In a Church filled with so much disagreement, there seems to be one thing we can all agree on. That is, nobody agrees on any number of doctrines. Some emphasize grace. Others emphasize works. Some rely heavily on the gifts of the spirit found in the book of Acts, while others believe those gifts were done away with after the apostles died.
This division has troubled me for some time now. I have lost many friends in the name of these disagreements. Yet, were we all not unified in Christ? Where is the line between agreeing to disagree, and issues that cannot be reconciled?
There are people who I
love, who I have not spoken to in years, because of some disagreement
that we both felt was irreconcilable. How foolish. We both believed in
the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ. We both believed in
grace, yet we could not look passed our secondary issues. This, I
believe, is tragic.
We get caught up in these doctrinal differences, and we loose sight of the Jesus who loves unity. I have been bitter, angry, and filled with hate in the past. I have lost sight of grace, and have been blinded by my own pride.
This is an issue as ancient as the church itself. Paul, in 1 Corinthians 10-12 says "10 Now I exhort you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all agree and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be made complete in the same mind and in the same judgment. 11 For I have been informed concerning you, my brethren, by Chloe’s people, that there are quarrels among you. 12 Now I mean this, that each one of you is saying, “I am of Paul,” and “I of Apollos,” and “I of Cephas,” and “I of Christ. 13 Has Christ been divided? Paul was not crucified for you, was he? Or were you baptized [in the name of Paul? 14 I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, 15 so that no one would say you were baptized in my name. 16 Now I did baptize also the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized any other. 17 For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not in cleverness of speech, so that the cross of Christ would not be made void."
I believe Paul, when instructing the Corinthians to be of the same mind, felt that this was a feasible task. The Gospel that we believe, and preach to the world, is incredibly simple. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 2:2 - "For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified." That's the Gospel message, Christ and him crucified.
We can disagree on any number of doctrinal differences if we hold fast to this one truth. The death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus is the intrinsic nature of Christianity. In this, and this alone, shall we be unified.
John 16:13 promises that the spirit will lead us to all truth. It does not say however, that this will be done instantly. In the midst of all our differences, we must remember this; we are all on a journey. We, as people who are in Christ, are all being lead to the ultimate truth. This truth is Jesus.
May God close these gaps between us, because we all suffer due to this division. May our eye's be opened, our hearts filled with love for one another, and our mouths slow to speak. I will say this once more, our faith is Christ and him crucified.
