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| Bible Question: Thank you for your consideration. As a Christian who came to Christ
late in life, there has been one issue that has perplexed me.
That is: Isn't unity and harmony within the Faith an important
concept? It seems to me, after having read through the New Testament
several times, that Christians are admonished to GET ALONG! What
I can't figure out is: why can't we? I realize sin is a reason,
but then we should all see divisions (including denominational)
as sinful, not desirable. Likewise, shouldn't we avoid those Christian
leaders who seem to encourage division within the faith? I realize
there are places in Scripture where discipline is called for (one
could reference 1 Cor 5., but then reasons given for problems
include not just immorality, but greed and idol worship (including,
I am sure, a host of modern idols in our society). In addition,
when one is removed from the fellowship, it is for that individual's
benefit, not to separate the faith into factions. So please, tell
me: 1) if I am wrong and constant infighting and division are
really part of God's plan for the church or not, and 2) if not,
then what is a Christian to do when the burden of reconciliation
within the church is such a weight upon the heart? Again, thanks
for your time and consideration, and may the Lord be with you. Bible Answer: Infighting and division in the church is not God's will. Yet, it occurs because we are in a spiritual warfare. The Holy Spirit warned us that this would occur.
Satan and his army are desiring to destroy the church and its testimony. He will do this anyway he can. He will attack it from the outside using the world. He will use the media to depict Christians as stupid, fanatics, emotional and needy. He will attack the church from within using laymen, leaders and even pastors. Satan will attempt to motivate us to sin and cause us to discredit ourselves with our words, lifestyle and attitudes. But the biggest area he is at work in is false doctrine and distorting historical and biblical facts. That is why he is called the angel of light.
The conflict will continue until we arrive in heaven. The Internal Evidence. The evidence of conflict within the church is clear. Many churches have leaders who are spiritually unqualified and should not be leaders. Church splits and divisions often start with the leadership team. The problem usually occurs because leaders were not selected according to the qualifications of 1 Timothy 3:1-12 and Titus 1:7-9. Often, the leaders are selected because of who they know, they are wealthy, or because of their career success, for example. We also have pastors who want to be in control and there are others who seek honor from their congregation instead of honor from God. Some churches have laymen who are seeking approval and influence in the church. For some men and women the church is a social club and the list goes on. |
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