The Challenge of Christian Unity

By Terril D. Littrell, PH.D

No one who takes seriously the words of our Savior in his prayer for his disciples "that they may be one" (John 17:11 ) can afford to ignore challenge of ecumenism, a challenge made all the more pressing by the ever-easier and faster means of global communication.

In the language of the ecumenist, divisions among believers are no longer unhappy or unfortunate circumstances: they are downright sinful. He points out that it is significant that one of the first products of the early New Testament believers was their "togetherness." An abiding evidence of the Holy Spirit's activity within this holy band of disciples was their speaking together (Acts 2:42). It is against this standard that those who are sincere in heart must examine the challenge of ecumenism.

GETTING TOGETHER

It seems that believers everywhere sense the need to "get together," even though they arc not always clear about how. We are living in a time when the supreme test of our faith has come. It is imperative that we all speak, act, and server together.

It is proper to call for the unity of all believers, but unless that unity is based on the right principles and right action, it is a vain and dangerous thing. True unity is not to be achieved by coercion of fallible men who serve as inquisitors, governed by carnal reasons. Coercion causes one half of the people to act as fools and the other half as hypocrites. The involvement and cooperation of people with a variety of ideas working for a single cause cause is the basis of true unity.

An examination of ecumenism reveals that there are forces at work at the same time. As is always the case when the Holy Spirit does his work, the adversary tries to rise up against it by counterfeiting or duplicating the efforts of the Holy Spirit. There is a true ecumenism and a false ecumenism! The latter is beset by two evils: the evil modernism and the evil of liberalism. There are evidences that in some areas the false ecumenical tides, led by avowed liberal theologians, are flowing in the direction of one world religion.

COMMUNICATION AND RECIPROCATION

True ecumenism is the spirit of "uniting the kingdom of God " It contains the vital ingredient of "togetherness." It presupposes a basic interest, a common goal, a like experience, or a unity of purpose. It demands communication and reciprocation-a sharing approach! It is not produced by one man talking down from a pedestal to others, but by many men talking together. Nor does it involve only talking: it also involves listening. One of the most important occurrences in the religious community today is the Holy Spirit's bringing people together. This is a thrilling hour in which it has been made abundantly clear that the day of sectarian strife and division in God's kingdom is coming to an end. We are entering a new era of "understanding." We must climb together, and as we reach the top, we shall discover new and unforeseen parts of the range that were not visible before that will require even higher ascent. Perhaps we will not conceive of finally completing the climb, for there will likely be a new terrain emerging. Yet to recognize this is not a reason to forsake it; the goal itself is valuable because it provides a direction for deliberate change and, at the same time, a standard by which to assess the changes that do occur.

WE CAN'T AFFORD DIVISION

A divided kingdom of God is a feud we can't afford. We must all be made conscious of the fact that the great heritage in all the different denominations and fellowships of the church is far more fruitful than the defensive stance concerning details of dogma. That is not to say that dogmatic truth is unimportant. But what is even more important in this hour is a united kingdom of God standing upon the fundamental values of the Messiah-obedience to his will and respect for our fellowman.

All of us, more or less, have faced the phenomenon of a divided kingdom of God with certain smugness. If the attitude of each group could be vocalized, it would probably be something like this: "After all, our beliefs and practices are based exclusively on the Bible, and we bind all true followers of the Messiah rigidly to our dogma since we believe in the Bible and the Bible only as our guide."

What each group fails to take into consideration is that it is not the Bible on which they disagree-but the interpretation of it! No matter how great a defense can be mounted for such patronizing attitudes, it does nothing to reassemble the strewn blocks of the kingdom of God. The continuing scandal is that the kingdom is divided, not who is responsible for that division.

UNITY MUST BE CULTIVATED

Mature and experienced religious leaders know only too well that harmonious relationships, effective work, and spiritual growth do not come automatically with people. They must he cultivated, promoted, encouraged, and implemented. We who desire unity must match that desire with eagerness to act towards its fulfillment. We who are eager to maintain unity will be, conversely, eager to prevent disunity, strife, and division. We must be eager to keep the unity of the Spirit. It remains for the leaders of this new era of "understanding" to pick up the pieces and put them together again and unite the kingdom of God.

The following are a few of the roadblocks that we feel have beset our unity:

Institutionalism-A common ecclesiastical neurosis from which none of us is totally immune, institutionalism regards things as more important that people. It develops its own brands of red tape and needs powerful and courageous leadership to correct.

Individualism - This malady regards individual liberty as more important than body ministry-the person more than the group. This kind of thinking is the death knell of real unity. "Loving one another" means submitting to one another and listening to each other. God honors and respects the individual, but the real strength comes only from Spirit-filled fellowship where individual gifts are shared "for the common good."

Isolationism – A selfish, standoffish, "holier-than-thou" attitude typifies isolationism. There is no care or feeling for anyone except one’s own individual group. It is easy for religious people to get into this rut, but it does not produce the unity factor so basic for togetherness of the members of the kingdom of God. The issues facing the world today are so serious that we cannot afford the luxury of isolationism.

Exclusivity – This is always a characteristic of "man-made" movements. The attitude projects the idea that "we have a monopoly on truth, and if anyone learns it, he must learn it from us because it isn’t to be found anywhere else."

Compulsiveness- Commonly known as "axe grinding," this is a determination to stereotype everything, and it closes the door to the possibility of mutual sharing.

In order to overcome these besetting factors and work to improve relations with one another, religious leaders must be willing to sit down and share with one another. The Holy Spirit does not segregate us into different "camps"; that type of relationship is a product of carnality!

WE’RE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER

The unity of the Spirit can be maintained only as believers are cemented together by the bond of peace. This bond is stronger than personal disagreement, misunderstanding, or independent division, and it steadfastly resists all attempts from any source to disrupt our sweet mutual relationship with each other.

The phrase, "We’re all in this together," is rapidly becoming quaint, but it sums up what we would like to believe we represent as we submit ourselves individually and mutually to the bond of peace.

Guestbook | Table of Contents | Restore! Magazine | Restoration Foundation Home