Posted on 06/15/2018 4:41:29 PM PDT by pastorbillrandles
Now in this that I declare unto you I praise you not, that ye come together not for the better, but for the worse. For first of all, when ye come together in the church, I hear that there be divisions among you; and I partly believe it. For there must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you. ( I Corinthians 11:17-19)
All things work together for the good, to those who Love God and who are the called according to his purposes (Romans 8:28)
I hope my readers will indulge me briefly on this subject a bit further. I blog about what I am going through, in the hopes that these experiences will be transformed into beneficial “teachable moments”.
Trials in churches always present a severe contrast to those going through them. On the One hand it is obvious that Satan, the adversary of the church, is working through unwitting people, setting brethren at nought with each other, lighting fires through careless tongues, and re-interpretting e-mails, letters and comments and even looks to cast everything into the worst possible light.
But there is another side to this according to the scripture above in I Corinthians. Paul tells us that occasional Heresies (Divided opinions, i.e. Divisions) must arise among us, as a test, that those who successfully come through it might manifest the reality of their faith.
In short, God doesn’t cause splits but HE allows them to arise as a test.
It is hard, humanly speaking, to maintain the unity of a disparate group of people of all walks of life, and station. Particularly in these days where the “Love of Self” is taught as a virtue and rebellion is literally the spiritual mothers milk we in our modern autonomous culture are raised on. Slogans such as “Follow Your Own Heart, Don’t let anyone limit you, Be yourself, Be the best You, Define your own code…”saturate the Media, Sports and education systems of our age. People are highly into self, just as Paul wanted us.
That is why the ongoing functioning of a true, God centered church is a modern miracle.
I had been a member of a massive Catholic Parish since my youth, but my first encounter with Church in the New Testament sense of the Word occurred in a little Assembly of God church in Ames Iowa in the late 1970s. I walked into a worship service, and saw people from all paths and walks of life lifting Holy Hands unto God, and singing songs of Redemption from the heart, many with tears streaming down their cheeks as they worshipped.
I cannot describe the feeling of deep mystery and awe I felt, some kind of “Knowledge of the Holy”. I didn’t understand much of it, but I knew one thing, there was someone awesome on the receiving end of those songs and prayers. How separate I sensed myself to be from the beauty I experienced, yet I wished I was worthy to join them in worship, but each hand felt as though it weighed a hundred pounds.
I entered into a world I had never known; a company of people who prayed for each other, loved one another, cared about me, (I was a starving college student, and several times people I didn’t know felt “led” to slip me some cash for food or to invite me into their homes for meals. Eventually the love brought me to the altar of God and to saving faith. I didn’t know what “Church” was until then.
How could a church split be anything other than a hideous tragedy?
What causes splits in churches? Important things, such as differences in doctrine, (Doctrine is not trivial, it is the very body of Truth, the “Deposit” given to us by the Apostles).Other things also cause church splits, such as Pride, Ego, unwillingness to repent or admit to wrong, envy, factions and party spirits which are natural to carnal people, but transcended when people allow the Spirit of God to empower and guide them.
When those issues are forced and even injected into a body of people, by strong personalities, they present a test.
In our case a couple refused to even consider being corrected for losing their temper and truly being clamorous and abusive, verbally. Would they put their own feelings of importance above the unity of the church? Are some people forbidden to be clamorous, but other people who have served longer and risen “higher” exempted from it? (These people were in leadership).
By not accepting the slightest call to repentance, and instead coming up with their own list of grievances against the one bringing the correction…their test became their families’ test and their friends test and their relative’s test, for all of the above were also very much a part of the church.
It is called a “Party Spirit”. Everyone on that wider circle was brought into the test; would they become “partisans” in a fight? Would they go with the “faction”which had arisen? Or would they put the unity of church even above their friends in the church? Suddenly “sides” are being taken and the beautiful unity of the Spirit which is such a sign and a wonder, evaporates.
Tests do not add anything to anyone or take anything away from anyone, the function of a God ordained Test is to manifest something within all of us which is already there. This is how Splits are beneficial, it shows everyone what is in their own heart, and it reveals who is approved of God.
King Solomon once tested two women who were arguing over a baby, both claimed the baby as her own. The Son of David called for a sword to split the baby in two as a compromise between the two women. The answer seemed reasonable to one woman but outrageous to the other, for she was the True Mother of the Child. In this way Solomon tested to see who was real and who was fake.
The church is like that baby. She is often weak and despised, but precious to God.
When envy and strife arises in a church and factions break out among the members, some completely disregard the good of the church, it becomes evident that the church itself means nothing to them compared to their own sense of entitlement, or grievance, they are more than willing to split or destroy a church to preserve themselves. There is no way they would suffer a possible wrong, or commit themselves and their cause to the LORD, or any such thing. The church is nothing compared ton their own feelings of hurt or embarrassment.
Believe it or not, that needs to come out, and God will allow a situation to arise which will bring it out, in the crucible.
I have seen that these things prove leadership as well. Elders need to be tested and proven. What does a real Elder do when a church is gong through a trial? He cares enough for the flock, to hang in there, humble himself, work for unity, listen and pray with the people, advocate humility and repentance, and submission to God, and keep teaching by word or deed the gospel, applying it to the situation at hand.
But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep. ( John 10:12)
These situations are painful but instructive. We need to know where we stand, just as Peter needed to know HE wasn’t ready to stand and fight to the last man, on the night Jesus was betrayed. God provided a test which showed Peter what was in Peter. Fortunately Peter gained from it, and walked with a spiritual limp for the rest of his Life.
God will keep his church, Only He can do it. The ongoing, true church is a miracle.
Church can be a crucible, where things come out, and all is revealed in a safe, loving environment. The problem with many of us, is that just when we are put in the crucible and things began being revealed about ourselves, and The LORD is poised to do his skimming and refining, we often run away to another greener pasture.
Keep your feet in the fire if at all possible! Let God work! Love the ones He put you with!
The callousness I have seen, of people who simply turn their backs on others who have loved them, been there thru thick and thin, prayed, cried and consoled them and their children, taught their children and youth, out of offense or sense of grievance, is incredible to me. Is this how it is supposed to be? Are we Christians? It is not just the Pastor or leadership you have forsaken, but the other families you were raising children with, or those older people who pulled for you when you were young, or those people you taught in children’s church or Sunday School. Do we not have any obligation to each other?
Church splits reveal that spiritually toxic callousness, that love of Self, that strife, vindictiveness, cowardice, and party spirit. This is a good thing, although ugly.
We must remember that Jesus told us “If You LOVE ME ,Feed My Sheep”.
Watch for a BIG church split between those who want to continue mixing grace and law, preaching the ministry of death and the Ten Commandments versus ministry of the Spirit, the preaching of the gospel of the grace of Christ without the law.
It’s already happening.
In the next few decades, watch God’s Grace Revolution, Jude’s prophetic “earnestly contending for the faith that was once delivered to the saints”, to capture the church and encircle the globe and a massive worldwide incoming of souls before Christ comes for his saints.
In a similar vein, there can be circumstances that justify a divorce. However, divorce is not the Lord's will.
I didn’t say that church splits are the Lord’s will. Everybody in Christ already knows that the LORD has made us all one. Do you really think we need to be told that church splits and divorce are wrong?
One could argue that the big church split occurred when the Protestant Reformation proclaimed the five solas:
- Sola scriptura ("by Scripture alone")
- Sola fide ("by faith alone")
- Sola gratia ("by grace alone")
- Solus Christus or Solo Christo ("Christ alone" or "through Christ alone")
- Soli Deo gloria ("glory to God alone")
What was the Protestant Reformation all about? Justification by faith not justification by the law.
The Grace Revolution reveals that the Gospel of the Grace of Christ teaches that we are saved and kept BY GRACE through faith, not the law.
In 1970 the pastor of Sierra Madre Congregational Church (near Pasadena CA) decided he had become an atheist. The congregation left in droves, went across the street and formed a new church, Bethany, which thrives to this day.
Meanwhile, the small remnant hired the youth pastor from Pasadena's Lake Avenue Congregational Church, Richard Anderson, who on his first Sunday preached to sixteen people including his wife and three sons. He retired recently after forty years of leading over 1,000 people to the Lord just by himself.
Moreover, his longtime Evangelism Minister, Dr. Hugh Ross, eventually founded Reasons to Believe (Reasons.org), which conservatively is responsible worldwide for leading at least one million to saving faith in Jesus.
Amazing, Thanks for the testimony!
Jim 0216, I do believe that the tares are being bundled separately from the wheat. Like you, I am hoping and would love it if there were some sort of a great last days revival like Joel 2 for formerly Christian nations like the USA, Britain, Canada, Germany, etc. I would never try to correct you, however Joel 2 in context seems to be an Israeli/Jewish revival as mentioned in Revelation 7. It is arguable whether there will be a world-wide last days revival for the gentile nations who have rejected God (Psalms 9:17). Even scarier are verses like Zechariah 6:8.
**However, to say that church splits are His will would be a lie.**
True, all are invited through Christ to the Church he founded on the apostles. The ONE, HOLY, CATHOLIC, and APOSTOLIC CHURCH!
Otherwise, aren’t people putting themselves and their judgments ABOVE those of Jesus Christ?
I do know I what I am saying. Without Jesus, we wouldn’t have his Mother and St. Joseph.
Have you re-read the chronology in Matthew 1 lately?
I believe that you have forgotten that the Church came before the Bible.
Good bye. Have a blessed day.
Not true. From Genesis all the way to the Epistles, the Books of the Bible preceded the Roman Church and the first Roman Pontiff.
Now, hear the New Covenant which makes the first old, decayed, and disappear (Hebrews 8:13).
For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.Romans 6:14.
Therefore, my brethren, you also have become dead to the law through the body of Christ, that you may be married to another—to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God. 5 For when we were in the flesh, the sinful passions which were aroused by the law were at work in our members to bear fruit to death. 6 But now we have been delivered from the lawRomans 7:4-6.
But sin, taking opportunity by the commandment, produced in me all manner of evil desire...For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it killed me.Romans 7:8, 11.
Nothing wrong with the law, everything wrong with you and me.
Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good. 13 Has then what is good become death to me? Certainly not! But sin, that it might appear sin, was producing death in me through what is good, so that sin through the commandment might become exceedingly sinful. 14 For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin.Romans 7:12-14.
the strength of sin is the law.1 Cor. 15:56.
So why did God give the law?
[T]he law was our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith.Gal. 3:24.
We are not invited to a church through Christ.
We are invited to be reconciled with God through Christ.
We come to CHRIST, not to a church.
What nonsense.
Jesus needed to be born and whoever it happened to be were His earthly parents and that was it. If it had been someone different, we'd have never known the difference.
Have you re-read the chronology in Matthew 1 lately?
What of it? What is it supposed to prove?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.