July 29, 2007

Cawson St. Church of Christ

Hopewell, Virginia

Mural Worthey

 

Introduction to Unity Series

 

Introduction: Our Area-Wide Gospel Fellowship Meeting is this week, July 29 thru August 3. Our theme is “That We Might Be One.” We decided on this theme because one of the reasons for this area-wide effort is to promote unity and fellowship among the churches in the Richmond and tri-city area. One way to do that is to worship and eat together. Unity often comes about subtly or indirectly.

 

Satan will always try to cause further divisions and dissension. Unity in the faith will never be completely achieved. This is not a pessimistic assessment, but a statement of reality. The Bible makes similar statements: 1) The poor you will always have with you, 2) In this world you will have tribulation, 3) some believed the word and others did not believe. We will always have division because sin abounds in this world. There is not a religious subject that is not the subject of much debate and division. Saying it another way, there is not a single subject upon which all are agreed. The truth is that we are not even in agreement over what unity means.

 

What is necessary is that we teach and promote the unity of the Body of Christ. We should always endeavor to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. I realize the vast scope of this subject, but I want to offer these clarifications on being one in Christ.

 

Differences between Unity and Uniformity

 

The Bible teaches unity, but not uniformity. Some confuse the two and try to enforce uniformity upon believers. Here are some examples of uniformity:

 

1) All Bible classes agree to study the Life of Christ during a quarter. That is uniformity, but not necessarily unity. The classes may be teaching different things about who Jesus is. They are not united; but they are uniform.

 

2) All believers might agree to dress exactly alike, like Amish do or the Black-Tie Brethren. That is not a part of the faith of the Gospel. It is uniformity, but it has nothing to do with unity. We do not dress today the way Jesus and the apostles dressed.

 

3) Within a particular religious body, after a while the public prayers all sound alike. Have you noticed that? If you go over to another religious service, they will have some noticeable customs and traditions that are different from ours. We do not like to stand out from others; so we do fairly much like others do. We conform; but conformity is not unity.

 

4) In one church they all agree to use the King James Version only in their Bible classes. That is uniformity, but it not necessarily unity. After a while, they begin to bind it upon the church. It becomes a matter of truth and faith; other translation readers are condemned.

 

We need to be able to distinguish between unity and uniformity. Demanding that all believers conform to a uniform standard can become, and often does become, a source of division. What many people decry as division is nothing more than a lack of uniformity. When we travel, we like to feel at home. We like for them to conform to what we do; if they don’t we feel uncomfortable.

 

The problems associated with uniformity are many. It is superficial unity; it looks like unity, but it is not. You might demand and coerce others into a practice of uniformity, but underlying may be deep-seated disagreement and resentment. The standards of uniformity are often the cause of many divisions in the church.

 

Some Differences are Acceptable

 

Romans 14 teaches that brethren can disagree over some subjects and both be acceptable to God. This concept demolishes the notion of conformity. Romans 14 does not allow group to make up their own religious rules and bind them upon their congregation. It allows a genuine difference on both sides. The Jews had a real problem with eating “unclean meats” that the Gentiles allowed. The Jews did not want to let go of the practice of circumcision; it did not matter to the Gentiles. They preferred to not practice circumcision; it made no sense to them. Both groups had special holy days in their culture and religious background. Paul said that it did not matter. “Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind.” (14:5.)

 

Romans 14 teaches the only path to unity. There are differences in culture and races and religious practices. Some of the differences do not matter. Some of the differences that plague us today are acceptable; we do not have to agree over everything. Now, I realize that this statement is troubling to some. It troubles those who desire to bind their opinions and hobbies on others. We must learn to distinguish between truth and traditions, between the Gospel and Law, and between what God says and I think.

 

The rub comes when we start to name what beliefs and practices are indifferent to God. Someone wrote, “A split is a sin unless it is a sin not to split.” (James D. Bales, Gospel Light, May 1987, 25.) But here is a good rule of thumb to follow: If the issue under discussion is not discussed in the Bible, if Jesus never mentioned it by principle or name, if the inspired writers did not see it as being important, then neither should we. We should not bind it on others and cause divisions over it.

 

United in Christ, Not in Creed

 

In the midst of this complex subject, I would recommend that we seek unity in Jesus Christ. There is only One who is powerful enough to draw us together in the faith; that One is Jesus the Lord. Paul asked the Corinthians, “Is Christ divided?” (1 Cor. 1:13.) He followed that question with two other great truths: “Was Paul crucified for you? And were you baptized in the name of Paul?” No, but Jesus was crucified for us and we were baptized in Jesus’ name. These two truths are important in uniting us in Jesus Christ and making us his disciples.

 

Believers in Jesus Christ are divided over who Jesus is as well as what he taught. Paul wrote also to the Corinthians about some who preached another Jesus and received another Spirit and accepted another Gospel. (2 Cor. 11:4.) Preaching another Jesus leads to preaching another Gospel; it is one of the major causes of it. Yet, this is the right beginning point. We should emphasize our unity in Jesus Christ. We are saved in Him. Our hope is in Him. Jesus Christ is the beginning of unity, if we have any hope of being united at all.

 

Jesus said, “You search the Scriptures because in them you think you have eternal life; and they are they which testify of me. But you will not come to me that you might have life.” (John 5:39-40.) The Scriptures are very important; all we know about spiritual things come from them. But they point to Jesus Christ and not to themselves. The Jews thought having their Law was sufficient; they did not need Jesus Christ. Eternal life is not found in Scripture alone; it is found in Jesus Christ.

 

John wrote: “This is the record that we have eternal life and this life is found in the Son. He that hath the Son hath life; he that hath not the Son hath not life.” (1 John 5:11-12.) One does not have life because they are right on all the brotherhood issues; or because one can pass a litmus test on faithfulness defined by rules and human laws.

 

An emphasis on right doctrine causes divisions every time someone disagrees with you. We are all wrong on some issues; and we all are ignorant of other matters that we really cannot even choose one above another. Have you ever gone into a voting booth and could not vote for either candidate because you did not know either of them? We are that way on many doctrinal issues. Do you know the differences between post- and pre- and amillennialism?  Do you know the difference between Calvinism and Armenianism? Between the views of Arius and Athanasius? Are you on the right side on all those conflicts? Creeds have always divided believers, but faith in Jesus Christ edifies. The really important question is what did Jesus teach about the subject? If He did not say anything about it, or if the apostles did not find it significant, then neither should we. Doctrines are important, but the most important doctrine is that eternal life is in Jesus Christ. We do not have eternal life because we are right on all the issues.

 

Jesus is the center of unity. If I am committed to following Jesus and if you are, then we will find fellowship in the like precious faith. Paul named seven ones in the unity of the faith; the other four are obviously based upon one God, one Lord and one Spirit. Three of the four named are in heaven and are divine; four are on earth and are all things like the Body, faith, hope and baptism. Unity begins with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. There is no division, no difference, no conflict, with the members of the Godhead. We seek to maintain the unity established by the Spirit.

 

Powerful Reasons to Seek Unity

 

To honor Jesus Christ. Jesus died for his Body, the church. (Eph. 5:25.) Many have turned the Body of Christ into self-promoting enterprises making merchandise of the Gospel of Christ. They have used it for their own purposes for self-promotion and to lord it over others. We must remember that the Church belongs to Jesus Christ and to no other. It is not mine or yours. We belong to Him if we are his disciples.

 

To win the lost. Lost people are well aware of the sad state of divisions among believers. In Jesus’ prayer of John 17, he prayed that we might one so that the world might believe that God sent Him into the world. (John 17:20-21.) While we push and shove in the Church, the world remains lost and confused. Satan has used division to cause many to perish. Many people cannot find their way in the maze of religious division.

 

To function effectively as the Body. (Rom. 12 & 1 Cor. 12.) Paul used the analogy of the human body to help us understand the Body of Christ. If the members of our body did not respond to the head in a unified way, then we could not walk or talk or work. What if each member went its own way? We would be crippled and unable to accomplish anything of value. So also is the Body of Christ crippled by division.