“Now I exhort you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all agree and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be made complete in the same mind and in the same judgment.” (1 Corinthians 1:10, NASB95)
Woodrow Wilson, an American President respected for his willingness to compromise said, “The way we generally strive for rights is by getting our fighting blood up; and I venture to say that is the long way and not the short way. If you come at me with your fists doubled, I think I can promise you that mine will double as fast as yours; but if you come to me and say, “Let us sit down and take counsel together, and, if we differ from one another, understand why it is that we differ from one another, just what the points at issue are,” we will presently find that we are not so far apart after all, that the points on which we differ are few and the points on which we agree are many, and that if we only have the patience and the candor and the desire to get together, we will get together.” (Woodrow Wilson, Bits & Pieces, September 17, 1992, pp. 14-15)
Wilson’s words sound hopeful. I only wish I was as hopeful about disagreements in modern times. Today’s world seems entirely full of people who do not have the “patience and candor and desire to get together” on their differences. Congress has taken sides. Opinion polls are split. Instead of listening, protestors get together to scream through bullhorns and yell their chants, not willing to listen to or respect another opinion. Mainstream media eggs it on. They salivate with excitement when they hear of disagreements and fights, of protests and power plays. Not wishing to report when people are civil and work together, they are thrilled to report when people fight and fuss and fume. They love to throw gasoline on any ideological fire.
You might think that Christians deal with disagreements better than the world. I wish it were true. Recorded history tells of many church splits, of schisms that destroyed entire denominations, of groups that cannot get along. Right now, organizations within the United Church of Christ, the Episcopal Church, the Methodist churches, and the Roman Catholic Church are advocating splitting up their denomination because of differences of theology or opinion or political belief. So often, the church fights like the world, breaking into opposing sides and fighting over viewpoints. All too often, Christians take sides, throw down the gauntlet, and “fight the good fight”. Even Christians can make a church fight sound like a crusade for Christ, with one side being full of faithful martyrs while the other side is mired in sin.
In the gospel of John, a prayer of Jesus was recorded. In John 17, that prayer was written down for all ages and generations. In it, Jesus prayed that His disciples may be united as He and God the Father were united (1 John 1:11). With this prayer, Jesus had a hope that the disciples would be willing to work together, learn from one another, and stand as one. The apostle Paul continued this line of reasoning by adding in the scripture for today that “by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all agree and there be no divisions among you” (1 Corinthians 1:10). Paul wanted Christians to “be made complete in the same mind and the same judgment”. He desired the faithful to set aside their differences and come together because of Jesus. Are you willing to follow these examples?
A woman came to see me in my office. She looked forlorn as she sat down in the chair across from me. In the next half hour, she described to me one of the great difficulties in her life. She had a daughter who was a lesbian. The daughter wanted her mom to accept her lifestyle and behavior. The mother was a strong Christian and confided to me that she believed that the Bible’s stance against homosexuality is clear. Her daughter wanted the woman to accept her lifestyle, complaining that she was not very loving because she wouldn’t accept her daughter’s lifestyle. The two could hardly face each other without some amount of hurt and pain. She asked me what to do.
I began by acknowledging her faith. This woman was right about the Bible. It has a clear stance against homosexuality. I said that the daughter was right also in that there needed to be love between them. The woman could not accept her daughter’s lifestyle. She believed that it was sinful to live that lifestyle, but she loved her daughter. I could envision her dilemma. In the end, we came up with a plan that was faithful to God. The woman first told her daughter that she loved her dearly and that her love would never lessen. She also told her that God loved the daughter even more! But, the woman told her daughter that it was her belief that the homosexual lifestyle was neither beneficial nor biblical. She begged her daughter to accept the fact that they believed differently, and that it was okay to do so. She also urged that they should just love each other “to the ends of the earth”! God is the judge. Mother and daughter can disagree on the rightness of homosexuality. Their love was so very important. In the end, the mother did not compromise her beliefs. The daughter felt loved and cherished. The two became closer than ever. The disagreement did not stop their love for each other nor their respect for Christ.
In everything, Christians should be willing to set aside their differences and come together in the name of Christ. While some Christians and non-Christians alike seek to cause division and foment disagreement, you need to stand up for what is right while at the same time respecting God’s authority. You need to refrain from playing the judge and strive to accept those who are different. Even when treated poorly, you are obligated to offer grace in Jesus. God comes first. Disagreements should not define your spiritual life.
Yes, there are people with whom you can never agree.
Yes, there are people with whom you will never be able to agree to disagree.
Yes, there are Christians who will fight to the death over an issue (they may even worship the issue!).
Yes, there are people who will cause you undue suffering when you stand firm for your faith.
Yes, there are issues that will define us, but we must never let them divide us. Jesus wanted us to “be one”.
Are you willing to listen to someone who thinks differently in order to come to an understanding in Jesus? Even if another person can’t come to an understanding with you, that doesn’t mean you have to fight your cause to the death! Follow God’s will, but continually search for a common ground with all others.
Wilson’s words sound hopeful. I only wish I was as hopeful about disagreements in modern times. Today’s world seems entirely full of people who do not have the “patience and candor and desire to get together” on their differences. Congress has taken sides. Opinion polls are split. Instead of listening, protestors get together to scream through bullhorns and yell their chants, not willing to listen to or respect another opinion. Mainstream media eggs it on. They salivate with excitement when they hear of disagreements and fights, of protests and power plays. Not wishing to report when people are civil and work together, they are thrilled to report when people fight and fuss and fume. They love to throw gasoline on any ideological fire.
You might think that Christians deal with disagreements better than the world. I wish it were true. Recorded history tells of many church splits, of schisms that destroyed entire denominations, of groups that cannot get along. Right now, organizations within the United Church of Christ, the Episcopal Church, the Methodist churches, and the Roman Catholic Church are advocating splitting up their denomination because of differences of theology or opinion or political belief. So often, the church fights like the world, breaking into opposing sides and fighting over viewpoints. All too often, Christians take sides, throw down the gauntlet, and “fight the good fight”. Even Christians can make a church fight sound like a crusade for Christ, with one side being full of faithful martyrs while the other side is mired in sin.
In the gospel of John, a prayer of Jesus was recorded. In John 17, that prayer was written down for all ages and generations. In it, Jesus prayed that His disciples may be united as He and God the Father were united (1 John 1:11). With this prayer, Jesus had a hope that the disciples would be willing to work together, learn from one another, and stand as one. The apostle Paul continued this line of reasoning by adding in the scripture for today that “by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all agree and there be no divisions among you” (1 Corinthians 1:10). Paul wanted Christians to “be made complete in the same mind and the same judgment”. He desired the faithful to set aside their differences and come together because of Jesus. Are you willing to follow these examples?
A woman came to see me in my office. She looked forlorn as she sat down in the chair across from me. In the next half hour, she described to me one of the great difficulties in her life. She had a daughter who was a lesbian. The daughter wanted her mom to accept her lifestyle and behavior. The mother was a strong Christian and confided to me that she believed that the Bible’s stance against homosexuality is clear. Her daughter wanted the woman to accept her lifestyle, complaining that she was not very loving because she wouldn’t accept her daughter’s lifestyle. The two could hardly face each other without some amount of hurt and pain. She asked me what to do.
I began by acknowledging her faith. This woman was right about the Bible. It has a clear stance against homosexuality. I said that the daughter was right also in that there needed to be love between them. The woman could not accept her daughter’s lifestyle. She believed that it was sinful to live that lifestyle, but she loved her daughter. I could envision her dilemma. In the end, we came up with a plan that was faithful to God. The woman first told her daughter that she loved her dearly and that her love would never lessen. She also told her that God loved the daughter even more! But, the woman told her daughter that it was her belief that the homosexual lifestyle was neither beneficial nor biblical. She begged her daughter to accept the fact that they believed differently, and that it was okay to do so. She also urged that they should just love each other “to the ends of the earth”! God is the judge. Mother and daughter can disagree on the rightness of homosexuality. Their love was so very important. In the end, the mother did not compromise her beliefs. The daughter felt loved and cherished. The two became closer than ever. The disagreement did not stop their love for each other nor their respect for Christ.
In everything, Christians should be willing to set aside their differences and come together in the name of Christ. While some Christians and non-Christians alike seek to cause division and foment disagreement, you need to stand up for what is right while at the same time respecting God’s authority. You need to refrain from playing the judge and strive to accept those who are different. Even when treated poorly, you are obligated to offer grace in Jesus. God comes first. Disagreements should not define your spiritual life.
Yes, there are people with whom you can never agree.
Yes, there are people with whom you will never be able to agree to disagree.
Yes, there are Christians who will fight to the death over an issue (they may even worship the issue!).
Yes, there are people who will cause you undue suffering when you stand firm for your faith.
Yes, there are issues that will define us, but we must never let them divide us. Jesus wanted us to “be one”.
Are you willing to listen to someone who thinks differently in order to come to an understanding in Jesus? Even if another person can’t come to an understanding with you, that doesn’t mean you have to fight your cause to the death! Follow God’s will, but continually search for a common ground with all others.