There were splits long before Martin Luther, in fact, the institutional church as we se it today is a split from the local Church idea the APostles started.
THere were many local churches that never fell under the control of Constantinople or Rome, and they remained local churches until they were persecuted to death.
That means the RCC, the Orthodox, the Asyrian, they are all splits from what God started:: Individual Churches for each city, local control, Bible based values, not man created rules or spelling out of doctrines.
The Reformation was a feeble attempt to return to Biblical truth, but Protestntism never fully went back to the original ideas.
Bible churches are close, but as far as doctrine, you have to shop around for a good one among them, also.
But, a denominational Church, thatis totally not what God started,and there is zero evidence He did.
I agree with your discussion but dissagree with your final conclusion.
He did create a church and it is back on Earth now. Read my other posts.
Not exactly. All of those churches are still part of the Catholic Church because they had apostolic origins. The Roman Catholic Church is that part that practices under the Roman Rite. The Eastern Orthodox Church, the Copts, etc all practice the same fundementals of the faith.
the institutional church as we se it today is a split from the local Church idea the APostles started.
I would like to see some factual/historical support for that statement. In my experience, such a statement is offered to justify departing from the Church founded by Jesus and carried on by his apostles. Note that in the Acts of the Apostles, Paul and another disciple came to Jerusalem to confer with Peter and the other apostles over the issue of circumsicion for pagan converts. Sounds like an institutional church with a central body of authority to me.Also, Paul's letters show that he was traveling far and wide but maintaining authority over the churches he established. The Churches were hardly local.
a denominational Church, thatis totally not what God started,and there is zero evidence He did.
I agree. Denominations are only relevant when more than one branch of the Church springs up. Jesus created one Church to be governed by Peter and the apostles. The Catholic Church is that church.