The Church Is United in the Gospel

Intro

As a large group, list different ways people are united. Examples include love for a particular video game, being on the same sports team, family, belonging to the same nation. Once you have a good-sized list, ask your students to sort the list from least important to most important.

Teach

Read 1 Corinthians 1:10-13

Paul’s plea for unity in the church begins by addressing them as “brothers and sisters” (1 Cor 1:10). He is basically saying, “we’re family, so act like it.” Sure, siblings fight, but there is a love and loyalty that transcends their differences because they share the same name. The same idea applies to believers, which is why Paul addresses them in the “name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Cor 1:10). He says this as a way of grounding his command in Christ’s authority instead of his own. A common adage says blood is thicker than water, but the blood of Jesus should supersede even biological relationships.

Ask

How do you think Christians viewing each other as family would improve our unity?

Teach

Paul doesn’t just tell the Corinthians to agree to disagree. This is not some superficial unity; it is a true agreement that creates a loyal bond. He says to “agree in what you say,” and “be united with the same understanding and same conviction” (1 Cor. 1:10). Understanding of what exactly? Conviction about what? Surely Paul does not mean everything. There is room in the family for diversity of opinions on some issues, so what does Paul have in mind? A unity of identity. For the church at Corinth, that meant refusing to put their identity in a particular apostle or church leader rather than in Christ.

Ask

What are some things we put our identity in that divide us, and how can we overcome those divisions?

Teach

It seems that the early church in Corinth was plagued with a kind of Christian celebrity culture much like the American church is today. There is a great temptation to have a favorite pastor, teacher, or Christian leader whose “tribe” becomes your Christian identity. But it’s not just tribes within the church that divide us: we are divided by politics, schools, sports, stereotypes and cliques. Paul’s plea is that the church would see that what unites us is greater than what divides us. We belong to Christ, have been baptized in His name, have been adopted into His family, and have been saved by His cross. That is our identity, so may we all “be united in the same understanding and same conviction.”

Read 1 Corinthians 1:17-21

Crucifixion had an enormous cultural stigma that is almost imperceivable to us today. Romans used crucifixion as a cruel form of public execution to display their authority and bring rebels into submission. For Jews, being crucified was associated with being cursed (Gal. 3:13). And yet, Paul was going around the Roman world and to Jewish synagogues in every city to proclaim salvation through the cross. In order to bring rebellious sinners under the authority of God, Paul was preaching that Jesus displayed on the cross that He is the true King. Paul was preaching that Jesus took our curse in order to redeem us from the curse. A symbol of shame has become the Christian’s boast (Gal. 6:14).

Ask

In what ways might we be tempted to add to the message of the cross to make it more appealing?

Teach

There is a great temptation to take more culturally acceptable messages and sprinkle some Jesus on them in an effort to win the world. This takes on many forms. In some contexts, the message may be self-help + Jesus, or be the best version of you + Jesus. In other contexts, the message may be the American dream + Jesus, prosperity + Jesus, or a political cause + Jesus. But Jesus didn’t die just for us to improve ourselves, believe in ourselves, live our best lives now, or give our ultimate allegiance to our political convictions. The church should be united in the message of the cross.

Ask

What about the “foolish” message of the cross is so powerful?

Teach

Oh, the foolishness of the cross (1 Cor. 1:18)– God brings justice through an injustice, love through an act of hate, and life through a horrific death. But what power the cross possesses “to save completely those who come to God” (Heb. 7:25). The message of the cross brings together so many longings of the human heart. It satisfies our desire for unconditional love, washes the conscience of the worst of sinners, breaks the power of brokenness, and demonstrates that the kingdoms of this world and the powers of darkness cannot overcome the light. Justice and righteousness are upheld, and yet mercy and forgiveness are extended. God, unable to compromise His goodness and unwilling to condemn His people, comes down to us in order to bring us to Himself. Is there any better news in all of creation?

Read John 17:20-23

Jesus’ prayer is that we would be one. As such, we should be anchored in unity—not some superficial unity that is artificially preserved by avoiding things that are difficult, but a unity that is rooted in our mutual belonging to God and our shared commitment to Jesus and His mission. The world is divided over so many things, but when the church exemplifies unity in diversity, we are a light in a dark world.

Ask

How does our unity or disunity affect the world’s view of Jesus?

Teach

There’s more at stake in our unity than merely our testimony, our name, or our reputation. The name of Jesus, the reputation of Jesus, and the world seeing the true identity and glory of Jesus is at stake. Jesus prayed for our unity, “so that the world may believe you sent me” (John 17:21). When we claim the name of Christ, our reputation, to some degree, becomes the reputation Jesus gets in our community. What would the world believe about Jesus based on what they see in our churches?My dad would always tell us, “Remember what your name is.” It was a way of reminding us that the testimony of our family was linked to our behavior. It takes time to build a good name, but only a moment to ruin it. We should cherish the name of Jesus and be careful not to dishonor His name with disunity in the church.

Ask

How is unity counter-cultural, and why would that make the gospel attractive?

Teach

When we invite others to know Christ, we are inviting them to be members of His church. We are welcoming them into a family—but who wants to join a family that is always fighting? Who wants to be a part of a team that is divided? The world will not see the love of Jesus in the church if we cannot even love one another. Our church culture should be attractive to those on the outside. They should see our love and care for one another and say, “they’re different, and I want what they have.”

Questions

Which stereotypes do we need to reject in order to think about others in a way that matches their true identity in Christ?

How might our view of the Christian life need to be more cross-shaped than culture-shaped?

How can you overcome the temptation to compromise the gospel in order to please people?

What are some ways we can fight against idolizing Christian leaders?

How can we pray for unity in the church?

What would having “no divisions” among us look like (1 Cor. 1:10)?