Lately I attended the communion service in Cambridge in Magdalene College chapel. The service was abundant in Trinitarian worship, in a fine, if too brief, sermon and also superb hymns -centred prayers, in elevated God. As I sat and shared in the worship, this idea came to me,' How varied the church of Jesus Christ is.' Here I was in a somewhat large Anglican school chapel, a head to toe Westminster Calvinist and a Presbyterian that is convinced. The seeming incongruity set me believing and what follows is the substance of my thinking.

The Westminster Confession of Faith1 includes a magnificent chapter 'of the communion of the saints':

All saints, that are united to Jesus Christ their Head, by His nature, and by faith, have fellowship with Him in His grace, sufferings, death, resurrection, and glory: and, being united to one another in love, they have communion in every others' presents and graces, and are obliged to the performance of such duties, public and private, as do conduce to their mutual good, both in the inward and outward man . . . Which communion, as God offers opportunity, will be extended unto those who, in every place, call upon the name of the Lord Jesus. (WCF 26)
It's only too easy for Christians to exclude practically, and even chiefly, from the communion of the saints, people and denominations who do not believe what they consider. There are, obviously, foundational and non- gospel doctrines. There exists a core of truths that participate in the nature of the Christian religion. People exclude themselves from the communion of the st if they deny these heart truths. But should they believe trust and these truths the Saviour they are 'family' and has to be recognized and embraced as family. They could have defective views of divine sovereignty, not understand the precedence of grace over faith, have dubious views of Genesis 1, have fantastical views of the end-times and encourage the continuance of charismatic gifts; but when they maintain to Christ the Head, they're fam.

Family life can be problematic and, regrettably, might be dysfunctional. But family is family regardless of how debatable and dysfunctional.

This is a tremendous and searching test of our gospel devotion that individuals understand that the Lord has his folks everywhere, frequently in what may seem to us the most unexpected of places. Embracing, accepting and recognising sisters and brothers in Christ, nevertheless different they're from us, was some thing Jesus firmly impressed on his adherents. Mark 9:38-41 is one of the most challenging episodes. The disciples saw a man casting out devils in Jesus' name, but they advised him to cease, 'because he was not following us'. Jesus instantly rebuked his slim- disciples, 'Do not prevent him'. If this guy wasn't among them he could barely be one! How sad.

The minute we recognize the Christian religion with our special church or denomination or confession of faith, that instant we become not a real church of Jesus and a sect. None of the means that we are never to attempt to correct sisters and our brothers and guide them into a more abundant, more biblical comprehension of the faith. No. It does mean our default option is not, 'They desire putting right', but, 'These are my family, we are fighting under the same banner, we're heading for the same celestial country, we're washed in the same blood.'

The saints' communion is a valuable and intensely biblical and God-honouring reality. In a famous letter to Archbishop Thomas Cranmer, John Calvin wrote:

Thus it's that the members of the Church the physique lies bleeding. Does this matter me, that, can i I be of any support, I would not grudge to cross even seas, if demand were, due to it. (John Calvin, Tracts and Letters, ed. Jules Bonnet [Edinburgh: Banner of reality, 2009],2 5.347-348.)
Most of the time family disagreements remain within the household; not merely because it's bad to to clean your dirty linen in in public places. More importantly, God's blood-bought children should always desire to please the Saviour to whom Father are combined by the Holy Spirit and their celestial them. Like all fathers, our heavenly Father desires to view his children live in harmony. 'By this', said our Lord Jesus, 'will all guys know that you're my disciples, that you love.'

If you are you looking for more information about Church Banner Stands (http://bit.ly/1K3YlaH) stop by our own internet site.