1 Corinthians 11:17-18
In the following directives I have no praise for you, for your meetings do more harm than good.
In the first place, I hear that when you come together as a church, there are divisions among you…
It breaks my heart to see the Church so divided. Jesus made it so simple: Live as He lived, go into the world preaching the gospel, worship God, abide in His Spirit, love God with everything in you, and love others unconditionally. He even taught us how to pray!
This begs the question: When did “being a christian” become so complicated? More importantly WHO made it so complicated??
I don’t even know who created all the different denominations we have today, and quite frankly, I don’t really care.
However, I do know that this division has been a problem since the days of the early Church:
1 Corinthians 1:10-12
I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought.
My brothers, some from Chloe’s household have informed me that there are quarrels among you.
What I mean is this: One of you says, “I follow Paul”; another, “I follow Apollos”; another, “I follow Cephas”; still another, “I follow Christ.”
Ultimately, there is only one person that we should be following, and that is Jesus.
Matthew 10:5-6
These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go among the gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans.
Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel.
This is one of those verses that I believe has multiple meanings/applications, but the one that relates to this particular post is this:
Those who are already saved are the example. Therefore, in order for the Church to be reaching the amount of people we should be, we first have to make OUR hearts right, and be in unison. Only then will we be in a good position to minister to others.
Mark 3:24-25
If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.
If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.
I’ve been a big part of the problem myself, which is why I keep saying “we” rather than “they”.
My parents somewhat recently started going to an orthodox church, and I handled it horribly. I was first of all a little confused (both about the orthodox services/traditions and about the sudden change). Then it went from just confused to kind of angry/mean. I would ask them questions that weren’t even so much questions as challenges/attacks. I was skeptical of everything concerning orthodoxy, not because there was anything wrong with it, just because it was orthodox.
I’m far from proud to admit all that, it’s actually quite embarrassing, but God uses even our worst moments for His glory. So if someone can learn something from this, then it’s worth being embarrassed about.
And Mom & Dad, I officially apologize for being so foolish and so horrible to you both. I hope you can forgive me. I love you!
I thank and praise God for softening my heart and letting me see more clearly!
1 Corinthians 12:25-27
So that there should be no division in the body, but that it’s parts should have equal concern for each other.
If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.
Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.
Different people have different ways that they worship God, it’s not a matter of right or wrong, just difference. And it’s certainly not anything to become divided over. We as the Church need to respect one another rather than criticize or condemn.
My hope for the Church, (& It is my belief, based equally on His Word both written and spoken, that this vision is in line with God’s), is that someday there will be no division; That we wouldn’t call ourselves baptist, presbyterian, methodist, lutheran, catholic, orthodox, charismatic, etc. but simply followers of Christ; That we would do the best that we can to live like Christ lived, and to walk in Spirit and in Truth; That we would give freely of everything that we own, and love unconditionally; That our lips and our hearts would be constantly praising our God, and praying for our brothers and sisters; And finally, that His kingdom would be greatly increased daily. (Acts 2:42-47)
Whether or not this will happen while we are still on this earth is completely dependent on the individual people that make up the body of Christ. We must start by, at the very least, respecting each other despite our differences. Only then will we have a chance of becoming truly united as one Church.