Spiritual Oneness. 2
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Let it be carefully noted Christ did not say "that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe in Me," but "that the world may believe that You have sent Me." And when will "the world," (that is, that "world" for which He prays not in verse 9) believe that Christ is the One sent by the Father? when will the ungodly be convicted of the verity of His claims? The only possible answer is—In the last great day, when before an assembled universe Christ shall present His people "faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy" (Jude 24). Then will the enemies of the Lord have such outward proof of the union and communion existing between Himself and the Church as no longer to disbelieve the truth of it—only they will not believe and be saved—but instead believe and be damned.
That union and unity between His people for which the great High Priest prayed was not a visible one—but an invisible one; not a material one—but aspiritual one. It is a union in grace now—and a union in glory hereafter. It was not the unity of churches—but the unity of the Church for which our Lord supplicated the Father. Nor has His prayer remained unanswered all these nineteen centuries. No, indeed. All His blood-bought people arewelded together in a way and to a degree which no other company is or can be; as it is written "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female—for you are all one in Christ Jesus" (Gal. 3:28)—note not "shall be," but "are all one in Christ Jesus."
Nor is the union of the redeemed only a mystical one during this present era—even now there is a oneness among all the truly regenerate, on everything that is vital and fundamental. All real Christians believe firmly in the Divine inspiration and authority of Scriptures, in the unity and trinity of the Godhead, in the Deity and sinless humanity of Christ, in the sufficiency of His atoning sacrifice as the sole ground of their acceptance with God, in His exaltation to the right hand of the Majesty on high, the prevalency of His intercession, of His returning in glory and final judgment of the wicked. Yes, on "the foundations" of the faith, all God's people take their firm stand, and for this He should be fervently praised. Instead of dwelling so much upon minor things—concerning which God's children, most probably, never will all see eye to eye down here—we should be occupied with themajor things which we all enjoy in common.
What so many have clamored for, is neither union nor unity—but uniformity— absolute likeness in belief and practice. But such a desire ignores one of the principle characteristics in all God's works, instead of uniformity, there is endless variety in all creatures of His hands. There are no two minds alike, no two faces, no two voices; nay, no two blades of grass. True, there are many species having one common genus; many different sounds or notes which combine in harmony; behind incidental variations there is an underlying unity. So it is in the spiritual realm. The eleven Galileans were equally the Apostles of the Lamb and were loved alike by Him; they all followed, trusted in, and loved the same Lord and Savior, yet each had a distinct individuality, and no two of them were alike in all things.
Whatever blame may or may not rest upon men for the existence of the various evangelical denominations in Christendom, let not the superintending hand of God therein be lost sight of. In our readiness to criticize former leaders—which charity requires us to believe were at least equally devoted to the Lord and as anxious to conform to His Word as we are—we need to be much on our guard lest we be found quarreling with Divine providence. While it is true that a measure of failure marks whatever God entrusted to men—yet let it not be forgotten that "Of Him and through Him, and to Him, are all things—to Whom be glory forever. Amen" (Romans 11:36). We are either very ignorant of history, or superficial readers thereof, if we fail to perceive the guiding hand of God and His "manifold wisdom" in the appointing and blessing of the leading evangelical denominations.
"Undoubtedly there are all sorts of languages in the world, yet none of them is without meaning" (1 Cor. 14:10). Yes, and while those different voices may not all sound the same note, yet if they be pitched to the same key, they harmonize. The present writer is not prepared to hold a brief in defense of every peccadillo in any denomination, system or company of professing Christians; on the other hand, he desires to freely recognize and gladly own whatever is of God in all of them. Though himself unattached ecclesiastically, and a partisan of no single group, he wishes to have Christian fellowship with any and all who love the Lord and whose daily walk evidences a sincere desire to please Him. We have lived long enough and traveled sufficiently, to discover that no one "church," company, or man, has all the truth, and as we grow older we have less patience with those who demand that others must adopt their interpretation of Scripture on all points.
There should be a happy medium between sectarian narrowness—and the world's "broad-mindedness," between deliberately compromising the Truth—and turning away from some of the Lord's people because they differ from us on non-essentials. Shall I refuse to partake of a meal—because some of the dishes are not cooked as I like them? Then why decline fellowship with a brother in the Lord—because he is unable to pronounce correctly my favorite shibboleth? It is not without reason that "Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace" is immediately preceded by "bearing with one another in love" (Eph. 4:2, 3). Probably there is as much if not more in me that my brother has to "bear" with—as there is in him which grates upon me. As good old Matthew Henry said, "The consideration of being agreed in greater things, should extinguish all feuds over lesser ones."
In conclusion, let us anticipate an objection. "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 Cor. 1:10). More has been built upon this verse than it will legitimately sustain. The next two verses show plainly the scope of this exhortation—it was a word against party strifes which alienated brethren belonging to the same local church. To be "perfectly united" in this verse signifies a union in faith and love, and nothing further than a general and fundamental oneness of judgment can fairly be gathered from it. Where there is, by grace, an agreement in all vital things—there should be a charitable bearing with differences of lesser importance. May the Lord mercifully preserve both writer and reader from aiding Satan and doing his work by fomenting division. "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" (Romans 14:22).
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