Ephesians 4:1-3

Three days after Christmas, the world was shocked to learn of church fight at the Church of The Nativity in Bethlehem. The news reporters were laughing about the fact that Christian leaders at the site of the birth of the Prince of Peace cannot get along with each other. It happens that the fight was between the priests and monks from the Greek Orthodox and Armenian denominations. They administer the church built over the site where Jesus was born along with the Catholic Church. The building has great significance for the three groups who closely guard their own turf. Their shareholder agreement says that each group must approve any changes made to the holy site. Repairs to the leaky roof have been put off for years because they cannot agree on who should pay for the renovations. The brawl that occurred this year after Christmas was just over who should clear what area of the church. In 2007, seven priests were injured in an after Christmas cleaning fight. The Bethlehem police broke up the brawl and stated that no one was arrested because, “All those involved were men of God.”

The news reporters were laughing. But disunity and un-Christ-like behavior in the kingdom of our Lord is no laughing matter. We need to hear again the Biblical requirements for the church to give a healthy witness to the world of both internal unity and respect among Christian denominations. You remember that the disciples wanted to hush up someone who was not with them. In Mark 9:38-41 we read, “Teacher,” said John, “we saw a man driving out demons in your name and we told him to stop, because he was not one of us.” “Do not stop him,” Jesus said. “No one who does a miracle in my name can in the next moment say anything bad about me, for whosoever is not against us is for us.”

To set the scene for what I want to say to you about Cornerstone being a healthy church I have quoted from Max Lucado’s book, “In the Grip of Grace”, in which he compares the church to a ship.

“God has enlisted us in his navy and placed us on his ship. The boat has one purpose–to carry us safely to the other shore. This is no cruise ship; it’s a battleship. We aren’t called to a life of leisure; we are called to a life of service. Each of us has a different task. Some, concerned with those who are drowning, are snatching people from the water. Others are occupied with the enemy, so they man the cannons of prayer and worship. Still others devote themselves to the crew, feeding and training the crew members.”

“Though different, we are the same. Each can tell of a personal encounter with the captain, for each has received a personal call. He found us among the shanties of the seaport and invited us to follow Him. Our faith was born at the sight of His fondness, and so we went. “We each followed Him across the gangplank of His grace onto the same boat. There is one captain and one destination. Though the battle is fierce, the boat is safe, for our captain is God. The ship will not sink. For that, there is no concern.”

“There is concern, however, regarding the disharmony of the crew. When we first boarded we assumed the crew was made up of others like us. But as we’ve wandered these decks, we’ve encountered curious converts with curious appearances. Some wear uniforms we’ve never seen, sporting styles we’ve never witnessed. ‘Why do you look the way you do?’ we ask them. ‘Funny,’ they reply. ‘We were about to ask the same of you.’ ”

“The variety of dress is not nearly as disturbing as the plethora of opinions. There is a group, for example, who clusters every morning for serious study. They promote rigid discipline and somber expressions. ‘Serving the captain is serious business,’ they explain. It’s no coincidence that they tend to congregate around the stern.”

“There is another regiment deeply devoted to prayer. Not only do they believe in prayer, they believe in prayer by kneeling. For that reason you always know where to locate them; they are at the bow of the ship.”

“And then there are a few who staunchly believe real wine should be used in the Lord’s Supper. You’ll find them on the port side.”

“Still another group has positioned themselves near the engine. They spend hours examining the nuts and bolts of the boat. They’ve been known to go below deck and not come up for days. They are occasionally criticized by those who linger on the top deck, feeling the wind in their hair and the sun on their face. ‘It’s not what you learn,’ those topside argue. ‘It’s what you feel that matters.'”

“And, oh, how we tend to cluster.
Some think once you’re on the boat, you can’t get off. Others say you’d be foolish to go overboard, but the choice is yours.
Some believe you volunteer for service; others believe you were destined for the service before the ship was even built.
Some predict a storm of great tribulation will strike before we dock; others say it won’t hit until we are safely ashore.
There are those who speak to the captain in a personal language. There are those who think such languages are extinct.
There are those who think the officers should wear robes, there are those who think there should be no officers at all, and there are those who think we are all officers and should all wear robes.
And, oh, how we tend to cluster.
And then there is the issue of the weekly meeting at which the captain is thanked and his words are read. All agree on its importance, but few agree on its nature. Some want it loud, others quiet. Some want ritual, others spontaneity. Some want to celebrate so they can meditate; others meditate so they can celebrate. Some want a meeting for those who’ve gone overboard. Others want to reach those overboard but without going overboard and neglecting those on board.
And, oh, how we tend to cluster.”

The consequence is a rocky boat. There is trouble on deck. Fights have broken out. Sailors have refused to speak to each other. There have even been times when one group refused to acknowledge the presence of others on the ship. Most tragically, some adrift at sea have chosen not to board the boat because of the quarreling of the sailors.

“What do we do? We’d like to ask the captain. ‘How can there be harmony on the ship?'” (pp. 160-162)

The scripture passage that we have just read is the Apostle Paul’s guidance as to how to have a worthy witness to an unbelieving world.

In the first three chapters of Ephesians, Paul has discussed the theological foundation for our lives as Christians. We were chosen in Christ from before the foundation of the world, saved by his marvelous grace, and sealed with indwelling of his Holy Spirit. In the second half of his letter to the church at Ephesus, he discusses the practical living out of the foundational truths. This divine relationship with God calls for strict discipline in behavior. The believer must behave worthily of his or her calling in Christ to fellow believers in the church. There are seven requirements placed upon all of us. All of these lead to the unity of a healthy church.

The first is humility. Humility has been called the first, second, and third virtue of the Christian life. We are to be humble before our Lord and in respect of one another. We are to have the same respect in the local fellowship and amid the community of churches that preach Christ. There are some groups meeting today believing that they are the only ones who know the truth. This made-up story indicates the foolishness of pride that is the opposite of humility.

“I was walking across a bridge one day, and saw a man standing on the edge, about to jump off; so I ran over and said, “Stop! Don’t do it!”
“Why shouldn’t I?” he said.
I said, “Well, there’s so much to live for!”
“Like what?”
I said, “Well… are you religious or atheist?”
“Religious.”
I said, “Me too! Are you Christian or Buddhist?”
“Christian.”
I said, “Me too! Are you Catholic or Protestant?”
“Protestant.”
I said, “Me too! Are you Episcopalian or Baptist?”
“Baptist.”
I said, “Wow! Me too! Are you Baptist Church of God or Baptist Church of the Lord?”
“Baptist Church of God.”
I said, “Me too! Are you Original Baptist Church of God, or are you Reformed Baptist Church of God?”
“Reformed Baptist Church of God.”
I said, “Me too! Are you Reformed Baptist Church of God, Reformation of 1879, or Reformed Baptist Church of God, Reformation of 1915?”
“Reformed Baptist Church of God, Reformation of 1915!”
I said, “You are a heretic” and pushed him off.”

The second requirement for unity is gentleness. Being gentle with one another is vital to the unity of the body of Christ. Everyone needs a tender touch. Do you remember the bully on the playground when you were a child? Why did he act as a bully? He wanted power over you. He wanted his way in whatever the game was. There are church bullies also. There are times when a congregation has to deal with a church bully in a gentle and firm manner. The rights that each of us has in the body of Christ were secured by grace and must be displayed in grace. Gentleness is self-control (Proverbs 16:32) “He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, And he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city.” Gentleness deals lovingly with other’s sin (Galatians 6:1) “Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently.” Gentleness knows how to respond to the unbeliever (1 Peter 3:15) “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear.”

The third requirement for unity in the church is patience. We are to be longsuffering with one another. It is said of a person, “He or she is short-tempered.” All of us have our point of temper. Jesus had his. He wants no spineless followers. But as grace does its work in our hearts we understand that we must be long in our patience with fellow believers. We must not write them off quickly and withdraw fellowship from them. We must give them time for the personal storms to subside. Very often, the issue that manifested itself in the church was not the cause of the disturbance at all. It was something deep in the personal life of the individual. This is a time when they need their fellow believers who should be patient and demonstrate grace.

Forbearance is the working out of patience. We say, ‘Just bear with me for a while.” It is essential that we have forbearance with one another in the church. The church is a mixture of various kinds of personalities and backgrounds. Everyone has an opinion. It has been said that when you have two Baptists together there are three opinions. As a pastor, I have tried to respect each individual and let each person express their opinions. You see I could do this because I trust a vital spiritual principle – that the Holy Spirit does not lead in two directions at the same time. If we tried to tune 100 pianos to each other there would be a cacophony of unharmonious sound. But if we tuned 100 pianos to the same tuning fork they would be in harmony. We cannot in reality tune ourselves to each other. We must individually tune ourselves to Christ and then the Holy Spirit will lead us to a harmonious conclusion. This is where forbearance comes in. It takes a while for everyone to get tuned. Even then, some will sing off key.

The fifth essential for church unity is Love. When we know how deep the love of Christ is for us and for others we can bear with others because we truly love them. Visitors sometimes say to me, “I feel love in this place.” That is when a church is winsome to others. It is a spiritual atmosphere that the Holy Spirit creates when we love the Lord and each other. Visitors can also sense the opposite in churches. When there is tension in the congregation people do not want to be a part of it. Let’s endeavor to be a church where love is because love never fails.

The sixth essential for a healthy church is “making every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit.” Each member of the congregation is responsible to make “every effort.” This indicates that unity of Spirit is not something that we can create. The idea is that we are not to mess up what God has done in creating a unity in the Holy Spirit. Proverbs 6:16-19 tells us of seven things that God hates: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush to evil, a false witness who pours out lies, and a man who stirs up dissension among brothers.

The seventh essential for a healthy church is peace. Again, this all depends on our relationship to Christ. In 2:14,17,18, Paul says, “For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility…” “He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit.”

There is an old hymn that we sing that expresses what a healthy church is. Listen to the words:
“Blest be the tie that binds our hearts in Christian love; the fellowship of kindred minds is like to that above.
Before our Father’s throne we pour our ardent prayers; our fears, our hopes, our aims are one, our comforts and our cares.
We share our mutual woes, our mutual burdens bear; and often for each other flows the sympathizing tear.
When we asunder part, it gives us inward pain; but we shall still in heart and hope to meet again.”
Praise Be To His Name!