Fellowship with jesus
1 Corinthians 1:10–12 (NIV) — 10 I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, 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”; still another, “I follow Christ.”
The prior verse concludes with God calling us into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. As we keep reading we find that the Corinthian church is bereft with divisions, quarrels, rifts and factions. Paul appeals for them to be perfectly united in mind and thought. What does that mean? Does that mean we all have to have the same likes and dislikes? How do we reconcile “perfectly united” with Romans 14 where we allow differing thoughts on disputable matters?
Paul uses the term “brothers” 39 times in this letter. (“Brothers and sisters” is an expansion by the translators.) This is significantly more than his usage in any other letter, the second most often is 19 times each in Romans and 1 Thessalonians. Why does Paul emphasize this term “brothers”? What does that tell us about dealing with church conflict and division?
Paul’s charge comes precise. There were several factions each claiming to follow a certain church leader. Paul lists 4 such groups. We don’t know how deep the divisions were, or what characterized the beliefs, teachings or practices of each group. We only know there were quarrels among them.
There are lots of different, famous preachers today; many of them are on TV. What’s the problem with liking or following one of those preachers? Is there a point where liking or following becomes divisive?
Unfortunately the one universal church today is split into denominations, non-denominations, sects, and unaffiliated Christians. Sometimes these groups don’t get along. What can you and I do to help heal divisions in our little corner of Christianity? Can we do so and still maintain our heritage and traditions?