Message Three—Knowing the Sects
1 Cor. 1:10-13a Now I beseech you, brothers, through the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be attuned in the same mind and in the same opinion. …that each of you says, I am of Paul, and I of Apollos, and I of Cephas, and I of Christ. Is Christ divided?
Apostle Paul Denying All Divisions
In those days, in the church in Corinth, there were factions. One party said that they were of Paul, and another said that they were of Apollos. Another party said that they were of Cephas (Peter), and still another party, who considered themselves superior to all the previous parties, said that they were of Christ. Therefore, they were severely rebuked by the Apostle Paul, who had led them to salvation and who had established them as the church. Paul called them to account, asking them whether Christ had been divided. Obviously Christ has not been and cannot be divided. However, those who had believed and had been baptized into Christ were divided one from another. This offended Christ, dividing His Body, separating the unique church, which He redeemed by shedding His blood, into many different sects.
Furthermore, the Apostle Paul asked the divided Corinthian believers, “Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized into the name of Paul?” Of course not! Paul did not die to accomplish redemption for them; neither were they baptized into the name of Paul. It was Christ who died to accomplish redemption for them, and it was Christ into whom they had been baptized. Yet why did they say they were of Paul? This is just like some today who are redeemed by Christ and are baptized into Christ, who say that they are of Luther (the Lutheran sect), or of Wesley (the Wesleyan sect), or of the Baptist church (the Baptist sect), or of the Presbyterian church (the Presbyterian sect). Here Paul’s rebuking and denouncing of the divisive Christians strongly condemn and deny all divisions, sects, and denominations in Christianity today.
The Body of Christ Being Unique
Since Christ is not divided, neither should Christians who belong to Christ be divided into sects. Even the more, since the Body of Christ is unique, Christians who are members of this unique Body should not divide it into many different sects. We should only want the unique Body of Christ, not the many man-made sects. In this Body of Christ, there is only one Spirit; also, His Body has only one Lord, that is, one Head. Furthermore, all the members of His Body are regenerated by one God and Father, and they are indwelt by Him. The Triune God has been mingled with all the believers as one, and the essence of His divine oneness in the believers has further constituted them into an indivisible Body. The Spirit is the one life which they all possess. How can a body have two or more lives? The Lord is the one Head to whom they belong. How can a body have two or more heads? God is the one Father who begat them. How can the children of God have two or more Fathers? It is strange and unreasonable for a single body to have more than one life, or for a body to have more than one head, or for a family of children to have more than one father! Yet these unreasonable and strange things are actually being established, supported, respected, and promoted by a majority of Christians! None of the lovers of the Lord or those who know the Lord’s heart and the truth of the Bible should do this. Rather, they should imitate the Apostle Paul to condemn and deny these things which offend Christ, sadden God, and grieve the Holy Spirit.
“A factious man after a first and second admonition refuse” (Titus 3:10). In confronting factions among the Christians, the Apostle Paul gave his younger co-worker a frank and bold charge, which is also a charge to us, to refuse a factious person after sufficient admonition in love. This is to reject factions without lenience or compromise according to God’s heart’s desire and the truth of the Bible that the Body of Christ may not suffer damage and that the truth of God may not be adulterated.
The Factors Constituting Sects
The following three key elements are the factors which cause the Christians (not counting the nominal ones) to be divided, to be constituted as sects.
Special Creeds
The common faith of true Christians is unique. It includes the Triune God, the person and work of Christ, that is, the being of Christ and the doings of Christ, and the divine authority of the Bible. Besides these truths of our fundamental faith, to consider other matters to be the Christian faith (such as the method of baptism of the Baptist denomination, the system of church administration of the Presbyterian denomination, the tongue-speaking of the Pentecostal denomination, the head covering and foot washing of other groups, or general doctrines such as the time and number of raptures, the interpretation of prophecies, and the understanding of certain parts of the Scriptures) and to make them special creeds is to label something new in order to be different and will result in sects.
Special Fellowships
With the existence of special creeds, Christians will be divided into different groups, having special fellowships in their different circles outside of the believers’ common fellowship. Such special fellowships cause those believers who practice them to be constituted as sects separate from the believers in general.
Special Names
Special creeds not only lead to special fellowships, but they also produce special names, such as the name of a certain denomination or a certain church. These special names, in a more tangible way, cause those who so label themselves to be constituted into named sects, resulting in denominations. A denomination is a named sect. Therefore, those who know the Body of Christ must never bear such special names. The believers should only possess the unique and honorable name of Jesus Christ, and not exalt any other name besides this preeminent name. It should not be a glorious thing for one to say that he is a believer of a certain denomination.
Endeavoring to Keep the Oneness of the Body of Christ
The Spirit, that is, the Holy Spirit who lives in us, causes us to be constituted into the Body of Christ with God’s life. Since there is one Body, there is also one Holy Spirit who lives in the Body. This one Holy Spirit is the oneness in the one Body. If we believers would live in this Spirit and walk according to this Spirit, the oneness of the Body of Christ would be kept. Otherwise, that oneness would be broken. In the status of one imprisoned because of the church, the Apostle Paul beseeched us in Ephesians 4:2-3 to keep this oneness with such virtues as lowliness, meekness, longsuffering, bearing in love, and the uniting bond of peace, that our walk may be worthy of our calling. God’s calling is that we would be members of the Body of Christ. If our walk damages and hurts the oneness of the Body of Christ, it is not worthy of God’s calling. Therefore, we must endeavor to live in the Body of Christ to keep the oneness of the Body, not participating in any divisions, sects, or denominations. (Life Lessons, vol. 2, lsn. 13)
