[The text below represents an edited transcript of this Tomorrow’s World program.]

Which Version of Christianity Is Right?

As our world spirals into chaos, many are beginning to seek the stability, reassurance, and peace of mind they rightly believe the word of God and Christianity can bring.

But it doesn’t take much searching to realize that Christianity itself is a confusing and chaotic mess of competing beliefs, practices, and organizations.

Yet Jesus Christ never meant it to be so. And the true faith established by the Son of God 2,000 years ago is worth finding amidst the cacophony of counterfeits claiming today to be the real thing.

Join us right now on Tomorrow’s World as we show you how to find true Christianity.

Greetings, and welcome to Tomorrow’s World, where we help you make sense of your world through the pages of the Bible. And the world today is hard to make sense of!

Look for the Real Jesus and True Faith

In fact, the social, political, and moral confusion in today’s world is prompting many to look for answers in the Bible and Christianity. But as we’ll see, “Christianity” means different things to different people. The world is filled with counterfeit Christianities, but what the world needs is true Christianity—the faith established by Jesus Christ Himself 2,000 years ago.

Yet needing it and finding it are two different things.

And many are looking these days for the stability and hope that only the real Jesus Christ can offer.

In December of 2024, the Wall Street Journal reported, “Sales of Bibles Are Booming, Fueled by First-Time Buyers and New Versions.” In the article, columnist Jeffrey Trachtenburg quotes the president of a publishing association as observing this:

People are experiencing anxiety themselves, or they’re worried for their children and grandchildren… It’s related to artificial intelligence, election cycles… and all of that feeds a desire for assurance that we’re going to be OK.

Start With the Bible, Our Anchor of Hope

Tractenburg reports the comments of a 38-year-old mother of two that will likely resonate with many of you.

She started to read the Bible this year after feeling unfulfilled by years of advice on self-care, staying healthy and pursuing a career. She said she also sought stability as “things just went off the rails a little too quickly” throughout society. “We’re kind of holding on to the edge of the ship, like, we’re not sure what’s happening here.”

Credit to all who are seeking the stability they need in the word of God and the teachings of Christ! That truly is the only place to find lasting peace, truth, and understanding in a world of sin, sorrow, and confusion.

But what about the confusion in Christianity itself?

Where Is One Body, One Hope, One Spirit (Ephesians 4)?

Let’s be honest with ourselves—if you told someone that the world needs Christianity, they might rightly ask you, “Which Christianity are you talking about?”

The faith that goes by the name “Christianity” is a writhing mass of confusing beliefs, practices, and traditions. Wars have been fought in which both sides claimed Christ as their Savior—so-called Christian killing so-called Christian, even killing each other about differences in their beliefs.

And the collection of so-called “Christian” beliefs differs wildly from sect to sect.

For instance:

• What happens to believers when they die? What about non-believers?
• How should a person be baptized and when? Or does he or she even need to be baptized at all?
• Should we obey the Ten Commandments? Or were they “done away at the cross”?
• Should we worship on Sunday, or Saturday, or does it make no difference at all?
• Does going to church even matter?
• How do you build a successful family, and what’s the best way to raise your children?
• Should Christians be separate from the world—not voting or participating in politics—or should they be all the more engaged, fighting for social causes and legislation they desire?
• Why did God create man in the first place?
• What is the purpose of the Church?
• What is the purpose of human life itself?

Grab five “Christians” off the street, and you can get five different answers to each of these questions.

Now compare this to the Apostle Paul’s admonition to the first-century Church in 1 Corinthians 1.

Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment (1 Corinthians 1:10).

God Is Not the Author of Confusion

Later in that same letter, Paul writes something very important that sheds light on the confusion we see in the Christianity of this world.

For God is not the author of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints (1 Corinthians 14:33).

No, the confusion we see in the religion called “Christianity” in this world is not of God, but is of the devil, who has confused and twisted the teachings of Christ and the apostles for 2,000 years—presenting, as Paul says in his second letter to the Corinthians, “another Jesus,” a “different spirit,” and a “different gospel” (2 Corinthians 11:4).

Yet, Jesus promised us 2,000 years ago in Matthew 16:18 that He would build His Church, and the grave would never prevail against it.

So somewhere, here on this earth, we should be able to find true Christianity—a faith that is not part of the confusion that is the modern Christian world, but the true faith, beliefs, and practices of Jesus Christ and the Church He founded two millennia ago. And that is the faith we need.

Is there a way to find true Christianity?

Yes, there is.

Follow Jesus’ Teachings

If we want to find the real Christianity, then we simply need to look to the teachings of the founder of Christianity Himself, Jesus Christ.

Jesus didn’t ascend into heaven and then call it a day. He left Himself a witness to His message and teachings and a record of the practices of His Church written by those He taught face-to-face.

That witness and record is the key. If we want to cut through the confusion and find the true Christianity, we need to let Jesus Christ and His disciples speak for themselves.

Let’s do just that. Let’s dive into the Bible and examine Christ’s own teachings. Let the Founder of Christianity tell us what it truly is, what its doctrines and beliefs are, and what its practices and observances should be.

In fact, a great place to start is what the Bible says about itself.

The Bible Shows How to Be a Christian

For instance, what is the ultimate source of authority in Christianity?

Some say the Bible is that perfect, ultimate authority—the word of God. But among those who consider themselves “Christian,” attitudes and teachings differ. Some believe the Bible is a great book, but just a human book, and that Christians need to ignore parts of the Bible that don’t fit the times—such as teachings on sexual purity before marriage, or the roles of man and woman in marriage.

Others believe that the Bible is incomplete, and they attach the writings or teachings of their own leaders or supposed prophets. Still others believe that Jesus instilled ultimate authority over beliefs and practices in certain men whose decisions are assumed to be perfectly inspired by God—even if their teachings completely contradict what is recorded in the Bible.

Again, confusion. So let’s resolve the confusion and ask ourselves what Jesus Christ Himself taught about the Bible’s authority.

Speaking of God’s written word in John 10:35, Jesus made a plain declaration.

“The Scripture cannot be broken!”

According to Christ, the Scriptures do not contradict themselves. In fact, in John 17:17 while praying aloud to God about His followers, Jesus asks His Father in heaven:

Sanctify them by Your truth. YOUR WORD IS TRUTH.

His first disciples and Apostles were just as clear.

In 2 Timothy 3, we see the Apostle Paul, writing to the young evangelist, speaking of the word of God, commending him and encouraging him to remain true to:

…the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work (2 Timothy 3:15).

And how did Jesus regard the idea of men being able to “overrule” the Bible with their own, man-made commandments and traditions?

We see His own answer in Mark 7. There, Jesus is having a discussion with the Pharisees, the religious leaders of the Jews in His day who, in Jesus’ own words, sat in Moses’ seat. His words to them concerning what He thought of those who believe their authority and traditions trump God’s written word is plain.

He answered and said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written: ‘This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me. And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men’” (Mark 7:6).

In verse 9, He continues His condemnation.

He said to them, “All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition” (Mark 7:9)

For those who desire to find true Christianity, the teachings of Jesus Christ make the answer plain.

No, the Bible is not filled with values that become out of date, like milk that has passed its expiration date. Instead, He says that “the Scripture cannot be broken.”

And to those who believe their human authority can override the word of God, He condemns setting aside God’s commandments for the sake of their own traditions and creeds—and condemns those who set them aside.

Again, if we’re looking for true Christianity, then looking to the recorded teachings of Jesus and His disciples reveals how it differs with those that are Christian in name only.

His inspired word is our standard for navigating through the confusion to find true Christianity. Not the traditions or creeds of men, not our own personal ideas and preferences, but His own teachings and inspired instruction.

Keeping the Ten Commandments

Let’s look at an example to illustrate how relying on the standard of God’s word helps us to sort through the confusion and find true Christianity.

For instance, what does true Christianity teach about the Ten Commandments?

Many denominations teach that the Ten Commandments are a matter of “legalism” and “works,” and are no longer required of Christians—they were “done away with” at the cross of Christ. They will rightly say that Christians are under grace, but then claim that being “under grace” means that God’s law and His commandments are no longer required of us by God.

Yet, when pressed, many of them will still agree that Christians are commanded not to murder, or commit adultery, or steal. Some will say you shouldn’t worship idols, while cloaking their idol worship by calling it something else.

In reality, what most mean when they say that the law and the commandments are “done away” is that you don’t have to keep the fourth commandment and observe the seventh-day Sabbath.

All of this double talk about God’s law and picking and choosing among His commandments is a big part of what helped to create the confusion we see in global Christianity in the first place.

Again, if we want to find true Christianity, then we need to look at what Jesus Christ and His disciples say on the matter.

Jesus Did Not Come to Destroy the Law

We’ve already seen how Christ condemned the religious leaders of His day for rejecting God’s commandments to keep their own traditions. And those words clearly apply here.

But let’s look even further at Christ’s teachings on the law of God and the Ten Commandments. Did He plan to do away with them on the cross?

For instance, notice in Matthew 19 what Jesus said to a wealthy young man who asked Him what he should do to have eternal life. Christ’s words were plain, and He told the young man, “if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments” (Matthew 19:17), and followed up with several of the Ten Commandments, lest we imagine He was speaking of anything else.

And look earlier in Matthew 5:17.

“Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill.”

Here Jesus says directly, do not think that my teachings destroy the Law or the Prophets! Do not say that Christianity teaches that God’s law is done away.

True Christianity will agree with Christ. He says that He came to fulfill the law—to fill it to the full.

In the famous Sermon on the Mount, did Jesus say it was OK to commit adultery now?

No, He said rather that you should even obey God’s commandment in your heart by not even lusting after someone (Matthew 5:27-30).

Those who say that Jesus “did away” with the law but that somehow that’s not the same as destroying the law are playing the devil’s word games to confuse the truth.

If He wasn’t clear enough, Jesus Christ makes it remarkably plain in the very next passage.

“For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:18–19).

Friends, I guarantee you that, if you go outside, you will see that heaven and earth are still there. They have not passed away and—according to the Son of God—God’s law is not done away.

In fact, notice the words of His faithful Apostle John, written long after Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection.

Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him (1 John 2:3–4).

Even in the very last book of the Bible, the book of Revelation, notice how the body of believers, the saints are described.

Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus (Revelation 14:12).

You would read the same thing in Revelation 12:17. Even in the end times, the Bible describes true Christians as faithfully keeping the commandments of God—including the Fourth Commandment about the Sabbath!

True Christianity Teaches from the Bible

Nominal Christianity may be confused, but the Bible and true Christianity are not.

In fact, as the prophet Isaiah proclaimed:

To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no light in them (Isaiah 8:20).

Our topic today is finding true Christianity, and God’s word tells us that, in our search, we should turn away from preachers, teachers, and others who do not honor and teach observance to the laws and commandments of God, because “there is no light in them.”

Let God be true but every man a liar (Romans 3:4).

We do need ministers and guides to teach the word of God, but no man on earth has the authority to supersede God’s word and supplant it with his own judgment. And we saw that Jesus Christ condemns those who seek to do so.

And, as an example, we compared the popular teachings of many churches and faiths that claim the name of Christ concerning what they teach about the law of God and His commandments. When we did so, we saw that Jesus’ own teaching and those of His disciples flew in the face of standard, so-called Christian teaching—that Christ taught obedience to the laws and commandments of God, not that they were done away at His crucifixion.

Build True Christian Character

The more you make a practice of making God’s word your guiding light, the more true Christianity begins to reveal itself—in contrast to what is called “Christianity” all over the world.

But that is where we come to a place where more than knowledge is needed.

Finding true Christianity is not just about what you know—it is about what you are willing to do. And we need more than knowledge.

We need courage—because true Christianity makes demands of us.

• When the world says to worship Christ one way, true Christianity tells us to do something else.
• When the world says that Christians no longer need to obey the commandments of God, true Christianity tells us that Christ does want us to keep those commands—even that it plays a role in the very purpose of our lives.
• When the world says that Christians need to focus on fixing this world by participating in the politics of our day and getting the right people elected, true Christianity tells us that Christians’ commitment to the coming Kingdom of God transforms both their relation to the world around them and their role in it.

Frankly, true Christianity involves a commitment of one’s whole life to following in the footsteps of Jesus Christ—and that involves change.

Be Strong and of Good Courage

Many, after working to find true Christianity, discover that they prefer the comforts of false Christianity, prefer the easy promises of the false, counterfeit Jesus they are used to, instead of the commands of the true Jesus who is the Son of God reigning in Heaven, and soon to intervene in the affairs of the world. They discover that they don’t have the courage it takes to let go of the comfortable and embrace the truth.

But for those who do have that courage—and those who may not at first, but are humble enough to let Jesus Christ grow that courage within them—there is no greater reward than finding—and embracing—true Christianity.

Thanks so much for watching. All of us here at Tomorrow’s World work very hard to help you understand your world through the pages of the Bible.

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