For first of all, when ye come together in the church, I hear that there be divisions among you; and I partly believe it.
— 1 Corinthians 11:18
That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another.
— 1 Corinthians 12:25
Therefore said some of the Pharisees, This man is not of God, because he keepeth not the sabbath day. Others said, How can a man that is a sinner do such miracles? And there was a division among them.
— John 9:16
Woe be unto the pastors that destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture! saith the LORD.
— Jeremiah 23:1
So there was a division among the people because of him.
— John 7:43
Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them.
— Romans 16:17
The Excellence of Unity, by Jeremiah Burroughs.
What now remains but that we may join in love and peace one with another? Surely nothing can stop us but our extreme, corrupt, perverse hearts.
The apostle Paul is deeply earnest in his desires in his exhortation for this peace: “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” (1Co 1:10). The word translated “perfectly joined” signifies such a joining as when a bone is out of joint and is perfectly set right again.
So, Philippians 2:1-3 reads: “If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies, Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. Let nothing be done through strife.” The apostle poured forth his soul in this exhortation; it is a heartbreaking exhortation.
I find also in a letter that Martin Bucer wrote to a godly minister a very lofty expression of that high esteem he had of and earnest desires after the curing of divisions. “Who would not,” said he, “purchase with his life the removing of that infinite scandal that comes by dissension?” Oh, that there were such hearts in us! Christ expects it from us all, but especially from His ministers, for they are His ambassadors for peace, to beseech men in His stead to be reconciled to God. Reconciliation with God will reconcile us one to another. “If God so loved us, we ought also to love one another” (1Jo 4:11).
The faces of the cherubim in the temple looked towards another, which some think signified the agreement that should exist among ministers of the gospel. So, the six branches in the candlestick joined all in one. Those who hold the light of truth before others should be united in peace as one among themselves. The first thing Christ’s ministers were to do when they came to any place was to say, Peace be to that place. If any sons of peace were there, they were to abide; otherwise not.
Surely then, it is expected that they themselves should be sons of peace. The contentions of private Christians are offensive, but the contentions of ministers are a scandal for all to witness. Yet in all ages of the church, the corrupt clergy have been the greatest cause of divisions. They have been of the cruelest spirits against any who differed from them. But let not such a spirit be in us. We have enough to do to contend with the wicked of the world, with the malice of Satan; let us not contend one with another.
Luther, writing to the ministers of Nuremberg, envisioned Christ saying to them, “You are likely to suffer evil enough for My name; you need not be afflictions one to another.” It was barbarousness in the priests of Baal to cut and slash themselves, but it is worse for the ministers of Jesus Christ to cut and slash one another…
Who will believe that you bring the oracles of God with you when they see by your froward, contentious carriage that you never entered in at these doors? People cannot but think it a miserable thing to have a scratching, tearing bramble to be over them. Oh, that God would set the beauty and glory of peace, friendship, and love before us! That this precious pearl, union, might be highly valued by us! All men are taken in some degree or other with the excellency and sweetness of love and friendship…
Evagrius, in his Ecclesiastical History, recorded an epistle of Cyril of Alexandria, written to John of Antioch in response to a pacificatory epistle from John to him. His spirit was so taken with it that he broke forth thus: “Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; the wall of resentment is battered down, the boiling anger that bereaved the minds of quietness is purged from among us, and all the occasion of discord and dissension is banished away, for our Savior Jesus Christ has granted peace unto the churches under heaven”…
Harmonious, peaceable, uniting dispositions have much of God in them. If not from sanctifying grace, yet it is from a common work of the Spirit of God. There is a nobleness in such a heart…Gentleness, mercy, goodness, love, and tenderness toward others’ sufferings are the greatest ornaments to a noble spirit. If this be sanctified, the glory of God shines bright indeed in such a heart. For God glories in being the God of peace and love. “The very God of peace” (1Th 5:23). “The Lord of peace himself” (2Th 3:16). Jesus Christ is the Prince of Peace. The Holy Ghost is like a dove that has no gall. The gospel is the gospel of peace. The kingdom of God is peace as well as righteousness. The legacy that Christ left is a legacy of peace. The apostolic benediction is grace, mercy, and peace. The glory of the church is in this: that it is a city covenanted in unity within itself. Yes, this will be the glory of that glorious church that God is raising, a new Jerusalem. There shall be no more crying there (Rev 21:4).
“The Lord shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one Lord, and his name one” (Zec 14:9). There is but one Lord now, but He is called by different names; but in that day, His name shall be but one. “Then will I turn to the people a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the Lord, to serve him with one consent” (Zep 3:9). The Hebrew word translated “with one consent” is “with one shoulder.” Now we shoulder one another, but then all shall serve the Lord with one shoulder. This love and peace are compared to the most delightful and the most profitable things. “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron’s beard: that went down to the skirts of his garments; As the dew of Hermon, and as the dew that descended upon the mountains of Zion” (Psa 133:1-3).
There are many promises made to this effect. One is Matthew 5:9: “Blessed are the peacemakers.” Another is 2 Corinthians 13:11: “Be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you.” In John 15:12, Christ says this is His commandment, “That ye love one another.” In verse 14, He says, “Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.” By loving others, we not only get them to be our friends, but Christ too.
I think I see Christ here pleading for love, as one who had to deal with two men who were at some variance, persuading them to peace and love: “Come, you shall pass by all former things. You shall be made friends. By this you shall gain Me also to be a friend to you as long as I live”…
Brotherly love has a blessing going along with it. God loves it exceedingly, for it does much for the glory of God. And to what purpose do we live if God does not have glory by us? In Romans 15:5-7, the apostle first prayed that the God of patience and consolation would grant them to be like-minded one towards another, according to Christ Jesus, that they may with one mind and one mouth glorify God. Then he exhorted, “Wherefore receive ye one another, as Christ also received us to the glory of God.” Much of God’s glory depends upon our union. Yea, God stands so much upon this that He is willing to wait for His worship until we are at peace one with another. “Leave there thy gift before the altar…first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift” (Mat 5:23-24). It is as if He should say, “My worship can wait until you be reconciled. I love My worship, and desire it much, but I must have peace and love among yourselves first. I will wait for that.”
But I beseech you, let us not make God wait too long. Remember, while you are wrangling and quarreling, God waits on you all this while. If children should be quarreling, and one comes to them and says, “Your father waits for you,” it is time for them to break off. Be not unmannerly with God in making Him wait so long for you. Some of you have made Him wait upon you for an acceptable duty of worship many weeks, yes, it may be, many months; and yet your spirits are not in temper to offer any sacrifice to God. What a fearful evil is it then to stand out in a stubborn, sullen, dogged manner, refusing to be reconciled!
Last, the saints’ enjoyment of the sweetness of love, peace, and unity among themselves—what is it but heaven upon earth? Heaven is above all storms, tempests, and troubles. Its happiness is perfect rest. We pray that the will of God might be done on earth as it is done in heaven. Why may we not have a heaven upon earth? This would sweeten all our comforts, yes, all our afflictions. But the devil envies us this happiness. Come Lord Jesus, come quickly!…
And now I say, as the apostle did in 2 Thessalonians 3:5: “The Lord direct your hearts into the love of God.” Let me add, “and into the love of one another.” Let us all study peace, seek peace, follow peace, pursue peace, and the God of peace be with us.
Let us bear much, concede much, and put up with much before we plunge into secessions and separations. —J. C. Ryle
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