Diversity Without Division 130120

Romans 14:1-4, As for the one who is weak in faith, welcome him, but not to quarrel over opinions. One person believes he may eat anything, while the weak person eats only vegetables. Let not the one who eats despise the one who abstains, and let not the one who abstains pass judgment on the one who eats, for God has welcomed him. Who are you to pass judgment on the servant of another? It is before his own master that he stands or falls. And he will be upheld, for the Lord is able to make him stand.

One of the greatest problems with the church today is poor management of diverse opinions. A friend of mine used to say, "Opinions are like noses, everybody has at least one." And often opinions are based on something less than fact. Everyone in the church has a variety of opinions about a variety of subjects. How can we make it so that everyone can hold their opinions without quarreling? The apostle brings this subject up at least three more times in his writings. Here, he uses the example of people who hold a very strong opinion about eating meat, or not. Not for the health reasons given today but for spiritual reasons. After all, the meat may have been part of a sacrifice to a pagan god. How can we deal with differences of opinion in the church today?

Our differences would fall into different categories than in the days of Paul. Today, when you go into the market, you're not looking at meat that was originally part of a sacrifice to a pagan idol. Instead, our differences of opinion are more along the lines of how one should dress at church. Or, whether there should be chairs or pews. We might disagree over whether, or not, videos should be shown in the church, or, whether food should be eaten in the same room where we worship. The list could go on and I'm sure you can think of some things to add to it. But none of these things are central to our faith. They're all peripheral not essential. Sometimes these differences lead to serious consequences and would be "funny" if they were not so sad. One example, posted in 2007, goes like this:

GREELEY - A little Jewish praise word caused a lot of controversy as a Colorado church, divided over the proper spelling of 'hallelujah, ' split up and re-formed as separate congregations.
The problem arose when the board of elders at Full Gospel Temple budgeted money for a praise banner to hang from the sanctuary ceiling bearing the word "hallelujah, " or "alleluia." One faction insisted the word be spelled the first way, while the other wouldn't budge from the second way. Petitions were drawn up, rallies held and late-night threats received by both sides. One man, an "alleluia" supporter, was nearly clobbered by a rock that came through his window. The rock bore a note that said, simply, "hallelujah! "
Both sides were adamant that since they had grown up with a particular spelling, theirs was correct.
"It makes a tremendous difference, when you open your eyes and see it there on the banner spelled wrong," said a hallelujah supporter. "It's so jarring to see it without the 'h' at the beginning. Nobody spells it that way anymore."
"I was so sick about it I couldn't sleep," said one woman, an equally ardent 'alleluia' supporter who carried a sign during a recent day of picketing. "To think some people spell this wonderful word with a 'j' in it. It's not something where I question their salvation, but at times you have to wonder."
The two churches now meet in separate school auditoriums, and each has fashioned a banner to suit its own preference. Worship, says one parishioner, is "much better now." .

How do we, or any church, avoid that kind of disagreement? Well, first of all…

The strong should be patient with those who are weak.

When a person stumbles into sin. We should not be quick to condemn. Listen while I read Paul's words to the Galatians 6:1-4, Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. For if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself. But let each one test his own work, and then his reason to boast will be in himself alone and not in his neighbor.

"Caught in any transgression" is a phrase that causes the mind to begin a process of trying to determine what that means. As with all Scripture, it means what it says. Paul is not talking about particular transgressions, or sins, he is talking about ANY transgression. When we see someone fall into sin we should approach them with gentleness. We need to add to our vocabulary the sentence, "There, but for the grace of God, go I."

You see, under similar circumstances we might have, let me emphasize "might have", done something similar — or even worse! We should be slow to speak and quick to listen. That is why, someone said, God gave us two ears and only one mouth. Now I realize some people give the impression that they may have more than one mouth. But they don't.

With gentleness. and careful conversation. correct a person who has gone astray.

Be merciful when others doubt. Listen to what Jude had to say about this topic, Jude 22-23, And have mercy on those who doubt; save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh.

Obviously, the Church has had problems with people who struggle in immature faith. When we look on someone who has doubts we should be merciful and patient. After all, those men who had been closest to Jesus often struggled with doubt.

Matthew tells us, at the very end of his gospel, they worshiped him, but some doubted! Think about it! These men had walked with him for the greater part of three years. They had seen him heal the sick, cast out demons, raise the dead, feed 5000 men (besides women and children) with five loaves and two fish. They had seen him walk on the water and calm the storm. And after all that, "some doubted"!

If that could happen to them then we should be very gentle with someone today who struggles with doubt. We should likewise be patient with ourselves when doubts arise.

Jonathan Oatman, Jr. penned these words more than 100 years ago (449 in our hymnal) just the first two verses.

I'm pressing on the upward way, new heights I'm gaining every day; still praying as I onward bound, "Lord, plant my feet on higher ground." Lord, lift me up and let me stand, by faith, on heaven's tableland, a higher plane than I have found; Lord, plant my feet on higher ground.

My heart has no desire to stay where doubts arise and fears dismay; though some may dwell where these abound, my prayer, my aim is higher ground. Lord, lift me up and let me stand, by faith, on heaven's tableland, a higher plane than I have found; Lord, plant my feet on higher ground.

That old hymn should characterize our attitude about doubts and fears. We should wish for our brothers and sisters, as well as for ourselves, a life without doubt and fear with our feet firmly planted on heaven's tableland.

Instead of condemning, discouraging and shunning those who are in trouble we should…

Admonish, encourage, and help. Listen while I read, 1 Thessalonians 5:12-14, We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Be at peace among yourselves. And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all.

Be at peace among yourselves. Inasmuch as it is in your power to do so you should be at peace with everyone. This should be especially true of relationships in the church and between Christians.

We have the right, no, we have the responsibility to admonish the idle. Paul said if they don't work, they don't eat! Admonish, not condemn! We also have the responsibility to encourage the fainthearted. Many people in the church, and in the world around us, are simply not bold and need encouragement. I believe, without a formal organization, this church has a "Barnabas ministry". "Barnabas" means son of encouragement. We have people in this church who encourage others on a regular basis. A note, or a card, sent at the right time. A phone call, or a visit, can be very encouraging to a fainthearted person. We are to help the weak not push them aside. In all cases we are to be gentle. I often think of times that a few gentle words would have helped a great deal more than the harsh words that were actually said. One thing for sure, words that have been spoken can never be recalled.

Those who are strong should be patient with those who are weak. They also should…

Insist on the essentials and not the peripherals.

Churches, almost never, split over essential doctrine. They split over things like how to spell a word, what time to have a worship service, or what kind of music is used in worship. Folks, those things are just peripherals. They're not in the center of what's important in church life. We need to insist on what is…

Of first importance. Listen while I read what Paul said to the Corinthians in, 1 Corinthians 15:3-8, For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.

That which is of first importance is Jesus! Condemned, crucified, buried and raised again for our sins and our salvation. That's what really counts!

Satan will do anything in his power to get God's people fighting among themselves. He doesn't try to get people to argue over salvation. He would much rather turn the argument towards the color of paint in the worship area or the name of the church. None of that has anything to do with the soul salvation of anyone. You see there is…

Only one source of salvation. Peter and John had been brought before the ruling Council. The charges against him were simple. A man had been healed of a lifelong illness. The Council wanted to know what the source of their power was. Peter boldly proclaimed the name of Jesus and then added Acts 4:12, And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.

Not only had the name of Jesus healed this man but they also wanted to be clear that there is only one name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved. And folks, that name is Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ, The Son of the Living God. There is only one way…

Not many. Listen while I read what Paul wrote to the Ephesians 4:2-6, There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

One body! And that is not Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, Roman Catholic, or any other particular church. That body is the body of Christ! The church triumphant that extends through all ages and all regions of the world.

One Spirit! And that is the Holy Spirit — the force that now works in all believers. The fact that the one Spirit indwells all believers makes us equal in all things spiritual. We have different gifts and responsibilities but only one Spirit.

One hope! The hope of our calling sets us apart from the world and allows us to focus our attention on the world to come. Our hope releases God's riches in our life.

One Lord, the Lord Jesus Christ; one faith, belief in the one true God by grace through faith; one baptism, the work of the Holy Spirit in our life; one God, Yahweh the Lord of heaven and earth, over all, through all and in all. Because of these things we should…

Avoid quarreling. Yet some people seem to rejoice in quarreling. When I was a boy I went out of my way to argue with people. In a more formal sense I guess it might be said that I enjoyed debating. One day I discovered that I might be winning arguments but I was losing friends. And friends are much more important than opinions. So I adopted the policy I try to follow now. And that is, everyone has the right to be wrong! When we do disagree, and voice our disagreement, we need to be…

Gently correcting. Look at Paul's instruction to Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:24-26, And the Lord's servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.

Be kind to everyone. Oh, there are people who are easy to be kind to. They are sweet and gentle and nice to be around. But they are not "everyone"! When you extend the policy to "everyone" it becomes much harder to carry out. Every believer is able to be kind and teach others. You see, it's not our work, it's God's work and if His Spirit indwells us — and he does — then we can do all things through the one who gives us strength.

We need to patiently endure even evil when necessary to reach a person for the gospel. We need to correct others but we need to do it gently not argumentative or quarrelsome. We need to win the argument in such a way that we also win our opponent. The book of Proverbs tells us, "A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger." (15:1) As I said before, it took me a while to learn this but when I finally "got it" it became an effective tool to be used to win people over. I am not perfect by any means but I try to follow the word of God and do it with a gentle spirit. We can't always avoid differences of opinion and sometimes we will have to…

Deal with dividers. See Paul's instruction to Titus in chapter 3:9-11, But avoid foolish controversies, genealogies, dissensions, and quarrels about the law, for they are unprofitable and worthless. As for a person who stirs up division, after warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him, knowing that such a person is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned.

We can see from this instruction some of the things the early church fought about. Paul calls them "foolish controversies" and things haven't changed much over the centuries. Most of the controversies today within the church are foolish.

Someone once said that we have to be careful when we get into disagreement. We need to decide if the issue is really important. We need to ask ourselves, "Is this a hill I'm willing to die on?" If it's not, we need to put it aside and go ahead with our ministry. But if it is important and is used by someone to stir up division in the church then we are to warn the person who's causing division once or twice and then shun them — have nothing more to do with him, or her!

Of course there are issues of major importance that have to be taken care of and we need to…

Be wise and gracious. Listen to Paul's words Colossians 4:5-6, Walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time. Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.

Walk in wisdom? Where would we get that from? The Bible tells us that the Lord gives wisdom! James said that if anyone lacks wisdom let him ask God who gives generously without reproach. He went on to say later in his book that the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere.

Gracious in speech! That means never talking down to another person. Always being kind and considerate of them. It matters little if we tell the truth if no one is listening. We need to tell the truth in such a way that each person will listen. We need to always be prepared to answer any one who questions our faith.

As long as people think for themselves there will be differences of opinion. A person doesn't have to think clearly to have an opinion. How we deal with the difference is very important.

We need to be patient with those who are still struggling with their faith. We need to insist on sticking to the essential issues and letting God deal with the peripheral issues. We need to avoid arguments and focus on gently guiding the conversation toward the gospel.

We live today in a culture of division, acrimony and hostility. It seems that disagreement always has to be harsh and divisive. This is true even in the church and among Christian people. Brothers and sisters, this ought not to be true! Jesus said, "Blessed are the peacemakers…". James, the Lord's brother, said, "But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace." I'm grateful to God that the Stamford Baptist Church has never been known for quarreling and division. May it always be so!

All scripture quotes from:The Holy Bible : English standard version. 2001. Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.