This is a follow-up to the previous topic: Unity of the faith - at what cost? Link below.
Probably the biggest roadblock to Christian doctrinal unity
is holding on to the freedom we have to determine our own beliefs.
It’s not a roadblock, but more a line of demarcation......the line between a “sheep and a goat”....between the “wheat and the weeds”.
Jesus said he came to cause “division”, but not among his own disciples. (Matt 10:34-39)
That division was to be seen between those who chose to obey Jesus’ commands....and those who chose disobey by abusing that freedom.
Why did God give us that freedom?
It is not a freedom to believe whatever appeals to you....just as the Jews had their Scripture to guide them under the old covenant, didn’t mean that when they misinterpreted that Scripture to serve their own purpose, that it was OK with God to do that. He actually stopped sending his prophets to them some 300 years before Christ came to them.....which shows how incorrigible they really were, and how much time they had to become what Jesus confronted. (Matt 23:33)
Understanding what the situation was like at the time Jesus uttered those words about “division” is important for us, because it was a division between those who purportedly worshipped the same God. What was the basis for that division?
Acceptance of Jesus’ teachings over those of the establishment, which were corrupted over those hundreds of years. Judaism became divided by sectarianism, which is exactly what we see today....only in greater magnitude. History is repeating. The majority stick with the ‘establishment’, whilst the minority draw away from it.
Would you surrender your own beliefs in the cause of Christian doctrinal unity?
Unity of the faith - at what cost?
Just to be clear, I do not seek Christian doctrinal unity.
Defined as EVERYONE surrendering to a predetermined set of beliefs.
The natural question from that statement is....what are the predetermined beliefs that Jesus taught?
Was there division among the first Christians?.....and if so, what was done about it? Was it allowed to cause the kind of division we see in first century Judaism and in modern day Christendom?
The answer is NO! (Gal 1:8-9)
I believe that unity comes when we accept each other no matter our differences.
Which is nothing like what Jesus taught. He laid down the beliefs that all of his disciples had to embrace....no one was free to believe something different or to say “I think” about any of it. It was simple obedience to ALL that he taught....no if’s or buts...like it or not. No one chafed over any of it. It was accepted without question.
That we seek to understand each other instead of rejecting those whose Christian doctrine may differ.
Which presents its own set of challenges, of course. But that's another topic. (I hope) - LOL
Indeed a whole other topic....but this one is easy to answer when we see the big picture.
Who or what was the corrupting influence in both apostate Judaism and modern day Christendom?
Jesus told the Pharisees that they were “from their father the devil”....and he also indicated by his parable of “the wheat and the weeds” that satan was again going to corrupt Christianity.....how? By planting a counterfeit in the world....slowly introducing doctrines that were not from Christ or his apostles...and gradually poisoning the whole basis of the Christian faith. Christendom is built on those false doctrines, accepted so long ago that no one questions them.
If we cannot identify the counterfeits by their actions and acceptance of false doctrine, then the devil has us right where he wants us. There is one truth and only the “wheat” are teaching it and practicing the true faith. They all accept what Jesus taught without division, because they have hearts that are attracted to it, they don’t need to modify that truth to suit themselves. It is something accepted willingly.
Jesus said that in this time of the end, (when he would return) that he would appoint a “faithful and wise servant” to feed his household their “food at the proper time”. (Matt 24:45) All are fed the same spiritual food, and nothing is rejected or wasted.....their plates are clean because they all enjoy the same ‘meals’.
Jesus’ true disciples in these ‘last days’, are just the same as they were in the first century....they are a hated and persecuted minority, (John 15:18-21) separated from the mainstream ‘establishment’......united in a disunited world, separated for the task that Jesus assigned to all of his disciples. (Matt 28:19-20; Matt 24:14) Christendom is MIA in this all important work, justifying their disobedience to Christ’s command. (Matt 10:11-14; Acts 20:20)
They are celebrating adopted pagan festivals under the thin veneer of a “Christian” label, (2 Cor 6:14-18) and making a mockery of marriage by divorcing on unscriptural grounds. (Matt 19:9)
The search and rescue mission of his disciples is that of a shepherd searching for lost lambs. It is the “lost” who accept his truth because the majority do not see themselves as “lost” in a disunited mess.
They want to find acceptance for rejecting Jesus teachings because a comfortable lie is easier to live with than an uncomfortable truth.
Jesus asked his disciples to step outside their comfort zone and do what what he did, spreading a message of hope among the hopeless. They won’t be arguing politics or taking up weapons to kill their fellow man, who may well be their “brother in the faith” of another nation. (1 John 4: 20-21) They will live moral lives among the immoral and take their marriage vows seriously.
They will work to make a living, not to furnish a lavish lifestyle or emulating worldly celebrities in their speech or dress. (1 John 2:15-17; John 15:19)
The “wheat” stand apart from the “weeds” and it’s obvious that they are different. Viva la difference.
No one can come to the son without an invitation from his Father. (John 6:65) It is God who draws people to his truth. (John 6:44) They accept it and live by it.
