The Call

Everything on The Consider Podcast and website has to do with the call for all men and women to repent. Such is an offer of mercy for those willing to follow Jesus by hating their life and picking up their cross. After all, even the demons believe in God, but they are terrified. You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that–and shudder. James 2:19

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God’s Voice and Unity

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Text God’s Voice and Unity

My brothers, some from Chloe’s household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. What I mean is this: One of you says, “I follow Paul”; another, “I follow Apollos”; another, “I follow Cephas “; still another, “I follow Christ.” Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized into the name of Paul? (1 Corinthians 1:11–13)

People who make excuses about coming to church or who refuse to obey Scripture often exclaim, “But there are so many churches with other ideas.” Indeed, there are many different churches, denominations and opinions about God. However, Paul still asks, “Is Christ divided?”

The Christian community has not only become accustomed to but now considers division as a good thing. Dare we say, it seems to the church today that to hold various opinions is a holy thing. For example, most would consider you a foolish reader if you said, “I agree with everything in this book.” You might be accused of being a brainwashed zombie who can’t think for yourself. This attitude underscores why the first church was considered a cult. For, not only were they one in heart, but also in mind.

All the believers were one in heart and mind. (Acts 4:32a)

Such unity occurred because they could hear the Holy Spirit teach them the true meaning of God’s Word. Think of children in first grade. Everyone must agree that one plus one equals two. No good teacher would allow each person in the class to decide for themselves what one plus one equals. Each pupil must accept the fact that one plus one equals two or they will fail. If we are disciples of Jesus, taught by the Holy Spirit, then unity will not occur on just a few basic things but even on the deep things of God. This is why Paul could make the following appeal.

I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought. (1 Corinthians 1:10)

Not only did he call for unity in mind, but also in thought. In other words, united in the way their minds came to a conclusion. Think of it. Not just united in mind agreeing with doc- trines, but in thought, the manner in which someone concludes an issue in their mind.

This is the power of the cross and why David sings in the Psalms that where you find the true unity of God, there you find life forevermore.1 Unity in the first church was nothing like what we call unity today. The word unity today has the most generic meaning and implies some airy type of agreement. It certainly does not represent and show the world the steadfast rock, Jesus Christ. And most certainly the world does not see one heart beating in unity with all the hearts in the church. How unlike the first church we are that had one heart and one mind.

We fail at this because we have rejected the cross that crucifies our hearts and thoughts. For all our talk of the cross, we have rejected its power, proven by the bad fruit of division we see today. It is rare, if not impossible, to find two brothers in the Lord perfectly united in heart and mind in Christ, let alone a whole church!

Unity in Jesus Christ is achieved only by hearing the voice of God. As we have seen, it takes time to mature into men and women who can understand deeply the things of God.

For this reason, Paul taught that if we differ on something in Jesus Christ, God, repeat God, will make it clear and settle the difference.

All of us who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you. (Philippians 3:15)

Only those mature in the way of the cross have ears that can hear unto perfect unity. Until you mature in the cross, don’t claim the above promise. How sad that, with all the effort, debate, resolutions, and creeds bantered about by today’s church, we miss the power right before us to come into perfect unity. If we would lay aside all of those things and let the cross crucify our minds and hearts, God would give us the heart and mind of Christ. And Christ is not divided, therefore, perfect unity would follow.

Let me give the reader an example. Let us say that a brother and I differ on when the Rapture will take place. Whether it is pre-, mid-, or post tribulation. If we both go into the prayer closet, mature in the power of the cross, and surrender all our thoughts on the issue, God will give us the thoughts of Jesus. Indeed, we would both come out of the prayer closet understanding what Scripture has to say about the end times. Without this unity, we leave the church unprepared and deluded about Christ’s return.

We will read the Bible just like we read any other novel or book unless we do one other thing. We must go to Jesus, to the Holy Spirit and let God give life to the Scriptures we read. The Pharisees, and most Christians today, make the same mistake of reading the Bible and thinking that because their doctrine is correct to them, they possess eternal life. But we obtain sound doctrine and unity only by listening to the voice of the Holy Spirit.

You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them, you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life. (John 5:39–40)

I know many who “diligently study the Scriptures” yet hold no unity, no mind of Christ. They will object to my call for unity by saying, “Then we all have to agree with you,” and leave in a huff.

Only God knows what His Word means and what He desires to say through it. All men must give up their voices about the meaning of Scripture and let the Holy Spirit explain its words. Indeed, more than that, we must come to Jesus so that He can show us how the Scriptures apply to our lives. God makes Scripture alive and our voices only make them dead, lifeless ink on paper. As Paul wrote to the Corinthians, your eyes cannot possibly begin to understand what God has in mind. Nor can your ears understand what is spoken in a sermon and how it applies to your life if the Holy Spirit doesn’t speak directly to you. As the verse below shows us, no one “knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.” No one! It doesn’t matter if a man has gone to Bible college or passed through your church’s discipleship program; only God knows His thoughts. And God only speaks His thoughts to those who have ears to hear. It doesn’t matter at all if you have brought thousands to the Lord or your church has grown in numbers; you do not have the thoughts of God on the matter of your church growth unless you have heard His voice by way of the cross.

However, as it is written: “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him”—but God has revealed it to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man’s spirit within him? In the same way, no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them because they are spiritually discerned. (1 Corinthians 2:9–14)

When Paul preached, he did not do so by the power of man or by applying “human wisdom” to Scripture. Paul had been “taught by the Spirit” and so expressed “spiritual truths in spiritual words.” Most preaching and counsel today is nothing but men stealing words taught by other men.2 The spirit of the world says a man must go to a university and read books to gain an education; to take the mind God has given him and to apply it to a school of learning. How many approach Bible study from the spirit of the world? How many Bible colleges teach with the same spirit of the world where the reliance is not on the Holy Spirit and the cross, but what they think the Greek and Hebrew mean? This only underscores the foolishness of man. To be impressed that someone can tell you the Greek or Hebrew meanings shows you know nothing about the power of the Holy Spirit. After all, what is the definition of the Greek and Hebrew, but just another interpretation into a language, and every Bible translation claims to reflect the original language. After all, what did the Greeks do? They couldn’t turn to their Bible teacher and ask, “What does the Greek say?” Listening to the voice of the Holy Spirit may seem like foolishness to many, but this only shows how true God is to His Word. Without hearing the voice of the Holy Spirit, no man will accept the Bible’s true meaning.

The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them because they are spiritually discerned. (1 Corinthians 2:14)

When Paul and Peter had a disagreement, it was the cross that solved the problem. Peter didn’t become all defensive and say to Paul, “Hey, I have been in the Lord longer than you. I walked with Jesus, you only saw him on the road to Damascus.” Pride had been crucified in Peter enough that he repented immediately and unity was restored.3 And when Paul had a disagreement with Barnabas, the cross revealed to all which man had the grace of God on their side. The unity of the Spirit was maintained until Barnabas learned his lessons.

They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company. Barnabas took Mark and sailed for Cyprus, but Paul chose Silas and left, commended by the brothers to the grace of the Lord. (Acts 15:39–40)

If you think this perfect unity is not possible, you will never receive ears that can hear. After all, why should God talk to the doubtful and the unbelieving? If we cannot pray as Paul did for a spirit of unity as we follow Jesus, then we might as well become Buddhists.

May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus. (Romans 15:5)

This kind of unity that comes from the love of heaven into a church is difficult to obtain. No doubt about it, our flesh does not want to give up its thoughts and ways. We each want to be something in the church. We want to think we are correct on certain points and are unwilling to give up the way we come to our conclusions. But if we, as Ephesians tells us, “make every effort” to listen to the Holy Spirit, we will be given “unity” by the Holy Spirit.

Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to one hope when you were called—one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. (Ephesians 4:3–6)

Every effort to surrender our lives, pick up a cross, and allow the Holy Spirit to rob us of our thoughts will produce a unity where everyone with a full heart declares “one Lord, one faith, one baptism.” Anything less than this slaps Christ in the face. Anything else called unity besides this is a lie. And all who allow the Lord to give them ears to hear will discover the joy of God granting life forevermore upon brothers who live in unity.

Chapter 11: God’s voice and unity

• What is missing in most Bible Study today? What has been missing in your own study of the Scriptures?
• How can we be united in heart and mind?
• What things in your life keep you from having the mind of Christ?

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Ears to Hear: Chapter 12 | [Continue to Next Chapter →]

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The Consider Podcast
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Former Salt Shaker Bookstore

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The Salt Shaker Christian bookstore, because of persecution by Washington State Authorities, was destroyed and ran out of the town of Enumclaw. Just part of the proof that Sound Doctrine Church was walking the narrow road with Jesus.

For you, brothers became imitators of God’s churches in Judea, which are in Christ Jesus: You suffered from your own countrymen the same things those churches suffered from the Jews, who killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets and also drove us out. They displease God and are hostile to all men. 1 Thessalonians 2:14-15

It was a beautiful store. A result of the hard work of Sound Doctrine Church. In the store was a free rack because, as Jesus said, “Freely you received, freely give.” The following track is a small reproduction of the love that burned in our hearts to give freely.

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