agreement – Rev. Tim Ehrhardt

For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers and sisters, that our ancestors were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea. They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. They all ate the same spiritual food and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ. (New International Version)

We are all on spaceship earth together. Everyone has the similar experiences of birth, life, death, and the joys and sorrows of it all.

But what we don’t all share is our individual responses to all those events. Some folks do better than others with the ups and downs of life in this world.

So there are two pledges that are most helpful to make to God and to each other, especially when it comes to Christ’s Church:

I will be a unifying person.
I will not make everything about my personal preferences.

Christians need to get along and work together; and that cannot happen if all we want is what we want.

“Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples if you love one another.” Jesus (John 13:34-35, NIV)

Unity, forgiveness, reconciliation, love, and communicating the gospel message of forgiveness happens by people being gracious to each other so that a watching world can see the validity of Christ within us.

Followers of Jesus have a responsibility to be a source of unity, not division.

Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. (Ephesians 4:3-6, NIV)

Unity doesn’t merely happen; it must be pursued and be a common value of all.

As God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. (Colossians 3:12-14, NIV)

We are to be like-minded, having the same love for one another that we have for Jesus, being united in spirit and purpose.

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. (Philippians 2:3-4, NIV)

The specific problem in the Corinthian Church was their allegiance to different individuals; each person and clique had their favorite preacher. And they grouped themselves around how that particular pastor taught and ministered.

The situation was a classic case of church folk saying to each other, “That’s not how so-and-so did it!” But that approach of following pet preachers ends up in division – the focus becomes on the methods of ministry rather than the substance of the ministry itself.

Christians must keep in mind that the heart of all Christian ministry is the cross of Christ that saves us from our pettiness and transforms us into forgiven people who spread forgiveness and healing. Therefore, our primary loyalty is to Christ and the message of the cross, and not to particular personalities or programs.

The sin of the Corinthians was misguided loyalties; and the answer to wrong priorities is to have Jesus and the cross as our central and guiding allegiance.

The Corinthian believers were emotionally tied to the leader who baptized them and who was a significant force for good in their lives. Its more than understandable to have a special relationship with someone who was there for you. However, what’s not okay is following that person as if they’re Jesus himself, and then insisting that everything be done the way my favorite does it.

Christian unity means to agree with one another about the good news of Christ, and let everything else be a matter of lesser importance. Can you live with that?

A sobering reality is this: Not everyone in every church is there to follow Jesus. And as long as that’s a reality, there will be schisms, factions, cliques, divisions and disunity. The visible church always has a mix of righteous and unrighteous people within it, concerned more about power politics than humbly following Jesus and spreading the gospel.

At the same time, yet another reality is that the church has taken unity and purity seriously throughout its history and sought to preserve the collective integrity of its fellowship. Sin was discerned as the community’s responsibility to address. It’s only been in the past 300 years that sin has been viewed as something which is only a matter between the individual and God.

In the early centuries of the Church, believers desiring to repent of their sins would typically spend a period of time fasting and praying, then appearing before the entire church to make a public confession.

Don’t freak out. I’m not necessarily endorsing that method for us, but nevertheless, the message remains essential: Agree with one another, make peace, and bring spiritual healing to all. The power of Christianity is in the blood of Jesus to forgive sins, and not by trying to ensure things get done, the way we think they ought to get done, in the way our favorite people do them.

Maybe you recognize or can relate to some of these common behavior patterns in many churches:

Worship wars. One or more factions in the church want the music and the liturgy just the way they like it. Any deviation is met with anger and complaining.
Preservation of the church building as of the highest priority (above spiritual growth and maturity).
Protection of programs and ministries held in such high regard that, even if they are not effective, the church keeps doing them.
Attitudes of entitlement. A sense of deserving special treatment and attention.
Concerns about changing things, and yet, no real concern about changing lives.
Apathy and avarice. A lack of motivation and energy to build relationships with outsiders and share the gospel; and hoarding spiritual resources for the insiders.

There is to be unity around the things most important to God.

Christian unity isn’t about keeping everyone happy; it’s about the good news of Jesus and being anchored to the Rock of our salvation, Christ. All the practical and important stuff of human life must be shaped and governed by the cross of Jesus, because that’s where God’s power saved the world, and where hope is found.

Lord Jesus, you prayed that we might all be one. We pray for the unity of Christians everywhere, according to your will and your methods. May your Spirit enable us to experience the suffering caused by division, to see our sin for what it is, and to hope beyond all hope. Amen.

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

I always thank my God for you because of his grace given you in Christ Jesus. For in him you have been enriched in every way—with all kinds of speech and with all knowledge— God thus confirming our testimony about Christ among you. Therefore, you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed.He will also keep you firm to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful, who has called you into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another in what you say and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly united in mind and thought. My brothers and sisters, some from Chloe’s household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. What I mean is this: 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 in the name of Paul? I thank God that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius, so no one can say that you were baptized in my name. (Yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I don’t remember if I baptized anyone else.) For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel—not with wisdom and eloquence, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. (New International Version)

The Apostle Paul clarified the foremost mission of Christianity to the Corinthian church: Preach the gospel.

Everything else Paul did – from healing people to gathering offerings for others, and from making tents to journeying around the Mediterranean world – he did with the central focus and aim of proclaiming the good news of God’s grace in Christ.

Unfortunately, the Corinthian believers had lost sight of this urgent and needed imperative of proclaiming the good news of Jesus. Instead, they hardened into opinionated groups. Disunity amongst them was rampant and rancid. In short, the church made secondary matters of first importance. So, Paul wrote to correct this situation, which had gotten completely out of hand.

The proclamation of the gospel in Word and Sacrament needs to be at the core of every church and every believer’s life. When it isn’t, there are factions, special-interest groups, and condescending attitudes which fill the vacuum left in the center.

There are some things, maybe most things, we can agree to disagree with. Yet, when it comes to the good news of forgiveness and grace in Christ, we are to be of one mind. It is imperative we agree together that the heart of Christian mission is the gospel.

Unity around the gospel won’t happen if everyone is listening to competing voices.

Some believers have their favorite pet preachers. They follow that person and listen to them. That’s fine – to a degree. Yet, problems will inevitably arise because some practices happening within a particular church or faith community may not sync with the pet preacher or teaching. And if several individuals have different folks they follow, it can get messy in a hurry.

Following one person over another, Paul insists, is not the real issue in Christianity. Rather, it’s proclaiming the gospel – and not some person or their ideas. Believers need to put a whole lot more energy into using their spiritual gifts, rather than putting a crown on some worm of a preacher.

People can disagree on a lot of things, and that’s okay. But, in the church, there ought always be agreement and unity in building ministry around the person and work of Jesus Christ.

Everyone in the church, without exception, has a role to fulfill, a gift to exercise, in proclaiming good news. For me, I enjoy teaching Scripture to unbelievers and answering their questions, as well as mentoring believers in the cardinal doctrines of faith and practice.

Others proclaim the gospel through hospitality, or partnering with others, or even inviting people to events and bible studies. In all the myriad ways God has gifted us, whether it is in serving or speaking, we are to use that gift not to advance a personal agenda, but to preach the gospel.

In this season of the Epiphany, Christians celebrate that the gospel has come to Gentiles and not only Jews. The light shines on all people, not just some. Therefore, followers of Jesus are to let their light shine, as our Lord exhorted us:

“You are the light that shines for the world to see. You are like a city built on a hill that cannot be hidden. People don’t hide a lamp under a bowl. They put it on a lampstand. Then the light shines for everyone in the house. In the same way, you should be a light for other people. Live so that they will see the good things you do and praise your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:14-16, ERV)

Blessed Father, Son, and Spirit, you are One God, perfectly united and in continual harmony. You have loved humanity to such a degree that you orchestrated a great deliverance from sin, death, and hell. Help your entire church to resolve petty differences and fix a gaze firmly and graciously on proclaiming the good news of salvation in Jesus, our Lord. Amen.