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The Lord's Plan For Unity? By: Gary Colley
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The Lord's Plan For Unity? By: Gary Colley
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The Bible throughout teaches God's desire for His people to be unified upon His Word. He wanted unity in the first family, but Satan entered, Eve ate the forbidden fruit, and caused Adam to eat also (Genesis 3). Paul referred tot he serpent beguiling Eve, fearing lest the minds of Christians "should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ (II Corinthians 11:3)." God wanted the people in Noah's day to enter the one ark to be saved from the flood, but unity was refused by those who would not believe God's Word, and many drowned (Genesis 6). There was once one language and one speech among the sons of men, but they refused unity with God by desiring to build their own toward reaching to Heaven (Genesis 11). Unity is possible today! It is commanded in the New Testament! The Lord prayed for all to be unified upon the teaching He brought from Heaven, and which the apostles were sent forth to preach (Matthew 28:18-20). Jesus passionately prayed, "Neither pray I for these (the apostles) alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me (John 17:20-21)." Jesus died in order that the blood-sealed covenant might bring unity to His followers (Acts 20:28, Luke 24:46-47). It is shameful and eternally condemning to reject His teaching for humanly written creeds
(John 12:48-50).The inspired apostle Paul exhorted, "Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment (I Corinthians 1:10)." In view of these verses, it is a flagrant sin for men to pray and thank God for division today!
Though it may seem a paradoxical thought, unity demands division in one sense. Jesus said, "Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword
(Matthew 10:34)." The sword of His Word is no accepted by all (Hebrews 4:12), but must be followed to have unity and peace. We are to divide from those who cause their fellowmen to sin morally or religiously (Matthew 18:6-7); we are to divide ourselves from men who teach another doctrine (Galatians 1:6-9); we are to even separate ourselves from those who cause division in the body of Christ the church (Romans 16:17); we are not to be "unequally yoked together" with those who refuse to walk in the light of Truth (I John 1:7, II Corinthians 6:17-18). These we must oppose (Ephesians 5:11, II John 9-11).