The gospel is great news. When God's purposes direct His people, Christians are guided away from the rocky shoals of divisiveness as well as the temptation to distort His message. Instead, they navigate into the deep fulfilling channel of genuine unity in the bond of peace.
The Compass of Good News
Not only is our God the foundation for unity but His goal through Christ was to forge an unbreakable unity. Ephesians 1:10; 2:12-22; 4:4-6; Romans 15:5-6 The "unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace" describes both God's goal for His people (Ephesians 4:1-3) as well as identifies a significant aspect of God's kingdom. Romans 14:17
Through our one Lord, not only has God smashed the dividing walls erected by sin which severed us from Himself and which also ruined our relationships with each other, but He has also empowered our common expectation of an inheritance. Accordingly, when people respond to the one message about Christ through the one baptism, the same Spirit places them into His only community. Ephesians 4:4-6 These are God's structural elements for creating unity.
Two Dangerous Shoals
Whenever God's purposes are replaced with the myopia of human agendas, perilous waters lie ahead. One such dangerous shoal lies in succumbing to the temptation to pursue a message which will be popular. Paul condemned tailoring the message to accommodate the hearers. Galatians 1:10; 2 Timothy 4:3-4 A faithful messenger relays all of God's message faithfully. As one well-known writer has noted, false teaching consists in both altering the truth as well as omitting elements of truth.
The other treacherous shoal is the hidden reef involved in substituting the driving force of pursuing God's purpose in Christ with the self-centered motivation of judging others according to one's own opinions. In his letter to the Romans, Paul addressed this problem.
Where matters of opinion were involved, instead of fueling divisiveness by judging others, saints were to be guided by the model of Christ in accepting each other just as Christ had accepted them. Romans 15:7; 14:1,13 Those whose motivations are guided by the Lord's compass will be slaves to Jesus as they pursue his goal of unity. John 17:21-23 Conversely, those who are driven by their own appetites and agendas will be "tearing down the work of God" and to do this is "contrary to the teaching." Romans 14:20; 16:17-18
How is a Christ-forged unity maintained within a congregation where matters of opinion differ?
1) Accept others as Christ has accepted me.2) Be driven by love, not by a desire to please yourself. This involves both actively seeking to build others up as well as making sure no stumbling block is put before them. Romans 14:13,19; 15:1-3
Barry Newton, Copyright © 2001
Other Articles Which Might Be of Interest
Goals That Should Supercede Personal Preferences
Unity - What Causes Division? (Part 1) The Divisive Role of Agendas in Interpretation
Unity - Paul's Prescription (Part 2)