UNITY IS NOT AN OPTIONAL EXTRA

What did Jesus pray? That we would be one as he and the father is one.

Are we one as Jesus and the father is one?

Of course the answer is no as we have 35,000 denominations worldwide. This tells us that we are anything but one. This tells us that we are building our own kingdom, not God’s, because God's kingdom is built when we are…one.

Jesus said that he would build his church. He did not say that he would build his churches. Therefore, the fact that there are 35,000 different denominations in the world is as good an indication that the visible church is not the church that Jesus was talking about.

How can it be when he said he would build one church…his church?

Of course I have heard it over and over again that our denomination is his church because we have the right doctrine. I can’t see anywhere where Jesus said anything about right doctrine being the criteria for building his church. When he said he would build his church, doctrine hadn’t been invented.

In fact, the New Testament Church didn’t have doctrine, it had experience. The experience of a risen saviour who had all power given to him by the father who would change the world through the power of the Holy Spirit which had come to dwell in them and anoint them for ministry.

Most denominations seen to nut out what their doctrine is, decide on a form of religion and then settle down into a boring routine to maintain the status quo. The status quo then strangles the life out of the church and makes it nigh impossible to hear from God.

The end result which is plain for all to see is that we divide up into our tribal spiritual enclaves, never to speak to one another unless you are like me and mouth the same doctrine.

What a sad apology we are of what we should be.

People are so wedded to the way they do things that they find it almost impossible to acknowledge that those of us who meet together in another building are brothers and sisters.

They find it almost impossible even for one week to leave their building and meet with the church in the other building.

They find it almost impossible to meet together as an expression of the body of Christ and pray for Satan’s stranglehold on their town to be broken.

They would rather limp along in their ineffectiveness, keeping a few people happy doing the same old thing week after week and demonstrating that Jesus Christ is not lord, tradition is.