When we look back at the beginning of the Church at
Pentecost, we see a Church that is empowered by the Holy Spirit and motivated
by their personal witness of the death, burial and then the glorious
resurrection of Jesus Christ.
However, it was only a short time before divisions crept
into the Church. Some of the Epistles, which are letters to the
early Churches, were written to address these conflicts.
Today, some
people believe that these divisions are good as it has been through conflict
that our present doctrines understandings, our rich traditions and global
denominations have been formulated. However, this is not true.
Jesus didn't pray that we have rich traditions, well-formulated doctrines
or historical denominations.
Jesus prayed that we would not be divided but that we would be as one, "So that the world may believe". In the Gospel of John, just after sharing His last supper with his disciples Jesus turned his eyes towards heaven and prayed,
“I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one—as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. And may they be in us so that the world will believe you sent me. I have given them the glory you gave me, so they may be one as we are one. I am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me. (John 17:21-23)
“United we stand, divided we fall” is a saying that has
been part of the American culture since the time of the American
Revolution. During our Civil War, it became a rallying cry for
the Union troops. During times of crisis such as during the second
world war and after 9/11, unity was not simply a rallying cry but could be felt
and experienced as American’s came together for a greater purpose than their
ideological and sometimes petty differences. Unity was thought to be
of greater importance than political aspirations, regional interest or local
issues.
It should also be true in the Church. The Apostle Paul
understood this well. He wrote to the Philippians, “Make my joy
complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in
spirit, intent on one purpose," (Phil. 2:2). He wrote also to the
Corinthians, “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. (1 Cor
1:10)”
Unfortunately today, there are many that believe the
opposite. It's almost like they are shouting, "Divided We
Stand!" Sects, divisions and denominations have been part
of the Church for a long time. In the United States however, because of
our 1st Amendment rights and our respect for the diversity of our
faiths, denominationalism has had a field day.
Historically the Church had defined unity through what is
referred to as orthodoxy. The word Orthodoxy is derived from two
Greek words, “orthos” meaning “right” or “straight”; and
‘doxa’ meaning a “belief” or “opinion”. So in other words, the
early Church defined unity as being aligned or unity with those of the right
belief.
In 325 AD, the Church met together at the Council of
Nicaea. It was this council that produced the “Nicene Creed” that
determined orthodoxy or unity in the Church for over 700 years until the Roman
(or Latin, western) Church split from the Orthodox (or Greek, eastern) Church
in 1054 AD.
While the Nicene Creed may have defined orthodoxy for the
ecclesiastical church, it didn’t define how a person becomes a
Christian. The Bible is clear that becoming a Christian is not about
joining a church or believing all the right stuff or conforming to the
doctrinal views of a denomination but repenting from sin and believing in Jesus
Christ.
Paul gives us the methodology in Roman’s 10:9 which, along
with a number of other teachings in the Bible, gives us our understanding of
salvation. In our Churches we often urge people to come forward,
‘accept’ Christ and be converted by believing in Jesus’ resurrection with their
heart and confessing with their mouth that Jesus is Lord. It is however,
not these actions that ‘saves’ anyone. The Apostle Paul in Ephesians 2:8 was clear that salvation is by grace through faith. It is a gift from
God and not a result of a formula however the formula or method is very helpful
in people taking that first step of faith and repentance.
Unfortunately all too often the leaders of the Church
define unity not on primary orthodoxy or a belief in the Biblical Jesus but
through conformity to doctrinal and denominational statements regarding not
only beliefs or doctrine but also behavior and performance. While true
Christians serve the one and only God and know Jesus in a personal and intimate
way and have been redeemed by God, some self-appointed watchdogs of heresy and
various denominations define unity in the church as adherence and conformity to
what many would consider to be non-essentials.
As a result, the Christian Church is divided and
weak. Instead of focusing our energy and mission on advancing the
Kingdom of God and fulfilling the great commission to go and make disciples, we
fight each other.
America, the once popular and vibrant home of Biblical
principles, evangelical missions and the sponsor of compassion worldwide has
become weak, fragmented and antagonistic towards the gospel of Jesus
Christ. Christians are looked at as petty, narrow minded and
judgmental and it’s no wonder. Often the way we treat each other can be summed
up in those same words. We can be petty; we find minor doctrinal
differences and split out churches based on 16th century
arguments. We can be narrow-minded; we find on Sundays our churches
continue to be segregated between black and white and many churches don’t allow women to assume leadership or be given appropriate titles
while at the same time knowing that women leaders have served for centuries in all capacities of
the Church. We can be judgmental; Jesus said we were not to judge in a manner
that is self-righteous, hypercritical, and destructive.
The ‘perfect unity’ that Jesus prayed for in John 17 will
not come as a result of the ascendancy of one denomination or spiritual
leader. It will not come as a result of everyone agreeing on a
particular liturgy or translation of the Bible. It will come about
when we realize that when we are in Christ we are brother and sisters of all
others who are in Christ.
Our spiritual journey and cultural
differences will adjust, change and appear to be more or less obvious but our
spiritual destination is and will always remain the same.
