Is Christ Divided?

VERSE OF THE DAY: ~1 Corinthians 1:10-13 “Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. For it has been declared to me concerning you, my brethren, by those of Chloe’s household, that there are contentions among you. Now I say this, that each of you says, “I am of Paul,” or “I am of Apollos,” or “I am of Cephas,” or “I am of Christ.” Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?”

That little word “plead” sure does carry a load of power and impact. “Now I plead with you brothers by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ…” certainly gives me the idea that this request was of great importance to the apostle Paul. In Luke chapter 11 Jesus tells the crowd that a house divided cannot stand. I believe Paul is in complete unity with Christ as he wrote these words. The difference was that Paul was referring to division in the church and Christ was speaking in rebuttal to the accusation from the Pharisees that He cast out demons by Beelzebub. Either way division destroys, and a unified force is that much more difficult to defeat! Paul charges the Corinthian church that they should even speak the same things, that the same mind and judgment be shared by all in the church, that there should be no divisions among them. Today Paul would, without a doubt, be accused as a cult leader for these statements. There is a real enemy and part of his agenda is to divide and conquer. We, as God’s church, need now more than ever before to unite!

Is Christ divided? Paul in other scriptures refers to the church as the body of Christ with Christ being the head. I see a solution for our world in this analogy. Many Christians today parrot the words “I’m not religious, I have a relationship with Jesus” I personally want that to be true for every one of us, but I have a question. Is Christ divided? Because if He is of a single mind and we all have personal relationships with Him, then it stands to reason that the Christian church would be united and an un-stoppable force in the world. So then, here’s the challenge; Are you ready? Because it will take some true humility on my part and yours. The challenge is that we who believe turn back to that personal relationship with Him and be willing to explore the possibility that there may be some things for each of us to re-learn. Things concerning who we are as His church and what that means for our world today. That means we bypass the urge to say “I already know” And “I already do” as we who are His people, called by His name turn to Him with a fresh focus on building our relationship with Him, His word, His people, and the world. We can change the world if the body can remain in right relationship with the head! 

PRAYER: “God, today I humble myself before You and even if I am unaware of any part of me that had mis-guided or drifted from You I turn my whole life back to You again. Restore our relationship and give me ears to hear Your voice and a heart to respond to what You speak to me as an individual and to Your church. I give you permission to re-set the filters through which perceive the way I hear from You and how I interpret it. I repent from any and every time that I mistook my relations with people or with theology, or with doctrine, for my relationship with You because there is no substitute for having a true relationship with my creator, redeemer and Father. Thank for this journey to restoration, in Jesus name Amen!”

VERSE FOR FEARLESS LIVING!  ~Luke 12:6 “Are not five sparrows sold for two copper coins? And not one of them is forgotten before God. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.”