27) Only
let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I
come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand
fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the
gospel;
28) And
in nothing terrified by your adversaries: which is to them an evident token of
perdition, but to you of salvation, and that of God.
29) For
unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but
also to suffer for his sake;
30) Having
the same conflict which ye saw in me, and now hear to be in me.
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t
seems difficult for the people of God today to understand the concept of unity
to which the Lord has called us. Too many do not seem to realize that unity
goes beyond words; it is to encompass the stand that we take concerning the
Lord, His Word and His ministry.
Pentecost
seems to have evolved (or regressed, as it were) into a political church much
as any other. No longer is the primary interest the Lord Jesus Christ and His
Church. Our efforts are all too often expended on running for offices,
impressing the “right” people, building our congregations and lifting offerings
worthy of us. We have lost much of the power bestowed upon us because the Lord
is no longer the center of our efforts. Ministry is “ministry” because it aims
to serve people to bring them into salvation. Nothing more,
nothing less. Though the concept is simple, the act is anything but.
Why? Because salvation is multi-faceted, multi-dimensional
and largely uninvestigated. This is the real tragedy; for instead of
seeking the depths of the knowledge of God, the people of God are seeking to
make names for themselves.
Though
the issue of sin is black-and-white and easily resolvable, there are “gray”
areas in salvation about which the Lord instructs. However, one will neither be
able to identify nor administrate gray areas unless he has been taught and
understands the cold, hard facts of God.
The
lack of preaching of these facts is largely responsible for the lack of unity
and oneness of purpose amongst us. If one can exist in his own world concerning
the Lord (that is, what one wants to believe of Him), then he can easily
develop his own doctrine. Unfortunately, too many preachers aid and abet their
parishioners by preaching fleshly comforting words and consoling those with
serious difficulties.
It
is dangerous for anyone in this day and time to be satisfied with just
“membership” in any apostolic church. Likewise, as members, we cannot be satisfied
with allowing our brothers and sisters to just “come to church.” If we are
concerned with the Lord winning saints of God, then we must “breed” them.
Successful saints come from careful handling, basically consisting of diligent
teaching of the truth and honest rendering of the plan of salvation.
It
is, of course, impossible to “stand fast in one Spirit” without agreeing on
what that Spirit teaches. Despite being saved by the same Spirit, all do not
believe that that Spirit enables us to live without sin. How could God require
something and then not be able to deliver?
By
now, it is no secret that the devil sends deceit to keep us “at odds” with one
another and unable to stand together. He seems to understand better than us
that as long as he keeps us convinced that those who could help us are against
us, we will never be able to receive help from anyone. In this way, we will
miss all the wisdom, instruction and victory we could have enjoyed while being
saved.
Of
course, it makes no sense that that given to unify us (i.e. the Holy Ghost), in
fact, the only thing capable of unifying, would impart to each individual
different thoughts and directions. Since it is the Holy Ghost bringing us
together in the first place, it is His mind, His thought and His direction that
we will be given.
As
without knowledge the people of God will perish, so will we
without unity. Redeemed man must be able to step outside of himself long enough
to see that “getting along” is not about him, alone, but about God. We must be
unified by and in one Spirit to bring
lost souls to salvation.
Deny
it as one might, the fact remains that all
who belong to the Lord will speak the same thing. Lest one be deceived, that
“thing” will be the Word of God as scripture gives it, not as man or tradition
teaches.
Be
careful whose side you find yourself on. If you speak other than what the
Lord mandates and supports, you are against Him, not for Him.