Divide and Conquer

1 Corn 1 10-13

10 I appeal to you, brothers and sisters,[a] in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another in what you say and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly united in mind and thought. 11 My brothers and sisters, some from Chloe’s household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. 12 What I mean is this: One of you says, “I follow Paul”; another, “I follow Apollos”; another, “I follow Cephas[b]”; still another, “I follow Christ.”

13 Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized in the name of Paul?

Over the past few months it has been really pressing in my spirit to exhort the body of Christ (the church) to overcome the spirit of division.  As a church we are divided on so many things.  We are divided on things such as church size (Small Churches vs. Mega Churches), God’s Grace vs. God’s Wrath, The list goes on and on.   Now although I don’t agree with what everyone says I can’t help but to remember that we are all a work in progress.  We are all living life, and for me I can tell you that God usesdivi things in life to help us understand his word better.  I grew up believing and understanding the wrath of God, Hell is real people.  I know it is, but living life and witnessing God’s grace and mercy first hand and undeserved favor has matured me to know that the same God that can destroy the earth with a flood is the same God that will send his only begotten son to earth to die on the cross for my sins. 

I encourage my fellow brothers and sisters to meditate on the scripture above, as well as study the many other scriptures in the Bible that warns us about division.  Verse 13 really stands out to me as Paul ask the question “is Christ divided”, and then in an almost sarcastic manner he inquires about if Paul was crucified for you or were you baptized in the name of Paul?  In essence I get an understanding that says sometimes we put too much faith in the people who deliver the word rather than the Word himself “Jesus Christ”.  If we as a church will keep Jesus the main thing always I believe we would have a lot less strife amongst each other leaving us the opportunity to focus our efforts on the real enemy.  I have heard many people give their reasons for the perceived lack of power in the church today as our culture gradually becomes more tolerant of sinful things.  I believe division is one of the biggest reasons why.  As long as Satan can continue to cause division in the church, he does not have to worry about us operating at full strength which would allow us to be more effective at reaching every lost soul on this planet.  Basic military training even agrees with this when it talks about the principle “divide and conquer” 

    

I am going to do a series of blogs pertaining to this over the next few weeks, may even discuss it on our radio show.  I want to dive into the little things Satan uses to keep us arguing amongst each other and point out Biblical principles we can use to start getting on the same page, even if we can’t agree on certain points.  Please feel free to comment, add points, ask questions and share this with other brothers and sisters.  It is time for us to get together, Church, and do what is needed to reach people with the Gospel of Jesus Christ together.

Thanks for reading  

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