Title: One in Christ
Contents
one in Christ
Text: Philippians 2:1-5
This is the dream story of John Wesley, the founder of Methodism. When Wesley went up to heaven one day, an angel was guarding the gates of heaven. He asked the angel. “How many Methodists are there among those who have entered heaven?”
The angel looked at the list of those who entered heaven for a long time and said, "I'm sorry, Wesley, but there are no Methodists." Wesley's heart was heavy when he heard that.
“Then how many Presbyterians have come to heaven?” The angel looked through the list again and replied, "There are no Presbyterians."
Wesley was very disappointed. He asked the angel out loud. “Then who the hell is going to heaven?” The angel smiled and said.
"The people who have come to heaven are Christians who believe in Jesus. There are no Presbyterian, Methodist, Baptist, or Holiness Church here."
That's right. Heaven is a place to go only by faith in Jesus Christ, not by 'Methodism, Presbyterianism, Holiness Church, Baptism, 'like denomination' or 'doctrine'.
The object of our faith is only in Christ. As God and Jesus are one, we must become one in Christ.
“Father, as you are in me and I in you, so they may all be one in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. so that they too may become one” (John 17:21, 22).
Shortly after World War II, a Christian university held a retreat in a mountain in California. Among those present at the conference were pilots who served in the Luftwaffe during Hitler's time, pilots who fought for Japan, and former pilots of the United States Air Force who participated in bombing Germany. These three pilots had never been saved and had never met each other. At the last hour of the retreat, everyone gathered around the campfire. The presenter invited the people to accept the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior, and asked them to pick up a stick and throw it into the fire as a sign of their willingness to offer their lives as a burnt offering for the Lord.
Shortly thereafter, the German pilot threw first, followed by the Japanese and American pilots. With tears in their eyes, the enemies of the past embraced each other in their arms and sang the hymn "Brothers who believe in the Lord, the friendship of love" with the voices of the other saints. They were experiencing the fellowship of love we enjoy as saints.
“Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace, for there is one body and one Spirit, in the same way you were called in one hope of your calling” (Ephesians 4:3, 4).
As the head of China's YMCA, Ku, who escaped on foot from 800 miles of Japanese-occupied territory to serve as an advisor to the Chinese representatives at the UN General Assembly in San Francisco in 1945, later wrote:
"There are clearly differences in race, color, language, and customs in this world. It is also true that conflicts and conflicts arise because of differences in viewpoints that do not appear on the surface in all parts of the world. But in Christ, all things are united as one. can do."
“There is one loaf, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf” (1 Corinthians 10:17)
During World War II, thousands of Christians were imprisoned in the prisons and concentration camps established by the Hitler regime and suffered. The same was true of a German named Martin Niom ller. He was imprisoned in solitary confinement. Then, on Christmas Day, he was transferred to a cell with three other Christian prisoners.
One of them was from the Salvation Army, one was from a Pentecostal denomination, and one was a Methodist. Niom ller himself was a member of the German Free Evangelical Church. They found a piece of a door that had been bombed and burned and used it as a dining table. They celebrated the Lord's Last Supper with their daily rations of black bread and water. Niom ller later recalled after being released from prison:
"Our theological differences melted away when we knelt together on that cold stone floor."
Narrowing your horizons reveals different theological characteristics, even for Christians. However, if you look at the whole from a distance, the commonalities are more prominent than the differences (Colossians 3:15), because only the figure of Christ Jesus is visible. The object of our faith is only in Christ. In Christ we are one.
The body is one. The Holy Spirit is one. Hope is one. Led is one. Faith is one. Baptism is one. God is also one. Let's do our best to keep what the Lord has made us one.
* Proverb: God's sovereign grace can turn guests into sons. (Charles Spurgeon)
* Hymn: (chapters 475, 272) Humanity Becoming One
Humanity is one family
We work cooperatively
Brothers and Sisters Brothers and Sisters