Unity

March 16, 2008

Scripture:
1 Corinthians 1:10 “Now I exhort you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all agree and that there be no division among you, but that you be made complete in the same mind and the same judgment.”

Observation:
Paul is writing the church at Corinth because he has gotten word that they are fighting with one another. He is reminding them that God has given them everything they need through His grace. They, as a church, “are not lacking in any gift” (v. 7), and “are enriched in everything” (v. 6). God has been really generous to them as a people and Paul wants them to remember. First he is reminding them and then in verse 10 he is EXHORTING or speaking very strongly to them to help restore them to unity. I like how Paul “exhorts” them to unity. He starts off saying “by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ”. I take this to mean that the only way, and only basis of true unity is the truth of Jesus. Jesus is the only one with the power to unify people. He is the common factor among true believers. They were getting divided (v. 11-12) over who they claimed to follow. Some said I am with Paul or Apollos, or Cephas, or Christ. But Paul is saying the only one who unifies is Jesus Christ. I think this also means that I can be unified with people that I am really different than because of common factor of Jesus. Then Paul goes onto in verse 10 to say things like “agree,” “have no division” and “be made complete.”

Application:
Agreeing, having no division, being of the same mind sound like a pipe dream in many ways. That would have to be a supernatural thing. How can it really happen? I am starting by asking myself some tough questions:
Do I view people in my church through the lens of the common bond of Jesus Christ or through ways that we differ?
Do I show preference to people based things other than Jesus like how they dress, how they talk, how much money they have…?
Do I do anything that knowingly or unknowingly causes division at my church?
Do my life and words promote anything other than Jesus Christ as being what we need to be unified around?
What would Paul say about the things that we “fight” about at church?
I hope that I will pursue to be a person who fights for unity around the person of Jesus and nothing else.

Prayer:
Father help me to be a unifier and not a divider. Reveal to me the hard things about myself. Have mercy on me and help me change and fight for unity in my church.

— Doug Hunt, Pastor of Worship/Programming