Untitled Sermon (4)

Lexham Survey of Theology (The Church’s Unity)

What is going on?

Two congregations are suffering from division. One Body of 80 years and the other of 50, each with its own histories guiding them to the same juncture at precisely the same time. As it is the adversary who sow discord among the brethren, we should be aware that he is still on his job. His job is to create division.

Why is this going on?

In congregation #1, a rebellion against pastoral leadership opened the door to the current crisis. According to my best understanding of God’s truth, Church Unity is managed through pastoral ministry. The Lexham Bible Dictionary says “Despite the lack of explicit descriptions of hierarchy in the early church, there are clear church offices (or roles). There are also clear functions within the early church. Many of these functions involved providing leadership and guidance for a local church or group (Eph 4:11-12).

Congregation #2 has been faithful to pastoral leadership and continue to be. This group of people have a heart for God and a love for feet anointed with the gospel of peace, however they have been mishandled by those who art not true shepherds who have created divisions, hostilities, and rifts. 

The Lord has, in his own mysterious way, merged two divided congregations together so they could have the conversation about “Church Unity.”

1 Barry, John D. 2016. “Early Church Governance.”

What ought to be going on?

There should be Unity in the Church: Church unity is the spiritual union of the redeemed through the indwelling of the Spirit, which manifests in the visible gathering of the faithful.

Spiritual Union

of the Redeemed

through the indwelling of the Spirit

Seen in the visible gathering of the faithful

Presley, Stephen. 2018. “The Church’s Unity.” In Lexham Survey of Theology, edited by Mark Ward, Jessica Parks, Brannon Ellis, and Todd Hains. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.

How might we respond?

Our response might be that of recognizing that division and strife are operating in the world and will affect us all. While reading and praying on the question of Church Unity and Division, I was blessed to come across this article that enlightened me:

Broken Unity

Genesis not only presents the fact that humans were created in the image of God to live in perfect harmony. It also describes our lives as broken. Following the Fall, death and decay, sickness, and pain accompany human existence both physically and mentally, and war and strife and social tensions further add to disunity and disharmony. In all our relationships we have departed from the original divine design as a result of the broken personal relationship with the Creator Himself. While God in Christ offers restoration of that original relationship of trust and love, it needs to be emphasized that until the second coming there is no complete restoration of the physical or mental consequences of the Fall or of the result of our personal sins and shortcomings—and, in most cases, only a partial restoration of broken social relationships.

As a result, we do not live and cannot expect to live this life in perfect harmony. As a human being, it is biblical to view my identity in light of my total existence, but even though forgiven and justified, my existence is never in this era an experience of perfect unity. My life is broken. My body decays. My brain fails. The hurt I received and the hurt I caused others is still there. I am forgiven by God and restored to His fellowship in Jesus, but I am still a forgiven sinner, and “holy flesh” is not my lot until Jesus returns. The promises of New Age thinking are thus like those of a politician on the campaign trail: attractive to the eyes and ears, yet wholly unrealistic, even deceiving if really believed.

So, in the brokenness of my life, I live in a double dependency: dependent on God as my Creator in whom alone, outside of myself, I find my true identity; and dependent on God to reveal Himself to me, a sinner, because I lack any hope of knowing Him on my own. It is the marvellous grace of God that He has revealed Himself to me as a person in God the Son, Jesus Christ, and that God the Holy Spirit through the Bible has painted the true picture of Jesus.

Petersen, Paul B. 2020. “‘Unwholly’ Relationships: Unity in a Biblical Ontology.” In Perplexing Doctrinal Questions Answered. Bellingham, WA: Faithlife.