by Terry W. Benton<\/p>\n
In the first century, you had churches in different locations, but all the churches were taught the same thing and practiced the same thing, and if they drifted away from that teaching they did not have God (II John 9-10; I Corinthians 4:17; 7:17). There was one standard and body of teaching, the apostles’ Spirit-guided words (Acts 2:42; I Corinthians 14:37).<\/p>\n
There were no such things as different creed books for different churches. The scriptures completely furnished the man of God (II Timothy 3:16-17), and if anyone spoke, they were to “speak as the oracles of God<\/em>” (I Peter 4:11). If anyone deviated from what the apostles taught, they were to be accursed (Galatians 1:6-10). All the churches were to claim the one faith<\/strong> (Ephesians 4:3-4) and contend earnestly for it (Jude 3-4). Following the doctrines of men made your worship “vain” (Matthew 15:8-9; Colossians 2:8) and robbed you of your reward in heaven.<\/p>\n All the churches were to recognize only one head<\/strong> or authority over the church (Ephesians 1:18ff) and have the same mind and same judgment (I Corinthians 1:10f). Dividing under different men instead of uniting under Christ was rebuked. As the years passed men began to change one thing and then another (I Timothy 4:1-3). These changes were not done with God’s approval. These changes were from the influences of evil. The only way to have God and Christ is to get in Christ and abide in His teaching, the New Testament (II John 9-10), and refuse to fellowship those churches that settled on something different than the pure teaching of the scriptures.<\/p>\n The standard was set in the first century. All those churches taught the same thing and were rebuked when they ventured away from that standard. God has not changed His mind about this. Let’s get back to that pure standard. If you can’t find such a local church, then start one in your area. No name but Christ’s name. No organization but local organization (Philippians 1:1), no form of worship except what you can read and prove was done by apostolic example and approval. No creed book but the Bible. One Lord, One Faith, One Baptism (Ephesians 4:3-4), “as in all the churches<\/em>” that God approved.<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" by Terry W. Benton In the first century, you had churches in different locations, but all the churches were taught the same thing and practiced the same thing, and if they drifted away from that teaching they did not have God (II John 9-10; I Corinthians 4:17; 7:17). There was one standard and body of…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[27],"tags":[78,220],"class_list":["post-59218","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-authority","tag-standard"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":66619,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/i-ordain-in-all-the-churches\/","url_meta":{"origin":59218,"position":0},"title":"I Ordain in All the Churches","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 16, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"by Terry Wane Benton Text: I Corinthians 7:17 There was no such thing as each church making up the rules for themselves. From the very beginning, they \"continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine\" (Acts 2:42), and when the apostles taught something, it was meant for \"all the churches\" to teach\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":2530,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/was-paul-given-a-different-dispensation-from-the-other-apostles\/","url_meta":{"origin":59218,"position":1},"title":"Was Paul given a different dispensation from the other apostles?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 4, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Please, was Paul given a different dispensation from the other apostles? Answer: The word \"dispensation\" means either a system of rules in place at a particular time or to be exempt from a system of rules. Thus, your question really is whether Paul taught a different gospel from the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":61801,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-autonomy-of-the-local-church-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":59218,"position":2},"title":"The Autonomy of the Local Church (Hamilton)","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 9, 2004","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0One area that sharply distinguishes the Lord\u2019s church from the various denominations is its organization \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The church is the organization through which God\u2019s wisdom is made known - Eph 3:9-11 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a01.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0It is a product of that wisdom and is organized by God. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The head of the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Sermon"","block_context":{"text":"Sermon","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/sermon\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":47327,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/but-it-is-a-good-work\/","url_meta":{"origin":59218,"position":3},"title":"But It Is a Good Work!","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 2, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Ephesians 2:1-10 \u00a0 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Periodically I\u2019ll get irate notes from people who are upset that I talk about the teachings of the Salvation Army and point out that they don\u2019t match the Scriptures \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Rarely does anyone say I\u2019m mistaken about the teachings, rather they think it\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":29235,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-organization-of-the-church-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":59218,"position":4},"title":"The Organization of the Church","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 8, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Text: Hebrews 8:1-5 \u00a0 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0We give God glory when we teach His doctrine and execute it accordingly - I Peter 4:11 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Thus we are to follow the pattern set for us - Philippians 3:17 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Warnings abound not to change the message - Galatians 1:6-10 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0C.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Any change would give glory to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":91335,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/why-do-some-churches-of-christ-not-believe-in-the-holy-spirit\/","url_meta":{"origin":59218,"position":5},"title":"Why do some churches of Christ not believe in the Holy Spirit?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 17, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Howdy! I am reaching out to inquire why some of the churches of Christ do not believe in the Holy Spirit. They think it's just the Bible and that He is not actually with Christians! Seems like a false teaching. It's like they are too afraid to be anything\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59218","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=59218"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/59218\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=59218"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=59218"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=59218"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}