A symptom of our captivity.
1 Corinthians 1.10
Now I plead with 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 in the same judgment.
The importance of what Paul taught here is doubly reinforced, first by his saying that he was pleading with them (encouraging, exhorting) and second by invoking the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ. He was urgent about the matter he was about to broach, and he wanted the Corinthians to pay special attention.
And what was that matter?
That there should be no divisions among the followers of Christ or their churches. The various house churches that made up the Church in Corinth had fallen into division. They were clinging to divisive identities rather than working to be of one mind and one confession.
As churches grew and new leaders arose, it would be hard work to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace (Eph. 4.3). But Paul insisted we must embrace that hard work and pursue it continually so that we might be one in thought and purpose and plans as well as one in confession, including joining together for worship, sharing of our possessions and wealth, and meeting for the study of God’s Word.
I know of no other condition more telling of our captivity to the tribalism of our day than that we read such texts as this and do nothing whatsoever to obey them, community by community. It is no wonder that our witness for Christ is so slight and so ineffectual in our day, since we refuse to pursue the hard work of unity with other bodies of believers, which unity is essential to effective witness (Jn. 17.21).
Is Christ divided? Indeed, He is, and it is to the shame of those who confess His Name, and especially of those who shepherd and lead them, that we do nothing to overcome this condition and work to be restored as the one Body of Christ community by community.
Are we captive to our culture rather than the to the Lord and His Word? Decide for yourself: Order a free copy of our book, The Church Captive, by clicking here.