Satan knows that a divided body cannot stand
effectively. Even Jesus said this about Satan.
“If Satan cast out Satan, he is divided against himself; how then shall
his kingdom stand?” (Matt. 12:26). So
Satan works his ways into trying to divide the church and he does so by –
First, The Inability to
Understand God’s Paradox.
Two, The Confusion of Temporal with
Eternal Principles.
When did God ever make our
relationship with Him and people about knowing all things, gifts of the Spirit,
or pious acts? Too often we make fellowship too much about gifts, doctrines,
good works, and sacrifice.
According to the Scripture above,
none of these things matter to God if they are not motivated by love. All gifts
of God are wonderful, but they are not an evidence of a right heart. They
should never be seen as a badge of spirituality. Even our sacrifices to God do
not impress Him if we are not motivated by love.
The true mark of a Christian is not
his knowledge of the Bible or bible doctrine, but rather is the spirit of love.
Now in saying that, let me also say this:
A correct knowledge of God’s word helps to affirm whether our love has a
biblical base to it or whether it simply is fueled by human sentimentalism. Casting aside biblical truth and grabbing
onto love for the sake of love is not a biblical approach. Love and knowledge
must be together. Love without correct biblical
knowledge can take you places where you ought not to be. And knowledge without love can hold you back
from giving your best to God. Again, both knowledge of God’s Word and love are
essential together.
Nevertheless, Satan has deceived
Christians into believing that fellowship must be based on particular
viewpoints and doctrines. How sad to see the division in Christianity because
of differing doctrines many of which are not essential to salvation. Too often
Christians accuse one another of heresy, blasphemy and the like, thereby
becoming an accuser of the brethren. We must be careful not to take on the role
of accuser. This role belongs to Satan and we should always steer clear of it.
If I am motivated by anger and hatred, how can I say the love of God abides in
me (1 John 4:20)?
We need to understand that God is
perfectly fine with differing levels of understanding. Not all children learn
at the same rate or are they the same in gifts and personality. We should never
be angry or hateful when a brother has been taught or experienced a differing
view. There is truth in most doctrines, but perhaps the balancing paradox has
been overlooked. One person may have come out of the bondage of fear and can
only see the grace of God, while another may have come out of the bondage of
anarchy and appreciates the discipline of law. One may focus on law while the
other focuses on grace. The key is not to focus on grace at the exclusion of
the law, and not to focus on law at the exclusion of grace. One might be caught
up in gifts while another might be focused on the Word. Why should either
focus upset us? Rejoice that they have received understanding of God’s truth,
especially when they needed that part of the truth at a critical time in their
life.
Be patient and love your brethren and
perhaps they will be more attuned to what God has taught you. Both sides can be
wrong if motivated incorrectly. If my focus on the law is because I’m afraid
God will get me, then I am really motivated by the spirit of fear, not love. If
I take advantage of grace and violate the law, I am motivated by the spirit of
selfishness, which has no love in it. The subtlety of wrong motives divides the
body of Christ.
End of Part 3
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