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March-May 1999 The Sabbath Sentinel
Why So Many Divisions in the Churches of God?
by Robert Sumner
It is a problem everyone talks about, but few do anything
about it. Are you a cause of division? Or instead, are you a
cause for peace?
Throughout the past 25 years, I have personally witnessed many
divisions in the Churches of God. Some"seemed" to be
beneficial, but most have been more harmful to the "Body of
Christ" and to the lives of many brethren, than they have
been edifying.
But, is this anything new? Of course NOT! The Apostle Paul
addressed this same issue, and may I say,very harshly. I must
examine my own motives sometimes and ask myself; "If I
lived in the days of the Apostle Paul, and belonged to one of the
Churches of God, would I have been part of 'the
divisions'?"
Notice the admonition to the Church of God, at
Corinth. "Now I beseech you brethren, by the Name of our
Lord, Jesus Christ; that you all speak the same thing, and that
there be no divisions among you but that you be perfectly joined
together in the same mind and judgement. It has been
declared . . . that there are CONTENTIONS
among you. One of you says, 'I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and
I of Cephas; and I of Christ'. is Christ divided? was Paul
crucified for you? or were you baptized in the name of Paul? he
that glories let him glory in the Lord!" (I
Cor. 1:10-31).
"And I brethren, could not speak unto you as spiritual, but
as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ . .. for you are
yet carnal. For, whereas there is among you ENVYING, STRIFE, AND
DIVISIONS. ARE YOU NOT CARNAL AND WALK AS MEN? Who is Paul? And
who is Apollos, but ministers by whom you believed, even as the
Lord gave to every man! I have planted, Apollos watered, but God
that gives the increase! Now he that plants, and he that waters
are ONE; and every man shall receive his own reward according to
his own labor. For we are LABORERS TOGETHER WITH GOD, you are
GOD'S HUSBANDRY, you are God's building . . . for (any) other
foundation can no man lay that is laid (already), which is Jesus
Christ! (I Cor. 3:1-11).
Remember, the Corinthian Church had many more
"outward" gifts of the Spirit than that recorded of
any of the other churches (I Cor. chapter
12). The Apostle Paul, however declared them
"carnal," NOT"spiritual"! Why? DIVISIONS,
ENVYINGS, STRIFE, AND CONTENTIONS!
How many in the Churches of God today does this fit? Dare any of
us "examine ourselves whether we be in the Faith"? (
II Cor. 13:5); or among the
"divisions"? Do we have an attitude of "I belong
to this Church of God"? Or, "Our church holds onto
this (pet) doctrine"? Or, "I will support and follow
this minister Of God,""this church denomination,"
"this organization" NO MATTER WHAT! Aren't we saying
what the Corinthians said before, "I am of Paul" (a
particular church or denomination); "I am of Apollos"
(a particular speaker); "I am of Cephas/Peter" (a
particular minister), or "I am of Christ" (a
particular doctrine/teaching/truth)?
Are there ministers and church leaders who bicker and fight?
Whose ego or pride gets hurt, or in the way,and they must go out
and try to "out-do"/"out-church" one
another? Who among us claim to be the one God has chosen, and no
one else? What did our Savior say about this subject? "You
know that the princes of this world [Gentiles] exercise great
authority over them. But, IT SHALL NOT BE SO AMONG YOU!
Whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister
(Greek = servant), and whosoever will be chief among you,let him
be your servant (Greek = bond slave, servant)! (
Matt. 20:25-27). Ministers are but trusted,
proven servants, not governing masters who lord it over
God's people! (See I Peter
5:1-10). They are overseers, not taskmasters; gifts to
the Body of Christ, not takers! WHY? To build organizations,
works, or denominations(especially for themselves)? NO!
"And He (Christ, THE HEAD OF HIS CHURCH, NOT ANY MAN)
gave some apostles; some prophets; some evangelists; some pastors
and teachers (notice He gave some, not many)for the perfecting
of the saints; for the work of the ministry; FOR THE EDIFYING OF
THE BODY OF CHRIST. TILL WE ALL COME INTO THE UNITY OF THE
FAITH OF THE KNOWLEDGE OF THE SON OF GOD ; unto a perfect
man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of
Christ" ( Eph. 4:11-13). Not some man's
fulness, but Christ's, "SPEAKING THE TRUTH IN LOVE, may
grow up into Him in all things; WHICH IS THE HEAD, EVEN
CHRIST" (Eph. 4: 15).
Compare this, brethren, with the church or congregation you
fellowship with. Does the leadership meet these criteria? If
not, they need to be addressed properly according to
Scripture. Ministers of God, do you meet these qualifications?
If not, there needs to be a change in your ministry. Remember,
CHRIST IS THE HEAD OF HIS CHURCH -- NOT MAN! Not any
organization! Christ is the foundation of the church --not any
doctrine! not any "truth"! not even any commandment
keeping!
Remember, we are all brethren, workers together, "laborers
together with God"! God is the potter and we are the
clay. Christ is the vine, we are the branches. All glory
belongs to Him alone!
How did the Apostle Paul respond? "For I determined not to
know anything among you save Jesus Christ and Him
crucified"! (I Cor. 2:2). If our
speech, teachings, sermons, doctrines, beliefs, actions, or
whatever else, DO NOT REVOLVE AROUND THIS MOST CRUCIAL CORE
FOUNDATION -- WE HAVE GONE ASTRAY! Does this mean, not to teach
doctrines? The Sabbath? Truth? Scripture? God forbid. Of
course not! IT MEANS THEY ALL MUST BE CHRIST CENTERED! Is it
wrong to have different church groups or denominations? Not
necessarily. Remember, all the churches of the New Testament
were independent assemblies -- yet all worked together to share
God's love; to share Christ and Him crucified; to
provide fellowship; to evangelize; to provide for physical needs
of their community and the Christian communities at large; and to
continually build up the body of Christ.
In I Cor. 12:4-6, we find there are different
administrations, as well as different gifts, all by the
same Spirit of God! All were part of the body of Christ! Yes,
there are different parts of the body, with different functions.
However, they are still one in faith, one in spirit, one in
goals, one in purpose, and one body working together!
Compare I Cor. 12 &
Eph. 4). Even the Apostle Paul had differences
of opinions on how to "do
the work"/"administration," yet still it was
working towards the same goals, and "extending the right
hand of fellowship." The foot can't tell the arm, I don't
want you, and still function as part of the same body. If the big
toe is stubbed or hurt, the whole body suffers. We are connected
together and should work TOGETHER IN CHRIST!
How is the Church different from secular, worldly organizations?
If you cannot answer that question, then something is obviously
wrong. Famous religious figures are "busted" for
wrong doings and immoral acts. Is this different from the world?
How does this reflect on God's Church, the Body of Christ?
Scripture tells us,"by this shall all men know you
are my disciples if YOU HAVE LOVE ONE FOR ANOTHER"
(John13:34-35)! All of us who have
separated from various denominations or organizations --
how are we known? By our differences?
Are we prideful about our differences, or reasons we left? Do
we lift up doctrines, spiritual gifts, sacred names, leaders,
ministers, "The Work," "The Truth," or our
way of doing things? Or rather, are we known by the fruit of
God's Love in our lives and in our churches, and in our dealings
with other brethren from other churches? Do we have the same
kind of love our Lord displayed while He was here on earth? What
fruits are we displaying -- carnal, or of the Spirit?
(Gal. 5:13-26 )
Where are all the Bridge Builders"? The
"Peace makers" (Matt. 5:9)? The
"Repairers of the Breach"
(Isa.58:12)? The "Pure and Undefiled
before God" (James 1:26-27;
Matt. 25:36-46)? The "Ambassadors
for Christ," and "The ministers of Reconciliation"
(II Cor. 5:17-21)? If we are part of the
ministry/work of Christ as many of us claim -- why aren't there
more who are "anointed to preach the gospel to the poor;
heal the broken hearted; to preach deliverance to the captives;
and recovery of sight to the blind; to set at liberty them that
are bruised, and to preach the acceptable year of the Lord"
(Luke 4:17-19)? Are we about our Heavenly
Father's business, or our own? Are we building our own little
empires, or the Kingdom of God? Are we fellowshipping and working
together as "fellow laborers with God," or separating
ourselves to do "The Work," that only "we"
can do? Are we the only ones, or, are we part of the Body of
Christ with Him at the head? "BEHOLD HOW GOOD AND PLEASANT
IT IS FOR BRETHREN TO DWELL TOGETHER INUNITY"
(Psalm 133:1-3).
We constantly hear of church splits; groups breaking up; and new
independent fellowships and individuals starting out. Frankly,
much of this is sad to see. It's even sadder to have experienced
some of this personally. Brethren, you have fellow shipped with
for years, turning their backs on one another. WHY? Are the
children of God, the real enemies? God forbid! Who is the
accuser of the brethren? The thief, destroyer? Well, of course it
is Satan, the devil! Why aren't we fighting him instead of our
brethren? Why do we bang our heads against the wall, hurting
ourselves? Jesus asked this of Saul, who became Paul, on the
road to Damascus,"Why do you kick against the pricks?"
We should join in the battle to fight our common enemy,
not ourselves. Satan knows how to divide and conquer.
When was the last time you were encouraged to hear about
brethren getting together and healing their differences? Coming
together in harmony, mutual respect, and humility of spirit? Why
don't we hear more of this? Why don't more brethren share good
things, and good news such as in "The Journal" and
"The Sabbath Sentinel"? I like hearing good reports,
and not so much negative all the time. Information that builds
and edifies, and does not tear down. How about you?
Would you like to hear a good report? I have one to share. In
the central Pennsylvania area, several hundred brethren left a
major denomination in 1974. Many reasons were given, including
administrative, theological, and personal. Soon there were
splits off splits, etc. About fourteen years ago, the remaining
larger group,broke up in half. One half remained with a certain
organization; while the other operated for years as
an independent group. Individually, God was dealing with their
spiritual growth. The independent group finally matured enough to
see the need of a larger affiliation and doing work for the
kingdom of God; so they joined with an old, large denomination in
the 7th day churches. Meanwhile the former group who had stayed
with another organization had difficulties, and became more or
less independent also. God led them to a maturity that helped
them see they needed to be part of a bigger affiliation. During
the years of separation, the Lord was working with these split
groups because members of each group attended the same functions
and fellowshipped socially. Finally the Lord led the leadership
of both groups to meet with each other; and itwas
decided to join back together after all those years. In the
last three years the Lord has worked marvelously, by the healing
of personal hurts, changing attitudes and clearing up any other
major differences.
Some of the important matters to consider are these:
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We serve the same Lord, why not work together?
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Doctrinal differences are minor. Learn to allow others a
different viewpoint.
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We all grow at different levels in grace and knowledge, so
allow for this with mercy and love
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Work out your salvation with fear and trembling.
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Support one another, even when we sin and fall short.
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Teach the Word of God.
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Preach the gospel -- the good news. Allow for freedom of
expressions as long as it edifies.
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Let God be God, not us.
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Don't condemn one another.
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If some believe the Festivals of Leviticus 23 are mandatory,
and others do not, don't bicker and fight -- learn from one
another.
Allow for differences, as this does not take away
your salvation. There are many others but ALWAYS BE HUMBLE AND
PUT CHRIST FIRST in everything you do! The restored congregation
is now growing spiritually and in numbers as well. Praise God
for His mercy! His grace and love! Praise Yahweh!
Why isn't cooperation such as this being duplicated across
America, and other countries? Why aren't more brethren working
together? You don't have to attend the same services to work
together, or to fellowship together. You should be on the same
team, with the same goals and purposes. If we keep our minds
open,and a humble attitude -- perhaps we will learn something
from another brother or sister in the Lord. If we maintain this
concept of "we only have the truth," or "we only
have God's special anointing," or "our leader is the
special one called of God"; then we are missing the true
calling of God! We must be ministers of the conciliation and
reconciliation of God, ambassadors for Christ -- not just
serving ourselves, or our organizations!
"I beseech you therefore brethren, by the mercies of God
that you present your bodies a living sacrifice,holy, acceptable
unto God; which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed
to this world, but be you transformed by the renewing of your
mind, that you may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and
perfect will of God," Rom. 12:1-2!
"If there be any consolation in Christ; if any comfort of
love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels of mercies,
fulfill you my joy that you be like minded, having the same love,
being of one accord; of one mind let nothing be done through
strife or vain glory, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem
the other better than themselves. Look not every man on his own
things, but every man on the things of others. Let this mind
be in you which was also in Christ Jesus . . . and that every
tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of
the father . . . for it is God which works in you both to will
and to do of His good pleasure . . .do all things without
murmurings and disputings that you may be blameless and
harmless, the sons of God without rebuke; in the midst of a
crooked and perverse nation among whom you shine as lights to
the world.holding forth the word of life
. . . (Phil. 2:1-16).
Are we lights? Do we express God's love? Are we Ambassadors for
Christ? Ministers of Reconciliation? Bridge builders? Prayer
warriors? Repairers of the breach? Peace makers? Meek? Humble?
Is Christ central to everything we do? Let's glorify God
together. Let's have the same mind as Christ. Let's love one
another. By this shall all men know we are His
disciples!
TSS
March - May 1999 The Sabbath Sentinel
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