Correction - The thousands of denominations of Protestantism disagree on what to believe. Which is why Jesus Christ founded only ONE Church, and said it was to remain ONE. He realized that truth can exist only in unity, because truth cannot conflict with truth, and conflicting beliefs/teachings therefore necessarily mean false beliefs/teachings. He promised that ONE Church, and no other, the fullness of truth, which is why that ONE Church has remained ONE in teaching, ONE in biblical understanding, ONE in worship throughout the world for 2,000 years, with NO conflicting beliefs, while unauthorized manmade religion, which defected from the church He founded, has fragmented into thousands of conflicting denominations teaching thousands of false beliefs, in just a few hundred years. You just can't beat God's plan!
Catholic deacon
They believe that Jesus can and did abandon his church. Each new sect is founded on biblical principles not followed by any other sect or worse, the holy Spirit has chosen the founder to reform his church.
It happened once and it will happen again and again. Seems like a fickle, disloyal God to me. I don't think he is that way and stick with the old church that was first said abandoned by God.
The many denominations should not exist.
Notice what 1 Corinthians 1:10 says;"Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment."
How many divisions are "no divisions". When it says we should "all speak the same thing", how many is "all"?
Jesus prayed for such unity in John 17:20-21.
Why do we have so many divisions? Men are not satisfied to all speak the same thing. Men are not satisfied to teach only the word of God. Men are not satisfied to only speak where the Bible speaks, and be silent where the Bible is silent. Men are not content to do Bible things in Bible ways and call Bible things by Bible names. Too many wish to add their own desires and teach their own doctrine.
Notice 2 Timothy 4:2-4.
"Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long suffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables."
We should return to the Bible as our authority and only guide book. We should have a "thus saith the Lord" for everything we teach and do as a church.
The Bible teaches that the church is the body of Christ (Eph. 1:22-23) and that there is only "one body" (Eph 4:4). When the church first began, there were no denominations. (Many churches formed by departures from the original New Testament pattern, doctrine, worship, organization, name and/or practices.)
Ephesians 4, also says "there is one faith", but today we see many so-called "faiths". True faith comes by hearing the word of God! (Rom 10:17) If we want to return to that true faith, we must set aside the teaching of men and return to the word of God as our guide in doctrine (teaching), reproof, correction and instruction. (2 Tim. 3:16 - 4:4) Those "teaching as doctrine the commandments of men" have worship that is "vain" or useless in God's eyes! (Matt 15:9)
In Acts 2, we see that about 3000 all heard the same message, all understood it the same way, all believed it the same way and all obeyed it the same way. The result was they became Christians - nothing more, nothing less, nothing else. At this point, God added them to His church (Acts 2:47).
There is no authorization for Christians to "join the church of your choice", but they were added to the church Christ built and purchased! (Matt. 16:18, Acts 20:27)
After they became Christians they continued in one accord in fellowship and together in the apostles doctrine. (Acts 2:42-47) They had the type of unity Christians should have.
Today, if we read and understand what they understood, believe what they believed, and do only what they did, without adding any man-made doctrine, we will become only what they became - Christians! Not some type of hyphenated Christians, but just "Christians" - nothing more, nothing less, nothing else.
The word of God only makes Christians, members of the church Jesus and his disciples established. If something else is formed, it must come from the doctrine of men. Jesus has "all authority". (Matt. 28:18-20) If we follow the teaching of men, then we are following someone else's authority.
In order to encompass as many preferences as possible, and get more followers. Don't think of them as disagreements, think of them as holy options.