Bible Reading: Genesis 47; Job 13; Luke 1:1-38; 1 Corinthians 1
1 Corinthians 1:10 Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.
What does God want for his church? Here in this verse we see into the heart of God regarding the apostle's plea to a divided church. Paul is begging the church by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. The whole purpose of the letter of 1 Corinthians is to bring the church to oneness in Christ. The church is the bride of Christ and the household of God.
2 Corinthians 11:2 For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.
1 Timothy 3:15 But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.
As such it is imperative that the church be one. Here the apostle says the church must all speak the same thing. He wants their message to be the same no matter who you speak to. When you meet one member of the church you will not hear something different than if you meet another member. God wants us to be speaking the message of Christ with clarity and soundness. Paul is concerned that the doctrine of the church is the same. It only makes sense if we worship the same Lord and believe the same book we will speak the same!
There are to be no divisions among the church. Paul desires for the church to march in lock-step together. As a house that is perfectly joined together with each part interlocking with the others. It is interesting here that the Greek word translated 'speak' is the word lego. Have you ever played with Legos? The pieces interlock together to form a whole. That is the way that we should join together in the church.
This means we have the same mind and the same judgment. How can that be? Because we are all led by the mind of Christ! If we read his Word and feed upon it daily, we will come to think God's thoughts after him. This will bring a oneness to the body. However, if every one of us is going his own way, that will lead to divisions. Keep your eyes on Jesus. He is the leader. Keep the Word of God in your heart and let it affect every decision and every judgment. If we all do this, we will speak the same thing.
In Christ,
Rody
