This episode shares thoughts on the importance of unity, why we have division, and what we can do to promote unity in our sphere of influence.

The narrative weaves a rich tapestry of thought, illuminating the intricate dynamics of unity and division within God's people. Drawing on the exemplary life of Jesus Christ, who exemplified perfect obedience to the Father, the speaker urges disciples to aspire toward that same level of commitment in their pursuit of unity. This call to honor the divine will is positioned as not merely aspirational but as an urgent necessity in a world rife with division. He emphasizes that while many profess faith in Jesus, the lack of substantive fellowship among believers raises questions about the authenticity of their discipleship as unity is one clear fruit of discipleship. This pivotal moment in the discourse acts as a catalyst for reflection, prompting listeners to evaluate their own contributions to unity or division within their spheres of influence. He warns against the tendency to impose personal interpretations that stray from biblical truth, urging a commitment to a shared understanding. This approach is framed not as a relinquishment of individuality but as a necessary endeavor to cultivate a harmonious community that reflects the heart of Christ. Ultimately, the episode culminates in a heartfelt appeal for a deep-seated desire for unity, challenging believers to actively participate in the reconciliation of differences and to embody the servant-hearted love that Christ exemplified, thereby fulfilling the prayer He offered for His followers.

Takeaways:

• Unity among believers is essential, as Jesus prayed for oneness among His followers.
• Division arises from differing interpretations of doctrine, which often distracts from the core message.
• Promoting unity requires a commitment to mutual respect and understanding among all believers.
• We must persistently strive for unity, recognizing that our shared faith transcends denominational divides.

Christianity is very diverse, but all denominations share a common source that by its nature has created problems for which there is no biblical antidote.

Tim Glover provides an alternative.

Join him each Wednesday at 10am to share his studies with you.

Good morning, this is Tim Glover.

This is a joy and a privilege to be a part of this and to share some thoughts with you this morning.

I believe that all of us have a striving and a desire to please the Lord.

If you're on this program, that's probably the reason why you have some similar pursuits and spiritual interests, and those are things I want to hone in on and share with you today.

I really want to talk this morning about a desire or a plea, a begging that we consider the value of being united and to be united.

I think the desire to please God should be the pursuit of every disciple of Christ, of course, and our best example of that is Jesus himself.

He pleased the Father as none other had came in John several times.

In John's Gospel he is said to do not his will, but the will of him that sent him.

Repeatedly he says, it is not me, but the Father that sent me, not my words, but the Father that gave me these words.

So he's under the authority he submitted himself under and to the Father.

And in that sense he is a good example for us to know understand what it means to submit and what it means to obey.

He's the Son of God, but yet he subjected himself to man's position.

The Hebrew writer says in chapter two regarding him, that he was made flesh, or made like unto his brethren.

In fact, in verse 17 of Hebrews 2 the writer says, therefore he had to be made like his brethren in all things, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, and to make propitiation for the sins of the people.

Jesus Christ was a sharer of flesh and blood.

If you go back to verse 14, John's gospel opens up or not opens up, but begins in verse 14 after indicating that the Word was with the Father was God was with the Father, all things were made by him, and without him was not anything made that hath been made.

In verse 14 the word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

So this only begotten Son is of the Father, and he is the example.

He's the one that is for us the example to follow, because he is seen to be the the Hebrew writer Also says in verses 11 and 12 that he's the author.

This is the Greek word paraclete or paracletes.

We find it several different times.

I think it's also in Hebrews 12, 2 some translations in the King James, if that's the one you follow, talks about him being the author and finisher of our faith.

But this word, translated authority, is the idea of someone who's gone ahead of us, like a pioneer.

In fact, a pioneer would be a good translation of the word because it indicates someone who's gone ahead of us.

And then the very next few verses illustrates it by calling, saying that he's not ashamed to call us brethren.

So, you know, you think about this for a moment now.

The only begotten Son of God came into the world, this perfect one who was without sin, and he's now not unashamed to call us brethren.

Well, what's that make him?

It makes him my older brother.

I can remember so many times, and I think there's an advantage to being a younger brother because you can learn from the mistakes of your older brothers.

You learn what not to do.

And there were a number of things that I learned not to do.

Of course, I made my own share of mistakes, and I've got my share of whoopings for them as well.

But.

But nonetheless there was an advantage because I could learn from their examples.

In fact, Paul talks about it this way in First Corinthians 10 with regard to the examples of those Old Testament characters and events, that they were our examples that we should learn from.

And so there is an advantage to that.

Of course, despite the advantages, we'll commit our own share of mistakes and we'll will make a number of blunders in life.

And that's the reason that we're to strive.

But first of all, we must be intent on seeing Jesus.

Looking to Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, keeping our eyes fixed on him because he's the par excellence.

He is the perfect example.

If we want to understand what it means to submit and obey, look to Jesus.

If we want to understand what it means to serve, look to Jesus.

If we want to understand what it means to bear fruit, look to Jesus.

If we want to understand what it means to love, John 13, look to Jesus.

He's the example who did no sin.

Peter said, neither was guile found in his mouth, who when he was reviled, reviled not again, but committed himself to him that judges righteously, who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree that we, having died, might live in a righteousness.

You understand, Jesus is the example to follow.

And so that's the striving, that's the desire to follow him despite our failures.

That's the goal.

We keep our eyes fixed on the perfect example, our striving, of course, and our diligence is never going to be perfect, will never reach a point in life that we can say, I've arrived.

In the Philippian letter, Chapter three, Paul talks about if by any means I might attain to the resurrection of the dead.

I don't think Paul was questioning whether he would be raised from the dead, but I think he's talking about the new resurrection, the new creature resurrection, the resurrection of Romans 6, for instance, when Paul talks about being raised to walk in newness of life, yes, that's true once we're raised.

But yet that quickening life, that resurrected life, is always on an ongoing pursuit of excellence, always increasing our faith and embolding our courage and loving more.

And so it's an ongoing pursuit.

And who's the example again?

Jesus Christ.

So we never lose sight of him.

He's the one that we need to fix our eyes on and keep striving.

In that same passage that I alluded to a Moment ago, Philippians 3, when he says that not that we've attained, nor am I made yet made perfect or complete, mature, he would say, but I press on toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

So it's the sense of pressing on, never giving up, never giving in to temptation and sin and the things of this world that would seek to conform us to its ways, but pressing on toward the mark, keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, or the pioneer, the one who's gone ahead and paved the way for us and left for us an example to follow.

Well, given the fact that.

That we have this pursuit and given the fact that we are flawed, that we have imperfections, it isn't surprising that we have division in this religious world that we live.

Most of us, though not all, are part of some denomination that is very narrowly defined in its doctrine and teaching.

Now, all of them would say, of course, well, I get my authority from Jesus Christ and from the Word.

And yet there are so many differences.

Some of us would argue those differences, but the fact is we're divided over them and they define who we are because we have our own set of creeds and there are seminaries that are seminaries from certain religious organizations and denominations, programs all of these are choices that people can make that are a part of their denomination, denomination that they've probably grown up with or that they've chosen somewhere down the road.

I do want to ask you the question to ponder for a moment.

Would you consider this as being pleasing to the Lord?

Is the Lord pleased when disciples of Christ or when those who claim to be his children anyway are so divided among themselves?

Oh, they might believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, but there's no fellowship outside of the fact that someone pronounces that fact.

Very little to do with one another, very little exhortation, admonition among one another, very little discipline and very, very little rebuking among one another.

These are all examples of actions that a fellow Christian might take as we walk in this life.

There's only few people can do that and get away with it.

And usually they're people that are within our own denomination and probably even more narrowly defined, those within our own pastor system.

But the point simply is, again, we are divided.

We have very many differences because of it.

Paul reprimanded the brethren in Corinth.

He reprimanded them because he had learned from a certain family that there were divisions among them.

And he begins to exam or really exemplify that over in chapter one, beginning in verse 12, he asks three questions.

Now, there is later a point made about Paul using these as a figure, but it seems that they were.

There were serious implications that people were making based upon who baptized whom.

If you were baptized by Paul or if you were baptized by Cephas, they were inclined to think that they were disciples of Paul or Cephas.

They were Paulites or Cephites or.

Or Apollos, followers of Apollos.

So he asks three very simple questions.

And I think they're the same questions that we ought to ask when we have a desire to divide ourselves into segments or sectarian groups.

The first question is, is Christ divided?

If we're going to say that we are all in the body of Christ, which some make the claim that we all are, and yet we're divided, his question is, is the body of Christ divided?

Well, that's not something for us to really dwell on very hard.

It's very obvious answer.

It's a question asked with the assumption that there is the clear answer.

No, no, the body, Christ is not divided.

There is one body and there is no division.

But the question is, is the body, body of Christ divided?

Well, they were divided.

Number two question is, was Paul crucified for you?

Of course, he's using himself then, as an example, he could use Cephas or he could use Apollos, either one.

The question is, were these people that you're wanting to align yourself with, or this particular person, or maybe even doctrine, did they die for you?

Well, no, Paul didn't die for me.

Well, then why would you want to call yourselves after Paul?

Or why would you want to call yourselves after Cephas?

You see, then the third question is, were you baptized in the name of Paul?

Well, no.

Well, then why would you want to associate or line yourself up with being a disciple or follower of Paul?

But yet that's what they were doing, and they were divided.

And so he asked these quick three questions.

And if he didn't want division among God, his people in a very limited place, then why would we think he would accept it across the world?

Based on the rationale of some people today, we would expect Paul to have no problem with this sectarian division, just allow three different men to pull away from Jesus Christ and start their own little group and pull away from the body and maybe start their own little church.

After all, we're one body.

Question is, is Christ's body divided?

No, it's not.

And yet people are doing this all of the time and think nothing of it and think somehow the body of Christ is still united.

I'm very puzzled by that.

My prayer is that you would join me in working toward that unity.

Of course, to do that, we're going to have to reason together with the Scriptures.

We're going to have to open the book and study together more than we have.

Perhaps we're going to have to really pray diligently and fervently.

Jesus prayed for unity in John 17.

It is a remarkable text.

If there is a prayer of Jesus, the Lord's prayer, as we often call, seems to me that this one should have been labeled such and not the one that we usually think of.

It's a very lengthy prayer of all the prayers that we have recorded in the text.

And in verse 20 and 21.

I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those who believe in me through their word.

Now he had just prayed for his disciples, prays that God would sanctify them in the truth, your word is truth.

And that they would be protected from the evil One, and so on.

Now he's praying for all of those who would believe in Jesus through their teaching, through their preaching.

And so he says, I do not ask on these alone.

That is, the disciples for whom he've just prayed.

But for those who believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, even as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us.

So that the world may believe that you sent me.

His prayer is that they be one.

There are several different little indicators or identifying marks of discipleship in the Scriptures.

One of them is unity.

Because here he says that the world may believe that you did send me another one.

John 15 would be bearing fruit or another might be John 13 loving one another and Jesus says, so shall you be my disciples.

John 15 does a similar thing regarding bearing fruit, but in this passage in this text the emphasis is on unity.

Now I just ask you a question and I think probably all of you have experienced this.

If you are seeking and striving to be disciples of Christ, you may know, as I do, some associations or maybe even friends who don't believe there is a God.

And invariably at some point in the conversation they will bring up the division, the different views, the confusion that exists in, in the religious world.

It always comes up, I haven't heard been associated with anyone that didn't bring it up at some point.

Everybody has their own view, everybody has their own ideas and, and that's all.

You think what you want to think and I'll think what I want to think and, and, but it's confusing to them and it's, it's quite disturbing to the world to see such division.

I suggest to you that the division in the religious world today has given Satan the advantage of it certainly encouraged non believers to continue to stay in their unbelief.

There needs to be unity and Jesus prayed for unity.

And realizing the magnitude of that, shouldn't I work hard toward making that a reality?

Shouldn't I be concerned about it as much as was Jesus, he prayed for it.

Shouldn't I be concerned about that and realizing the gravity of this request and the fact that there are so many deep seated traditions in our world that keep the doors of our denominations open.

How can we make a difference?

How can we begin to merge and encourage people to come out from among them, from among those dividing associations with sectarian views and denominationalism?

How can we encourage people to be just Christians and follow just Christ?

How can we do that?

How can we promote unity among ourselves?

One of the things that I would suggest to us in doing that is that we have a desire for it, number one.

We have a deep seated desire and a striving for it.

In this pursuit for our personal growth and development as we Noted earlier in Philippians 3, where Paul says that we ought to press on toward the mark.

There are other scriptures like First Peter 3, growing in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ, or adding to our faith, virtue and virtue knowledge.

There are a lot of passages that are in the context of personal growth and development, but certainly there are other texts of Scripture that have to do with building relationships with people, which is essentially what Jesus taught regarding love.

To love your neighbor as yourself and to strive for the faith of the Gospel.

In Jude Jude, verse three, Jude says to contend earnestly for the faith once for all, delivered to the saints.

This contending is a striving.

But I'm suggesting that the first thing that we ought to really try to examine with regard to ourselves is, is this a real pursuit and concern in our lives?

Do we think about this often?

Is it on our heart and minds?

Often?

Has it maybe even kept us up late at night wondering and concerned about it?

It has me.

It's a striving, it's a contending.

I'm concerned about the results of my efforts to promote unity among God's people.

What are you doing to promote such unity in the religious world?

Second appeal that I might mention, and I don't suggest by any means that this is some sort of an exhaustive list of any kind, but they are certainly major contributors to developing unity and having unity among us.

The second one that I would suggest to us is that we appeal to the same authority and Bible language.

There is a tendency on our part as we begin to try to explain things, to begin to use our own words and our own ideas, thinking that those ideas are supported from the words and thoughts in the Scriptures.

And they do not always line up.

They do not all.

They are not always equal in definition.

For example, one of the translations of that as a concern that I have, that causes a lot of difficulty and confusion is the word translated church.

When we say church, that conjures up a lot of ideas, from all the way from a church building to a particular local church, to a particular universal denomination abroad, or maybe even to, I don't know, to some institutional mindset.

I really think the idea of church as it was used and promoted by King James was in favor of an organization, an institution that is generally a part of the leadership.

They're the ones in control.

They're the ones to whom members would go to receive certain benefits.

The Catholics would look at that as sacraments.

And if you're going to receive some of these blessings, why, the only way that you can do so is to go to the institution to get there.

And so you have to be.

You have to go to the church or you have to.

And therefore, we go to church to.

And when we're there, we do certain things.

And if we're not careful, we think in terms of needing to go there to accomplish them.

We got to go there to worship.

What do you have to go to church to worship?

We have to go there to sing?

Do you have to go to church to sing?

You have to go to church to pray?

Would you have to go to church to pray?

Do you have to go to church to study?

And yet, this is the institution that we are encouraged to go to in order that we might receive certain blessings.

That's what I call institutionalism.

It places an organization or an institution, if you please, between the people and God.

It suggests if you want to receive a blessing and if you want to learn and if you want to grow, if you want to worship and if you want to pray, you come here and you can do it through us and you'll receive the blessing.

Well, that's the idea behind institutionalism, and I believe the way it was first presented by King James and even before then, for that matter, is to create this idea that we are in control.

We are the church, and to receive the blessings from God.

We are the authority.

You come here.

So, in fact, many of the early church fathers took this strong view that you couldn't do anything without their presence.

You couldn't pray.

You couldn't take the Lord's Supper, you couldn't open the Word and study.

You couldn't do anything without those priests, those leading figures that were in control of that organization being there and leading in that.

So you couldn't be a part of it.

You couldn't be blessed or benefited by it without their presence.

Well, the church concept has been promoted not only by Catholicism, but by its children, by the reformed branches as being an institution separate from the people.

Now, we can claim a lot of things, and sometimes we see that we understand the meaning of the words.

We give it definition that we believe is biblical.

But originally, church does not mean people, the people of God.

It was people, all right, but it was very narrowly defined people.

It defined the organization, the institution, and the people were separate.

As a matter of fact, I could remember times in my own family, you know, our family members on the way back home from being in church in the morning services, and as we go back, we might talk about what they did, and I wish they would do that.

And I wish it's separating the they from the us or the them from me.

There are certain people in control in the organization and they're separate from those members.

And that's generally how people still view church and church associations.

Yet it is the people of God who are called out, individuals that form the body of Christ from all over the world, from all time.

That is the body of Christ.

It is a living organism that lives and breathes by the actions and the energizing work of its, of the members of the body.

That is people, individual saints, those who've been called out of the world and into that marvelous light, that fellowship of Jesus Christ.

They are the ecclesia.

The ecclesia is the called out.

Now I don't see anything in that word that indicates any institution over the people that's a product of man's wisdom, not God's.

They are known, the God's people, God's the ecclesia.

We are known and understood and sealed by God and therefore we become his assembly.

It's not a local assembly that we're talking about.

When the Bible speaks of assembly, some people think, well, the church is something that's assembled.

In fact it's.

We could argue that.

I think the question is what is assembled?

Can you assemble?

Are we talking about people literally assembling together in some physical location?

Or is the ecclesia the assembly of God from the standpoint that God assembled them, God added them, God put them together in the body in this called out relationship in Christ Jesus.

That's an assembly.

It's not physical.

It defines those that are in a relationship to God and God knows who they are, whether we know it or not.

God knows it.

And that's really all that really matters, is that he understands that relationship and he's the one that's done the adding.

I believe that's the assembly.

That's the ecclesia, the assembly of God, the assembly and first born ones.

We're not talking about local churches in Hebrews 12.

We're not talking about local churches in any other places that uses the word assembly either.

We hear statements on a daily basis that reveal a real problem in our thinking and our concepts about certain words, concepts that are foreign to the scriptures.

We hear people talking about going to church, we hear people talking about having church.

We're going to sit here today and we're going to have church.

I don't know what that means.

That's not a biblical thought or idea.

Some people refer to the church, of course, as the church building.

And that certainly is never used that way in Scripture.

What may have been accommodative language has given license to ideas that didn't originate with our captain.

And I'm just suggesting that if we're going to be united, we're going to have to use biblical words to talk about biblical ideas.

It has demoted the place of God and our fellowship with brothers and sisters and to a specific time and place rather than it being a way of life each and every day.

A third thing that I might say, and I have to move quickly, is unity can only exist as we develop the heart of a servant, preferring one another, pleasing not ourselves but our neighbor.

For that which is good unto edifying unity cannot rest on your likes and your dislikes if you don't get to do a thing your way.

So what?

What big deal is that?

Is that so bad?

Paul's solution to Corinth's division is grow up, quit acting like children and understanding and lovingly defer to other people.

Well, I thank you for listening for these few minutes that we've had together.

I hope you think seriously about the great need that we have to promote unity and to plead for other Christians to promote unity, to strive for unity, for this is what our Lord wanted.