Unity: Thoughts on 1 Corinthians 1

Totally blown away by Jesus this morning, and it's been a wonderful day! God stirred my heart to open up to 1 Corinthians and just start soaking it in. A few verses in particular really stood out namely verses 10, 17, 23, and 30 all from chapter 1.

10. I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment.

17. For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.

23. But we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles

30. And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption 

These verses show an overarching theme of a vital truth that Paul tries to convey at the very beginning of his letter to the church in Corinth. Beginning with verse 10 Paul focuses on the unity of believers. Unity is a concept that many of us take for granted, but if you dig a bit deeper it becomes clear why Paul opened his letter with this subject. Disunity among different factions of the church has caused more damage in Christian history than any persecution ever did. Disunity is a principle tool of the Devil to keep God's people distracted, and therefor ineffective in forwarding the Gospel.

A unified force can have tremendous effects on the world around it. When every piece is moving as it should, the body works. Each player fulfills his own responsibility, and the team succeeds. It is no different in the Christian life. If each part of the Body of Christ moves in concert with God's heartbeat then we see lives changed and strongholds broken. We see life and flourishing!

So what then do we unify ourselves around? Paul answers that in the following verses. He writes that the most crucial part of his ministry was preaching the Gospel (v17). He declares we must preach the full Gospel, which necessitates a theology of crucifixion, in spite of what others might think. For no reason do we tailor or edit the Gospel to fit into a social, political, or relational situation (v23). And lastly, we do this all because it is through God himself that Christ has come to redeem, sanctify, and make us righteous. Christ enables us to share this truth (v30).

And all of this stems from unification around the Truth. If we want to see more of Jesus in our friendships, in our organizations, in our churches, in our campuses, and in our world then we must seek a deeper knowledge of Jesus in community. That community cannot be isolated, but must function alongside many other communities, all organized around the Gospel.

Our charge from Paul is to rally around the person of Christ and preach the full Gospel in all circumstances. This is done most effectively by a unified Church, the bride of Christ. Ask the Lord for unity today. Cry out for a greater portion of Christ for your communities. Lincoln said "A house divide against itself cannot stand.", but many forget that entire idea came straight from Jesus (cf. Mark 3:25). The more unity among believers the more power the Gospel has in our world today. Seek unity, Seek Christ.

Hoping to know Jesus better today than I did yesterday.
Your brother,
-matt