Ecumenism

“May God, who gives this patience and encouragement, help you live in complete harmony with each other, as is fitting for followers of Christ Jesus. Then all of you can join together with one voice, giving praise and glory to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Romans 15:5-6 NLT

Oh Paul! How could you be so naïve! To think that Christians could ever live “in complete harmony” or “join together with one voice”. But Paul was communicating what the Holy Spirit told him to write. If it was up to our natural abilities, there would be no chance at all of any form of unity between Christians, no matter how limited. But there is a chance that with God encouraging us, we might get there. After all, there will come a time when all Christians will be in total togetherness.

In terms of what unifies us believers, we have the Bible giving us guidance. So we could be forgiven for thinking that the issues clearly delineated in Scripture, such as Christ dying for our sins, must be something all Christians can agree on. This is a fundamental pillar of our faith. But then we get to other issues written in the Bible, such as what God has said about sexuality, and our unity very quickly falls apart. There is the liberal faction that chooses to impose modern societal thinking on Biblical doctrine, or cherry pick the bits that they want to believe in, discarding the rest. And then the traditionalists choose to believe 100% of everything that is written in the Bible, no matter if the truths there are inconvenient in the light of our “enlightened” age. Within some denominations this dichotomy can never be reconciled. And then, added to all this, there are areas in the Bible that seem open to interpretation, such as the Genesis story. Some believe in the literal 7-day creation event, whereas others suggest that a “day” might mean an “age”, of indeterminate time length. So faced with such a plethora of views and beliefs within the Christian faith, how can we be in complete harmony?

For me, the very inviolable essence of Christianity starts with the life and work of Jesus Christ. And that can only be found in the Bible, not in liturgies that have emerged over the past two thousand years or so. His status as the Son of God, His incarnation, sinless life, death and resurrection, and forgiveness of sins through Him, are all fundamental beliefs and any Christian who claims otherwise by emphasis or creed is walking a path away from the unity in the Spirit.

Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 1:10, “I appeal to you, dear brothers and sisters, by the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ, to live in harmony with each other. Let there be no divisions in the church. Rather, be of one mind, united in thought and purpose“. Ephesians 4:3-6, “Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace. For there is one body and one Spirit, just as you have been called to one glorious hope for the future. There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all, in all, and living through all“. And Colossians 3:17, “And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him“.

Romans 15:5-6 in the NKJV gives us a clue. “Now may the God of patience and comfort grant you to be like-minded toward one another, according to Christ Jesus, that you may with one mind and one mouth glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” (emphasis mine). The Christian movement of which I am a part publishes a Statement of Beliefs, towards which I am a passionate adherent. It is soundly Biblically based and completely sums up the pillars of our faith. There are other movements that believe the same. And so between us we are “like-minded” and living in harmony. We may worship in different churches but at any time we can come together in unity of faith and purpose. Can we be “like-minded” with those in denominations that believe differently? Possibly, but it depends. In my community there is a Christian family who believe that the works of the Holy Spirit died out with the first Apostles. But we both believe in God’s saving grace and all that He did through Jesus. We’re not in “complete harmony” but we can pray together and perhaps God working through His Spirit will square the circle one day.

Father God. Your church is being built and refined as a Bride for Your Son Jesus. It is exciting to be a part of it, and I pray for Your Spirit to lead and guide us in Your ways. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

“Then one of the seven angels who held the seven bowls containing the seven last plagues came and said to me, “Come with me! I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.”“
Revelation‬ ‭21:9‬ ‭NLT

If someone invited us to go and see a bride what would we expect to see? A beautiful young woman dressed in an expensive white dress? Hair beautiful coiffured? Makeup expertly applied? Nails perfect? An excited smile on her face? Yes, all of these things would apply. But if we were asked to describe the “wife of the Lamb”, what would we expect to see?

The Scriptures describe the Bride being readied for Christ. Ephesians 5:25-27 reads, “For husbands, this means love your wives, just as Christ loved the church. He gave up his life for her to make her holy and clean, washed by the cleansing of God’s word. He did this to present her to himself as a glorious church without a spot or wrinkle or any other blemish. Instead, she will be holy and without fault.” So we see that the Bride of Christ is the Church, made up of Christians, those who have become His followers through His saving sacrifice at Calvary.

But when we look at the Church of today, do we see a perfect representation of a Bride, in all her glory, in all her beauty? “Without a spot or wrinkle or any other blemish”. Sadly, there would appear to be much in the Church of today that falls far short of the “glorious church” that Paul wrote about. But there are two things worthy of thought.

In Matthew 25, Jesus told a parable about sheep and goats. The sheep represent those who were saved and redeemed through their relationship with Jesus, and they demonstrated their salvation through the way they treated those around them. On the other hand, the goats represent those who did not have a relationship with Jesus, but even though they may, or may not, have performed charitable and helpful acts to others, that was of no consequence to their status before the “Great White Throne” of judgement. So the sheep and goats template, when overlaid on today’s Church, might have some surprising results.

The other thing that church leaders fret about is church unity. Ecumenism is important when it is represented by different churches with the same fundamental beliefs in God and the infallibility of Scripture. Sadly, there are some denominations that claim a right to be part of the ecumenical movement, but who deny some of the “red-lines” laid down in Scripture. Thankfully, the washing “by the cleansing of God’s word” will make the Bride of Christ “holy and clean”.

In the end, what denomination we belong to is less important than the relationship we individually and corporately have with God. Jesus said in John 10:16, “I have other sheep, too, that are not in this sheepfold. I must bring them also. They will listen to my voice, and there will be one flock with one shepherd”. Perhaps He was leaving the door open for His ultimate Bride, the Church, to have many representations, enriching her personality. It won’t matter whether we are Anglicans, Baptists, Charismatics or any other denomination – the ground at the foot of the Cross is level with all repentant sinners eligible for salvation. Eligible to be part of the “wife of the Lamb”.

Dear Lord. We thank You for Calvary and Your sacrifice for our sins. Your praises are always on our lips. Amen.

One Voice

The Bride