So where is the True Church?

This is a question that probably all Christians, almost from the time of the New Testament, have asked at one time or another.  If you read the New Testament carefully you will see that there were many 'churches', which were merely congregations of people who had heard and believed the message of Jesus and His disciples.  These were in many different places, largely due to the work of Paul and other evangelical Apostles, and were often completely separated from each other.  History shows us that in the first three centuries there was, quite simply, no such thing as a universal, organized 'true church'.  Rather there were followers of The Way who were in doctrinal harmony with each other.

The first thing you need to understand when studying this subject is that the word church doesn't mean what it has come to mean in our modern society.  It comes from a Greek word and simply means 'those called out with honor'.  The 'True Church' was and is simply those people, in many different areas, who follow The Way taught by Jesus as given to us by God the Father.  It's not a denomination or organization as we understand it today.

The modern sense of 'church' only developed with the Roman Emperor Constantine who wanted a readily recognizable body that would help him to unify the increasingly disorganized Roman Empire.  He was, in a very real sense, the true founder of what we now call the Catholic Church.  However it is vitally important to understand that Constantine's motives in this were not spiritual but political.

It was at Constantine's urging that the bulk of what is now modern Christianity was born.  He incorporated a great deal of pagan beliefs into the dogma of the Roman church in order to make it easier for his citizens to switch from their previous polytheistic ways to his new monotheistic religion.  While he did maintain in some respects the heart of The Way of being a true follower of Christ he also wanted a church that was reflective of the current Roman religious thought.

For this reason Constantine overturned many of the basic tenants of true belief and worship in favour of a more palatable type of religious organization.  For example the Roman Empire had long been worshippers of a sun god and there were many, many solar cults coming from varied cultures throughout the Empire.  Thus, in order to make the new 'universal' religion easier for people to adhere to he switched the day of worship from Saturday, the Sabbath, to Sunday, which was the traditional day to worship the sun.

Another major change he implemented was to alter the Holy Days from those set out by God from the very beginning, that is the Passover, Pentecost, Feast of Unleavened Bread, Feast of Trumpets, Day of Atonement, Feast of Tabernacles and The Last Great Day to the simpler, already in place pagan celebrations of Easter and Christmas.  Easter even then was an ancient festival of fertility, worshipping the god Ishtar.  Christmas was, of course, the major celebration of the Roman sun god Mithras who was said to have been born on December 25.

Given that virtually every modern denomination of Christianity has embraced these pagan rituals the average seeker of God's real truth can easily despair of ever finding the one, true church.  This is where you have to alter your thinking about what church actually means.  You may be a member of any particular denomination yet already be a part of God's true church.  God's church is a spiritual entity, not a man-made organization.  If you love God and truly want to follow His ways then you already are a part of the one, true church that Paul referred to as 'the body of Christ'.

So you don't necessarily have to run off to find a new church, although if you do choose to find a new group of like minded people to worship with I suggest looking at a church which keeps the Sabbath and the Old Testament Holy Days.  Many people will tell you that these things have been done away with or 'nailed to the cross' but if you read the New Testament you will see that the Apostles of Christ followed those precepts and met on the Sabbath and kept the Holy Days throughout their lives and they were in a far better position to know whether they had been done away with than we are today.

I would never advise or insist that anyone leave the group with whom they worship unless that is your own personal choice.  What I do advise is that you read your Bible's carefully, with an open heart and an open mind and allow yourself to be led by the Holy Spirit as to what is the right thing for you to do.  God says that 'He plants us where we are meant to be' which means there may be a very good reason for you to continue to worship with your current denomination.  Pray about it earnestly and be guided by the Holy Spirit to the correct choice for you and remember that God loves you no matter which group you worship with.

In God's Grace,

Tracey