Jesus is Our Head

The Divisiveness of Division

1 Corinthians 1:10–12 (NIV)

I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another in what you say and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly united in mind and thought. My brothers and sisters, some from Chloe’s household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. What I mean is this: One of you says, “I follow Paul”; another, “I follow Apollos”; another, “I follow Cephas”; still another, “I follow Christ.”

Paul had praised the church in Corinth for the work that the Lord had done in and through them. But all of that work was unravelling as they allowed division to steal their new nature.

Divisions only lead to divisiveness. We see this in sports, politics. The tendency of our self glorifying nature is to polarize ourselves.

There is no place for this in the church. We split and divide over ungodly reasons continually and these divisions only seek to continue to fester and tear us apart.

One True Head

1 Corinthians 1:13–17 (NIV)

Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized in the name of Paul? I thank God that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius, so no one can say that you were baptized in my name. (Yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I don’t remember if I baptized anyone else.) For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel—not with wisdom and eloquence, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.

Paul points the Corinthian church to the fruitlessness of their division. Our head is not divided. We have been redeemed in Christ, not man.

We have been made as one body, one people, one family in Christ. If our Redeemer is not divided, then why are we?

We must guard against majoring in the minor things and remain steadfastly holding to what is primary, the power of the cross of Christ.