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United (in Christ) We Stand
There are so many differences among Christians and, too often, we lose focus of what is really important. Where do these differences stem from and how should we respond to them?
Fwd: Fw: Fw: Fill this out about yourself
I remember back in junior high when all of my friends and I got our first e-mail accounts. The coolest thing to do was to send a bunch of forwards to each other, especially those e-mail surveys. We would answer questions about ourselves — name, age, favorite color, pets, and so on. The one question that always bothered me was "What religion are you?" Actually, it wasn't the question that bothered me; it was the answer my friends gave. They would always put "Lutheran" or "Baptist" or whichever denomination they were.
"No!" my 11-year-old self wanted to scream. "You are a Christian!!" Being the non-aggressive person I am, though, I wouldn't say anything. Instead, I would fill out the survey and under "Religion?" write "Christian, and my denomination is …" then send it back to them, hoping that they'd pick up on the hint. I don't know if they ever did.
All that to say, I think that sometimes we Christians get too focused on denominational identity. We've gotten so caught up in needing to label what we are that we forget whose we are. We forget that some of the issues we argue about aren't necessarily matters of salvation. God reminds us in 1 Samuel 16:7 that we tend to look at the outward appearance, but He looks at the heart. Maybe the little things, such as when to baptize someone, what the end times will be like or whether there should be real wine during communion, are like outward appearances. We use those differences to categorize and judge other Christians, yet our Father looks at their hearts and how passionately they seek after Him.
So What's the Difference?
There seems to be three levels of conviction in the Christian faith. The most basic convictions are what I will call the Christian convictions; these are the tenants of the faith that all Christians believe. These doctrines are true, regardless of denominations. We believe God created the universe and through His Son, Jesus Christ, we can have our sins forgiven and live forever. We also believe that the Holy Spirit works in us and through us and that the Bible is the inerrant Word of God. Moral laws also fall underneath this non-negotiable category. Murder is wrong. Sex outside of marriage is wrong. Gossip is wrong.
The second level of conviction is denominational conviction. These tend to be the issues that Christians get caught up in and argue about, usually to no avail. For example, many denominations debate whether or not humans are predestined. There are Christian denominations that believe women need to have long hair and keep their head covered, while others don't see any need to have laws about what to wear. Some denominations read the book of Revelation very literally; other denominations believe Revelation should be read much more figuratively.
Finally, there are personal convictions. For example, my mom has chosen to not shop on Sundays in order to honor the Sabbath. Several of my friends have committed to totally abstaining from alcohol for their entire lives. Even the debate about the time it took for God to create the world is a personal conviction in the sense that our salvation is not determined by it.
The apostle Paul discusses the idea of personal conviction throughout 1 Corinthians when he addresses what Christians should or should not be eating. Many of the earliest Christians were Jewish who grew up with strict dietary rules. When Gentiles became Christians, they did not share in the dietary convictions that the Jewish Christians had and the whole food issue became a huge debate. Christians on both sides of the debate were trying to make their personal convictions become a Christian conviction. (Sound familiar?)
It's interesting that when Paul talks about dietary convictions throughout the eighth, ninth and tenth chapters, he never lays down any hard and fast rules. He leaves it up to each person to decide, but he urges Christians to make their decisions on what would best draw others to Christ. In practicing this, the Corinthian Christians would still have their own personal convictions, but they would be unified through their love for each other and in reaching out to non-believers.
Unity is a Big Deal!
Unity among believers is key to Christianity. In the book of Acts, the phrase "one accord" is used 12 times in reference to the early church!1 This is a pretty good sign that God values unity among His people. Since He prompted Luke (the author of Acts) to include references to the church's unity so many times in a 28 chapter book, it's probably pretty important.
If that wasn't enough, on the night Jesus was arrested, he prayed for oneness within the Church. He prayed, "May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me."2 I have a feeling that Christ wasn't thinking so much about doctrinal unity (He knew how sinful humans like ourselves are prone to division). Rather, He was praying that we'd be unified with one heart and one spirit. If we Christians can't get over nit-picky details and (relatively) unimportant denominational and personal convictions, what's the world to think? How is the world supposed to know that we have been sent by God and that He loves them so much?
Disunity within the Church can actually hinder our ability to fulfill the Great Commission. C.S. Lewis writes in his preface to Mere Christianity "that the discussion of these disputed points has no tendency at all to bring an outsider into the Christian fold. So long as we write and talk about them we are much more likely to deter him from entering any Christian communion than to draw him into our own."3 I'll update that language by about 50 years: Arguing about our doctrinal differences probably won't save people, and if anything, it'll drive them further away from Christianity. (If that doesn't wake us up, I don't know what will.)
We are Christ's Ambassadors
When it comes to denominational and personal convictions, we should be more gracious to those who believe differently than we do. Scripture doesn't give a clear answer to every single issue, and depending on a person's background and reading of those areas, he/she could understand Scripture a whole lot differently than I do. We need to let our conversations "always be full of grace" (Colossians 4:6) when we discuss these controversial issues.
Remember, we are all disciples of Christ. While denominational differences are useful for Christians in defining their beliefs and identifying with other Christians, denominations do not define who we are as believers. Then Paul had to remind the Corinthian church of that when they were arguing about which Apostle baptized them: "One of you says, 'I follow Paul'; another, 'I follow Apollos'; another, 'I follow Cephas'; still another, 'I follow Christ.' Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized into the name of Paul?"4
Just like the Corinthians had to overcome their differences about what to eat and which Apostle they affiliated themselves with, we need to identify ourselves more with Christ than with our personal and denominational convictions. We aren't out to convert people to our own personal beliefs, nor are we ambassadors for our individual denominations — we are Christ's ambassadors! He has given us an incredible privilege to represent Himself on this earth, and it is something we should take seriously.
My Final Answer
C O F F E E S H O PThose e-mail surveys still come my way, although now I get them more on MySpace than in my inbox. The next time the question about religion comes up, I have my answer: I'm a Christian. My denomination doesn't really matter that much and my personal beliefs aren't that important. What is important, though, is that I am a disciple of Christ and I strive to become more like Him each day.
Rebecca Kelch attended the Focus on the Family Institute during the fall 2007 semester. She is a student at Spring Arbor University majoring in English and minoring in Christian Ministries. She plans to graduate in May 2009. She doesn't know what she'll do after she graduates, but she hopes God will reveal it to her soon! Like most college students, she loves hanging out with her friends, especially at coffee shops where she'll order anything with the word "frappe." She loves traveling, reading, rollerblading, ice cream and Burt's Bees® chapstick.
"I struggled with the image for this article, because there were a lot of options. In the end the idea of 'labels' that we give ourselves (and others) was the area that really struck me as a core part of this issue. So often we get blinded by labels that we don't see that we are all united because of WHOSE we are (loved that point from the article). And what better label style than the standard red 'Hello my name is' tag — so I did a take on that. I chose a bit more artistic style for this image because I wanted that main label to stand out. The 'Three Two One Unite' text is a play on the idea that if we give our convictions to the Lord, then we can be united in our beliefs and as a body." — Luke Flowers
Image created by Luke Flowers. © 2007 Focus on the Family. All rights reserved.
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