We have all heard it, maybe even fallen into espousing it ourselves; the notion that “doctrine & dogma” doesn’t matter but that instead we should focus on “relationships” as if being Christian is a popularity contest.

Pitting doctrine & dogma against relationship is already a false comparison.  The unity & relationship that Christians are supposed to have is the unity & relationship around the Jesus Christ of the Bible & how can we know that Jesus Christ but through the Bible?

Jesus Christ doesn’t “come into your heart” anymore than the animal sacrifices of the old covenant “came into the hearts” of people.  Indeed, Christ CHANGES a person’s heart but that is an act initiated by Christ not by us.

The point is how do you KNOW & have a relationship with anyone without knowing more about them?  Our relationship with Christ & fellow Christians is the same.  The more we KNOW about Christ & have a common knowledge of Christ with fellow Christians, the more we have unity & a relationship.  People who think you can KNOW Christ almost through osmosis or by simply “feeling His presence” are typically the same people who disdain doctrine & dogma & instead spend most of their time talking to people about their life experiences instead of what the Bible actually says.

A Christian’s “relationship” with other Christians ISN’T based on if they both like the same sports team, or if they both wear the same type of shoes, or if they both like the same types of movies – it isn’t even based on the fact they are both calling themselves “Christian”, but true Christian relationship is based on the Jesus Christ of the Bible.  Before people professing to be Christians can actually have a Christian relationship they have to KNOW the Jesus Christ of the Bible.  As a matter of fact, Jesus made this point very clear when He said:

If you love Me, keep My commandments – John 14:15

Right here we see that to “love Jesus Christ” we must keep His commandments.  So, anyone claiming to “love Jesus” yet hate doctrine & dogma (which means teaching or commandments) are in conflict with what Jesus says it means to love Him.  And if a person tries to claim they are having a relationship with the Jesus Christ of the Bible & with fellow Christians yet this person also disdains doctrine & dogma, I would seriously consider avoiding a relationship with that person except to point them to John 14:15.