Presented to Swift Current Corps of The Salvation Army, 23 March
2014 by Captain Michael Ramsay
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Weather from Environment Canada:
Revenue Canada:
Like Rick Mercer, today we are talking about divisions; so I have a little quiz for you:
- Who is the best football team?
- Who is the best hockey team?
- What is the best province in Canada?
- What is the second greatest province in Canada?
- Coke or Pepsi?
- Here’s a divisive one. Don’t answer this one: Conservative, NDP, Green, or Liberal?
My father often
sums up any difficulties he had with his sister growing up with their weekly
rivalry: Hockey Night in Canada or Lassie.
Divisions can
cause serious problems and there are some divisions showing up in the Christian
church at Corinth as Paul writes them this letter. Paul eases gently into this
topic with the small church. He begins by telling them how much he appreciates
them: he thanks God for the grace that has been given them through Jesus. He
tells them how he has noticed that Jesus has enriched them in knowledge and in
speech, in sharing the testimony of Christ, and in every spiritual gift such as
these. He further encourages them that Jesus will continue to strengthen them,
reminding them that God is faithful and that God will make all of them holy.
Paul says, in
essence, ‘I love you; God is doing these great things in you and God will
continue to do great things in and through you – so much so that you will
actually be completely blameless by the time Jesus comes back.’ He says, ‘you
folks are wonderful but there is one little problem that needs addressing.’[1]
Actually it isn’t a little problem; this is more of a big problem so Paul
invokes the name and title of Jesus Christ directly in his appeal to them. 1
Corinthians 1:10, “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.”
This congregation
is doing great but there are divisions in the church. The jar is still holding
together but cracks are starting to show and unless those cracks are repaired
soon the whole thing will burst, fragmenting the church, breaking it to pieces
through the divisions so that nothing they say or do will hold any water,
anymore. This is serious. And this is the actual language he is using. The
Greek word for divisions in this passage literally means ‘tears’ or ‘cracks’.[2]
Paul is warning if this continues the whole church will tear, crack and break
apart.
We know how
divisions can tear people apart. In the news these days is Ukraine. Ukraine has
been in a political association with Russia for 350 years or so now. Ukraine
has long been respected by Russia as the birthplace of the Russian people.
Khrushchev, a Ukrainian was one of the Soviet Union’s most famous leaders.
However, political intrigue, foreign meddling, and espionage in Ukraine have
now led to division that a generation ago no one could have possibly foretold.
And now some of the great economic and military powers of our world today: The
US, Russia, Europe are throwing around rhetoric at such a feverish pitch that
world has not heard in a long time. It is even being compared to the language
used by the great powers in the build up to the First World War. Lest we
forget. Lest we forget. Divisions can break nations apart. Divisions can tear
people apart.
It is easy to
divide people. Our political system is based on it. I don’t even have TV and I
have already seen the Conservative attack ads targeting Justin Trudeau. Our
politicians –like the earlier Rick Mercer clip showed- have become better and
better with every generation at dividing Canadians. I still remember the attack
ads against Ignateiff: ‘Michael Ignatieff: just visiting’, they said. The whole
point of this is to divide Canadians and it does. You see those ads and
automatically you are polarized. You either believe them, despising their
target or you are revolted by the ads and the people that made them: instantly
we are divided. Divisions can break nations apart. Divisions can tear people
apart.
That is bad enough
when it happens in politics; it is terrible when it happens to nations; it can
be disastrous when it happens in the churches. As one denomination turns on
another, people become angry, then people become apathetic and then people give
up on going to church entirely and then people give up on God entirely –
walking away from all the blessings of that eternal salvation that was bought
for us at such a great price. It is one thing to argue about football. It is
another to disagree about politics. It is unacceptable, Paul says, for there to
be infighting in the Church. Christ is not divided. Divisions can break
churches apart. Divisions can tear people apart.
In Bible study
this week we paraphrased 1 Corinthians 1:12-13 like this: “What I mean is that
each of you says, “I belong to The Salvation Army”, or “I belong to a Reformed
Church (Calvinist, Alliance, Presbyterian)”, or “I belong to the Catholic
Church.” Has Christ been divided? Was Martin Luther (John Wesley, John Knox,
John Calvin, Ulrich Zwingli, William Booth, Menno Simons, etc.) or even your
local pastor (Captain Michael Ramsay) crucified for you? Or were you baptised
into the name of your minister (Captain Susan Ramsay) or the person who ‘led
you to Christ’?
I think the sins
of denominationalism have in no small way contributed to the lower worshipper
turnout in the churches especially among the young and the marginalized. We
need to be united in our message of hope to the young and we need to be united
in our availability to the marginalized. We need to be united in our message. We
need to be united in our hope.
But there is more
than that. This passage isn’t actually explicitly addressing the sins
associated with denominationalism.[3]
There is only one Christian church that we know of in the city of Corinth at
this time and that church isn’t probably very big. This passage is speaking
about divisions in a church probably about the same size as ours. This passage
is talking about cliques and this passage is talking about quarrels among its
members (1 Corinthians 1:11).
There are many
things that we can fight about in the church. I have heard of churches that
have been divided over the colour of the choir robes or matters of equally
eternal importance. The main thing that Paul is addressing here is that some
people are claiming to follow one leader who has come through their local
church and maybe saw a few of them baptized. Some claim that they prefer the
message of another leader who has probably visited them. Still others claim
that they prefer yet another. The leaders aren’t in conflict with each other
but the people are.
We know that in
the early church there were many people who would travel around preaching and
teaching and sharing the gospel. Three really big names have either come to
speak to this church in Corinth at different times or else some of its members
have heard them speak somewhere else. I imagine then that when people in the
church were having disagreements they could then start to say, ‘Well, I heard
Cephas say something different than what you are telling me and we know that
Cephas is Peter and we know that Peter is the one whom Jesus said he would
build his whole church upon’ (Matthew 16:18); to this someone could reply,
‘well I heard the apostle Paul say something different and isn’t Paul the
apostle for the Gentiles like us’ (Acts 15:17); and some could say, ‘Well, I
knew Apollos personally and he even baptized me and my whole family so whatever
I say comes out of a real relationship with a leader.’
People are using
the names of the early church leaders in vain and this is making Paul quite
angry. Paul says, ‘we are not divided so why are you?’ Paul says, ‘Christ
didn’t give some truth for Peter to follow, some for Paul, and some for
Apollos’. He asks rhetorically, Verse 13, “Is Christ divided? Was [I], Paul crucified
for you? Were you baptized in [my name] the name of Paul?” No.
This is important.
Paul then goes on to speak about baptism. Paul says, Verses 14-17:
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.
We know what water
baptism was used for in the first century, right? It was a common initiation
rite (Cf. John 3:22; Acts 2:41, 8:36-38, 16:11-15; 1 Corinthians 15:28-30; see
also John 4:1-2, Acts 10:48, and Mark 3, Matthew 3). Like today people will
often make pledges or sign pieces of paper; in the eastern Mediterranean world
of the first century, people would be baptized. In the Bible we have examples
of them using baptism much the same way that evangelicals use the ‘Sinner’s Prayer’
today. You wouldn’t go through classes before you were baptized. Like with
Phillip and the Ethiopian eunuch: the moment he accepted Christ he was baptized
(Acts 8:26-40). Not only that but in 1 Corinthians here and elsewhere we have
examples of people when they come to faith baptizing their entire household –
their family, their staff, their live stalk – dedicating it all to the Lord (1
Corinthians 1:16; See also Acts 16:15,33 and 18:8). We even have examples of
people being baptized on behalf of those who have already died (1 Corinthians
15:29). We don’t know what this is all about but I presume it relates to
recognizing what the Lord has done through people who served God and passed on
before they ever heard the Good News of Jesus Christ’s Salvation for the world.
Baptism was used as a rite not unlike today’s ‘Sinners Prayer’ when people come
to faith.
Now this, you can
tell, would often create a bond between the persons who were baptized and the
person who baptized them. We often have a bond with the person who ‘leads us to
the Lord.’ I know I often think about and pray for those I prayed with as they
dedicated their lives to God.
In Corinth,
baptism may have been contributing somewhat to the divisions. The Bible says
that Jesus, Peter, Paul, and others baptized. They did not make it a part of
their regular practice though (Cf. John 3:22, 4:1-2, Acts 2:41, 8:36-38,
10:48), none of them. Paul says here that his main purpose is to share the
Gospel rather than to baptize. As others hear it, it is their job to baptize
others; it is our job to lead people to the Lord. The Great Commission that
Jesus gives us after his return from the dead is for us to baptize people in
the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost (Matthew 28:18-20) – Not to
rally around different leaders who may have baptized one or another of us
personally. Jesus doesn’t say to bring people to apostles or priests or pastors
to be baptized, he tells us to go forth and baptize everyone in His name
because there is only one Christ and there is only one baptism so it doesn’t
matter who of us does the baptizing.[4]
It doesn’t matter who of us leads people to Christ.
This is why Paul
is thankful that he had not baptized many of the members of this church
personally: he can honestly say that he hasn’t done something to contribute to
their divisions. This is a good reason why Jesus and Peter may have had others
baptizing those in the flock: so that people aren’t divided, so that the church
is not divided. After all, there really is only one baptism for the Christian
and that baptism – no matter who performs the rite – is into the Lord
(Ephesians 4:5).
Baptism is good
but the enemy used baptism to divide the Corinthians. Baptism contributed to
their divisions; what contributes to ours?
What divisions are in our corps? What cracks and tears are threatening
to break our congregation? Do some of us disagree about what preachers we have
heard on the radio or TV? Do some of us argue about adiaphora, matters of
spiritual indifference? Do some of us divide over making dinners or visiting
others? Do some of us divide over who is leading a ministry or a night out? Do
some of us divide over things like politics or sports or music or other such
temporal divisions?
Today I invite us
to ask ourselves, is there anything that divides us form our Saviour? Is there
anything stopping me from worshipping alongside my neighbour? Is there anything
stopping me from serving alongside my neighbour? Is there anything that the
enemy can use to cause strife and division within our my own heart and soul, if
so we need to hand it to the Lord so that indeed we can have the powerful
unified ministry that Christ desires for us.
Let us pray.
---
[1] Cf. Richard B. Hays, 1 Corinthians. Louisville, Kentucky:
John Knox Press Press, 1985 (Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching
and Perching), 20-21
[2] Cf. W. Harold Mare, The Expositor's Bible Commentary, Pradis
CD-ROM:1 Corinthians/Exposition of 1 Corinthians/III. The Problem of Divisions
in the Church (1:10-17), Book Version: 4.0.2
[3] Cf. Leon Morris, 1 Corinthians: An Introduction and Commentary.
Downers Grove, IL : InterVarsity Press, 1985 (Tyndale New Testament
Commentaries 7), S. 45
[4] Cf. J. Paul Sampley, The First Letter to the Corinthians.
Nashville, Tenn.: Abingdon Press, 2002 (NIB X), 807.
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