The New Testament does not say by this shall all men know that you are my disciples if you have the same creedal opinions or set of complicated intellectual beliefs. Instead it says to paraphrase, by this shall all people know that you are ambassadors of Christ, by your love and affection for one another as friends. Jesus says by their fruits you shall know them, i.e. by their loving kindness and hospitality people will recognize true representatives of Jesus' Way. It does not say, "by this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you ascribe to the Five Points of Calvinism, or reformed theology, or the Mormon articles of faith, or subscribe to the teachings of John Wesley or Augustine or Catholic theology. "
The Apostle Paul makes it clear:
1 Corinthians 2:1-2 Amplified Bible 1 And when I came to you, brothers and sisters, proclaiming to you the testimony of God [concerning salvation through Christ], I did not come with superiority of speech or of wisdom [no lofty words of eloquence or of philosophy as a Greek orator might do]; 2 for I made the decision to know nothing [that is, to forego philosophical or theological discussions regarding inconsequential things and opinions while] among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified [and the meaning of His redemptive, substitutionary death and His resurrection].
For Paul, all that mattered was Christ was crucified and resurrected and implanted his divine nature (seed/pneuma) into you to become a new creation. All that mattered was being in Christ and embodying the love of Christ which would absolve divisions in the Body of Christ (See 1 Corinthians 11-13). It was not about memorizing Bible passages, or reading theology books. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 11:1 (Amplified Bible), "Imitate me, just as I imitate Christ." It was about internal transformation and character development through imitating Paul and Jesus and their way.
The Johannine community, had one doctrine, avoid saying that Jesus did not come in the flesh which makes you antichrist. Because they taught, to paraphrase, that by this shall all men know that we are Jesus's disciples: that we love one another because Jesus first loved us by coming in the flesh to teach us the Way and and depart to us his Divine DNA / Seed. That is it, there was no highfalutin theology. There was no seminary class. When you study the early Christian training of a new initiate in the second century, it took several years before they were considered a full member of the community. The process wasn't earning a University level education in theology. It was learning the way or path of being a Christ apprentice. As the The Passion Translation puts it:
John 13:35
For when you demonstrate the same love I have for you by loving one another, everyone will know that you’re my true followers.”
Matthew 7:16-19
16 You can spot them by their actions, for the fruits of their character will be obvious. You won’t find sweet grapes hanging on a thorn bush, and you’ll never pick good fruit from a tumbleweed. 17–19 So if the tree is good, it will produce good fruit; but if the tree is bad, it will bear only rotten fruit …
1 Corinthians 13 is all about the Apostle Paul resolving conflicts over appeals to authority and those seeking doctrinal control, by Paul pointing out that actual discipleship is about being loving: friendly, kind and generous, forgiving, patient, unifying, loyal, etc.
By this ...
