I was thinking of these verses today:
So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy,2 complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. 3 Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. 4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. 5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. – Philippians 2:1-8
Paul is under house arrest, facing certain death because of his testimony of Christ’s resurrection: his message is joy, peace, and unity. There isn’t a hint of competiveness, bitterness, or betrayal. It would bring him joy, says the Apostle, if you are like-minded, focusing on the core of what we believe: that Christ was crucified and then rose from the dead (1 Cor. 15:3-4), promising us future glory in him. Hallelujah! And the fruit of this unity, says Paul, is now deference to one another, graciousness, and deep humility. We struggle with this mightily, as we live in a world where everyone is an expert on everything, the news has made us cynical, while blogs and podcasts have fueled our suspicions about everyone who might think differently on an issue. What if the list of things we were certain about was fairly short? The core of the gospel, the love of our families, and a few small vocational specialties. What if in every other area we were grinning shoulder-shruggers, we worshiped the King, and then went on our merry way. We’d be a healthier church and a holier people. Paul warns Titus in Titus 3:9 to “avoid foolish controversies, genealogies, and dissensions.” I wrote a whole paper on this in seminary, studying particularly what is meant here by “genealogies.” What Paul warns about was speculation about how a certain lineage would give someone a sense of spiritual superiority or a higher claim to truth because of where they came from. Paul warns continually about these quarrels and controversies in both Titus and his letters to Timothy, and we are wise to heed his advice.
The most common sin of our age may be “I know something you don’t know,” and we love ourselves for that fact. It’s not good for our hearts and we should be incredibly cautious about how we think about true wisdom. Unity is important for the church, but it’s also so much more fun.