Yet who sits in the seat of Christ to truly determine who is Apostate? This is the problem I've had with both the Anabaptists when seeking them for a place to fellowship, and then to the Orthodox- well even within Anabaptists & within Orthodox- they consider some of their 'own' apostate- for example- when one is baptized into the Amish Church- they are considered apostate if they leave & join Mennonites- they are shunned for this- but by what basis?Josh wrote:The New Testament speaks quite a bit about the importance of separation from the apostate.
Most attempts to unify different groups of Christians have resulted in very worldly, unbiblical groups. I hope you wouldn’t be offended that I would not consider a Methodist lesbian minister to be a Christian and would not greet such a person as one. Instead, we are to consider such people as a tax gatherer or a heathen, and should share the gospel with them.
Recently I had asked a question about this in an "Ask About the Orthodox Faith Group". I know that they consider anyone who claims to be a Christian but rejects Orthodox Church as 'deceived' - in fact I was messaged this:
"The positive message of the passage is about the faithful, that is those who have pure Orthodox faith, it is clear from the context.
The Scripture is really 'harsh' speaking about those who do not hold the teaching (orthodox is exactly this, the right teaching): "do not give him a greeting; For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds" (2 John 1:10-11)."
One of the best known early Fathers (and I hope you understand that saints did not speak from themselves, they spoke words of the Holy Spirit) said that the unorthodox cannot have humility, and without that virtue nobody can have Christ in him. It's for SURE. Some unorthodox do not know about the true faith, and such people have real excuse. But without the true faith real Christianity is impossible. Such people may be considered as on their way to Christianity. I personally have pity on them, sincere compassion. But though they call themselves Christians, they are not. As I said, may the Lord open them the way to His Church."
So what we have here are Christians who believe those who do not follow after 'them' as apostate-
Granted- anyone who is in a clear state of 'sin' would be apostate but I also believe that the word apostate as originally used in Scripture was someone who had left the Church by their own opinions/interpretations- and there were many of those schismatics
I'm just wondering who is right in this- and how God is looking at all this.