"There were always small groups here and there within and outside the Roman umbrella who had not bowed their knees to baal, so to speak. God has always had His own ways of protecting and preserving and nurturing a remnant."
There have always been heretics, Q, espousing soul destroying theories. There is no doubt that Nestorianism survives here and there and has continuously since the days when it was anathemized, but I know of no Protestant group which traces its lineage to the Nestorianism of China or Iraq and Iran. I am very interested in the theory, which as I understand it arose in the 20th century, that many Protestant groups of today are in fact the spiritual descendants of these groups. Is there any real scholarship on this/ From what little I have seen, and virtually all of it has been here on FR, it appears that this theory embraces or claims a pedigree running back to some pretty awful groups, virtually all of which were at base Gnostic and whose beliefs seem at odds with 500 years of Protestant religious thought. I can't help but wonder if that newly discovered history doesn't lie at the base of the rise of unabashed Gnosticism in so called "mainline" Protestantism today.
I doubt there was much GROUP LINEAGE of protestant groups. INDIVIDUALS from a viable, valid, GODLY group likely reared at least some of their children in Godly ways regardless of the cultural circumstances. Eventually, such children would likely gather together with others of like precious faith.
Successive 'congregations' of such group types would ebb and flow with various levels of intimacy with God and one another and The Written Word, when available . . . as well as with the anointing and empowering, giftings of Holy Spirit.
GOD HAS ALWAYS HAD A REMNANT. And if Scripture is any clue, THE REMNANTS, HAVE TENDED TO BE PRESERVED
AT LEAST AS MUCH OUTSIDE CONVENTIONAL RELIGIOUS ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURES AS WITHIN--as with the 7,000 never bowed to baal group.
Organized groups have historically done a dreadful job of protecting THE FAITHFUL, THE FAITH AND/OR THE WORD.
GOD ALONE IS FAITHFUL. God alone is safe. Those seeking HIM FIRST AND FOREMOST are safest on all scores regardless of the culture and organizations around them.