Dakota Community Church
August 5, 2012
Simple Unity
I hope and pray that you are enjoying these combined services as much as I am.
The Sunday of the long weekends in Winnipeg summers can be a challenging experience for those in leadership and those without cottages or campers, this helps!
I can remember years ago there was an episode of Seinfeld where George was having fits because Elaine was getting to know his girlfriend Susan. Independent George and relationship George had to prevent their worlds from colliding and “blowing up”.
“It's just common sense. Anybody knows, ya gotta keep your worlds apart.”
- George Costanza
While this may be true for George - this is definitely not the case of PCC and DCC.
I am the unique position of being able to get to know many of the members of both of these congregations. When we look at each other with our corporate personalities we see two very different assemblies, but as we learn to know one another individually we find brothers and sisters with the common bond of faith in Christ that is more than enough to overcome any differences when we yield to the Spirit and humbly prefer one another above ourselves.
My prayer is that each of you would begin to cross the dividing lines and seek to form meaningful friendships that will take unity from a concept we embrace to a reality based on love and grace.
If you have a Bible please grab it and turn to Romans 14 (page 804 in the DCC pew Bible)
Romans 14:1-23
Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable matters. 2 One man’s faith allows him to eat everything, but another man, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. 3 The man who eats everything must not look down on him who does not, and the man who does not eat everything must not condemn the man who does, for God has accepted him. 4 Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.
5 One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. 6 He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord. He who eats meat, eats to the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who abstains, does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. 7 For none of us lives to himself alone and none of us dies to himself alone. 8 If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.
9 For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living. 10 You, then, why do you judge your brother? Or why do you look down on your brother? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat. 11 It is written:
“‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will confess to God.’”
12 So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God.
13 Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother’s way. 14 As one who is in the Lord Jesus, I am fully convinced that no food is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for him it is unclean. 15 If your brother is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy your brother for whom Christ died. 16 Do not allow what you consider good to be spoken of as evil. 17 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, 18 because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by men.
19 Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification. 20 Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a man to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. 21 It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother to fall.
22 So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the man who does not condemn himself by what he approves. 23 But the man who has doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin.
Three things to notice from the passage regarding unity
1. Unity “in this way” is pleasing to God.
Verses 17-18: For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, 18 because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by men.
1 Corinthians 1:10
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.
God is pleased by UNITY “in Christ” achieved by humble submission to the Holy Spirit.
God is not pleased by UNIFORMITY achieved by compromising the faith
Jude 1:3
Dear friends, although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share, I felt I had to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints.
If you are a parent, how great is it when your children come together in unity?
I am pleased when they come to me and reveal that they have been planning something special for their mother. I am pleased when I hear they are planning a trip or a weekend camping together. It’s good when there is unity in the family.
However, I would not be pleased if I discovered they had come together in complete unity to rob a bank so that they could all take the summer off work.
God is pleased and men approve when we humbly prefer one another and the Holy Spirit is manifesting righteousness peace and joy in our hearts and in our community!
2. Both sides are commanded to maintain a good attitude toward the other when disputes arise.
Verse 3: The man who eats everything must not look down on him who does not, and the man who does not eat everything must not condemn the man who does, for God has accepted him.
Verse 10: why do you judge your brother? Or why do you look down on your brother?
Verse 19: Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.
One of the side effects of the fall seems to be a keen awareness of what everyone else should do and an almost astonishing ability to be blind regarding what we ourselves should do.
If I am the vegetarian - I can’t believe how arrogant you carnivores are munching on your beef jerky and hotdogs at every church fellowship, looking down your noses at me and flaunting your so called “freedom”. How can you not see how wrong it is to eat anything with a face. You deserve the hell you will eventually wind up in and I hope God lets me pull the lever on the trap door! I am blind to the command not to condemn.
If I am the meat eater - Look at that poor weak fool keeping laws and eating carrot sticks as if God would save his eternal soul if enough cows are spared. Religious bondage thy name is veggie tray! Why don’t you join me for a Baconator and taste and see the the LORD is good!
I am blind to my judgmentalism and cannot see the command not to “look down” on my brother.
Unity not uniformity
Humility all around on every dispute, AND:
3. The Holy Spirit is at work in every believer producing the qualities that enable unity.
Verse 4: To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.
Verse 17: For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit
Philippians 1:4-6
I always pray with joy 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, 6 being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
1 Thessalonians 5:23-24
May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it.
If you find this message stepping on your toes, if you are on the argumentative side or the prideful side, or the self-righteous side; there is a solution for you!
Dig deep and try harder.
Visualize yourself as a humble person and rename yourself “I.B. Meeker”
No that’s silly!
The solution to conviction of sin in the Christian life is never greater effort!
The solution to conviction of sin in the Christian life is repentance and forgiveness and refocusing of our eyes on Jesus the author and perfecter of faith.
PowerPoint available (Free of charge) on request dcormie@mts.net
Follow Dan on twitter: @DanCormie
