As Jesus is the cornerstone upon which the Church is built, so are his teachings the unifying cornerstone of Christian doctrine.

When heretics follow Christ

I was once part of a movement that followed Christ, but misunderstood his teachings. Patiently Jesus led many of us into the Gospel’s truth. In Mark 9:38-50 the disciples wanted to stop a man preaching in Jesus’ name because he did not follow them. What attitude ought we to have towards those who are not of our flock and who may even have doctrines that we believe are wrong? Christian movements often begin in enthusiastic heresy and explosive growth. If Christ is leading them they eventually align with historic church teachings. When we try to stop those who follow Christ because they are not following us, we are looking to ourselves to correct their error. We are actually impatient with Christ’s leadership. He will lead them into all truth, what we call orthodoxy, at his merciful and gracious pace.

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