Dear Joyce,
What's the difference between a nondenominational church and a denominational one?
James
James,
A denominational church belongs to an organization that has a specific set of doctrinal beliefs, methods and forms of worship. All the churches that wish to belong to the denomination must agree to abide by its guidelines. In some instances it is required that members tithe 10% of their income in offerings, which is used for missions, administrative costs and many other things.
The denomination watches over the churches that belong to it, holding them accountable for doctrinal and moral behavior. There are many great denominations and benefits from belonging to one of them; however, there can also be problems. One of the problems is that they can become so rule-oriented that Jesus merely becomes another doctrine people believe in, rather than a living person they fellowship with.
Guidelines and rules are necessary, but if they become excessive they tend to squeeze the life out of everything. Paul said that the letter of the law kills but the Spirit makes alive (2 Corinthians 3:6). We should always allow the Spirit to lead our churches and not man-made rules and regulations. God gave Ten Commandments to the people in the Old Testament and they turned them into over 2,000 rules in a short period of time. They ended up squeezing the life out of what God had originally said.
A nondenominational church is simply one that does not belong to a larger organization. They are independent and have their own guidelines and doctrinal beliefs. This is not a problem unless what they believe and teach does not agree with the Bible.
Nondenominational churches tend to have less formality in their services. They are often the result of a group of people breaking away from a denomination due to disagreements regarding how the church should be run. I believe accountability is a safety net and a godly principle. If a nondenominational pastor does not make him or herself accountable it often causes problems. Lack of financial and moral accountability is one of the biggest complaints against churches that are independent of a larger organization.
Even if a church group does not wish to belong to a specific organization, it still needs accountability and a structure should be set up within their group that provides it.
Nondenominational churches have increased greatly in recent years. Many people are finding that their "religious" experience is not fulfilling, and in a search for the answer to their emptiness, they are stepping outside the norm and trying something new.
Pastors of denominational churches must have credentials from an accredited school of theology in order to pastor. This is not always the case with nondenominational pastors. They may start a church because they believe God called them and His anointing qualifies them.
There are pros and cons to both denominational and nondenominational churches. Sad to say, people are imperfect and anyone looking for a perfect church would have to go to one that had no people. I don't pretend to be an expert on this subject, but I hope my answer has helped you.
