What I’m currently reading:
People Need the Unity-Committed Church — by Mark Henderson ACU Lectureship February 19, 1996.
This is a great essasy and lecture on unity. There were quite a few passages in the essay that struck me quite hard. Henderson’s comments on how many divisions can be found within churches of Christ, Henderson’s belief that the church of Christ has a very noble desire to understand and follow God’s word, Alexander Campbell’s call to exclude those who divide by binding opinions on others, and finally, the anecdote about the ministerial fellowship meeting that Hnederson attended.
The essay quotes an article in a magazine in our fellowship stating that there are Eighty-Four seperate tests of fellowship in churches of Christ. That article was written in 1974. It makes me wonder how many there are today…
The author echoed my feelings on the Churches of Christ and the Restoration Movement by talking about the noble desires of our members to understand and follow God’s word. While unity has not always been included in that, I believe that it should be and can be, and hopefully shall be again.
Alexander Campbell’s call to exclude those who divide is quite powerful. Campbell stated: “If a man causes divisions and offenses by setting up his own decisions, his private judgment, we must consider him a factionist, and as such he must be excluded–not for his difference of opinion, but because he makes his opinion an idol, and demands homage to it.”
Campbell’s words convict me. I pray that the call for unity will not divide our churches even more.
The ministerial meeting that Henderson described got me. How amazing that an Assemblies of God minister would thank God in prayer for the Churches of Christ, and raise up one of our ministers and churches to God ask for blessings upon them… even though I disagree with the Assemblies of God in many places, we must have the attitude of their preacher, to lift up those we feel are in error and ask God to bless them.
Finally, I was struck by Henderson’s comment that by reaching to the left, we not only may be able to learn from those to our left, but that we will have things to teach those to our left as well. I believe the churches of Christ have alot to teach others, and I think that is yet another great reason to work for unity.
-Clarke
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December 19th, 2005 at 14:25
Hey Clarke,
That was a stirring article indeed. I find myself conflicted when he discusses the groups with whom we have deep differences regarding conversion. My conflict comes first from my own convictions about what the scriptures say about conversion. I have no difficulty accepting those whose conversions match my understanding. I think we need a way to relate to those who practice a different (to me, unbiblical) conversion doctrine. In my mind there must be a distinction made. But I am not satisfied with the way we have treated these folks in the past.
OTOH, I must admit that my conflict is also fed by a fear that my own fellowship may be unwilling to hear those kinds of things. I do not desire to risk unity in my own fellowship in order to form unity with another. This must be done with sensitivity toward the right as well as the left.
Lord, give us more wisdom!
Alan
December 19th, 2005 at 19:47
Alan:
I hear what you are saying and agree. Maybe I should make clear that I feel as well they are teaching an unbiblical conversion doctrine.
It is very hard to know how to deal with those that we have that type of disagreement with. Obviously we must love them, but what else?
-Clarke
December 20th, 2005 at 3:40
Hey Clarke,
Maybe the example of Jesus with the Samaritans would be helpful. He clearly stated that they were wrong about some things (John 4). Yet in some teaching situations he held them up as being more righteous than the Jewish leaders (parable of the good Samaritan; the grateful healed leper). Note how he interacted with the Samaritan woman at the well–respectfully without compromising truth. Maybe we should do likewise. (Perhaps there is a corresponding parallel between us and the Pharisees, in the way we have viewed the denominational churches. Yes, the Pharisees were correct on many things where the Samaritans were wrong. But the Pharisees still missed the point…even accusing Jesus of being a Samaritan as a derogatory label–John 8:48. I wonder if we also miss the point.)
Then there is the example of the Sadducees, who believed there would be no resurrection. (Matt 22). Jesus confronted them pretty directly. It seems he related differently to the Sadducees (religious leaders) in contrast to how he interacted with the Samaritans.
Of course we have to be careful, because we are not Jesus and therefore we might be wrong on some points. On one hand we might be like Priscilla and Aquila. On the other hand, we might have some things in common with Apollos.
Alan