that promptly.
Use critical thinking and investigate the traditions and practices of Oriental Orthodox Catholics, Eastern Orthodox Catholics, Roman Catholics, Lutherans, "Calvinists," Anglicans, Anabaptists, Presbyterians, Baptists, Episcopalians, Methodists, Pentecostals, etc., and you will soon discover that their traditions and practices do not square with the Scriptures. But are they willing to change and conform to the Scriptures? Not on your life! They do not want to forfeit power or control.
Attitudes are as much cult-like as teachings are. If you have ever left a particular “church” or denomination (because you moved, or for any other reason), how many of your “friends” stayed in touch? How many of them made efforts to reach out? There are the odd few who will, because they truly know Christ and have His love in their hearts. (Providing it has nothing to do with you being part of a particular clique.) However, most “churches,” as soon as you are no longer attending, regardless of the reason, the people cut all ties with you. You probably have friends that you made in high school who still keep in touch, but you change “churches” or denominations and the “friends” you made there all of a sudden pretend you do not exist. Does that sound “Christian”? Is that how they learned Christ?
The more I carefully think about it, the more I am convinced that ALL denominations are cults—to one degree or another. I am not saying that there are no true believers in them, or that I am the only true Christian. That would be extremely naive and foolish. By the grace of God, thankfully I am not so foolish.
If you carefully, and discerningly, investigate “church” history, you will discover that since the 4th century every denomination has implemented traditions and practices that deviate from those instituted by the Lord Jesus and His apostles. Who gave them this right or authority? Many of those traditions and practices, while being rooted in paganism, still mirror Catholicism.
“Was it from you that the word of God first went forth? Or has it arrived to you only?” 1 Cor. 14:36
Was it from the __________ [insert denomination] that the word of God first went forth? Or has it arrived to the __________ [insert denomination] only? In other words, who gave any denomination the right or authority to change any of the traditions and practices instituted by the Lord Jesus and His apostles? Who gave them the right or authority to “do church” differently than the Lord and His apostles prescribed? Who gave them the right or authority to choose their own method via pragmatism?
Answer: NO ONE!!!
Paul repeatedly mentioned that all the congregations were taught, and practiced, the same things. He praised them for following his traditions. If we observe that the apostles were pleased when a congregation followed one specific tradition of congregational practice (1 Cor. 11:2), then we would be expected to apply that approval to other patterns we see modeled by the apostles in their establishment of congregations. The Congregation, the Bride of Christ, is too eternally important to allow her to deviate from traditions established by the Lord and His apostles.
If your “church” does not look and function as we see recorded in God’s holy Word, as was practiced for the first 300 years until Emperor Constantine paganized Christianity, then it is no “church” at all. All denominations are ruled and governed by men who will throw hissy fits if you attempt to deviate from their prescribed traditions and practices. If you get in the way of their power, position, popularity, or pay check, they will turn on you and engage in the most egregious forms of IMAX-level projection, ad hominem, name calling, and character assassination attempts. If you do not believe me, try it.
If you bother to take the time to think about this, to carefully and discerningly analyze it, you will see that I am absolutely correct. When a denomination controls your thoughts, beliefs, and behaviours, it absolutely is a cult. If you are not allowed to question or challenge anything, it absolutely is a cult. Regardless of how you “feel” about it or whether it “offends” you.
Paul writes of both the Ephesians and the Colossians that they had love for “all the saints” (Eph. 1:15; Col. 1:4). How many “Christians” today can say the same? I want to fellowship with genuine believers from all denominations who truly belong to Christ Jesus. We may come from different cultures and backgrounds, but we have the most amazing thing in common—the Lord Jesus and our salvation. If I meet a foreign Christian in the grocery store (who is on vacation), I want to invite him/her over for a meal and to fellowship. This is the love that demonstrates to the world that we are indeed Christians—followers of the Lord Jesus.
If you truly know Christ Jesus as your Lord and Saviour, and your life reflects Him and demonstrates that you have been touched by Him, and you are truly starving for genuine Christian fellowship, then please reach out to me. I would love to hear from you. You can contact me through my website: https://timothyklaver.com Please introduce yourself and tell me a bit about you. If you have prayer requests, please share them with me. Let us make a world-wide community of loving Christians.