A denomination is a part of a whole brought about by the act of dividing. Therefore, in the religious world, every denomination is guilty of violating the instructions of the inspired apostle Paul, and the urgent prayer of our Lord.
Of all the problems the Corinthian church had, the one that was treated with the greatest urgency was that of division. Paul had much to say about it in the first chapters of his first letter to that church. "Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. For it has been declared to me concerning you, my brethren, by those who are of the household of Chloe, that there are contentions among you. Now I say this, that each of you says, 'I am of Paul,' or 'I am of Apollos,' or 'I am of Cephas,' or 'I am of Christ.' Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?" (I Corinthians 1:10-13).
As was true in the days of Paul's writing, so it is true today: It is wrong to be divided. Denominations therefore contribute still to that which Paul so urgently condemned.
Such division was then - and is still today - a sign of immaturity. "And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual people but as carnal....for you are still carnal. For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men?" (I Corinthians 3:1,2).
Our Lord's urgent plea to God for his disciples was that they may be one. "I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You have sent Me" (John 17:20,21). Every denomination that exists today contributes to the failure of this petition.
Division never strengthens the whole, but rather weakens it. For that reason, we should continue to plead for a return to a united Christianity. That can only be accomplished by all returning to the Bible: speaking where it speaks and remaining silent where it is silent. We cannot unite on the terms of any or all creeds of denominationalism. Let us put all such creeds aside and serve God.