Can Christians Disagree on Doctrine and Still Have Fellowship?
Question 0009
The answer is yes… and no. It depends entirely on which doctrines are in view.
This is not evasion. It is the consistent witness of Scripture. The New Testament both commands unity among believers and warns against associating with those who teach a different gospel. Getting this balance right is one of the most challenging aspects of Christian community, and it requires knowledge, wisdom, discernment, and love.
The Command to Unity
The unity of believers is not optional. It flows from the very nature of the gospel. We have one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all (Ephesians 4:4-6). Jesus prayed that His followers would be one, “so that the world may believe that you have sent me” (John 17:21). Division among Christians is a scandal because it contradicts the reconciling power of the cross.
Paul pleads with the Corinthians: “I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment” (1 Corinthians 1:10). The Corinthian church was sectarian; “I follow Paul,” “I follow Apollos,” “I follow Cephas”, and Paul rebuked them for it. Such division, he said, meant they were still worldly, behaving “merely human” (1 Corinthians 3:3-4).
Unity is not the same as uniformity. We are not all the same, and we do not all see every detail the same way. But we are one body, and the parts of the body must not say to one another, “I have no need of you” (1 Corinthians 12:21).
The Basis of Fellowship
What is the basis of Christian fellowship? It is not shared political opinions (though some might think so!), cultural background, or even theological tradition. It is the gospel. Those who have been united to Jesus by faith are united to one another. Fellowship is not something we create; it is something we recognise. We are already one in Christ. Our task is to maintain that unity and not to destroy it by our divisions (Ephesians 4:3).
This means that wherever genuine believers exist regardless of denomination, worship style, or secondary convictions there is the basis for fellowship. A Baptist and a Presbyterian can disagree about baptism and yet share rich fellowship because they share the same Lord and the same gospel. An Englishman and a Nigerian, a first-century Jewish believer and a twenty-first-century Gentile, are united across every barrier because of the cross. “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28). Isn’t that amazing!
The early church demonstrated this. Jews and Gentiles ate together, an astonishing breach of cultural and religious norms (An a clear indicator that being Antisemitic is abhorrent), because they had become one body in Jesus. When Peter withdrew from Gentile fellowship under pressure, Paul publicly opposed him, because Peter’s behaviour “was not in step with the truth of the gospel” (Galatians 2:14). Fellowship across difference is not a concession; it is a gospel witness.
The Limit of Fellowship
But fellowship has limits. The same Paul who pleads for unity also commands separation. To the Romans, he writes: “I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them” (Romans 16:17). To the Corinthians, he says: “Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness?” (2 Corinthians 6:14).
John is even more direct: “If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house or give him any greeting, for whoever greets him takes part in his wicked works” (2 John 10-11). This is not about minor disagreements. This is about false teachers who deny “the teaching of Christ” (2 John 9).
The apostles distinguished between essential gospel truths and secondary matters. When someone preaches a different gospel, whether by adding works to faith, denying the deity of Jesus, or rejecting His bodily resurrection, that person is not a brother with a different opinion. That person is a wolf (Acts 20:29), a false teacher, and we are warned to avoid them.
Secondary Matters; Freedom and Love
What about secondary matters; the kind of things we discussed in the previous question? Here, Scripture calls for liberty and charity.
Romans 14 is the classic passage. Paul addresses disputes over diet and the observance of special days. Some believers ate only vegetables; others ate everything. Some observed certain days; others did not. Paul’s instruction is striking: “Let not the one who eats despise the one who abstains, and let not the one who abstains pass judgment on the one who eats, for God has welcomed him” (Romans 14:3).
Paul does not say these issues are unimportant. He acknowledges that convictions differ. But he insists that we not divide over them. “The one who eats, eats in honour of the Lord, since he gives thanks to God, while the one who abstains, abstains in honour of the Lord and gives thanks to God” (Romans 14:6). Both are serving Jesus according to their consciences.
The principle is this: in matters where Scripture allows for liberty, we must not make our personal convictions a test of fellowship. We must not despise those who differ, nor pass judgment on them. God has received them so who are we to quarrel with God?
Paul summarises: “Therefore let us not pass judgment on one another any longer, but rather decide never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother” (Romans 14:13). And again: “So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding” (Romans 14:19).
Practical Examples
In practice, what does this look like?
A continuationist and a cessationist can serve in the same church, love one another, and partner in ministry, as long as both hold their convictions humbly. They disagree on secondary matters, but they share the gospel.
A young-earth creationist and an old-earth creationist can worship together, study Scripture together, and encourage one another in the faith. Their difference is real, but it is not a gospel difference.
A believer who holds to a pretribulational rapture and one who holds to a posttribulational view can work side by side in evangelism, praying for the Lord’s return even while they differ on the details. I hold the former position, but I recognise brothers and sisters who hold the latter.
However, a Trinitarian and a modalist cannot have fellowship in the same sense, because they do not worship the same God. A believer who trusts in Christ alone and a Roman Catholic who believes in salvation through faith plus works and the sacraments are not simply differing on secondary matters, they hold fundamentally different gospels. This is not said with hostility but with a desire they see the actual truth. Clarity requires us to acknowledge it and not hide this major difference for the sake of ‘unity’.
The Spirit of Fellowship
The spirit in which we approach these matters is as important as the conclusions we reach. Paul instructs us: “Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamour and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you” (Ephesians 4:31-32).
We can hold our convictions firmly without holding them arrogantly. We can disagree charitably. We can debate vigorously while still honouring one another as brothers and sisters. What we must not do is let our theological disagreements become excuses for unkindness, slander, or broken relationships.
The church has always struggled with this. We struggle with it still. But the goal is clear: “Maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:3). That does not mean pretending we agree when we don’t. It means choosing peace where peace is possible and truth where truth is at stake.
Conclusion
Yes, Christians can disagree on doctrine and still have fellowship, on secondary and tertiary matters where Scripture allows room for differing convictions. We must pursue unity, resist the temptation to divide over non-essentials, and treat one another with grace.
But no, Christians cannot have fellowship across every doctrinal divide. There are some doctrines, i.e. the deity of Jesus, the gospel of grace, the bodily resurrection, where disagreement is not a difference of opinion but a departure from the faith. With those who teach a different gospel, we are commanded not to fellowship but to warn and avoid.
The wisdom of the church has distilled this into a memorable phrase: “In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity.” May we have the discernment to know which is which, and the grace to act accordingly.
“I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them.”Romans 16:17 (ESV)
Bibliography
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