Posts Tagged ‘unity’
Today the news was that Sen. Arlen Specter switched from the Republican to the Democratic Party. I think that there are times in recent years and even decades when this news would have been given a couple minuets of coverage and then left behind. But we are so polarized today that the movement of just one man is worthy of hours of discussion on our news networks. We are a long way from being the ‘United’ States.
Paul says in 1 Corinthians 1:10, “I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought.” (NIV translation)
Now, I recognize that those who are not Christian do not hold the Bible in the same reverence as those of us who are, so I must make my plea to the Christian. Are you united? United behind what you may ask. Well that is just it; you have to decide. You have to set your priorities. I urge you to unite behind the Gospel of Jesus Christ. In church talk we would say something like, ‘rally around the cross.’ But our master, Jesus Christ says it best, when he says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16, NIV)
There are so many people in the world who when they hear that one verse, it alone does not make sense to them. (One may be reading this now.) There is nothing wrong with that, but there is a lot wrong with it when we as a church make priorities that stray from this number one goal of letting people know that God loves them, and that Jesus died for them, that he rose again offering eternal life, and that if we will just believe in Him, we will be saved.
We have points of view on almost every other subject, but they are never to be our priority. Our priority is that no matter who you are, you can be forgiven of anything and everything you have ever done wrong, and be at peace with God, through faith in Jesus Christ. This in no way means that we back away from our perspectives as defined in the Bible. But it does mean that we must keep the main thing, the main thing. And the main thing is the cross. The main thing is the forgiveness Jesus offers. The main thing is what we call the Gospel.
If we are ever going to be united, we will have to first make the central theme of the Bible the central theme of our lives. Each of us must do that. That means most of us will have to let go of the little battles we are trying to fight, and take up the role of compassion that our Savior demonstrates as he died to save us, to save me.
Today’s reading: 1 Corinthians 1:1-31