How to Achieve Unity and Like-Mindedness

Rick Railston

August 22, 2009

 

 

 

Well, Greetings Brethren here in Moses’ Lake (The Lakers) as well as all of you around the country.  I want to say a specific greeting to the Crawfords in Charlotte, North Carolina and also to all the brethren in Sooke, that on Vancouver Island in British Columbia and also the brethren in Alberta.  I hope you are having a wonderful Sabbath.

 

Have you ever thought why people gather together in groups?  It was referenced in the sermonette a little while ago.  People form tribes, people form clans, even people form fan clubs.  I’m only a member of one club and I’m called a HOG.  That stands for the Harley Owners Group.  So you know there’s a common bond there.  It’s people who are attracted to and ride that kind of motorcycle.  So people form clans and groups and fan clubs because they have a common bond of some sort, some kind of common interest, and the reason is because they are like minded in certain areas.  They have a like mind.  

 

If you look at us today, sitting in this room or those of you around the world, if it wasn’t for our calling, none of us would be here today.  We wouldn’t know each other.  We would never rub elbows with each other if it wasn’t for the fact that God called us and God gave us His Holy Spirit.  None of us would be together.  With that calling comes the requirement, as we heard earlier, that we become one.  That we be one, one in mind, one in spirit as we will see.  But the problem is that our human nature combined with Satan and his mind and his influence are at work to prevent God’s people from becoming one, to try to divide and conquer God’s people.

 

We’re going to address that subject today.  The title of the sermon is, “How can we, as God’s people, be of one mind?”  How do we do that?  How can we be of one mind?

 

Point number one is we want to establish the fact that we are all members of the Body of Christ.  I know you know that, but as a review, let’s turn to Romans 12: 4 & 5.  We’re all members of the Body of Jesus Christ.  This is very fundamental understanding that God has given us.

 

Romans 12: 4.  For as we have many members in one body (referring to the human body) and all members have not the same office:

5)  So we, [being] many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.  (KJV)

 

Paul is drawing the analogy that we are indeed part of the Body of Christ and, as we’re going to see a little later, as each part of a human body, the member of the Body of Christ has a different function, a different reason for being there.  So we are the members of the Body of Christ, but in addition, we are also His children.  Look in Romans 8: 16.  We are told very clearly, very emphatically that we are now the children of God.

 

Romans 8: 16.  The Spirit itself bears witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God.  (KJV)

 

So if we’re the children of God, then obviously we are brothers and sisters.  We are part of the Body of Jesus Christ as brothers and sisters.  This is very important to understand and keep in our minds as we go through this Christian life.  We are brothers and sisters in the Body of Christ.  That’s point number one.

 

Point number two; now the difficulty arises.  We are all different.  We’re different human beings.  We’ll explain that in just a minute.  

 

Let’s go to I Corinthians 12 and we’ll begin in verse 12.  Paul is trying to get this across to the brethren who were obviously divided in this Church in Corinth.  They were having all kinds of problems.  They couldn’t agree on hair length.  They couldn’t agree on how to keep the Passover.  They could not agree on a whole host of issues.

 

I Corinthians 12: 12.  For as the body is one, and has many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body; so also [is] Christ.

13)  For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether [we be] Jews or Gentiles (there was a difference) whether [we be] bond or free (that was a huge issue in those days) and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.  (KJV)

 

This Indicates that the Spirit is the bond that pulls us together.

 

14)  For the body is not one member, but many.

15)  If the foot shall say, Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body?  (Of course not.)

16)  And if the ear shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body?   (Of course not)

17)  If the whole body [were] an eye (what we view, humanly, as one of the more important parts), where [were] the hearing?  If the whole [were] hearing, where [were] the smelling?

 

Here trying to get across that each member has an important part to play.

 

18)  But now has God set the members every one of them in the body, as it has pleased him.

 

God does the choosing.  God does the calling and He does it for a purpose and for a reason.  Sometimes we kind of blow by that, but it’s important to know that God called us each by name and He has a plan and a purpose for each one of us.

 

19)  And if they were all one member, where [is] the body?

Because the body is composed of many parts.  

 

20)  But now [are they] many members (different members, look different, have different functions) yet but one body.  (KJV)

21)  And the eye cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of you: nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you.

22)  Nay, much more those members of the body, which seem to be more feeble, are necessary.

23)  And those [members] of the body, which we think to be less honorable (meaning less beautiful), upon these we bestow more abundant honor; and our uncomely [parts] have more abundant comeliness.  (or more abundant beauty)

24)  For our comely [parts] have no need: but God has tempered the body together, having given more abundant honor to that part which lacked;

 

Notice verse 25.  He did all of this; brought separate parts of the body together, each one with a different function and each one looking different.

 

25)  That there should be no schism (or division) in the body; but [that] the members should have the same care one for another.  (KJV)

26)  And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it;

 

I told that family last night, I said, “You’re hurting right now and we are hurting with you.”  Hopefully all of us will hurt with them until this is resolved.

 

26b)  or one member be honored, all the members rejoice with it.

27)  Now you are the body of Christ, and members in particular.

 

So what God has done is called a dissimilar group of people from all over the world to come together to be part of His body, the Body of Christ.  We are all of different ages.  The young people don’t know what tired means, they bounce from pillar to post and they’re full of energy.  Those of us who are a little older, we tend to slow down a little bit and appreciate some peace and quiet and like to put our feet up and rest a bit.  

 

We have different races, physical appearance coming from race, culture coming from race and we have members in our fellowship of all the races.  We’re different.  We come from different backgrounds.  Some people had harsh and very difficult backgrounds and came through a lot of trial and trouble.  Yet, others like Dorothy had an idyllic childhood with wonderful and loving parents.  They lived in a beautiful part of the country.  They  never had to lock their doors, never had fear in that regard.  We come from different countries, again totally different backgrounds and cultures.  We come from different parts of the United States in this country.  People in the south are a little different than those in the northeast.  Texans are different than everybody, and the cheese heads especially!  

 

So, we’re all different.  We have different educational levels.  We have people who have never graduated from grade school and yet we have others with Master’s Degrees and Doctor’s Degrees and very highly skilled and highly technical jobs.  We have people with different avocations.  We have farmers, engineers, social workers, nurses, doctors, people that work in sales, all different avocations.  

 

We all have different life experiences.  We’ve all been through things that are unique to us, and that shapes our differences.  We also have different personalities.  We have people that are buoyant and those who may drag their knuckles on the ground a little more.

 

I ran across an article in one of my favorite magazines, the Air and Space Magazine, put out by the Smithsonian Institute.  In the August issue I‘d like to read one little humorous paragraph about differences in personalities.  We’re relating this to people in the Church.  The title of this essay is, “Brooders versus Extroverts” and it relates to aviation.  This was from Harry Reisner in the Approach Magazine of November, 1973.  He’s talking about the difference between those who pilot helicopters versus those who pilot fixed-wing aircraft.  He says…

 

“The thing is, helicopters are different from airplanes.  An airplane, by its nature, wants to fly.”  (This is true.  If you leave it alone, it will fly.)  “By nature, an airplane wants to fly and if not interfered with too strongly by unusual events or a deliberately incompetent pilot, it will fly.”

 

“A helicopter does not want to fly and it is maintained in the air by a variety of forces and controls working in opposition to each other, and if there is any disturbance in that delicate balance, the helicopter stops flying immediately and disastrously.”

 

Being a fixed-wing pilot and I’ve flown gliders, you don’t worry quite as much as if you were a helicopter pilot because if the engine quits, you can glide for several miles and find a place to put it down.  With a helicopter, that is not the case.  He says, “There is no such thing as a gliding helicopter.”  It doesn’t work.  

 

Now he’s relating in the second paragraph the difference in mind of the pilots of fixed-wing aircraft versus helicopters.

 

“This is why a helicopter pilot is so different a being from an airplane pilot and why, in general, airplane (fixed-wing) pilots are open, clear eyed, buoyant extroverts.  Helicopter pilots are brooders, introspective anticipators of trouble.  They know if anything has not happened, it is about to.”

 

We have people in the Church who are the same way.  We have people who are positive and outgoing and then we have other people.  It happened the other day, you say, “Boy, this is a great day, a beautiful day, early fall and the sun is shining.”  The other person says, “Well, it’s about to change.”  So, what do you do?  So we are all different that way.  We are all different.

So point number two is that God has called us to be one, but we are all different.

 

Point number three is, we are required by God to be of one mind.  It is a requirement.  If we are going to be in the Kingdom of God, if we’re going to get along for an eternity, we’re going to have the same mind.  He is not going to have somebody in His kingdom or the place of safety that does not have a like mind.  This is a very important concept.  Let’s go to Philippians 1 and verse 27.  Paul is trying to get across this concept that we have to be of the same mind.

 

Philippians 1: 27.  Only let your conversation (conduct) be as it becomes the gospel of Christ:

 

In other words, our conduct should reflect the teachings of Christ.

 

27b)  that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs,

 

Meaning, I’m hoping to get a report that you’re following Jesus Christ in your relationships with each other.

 

27c)  that you stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel.

 

Standing in one spirit, having one mind; that is the goal.  This is very, very important.  Let’s go to I Corinthians 1: 10.  Neil read it earlier in the sermonette.  Understanding we’re on point number three here, that we are required to be of one mind.  Let’s read it in that context.  Now obviously the Corinthian Church was not of one mind.  That’s why he had to write the article.  They had sin going on and they had all kinds of differences, squabbles, upsets, “I am of Paul; I am of Apollos,” and on and on.

 

I Corinthians 1: 10.  Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,

 

This is pretty strong when he invokes the name of Jesus Christ

 

10b)  that you all speak the same thing,

Well, if you speak the same thing, what does the scripture say? “Out of the heart the mouth speaks.”  So if you speak the same thing, then your heart is the same.

 

10c)  and [that] there be no divisions among you:

 

And there obviously were.  Going on, this is the goal…

 

10d)  but [that] you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.

We need to understand that.  God requires us, it is obvious that it is a requirement of all Christians is that we be of one mind and that we follow one spirit.

 

That leads us to the fourth point.  I didn’t really understand this until I started researching for this sermon.  The fourth point is that being of one mind, if you look at all the scriptures, it’s focused in two different directions.  Being of one mind is focused in two directions just like the two great commandments: one toward God and one toward your neighbor or your brother or sister in Christ.  Let’s talk about the first one.  I’ll only give one scripture and we should all know this one by heart.  We should be one mind toward God and Christ.  How do we do that?  Philippians 2: 5.  We know what that is.

 

Philippians 2: 5.  Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.

 

We need to seek the mind of Christ, which is the mind of God, and shame on us if we have a different mind.  If we have our mind, a human mind, a satanic mind, a demonic mind, then shame on us, because we need to have the mind of Christ.  You can see the point that if a whole bunch of people have the mind of Christ, guess what’s going to happen?  They’re going to be of one mind because they all have the mind of Christ.  They’re going to be of one spirit, one heart, they will be in unity and they will get along.  But if an individual or group of individuals come in that have a different spirit or different mind, guess what you have?  You have confusion, you have division and upset.

 

So, point A, the first focus of being of one mind is toward God and Christ.

 

The second is toward the brethren, of having one mind toward the brethren.  The first is toward God and Christ, and second toward the brethren.  

 

Look at Romans 12: 16.  It was just like a light bulb went on in my head because I’d never made the connection, but many of the scriptures indicate that being of one mind is how you relate one to another, how you treat other people.  Notice what Paul says.

 

Romans 12: 16.  [Be] of the same mind (how?) one toward another.  

 

How you relate; how you treat each other.  In other words, if the whole group is of the same mind, everybody is going to be treating each other the same through the mind of Jesus Christ.  Now he’s giving some hints on how this is done.

 

16b)  Mind not high things

This means don’t be a respecter of persons.  Don’t become friends with somebody because they have money or they drive a certain kind of car or they live in a certain part of town.  Don’t mind the things that puff up human beings.

 

16c)  but condescend to men of low estate.  

 

In other words, go after those, make friends with those who may not have as much.  Don’t be a respecter of persons.

 

16d) Be not wise in your own conceits. (KJV)

 

Because if you have a puffed up mind, if you think more highly of yourself than you ought to, then guess what?  You’re going to bump heads with somebody else.  Because somebody who is wise in their own mind or wise in their own conceits wants their own way rather than God’s way or Christ’s way and then you have conflict, you have trouble.

 

Look at three chapters over in Romans 15; once again having one mind, but focused toward the brethren.

 

Romans 15: 5.  Now the God of patience and consolation (interesting he uses those two words) grant you to be likeminded (How?) one toward another according to Christ Jesus.  (KJV)

 

To be likeminded toward each other in addition to being likeminded toward God and Christ.

 

6)  That [you] may with one mind [and] one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.  (KJV)

 

So he says patience with one another, consoling and commiserating with one another, you be likeminded toward each other, so that you can have one mind.

 

Now let’s go to I Peter, verse 8 and see what the apostle Peter has to say in this regard.  He’s talking about being of one mind, but his focus is on how brethren were treating each other and how they should treat each other.  He’s wrapping things up.  He’s trying to summarize.

 

I Peter 3: 8.  Finally, [be you] all of one mind,

 

Now he goes on to say how that happens and notice it’s toward the brethren.

 

8b)  having compassion one of another,

 

When one member hurts, we all hurt, as we read in I Corinthians.

 

8c)  love as brethren, [be] pitiful (meaning full of compassion and pity) [be] courteous.  (KJV)

 

Don’t get in peoples’ face.  Don’t yell and scream at somebody.  The Greek root for compassion is “sumpathes” and it means to experience pain jointly, meaning in a group, or of the same kind to suffer together with.  So he’s saying, have compassion one to another.  This is how you become of the same mind.  When your brother or sister is hurting, you feel for them and hurt right along with them.  You love them and are full of pity and are courteous and you help them.

 

So, the fourth point is that being of one mind is focused in two directions, one mind toward God and Christ and one mind toward our brothers and sisters in Christ.  

 

Now we’re taking this logically step by step.  That leads to the fifth point.  If it’s true that our mind is focused in these two directions just like the two great commandments, being of one mind, point five is, therefore our goal should be true like mindedness which results in unity.  One of the goals of living our life, in studying the Bible and praying, is to have true like mindedness and that will result in unity.  Because if people are like minded, they’re not going to squabble and argue; they’re not going to fight, because they have the same mind.  They have the same goal, they have the same desires.

 

Let me quote from our website.  A lot of you spent hours going over this project and contributing and finally put it together.  It says, “We believe the brethren are to selflessly serve one another.”  That follows the scriptures that we just read.  “Selflessly serve one another.”  We believe that God’s Church should be a place of peace.  That only comes through like mindedness; mutual respect, that comes through like mindedness and oneness.  “And rest and safety,” that comes because we are like minded.

 

Another point from our website or value statements is, “We aim to provide such a place of rest and peace and safety and mutual respect and welcome brethren who desire to meet in unity and peace with us.”  In order to do that, you have to be like minded.  Otherwise you will have turmoil and chaos.  

 

Let’s go to Mrs. Armstrong’s favorite scripture, Psalm 133: 1.  Mr. Armstrong said, while Loma was alive and I remember him saying this in the early years when I came into the Church.  He said, “This is my wife’s favorite scripture.

 

Psalm 133: 1.  Behold, how good and how pleasant [it is] for brethren to dwell together in unity!  (KJV)

 

How true it is.  If we are like minded, it makes life good, it makes life pleasant and happy and peaceful and it makes life tranquil.  That is the goal, like mindedness.  Obviously it has to be through the mind of Christ and according to God’s word.  

 

When I say unity, sometimes we think, “Well what does that really mean?”  I looked it up in a number of dictionaries.  This is a combination of several, but it basically means the state of being one or at one.  It also means the combining or joining of separate things; in our case, a lot of separate individuals, to form one.  It means the combining or joining of separate things to form one, the body of Christ.  Another definition is, something whole or complete, formed by combining or joining separate things.  So you take things that are different and separate and put them together, and you have something that is whole and complete.  Paul uses the analogy, obviously, of a body that is whole and complete and healthy and functioning.

We take separate individuals and God makes them of one mind and one spirit through His Spirit.  Now that doesn’t work, you can’t be of one mind if you throw a carnal human being into the mix.  You have a bunch of human beings with God’s Spirit and are trying to follow God and then you have one or two carnal people come in that are not trying to follow God and are trying to follow their own way or being selfish and whatever.  I’ve seen this happen in church many times.  It only takes one or two to blow the ship up.  Yet how wonderful it is when separate individuals can come together and unite with one mind, one goal and one common spirit.  

 

Yet at the same time, God doesn’t want us all to be little yellow pencils.  We all are different.  As Paul was saying, the foot is different than the hand and both have very important functions.  They look different, they have different functions, but they form a complimentary body.  Yet we still have all the differences that I outlined earlier.  The point is, with the Holy Spirit and with the mind of Jesus Christ common to all of us, then it is possible and it works that separate individuals can come together and be like minded and unified and happy and be close and loving and have peace in their lives.  It is possible.  I’ve seen it done; I’ve seen it undone too, but it is possible.

 

Point number five is our goal should be true like mindedness and that comes from the mind of Christ and the result is unity.

 

Now we get down to the sixth point, where the rubber meets the road.  How do we do this?  It’s easy to talk about it, but how do we do it?  It’s very important.  If you would like to outline, point A and how we do this, we’ve said it earlier …

 

  1. A. We must seek the mind of Christ. 

That should be one of the primary goals of our very existence every day.  It should be a goal of our Bible study.  It should be a goal of our prayer.  It should be a goal of our fasting, to seek the mind of Christ.  

 

Let’s go back to Philippians 2.  We read verse 5 and now we will start in verse 2 and lead up to verse 5.  That was read earlier also, so God must be doing something here.  Notice what Paul says.

 

Philippians 2: 2.  Fulfill you my joy,

 

What he is saying to the brethren is, “You make my life a whole lot easier if you do the following things, otherwise we’re going to have fighting and squabbles and upsets.  So how do they fulfill his joy, and obviously God and Christ too?

 

2b)  that you be likeminded, having the same love (not human love, but God’s love, agape love) [being] of one accord, of one mind.  (KJV)

 

That’s how they would make Paul’s job, as a minister, much better.  Verse 3, he tells us how to do this.

3)  [Let] nothing be [done] through strife (fighting, demanding your own way, my way or the highway) or vain glory

 

That means competition; trying to exalt the self.  He’s talking about where we see people coming into conflict where one just will not back down; one will not consider the interests of the other.

 

But in lowliness of mind (this is the key … humility) let each esteem the other better than themselves.  (KJV)

 

What they really mean is, we need to consider the other person’s point of view.  We need to walk in their shoes, and if there’s a disagreement, one of the ways I found that you can come to common ground is if both parties try to walk in the other person’s shoes.  They consider where the other person is coming from.  How are they looking at this issue?  Then you can better understand where they’re coming from and why they are saying what they are saying and then you can have some common ground if they do the same for you.  This is how it’s done,

 

4)  Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.  

 

So if you have the love of God, you will look on the other person, and with great love, want the best for them.  You will want them to be happy, to be at peace, to be tranquil.  That changes our behavior, if that is your goal for them.  This is how it’s all done,

 

5)  Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:  (KJV)

 

So it’s interesting, verses 3 and 4 talk about how we treat each other with the mind of Christ.  It’s not just the mind of Christ knowing scripture.  It’s not being able to quote scripture and verse.  It’s how you treat one another with the mind of Christ.  For some people, that concept has just blown by them through the years.  It’s okay to know the Bible; it’s okay to understand all the doctrines, to keep the Sabbath and the holy days, but they stomp all over their brothers and sisters.  That is not the mind of Christ, it’s just not.  So, don’t let anybody fool you thinking it’s just a matter of knowledge.  It’s how we treat each other.  That’s one of the things in the Pacific Church of God that I think all of us have tried to do, is come together and emphasize how we treat one another.  That’s part of having the mind of Christ.

 

If we have the mind of Christ, there will be unity, and if there is disunity, if there is arguing, if there is upset then one or both of the parties don’t have enough of God’s Spirit or enough of the mind of Christ.  If we have the mind of Christ, we will have unity.  All of us can be wrong.  I’ve been wrong so many times it’s pathetic.  I thought I was operating because of my conscience, I thought I was doing the right thing and then I look back five or ten years later and think, how pathetic.  How could you have thought that or said that or done that?  At the time, I thought I was doing the right thing.  At the time I was following my conscience.  My conscience was wrong in that sense.  So we have to be very careful that we seek the mind of Christ.  

 

Amos 3: 3 is a very familiar scripture.  We’re told a very important concept, talking about being united and being in unity and harmony.

 

Amos 3: 3.  Can two walk together, except they be agreed?  (KJV)

 

If two are going to walk together, guess what?  They have to be headed in the same direction.  You can’t walk together if you’re headed in different directions.  So the obvious conclusion is if you want unity, you both have to be walking in the same direction.  If one is walking over here and the other is walking over there, you can’t walk together.  If one is walking this way and the other is walking that way, you might pass and say hello, but you’re not walking together.  You have to walk together, which means you’re on the same path and that path should be the path toward salvation, the path toward the mind of Christ.  Seeking the mind of Christ is the solution to point A.  We’ve got to have the mind of Christ.

 

  1. B. We must get the big picture.   

 

We must see what is really important.  Mr. Armstrong used to say, “Stick to the trunk of the tree.  Don’t get out on the branches.  Don’t get out on the twigs.  Don’t get out on the leaves, because you’re going to fall on the ground.”  You get so far out on that branch that the branch is going to break and down you go.  Stay to the trunk of the tree.  I don’t know how many times he talked about that.  What is the trunk of the tree?  It starts with the two great commandments.  That is the trunk of the tree.  Everything comes from that; loving God with every ounce of your being and loving your neighbor as yourself.  

 

Notice I John 3: 14.  This is something I think we all desire and we are told how to achieve it.  What is really important?  We know we should love God with all our heart and with all our mind, all our life and all our strength.

 

I John 3: 14.  We know that we have passed from death unto life,

 

If that doesn’t get our attention, I don’t know what does.

 

14b)  because we love the brethren.  He that loves not [his] brother abides in death.

 

Yet people fight and gossip and squabble and hate and condemn and slander.  John would look them in the face and say, “You hate your brother.  You don’t love your brother, so therefore you abide in death.”

 

So these are the important concepts and we can’t, as the common saying goes, we can’t major in the minors.  We can’t allow our whole focus to get off the big picture and get out into these little minor nit-picking issues.  

 

The first nit-picking issue I came across in the Church was I believe in 1966 (I may be off a year) and it was the great Jell-O controversy.  That swept through the Church like I don’t know what.  All of a sudden; I don’t know where it came from and I don’t know how it got there, but it was there and suddenly the focus for a period of weeks and months was Jell-O and what really constituted Jell-O and was it clean or was it unclean.  There were articles and there were people writing to the gelatin manufacturers and there were different reports about what came back.  It was the focus of the Church.  I’m not demeaning anybody who wants to eat clean meats.  I do.  I will go out of my way to eat clean food obviously.  That’s God’s law, but if you stomp all over your brother and sister during the great Jell-O controversy, what does that get you?  Where does it lead you?  

 

Look at Matthew 23: 24, when Christ was getting on the Pharisees and Sadducees and religious leaders of the day.  He was just warning them that, yes, you need to tithe of the mint, anise and cumin, but you can’t leave the other things undone.  He said in Matthew 23: 24; I’ll read it from the NIV.

 

Matthew 23: 24.  You blind guides!  You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.  (NIV)

 

In other words, camels were known in those days as a flea factory.  Camels had millions of fleas.  He says you’re swallowing a camel that’s loaded with millions of fleas and yet you have this strainer out here and you’re trying to strain out one flea.  Yet in trying to do that, you’re swallowing this whole camel with gobs and gobs of fleas.  So we can be right about a teaching and yet totally wrong if we stomp all over our brothers and sisters in how we relate to them about that teaching.  Don’t get me wrong, I’m not talking about violating the law of God at all.  We need to hold fast to the truth and to the law of God, but in applying that law we have to apply it based on love and not stomping all over people.  We cannot forget the important matters.  Look at Matthew 23: 23.

 

Matthew 23: 23.  Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!  

 

For you pay tithes of these little herbs and they would count out nine leaves in this pile and then they would put a leaf over here.  They were very scrupulous about that.  He said, “That’s good.  You should do that, but you have omitted the weightier matters of the law, justice (King James says judgment.  It means being fair and equitable) and mercy.  Justice and mercy are how we treat each other.  They are directed toward the brethren and then faith, faith in God.  But then obviously two of the three weightier matters of the law are how we relate one to another, being fair, not a respecter of persons, having justice in all we do and having mercy one to another.

 

So point B is we have to focus on the big picture.  We cannot major in the minors.

 

  1. C. We must separate salvational doctrine from non-salvational doctrine. 

 

I don’t know if you’ve ever thought about  salvational doctrine versus non-salvational doctrine.  I don’t know if you’ve thought about that at all.  Think about this, what is a doctrine?  What is it?  The Greek word for doctrine is didache and that’s how we get the English word didactic.  Didactic means a teaching.  So of this Greek word Thayer says the following:  “That which is taught or a teaching concerning something.”  So when we say a doctrine, it’s just a teaching.  It’s something that is taught.  What I’m telling you is that there are salvational teachings and then there are non-salvational teachings.  We need to separate the two.  We need to understand the difference between the two.  

 

Now a salvational doctrine is a doctrine, a salvational teaching that is absolutely necessary to keep in order to obtain salvation.  We know that the Sabbath and holy days are salvational doctrines.  We know that the two great commandments are salvational doctrines.  It’s a teaching that you’re prepared to die for.  That’s something that I’ve learned over the years when you hear a teaching or doctrine.  Am I prepared to die for that?  

 

When I was first called I was an officer in the Air Force, and the Sabbath came up right away.  I was on an air defense command base, it was also a SAC base on the Canadian border and I finally came to the conclusion that I have to keep the Sabbath.  It is a salvational doctrine.  Shame on me if I don’t keep the Sabbath.  We routinely had alerts where everybody was called in to the base.  We had a lock down and had mock exercises, sending our fighter planes north to defend against jets coming, simulating Russian bombers coming across the North Pole.  I knew that if they had an alert on the Sabbath, I would have to say no.  I would say no.  If you disobey a direct order, guess where you would go?  Court martial and into a military prison.  So that hung over my head for over a year, every Sabbath.  Are we going to have an alert?  Talking about praying mightily; that is a salvational doctrine.

 

Now, over the years, decades in the Church, we’ve had all kinds of “salvational doctrines”.  What about make-up?  Is that a salvational doctrine?  I don’t think so.  It has flip-flopped so many times.  You’re losing no matter what you do.  We found out that many of the “salvational doctrines” were not salvational at all.  They were traditions, yes.  Many of them were important, yes, but were they salvational?  

 

Let’s look at a doctrine just as an example, kind of a doctrinal issue; doctrine meaning a teaching today that some people get their tail in a knot about.  That is the songs to be sung on the Sabbath.  There are a group of people that believe that if Dwight Armstrong didn’t write the song, it should not be sung on the Sabbath.  There’s another group of people that believe that as long as the words are appropriate, that it’s okay regardless of the author.  So occasionally at the Feast you see it and even with some of our own brethren.  Occasionally you see a song that the song leader is leading and somebody out there is not singing.  Here we have a teaching and some people can get their back up about it.  I’ve seen people get into very heated discussions about whether you should or shouldn’t.  Now let me ask the question.  Let’s say we have two individuals and they both have God’s Holy Spirit.  They both have all the fruits of God’s Holy Spirit: love, joy, peace, kindness, gentleness, goodness, all the fruits of God’s Holy Spirit.  Both do.  One only sings Dwight Armstrong’s songs; the other one sings appropriate songs, but not necessarily Dwight Armstrong’s songs.  Now is one of them going into the Kingdom of God only, and they show all the fruits of God’s Holy Spirit?  In other words, is this doctrine a salvational doctrine?  If you put it in those terms, I think you see very quickly that it is not a salvational doctrine.  It’s not something certainly I’m not prepared to die for and I hope you’re not either.  But some people will argue to the death about it and that’s where we get out, I think, on the twigs and branches and they forget the trunk of the tree.  

 

As one man said, “I don’t know what I believe anymore, but I’m prepared to die for it!”  It’s that mentality that sometimes in the heat of the moment you can get so vociferous in your view that you lose the whole point.

 

Here in point C about separating salvational and non-salvational doctrines, Satan would absolutely love to have us divided over non-salvational issues and get us so “wigged out” and our tails so much in a knot over something that is, relatively speaking, not all that important.  So when we are trying to have the mind of Christ, let’s try to separate salvational issues from non-salvational issues.

 

  1. D. We must be able to discuss areas of disagreement without anger, bitterness or accusation.   

 

In other words, we cannot allow ourselves to bring personalities into it.  If you have a disagreement, stick to the issue and don’t make it personal.  Once it gets personal; somebody says, “well, you always ……” then all of a sudden now it’s a personal issue and you get the focus off the issue at hand and then people start arguing on a personality basis.  “You said this and you said that” and you get away from the overall issue.  Stick to the issues and try to see the other person’s point of view.  

 

We were at Philippians 2 a minute ago.  Let’s go back to verses 3 and 4.  We started in Philippians 2: 2, but let’s just look again at verses 3 and 4 from the standpoint of trying to see the other person’s point of view or walking in the other person’s shoes, trying to keep personalities out of it.

 

Philippians 2: 3.  [Let] nothing [be done] through strife or vainglory;

 

When you’re striving or promoting yourself, then personalities get into it.

 

3b)  but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.

 

With lowliness of mind, if you esteem the other person on the other side of the issue better than yourself, it’s going to keep things calm and you can discuss the issue calmly,   if you esteem the other person better than yourself.

 

4)  Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.  (KJV)

 

Look not every man or woman on his own issues, but also try to look at how the other person sees the issue so you can better appreciate where they’re coming from.  Then maybe we find, lo and behold, we are wrong or that maybe there is common ground we hadn’t thought about.  

 

Let’s go to James 3: 17, about trying to see the other person’s point of view or trying to keep personalities and personal issues out of the main subject of discussion.  Notice what James says, talking about the wisdom that comes from God.  

 

James 3: 17.  But the wisdom that is from above is first pure,

 

Something that is pure is not polluted.  Pure gold is pure gold.  It doesn’t have any impurities.  So our attitude, our approach should be pure, with the mind of Christ.

 

17b)  then peaceable,

 

Wanting to make peace, not wanting to divide.

 

17c)  gentle,

 

If somebody has a short fuse, if somebody is just boiling under the surface, it doesn’t lead to being gentle.  If somebody insults you, says something horrible about you, if you have a short fuse, guess what’s going to happen?  You’re going to have an explosion.  But if you’re gentle minded and somebody says something provoking, you just blow it off and ignore it and go on with the issue.  Stay with the focus, stay with the issue.

 

17d)  [and] easy to be entreated,

 

That means easy to see the other person’s point of view.  If somebody comes to you and says, “Look, think with me for a second.  Here’s where I’m coming from.”  A person who is easy to be entreated will do just that.  They will look at it from the other person’s point of view, their view point, where they’re coming from.

 

17e)  full of mercy

 

If someone gets angry in an argument or debate or discussion (shouldn’t be an argument or debate; it should be a discussion) but if they get angry and say something they shouldn’t that could be offensive or hurtful, then the one on the receiving end should show mercy.  Christ said to turn the other cheek; walk the extra mile; return evil with good.  Show mercy.

 

17f)  and good fruits, without partiality,

 

That means without respect of persons.  What happens sometimes is you have this issue.  If this person presents it, you agree with them, but if another person presents it, you don’t give them the time of day.  That’s partiality.  That’s respect of persons.  I’ve seen that happen over and over again in God’s Church.

 

17g)  and without hypocrisy.

 

That comes back to being pure.  A hypocrite isn’t pure.  A hypocrite is double minded.  God is saying to be pure.  Look at Ephesians 4: 26.  Again, be able to discuss areas of disagreement without anger or bitterness or accusation.  It says very plainly…

 

Ephesians 4: 26.  Be angry and sin not:

 

So it tells us you can be angry and sin or you can be angry and not sin.  Sometimes we all lose it; we shouldn’t but we do because we’re human.  If that is the case,

 

26b)  let not the sun go down on your wrath:  (KJV)

 

That means you get rid of the anger.  You go to the person in the spirit of Matthew 5 and Matthew 18 and you reconcile.  It’s okay to be angry about sin.  It’s okay to be angry about unrighteousness, but you don’t want to do harm to someone.  You don’t want to see someone burn in the lake of fire.  You want to pull them out of the lake of fire.  

 

Just think about this; along with accusation and anger and bitterness comes Satan.  If accusation and anger and bitterness are there, I guarantee you Satan is right there.  A demon is right there.  A wrong spirit is right there.  So we should be able to discuss issues where we might disagree, but we can do so in a peaceful way.  We can do so in a non-confrontational way, trying to understand and trying to reach common ground.  That’s the fourth point, D.

 

  1. E. In order to make all this happen, we must grow in humility and we must grow in patience.  

 

The fact is in this life (now think with me here) we will never agree on every point of doctrine.  That is not going to happen.  We have people in our Church that believe it is a sin to eat out on the Sabbath.  We have other people who drop by Starbuck’s before services and buy a cup of coffee.  So, we are never going to agree on every point of doctrine and I’ve been in the middle of those discussions.  They make a case and they make a case and everybody has to follow their own conscience.  We’re never going to agree on every point of doctrine.  It’s just never going to happen.  It’s only when Christ comes to this earth and sits us down and says, “Look, this is the way it is.  This is how you should think about it.”  Then we will be in unity, but until then there’s always going to be some disagreement.  

 

We should never be in disagreement about loving God with all our heart and loving our neighbor as ourselves.  We should never be in disagreement on the Sabbath and the holy days and the salvational doctrines, but there are some gray areas.  Like I said, make-up is one of them and the songs we sing are another.  What we do on the Sabbath day; some people think it’s wrong to watch the news on the Sabbath or to turn the TV set on at all on the Sabbath.  Other people watch the national news, because we’re told to watch.  You can sit down and discuss that endlessly and, as I said, we will be set straight soon enough when Christ comes to this earth.  But is it a salvational doctrine or not?  My point is we can never agree on every point.

 

Let’s go to Ephesians 4: 2.  This is talking about growing in humility and growing in patience with each other; humility toward God and toward one another and patience with each other.

 

Ephesians 4: 2.  With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering (putting up with, we would say) forbearing (Also putting up with one another.  We do it in love.) forbearing one another in love;

3)  Endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.  (KJV)

 

Peace is the glue.  Peace is the bond that keeps us together, but we do it by having meekness, lowliness of mind, patience and the ability to put up with each other.  We have to realize that the person you’re talking to right now, and maybe getting a little upset with, might not have slept last night, might not be feeling well, might be having a bad week, might be having a bad year.  So we have to understand that.

 

Ephesians 4: 4.  [There is] one body and one Spirit, even as you are called in one hope of your calling.

5)  One Lord, one faith, one baptism,

6)  One God and Father of all, who [is] above all, and through all, and (should be)  in you all.  (KJV)

7)  But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.

11)  And he gave some, apostles; and some prophets and some evangelists and some pastors and teachers;

12)  For the perfection of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ;

 

Notice the goal, the end result.

 

13)  Till we all come in the unity of the faith,

 

We are not there yet by any stretch.

 

13b)  and of the knowledge of the Son of God,

 

There are things we don’t know.  As God reveals them, we will know.  Some we won’t know until Christ returns.

 

13c)  unto a perfect man (or woman), unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.

 

That should be our goal.  We should want to be like Christ.  If we want to be anything else, we are wrong.  We want to be like Christ, and if we seek that with all our being and then we are like Christ, we’re going to have a lot more unity than a bunch of people who aren’t like Christ.  It’s not going to come overnight.  It’s a work in progress for all of us.  

 

Somebody will occasionally come to me and complain about another person.  I’ll use that word; they’re a work in progress, just like you are.  They’re not perfect, just like you are.  Cut them some slack.  Understand they might be having a bad day.  We also (this is where humility comes in) must allow for the fact that my way may not be the right way.  The problem is people get up a head of steam and they know they’re right and it never enters their mind that they could be wrong.  It never enters their mind that they could be off track.  They just go and go and beat and push and shove and all the while, they are wrong, but they don’t see it.  So we have to allow for the fact that our way might not be God’s way.

 

Let’s go to I Thessalonians 5: 14.  Talking here about growing in patience and humility.  Paul is saying to the Church in Thessalonica,

 

I Thessalonians 5: 14.  Now we exhort you, brethren,

 

Exhort is a strong term.  This isn’t a suggestion.  This isn’t, “Well, it’s a good idea if you get around to it.”  

 

14b)  warn them that are unruly,

 

Do you know what the Greek word for unruly means?  It means religiously insubordinate.  When I was in the military, if you were insubordinate to your sergeant or officer, you didn’t last long.  You were confined to quarters, you were out there marching in the rain or you were in jail.  He’s saying, “Warn those who are religiously insubordinate.”

 

14c)  comfort the feebleminded,

 

Not all of us have 160 IQ.  Not all of us are in our right minds.  Sometimes we’re under pressure.  We might have lost a mate.  We might have been fired from a job and we’re not in our right minds.  We’re filled with anxiety and tension and upset.  So we might, in that sense, be feebleminded at that moment.  We don’t have our act together.  We’re not clicking on all eight cylinders, so he says comfort those who have a problem like that.

 

14d)  support the weak, be patient toward all.  (KJV)

 

We can’t let what somebody says in a moment of weakness or fatigue or upset get our nose out of joint to the point that we now have an enemy.  We just can’t do that.

 

Look at Romans 5: 3, talking about humility and patience.  I think sometimes when we first came into the Church, we were so cocky and confident, we just knew God was working with us and our way was the only way.  I was guilty of that, I’ll admit.

 

Romans 5: 3.  And not only [so], but we glory in tribulations also:

 

We’ve all been through trials.  The last several years we have been through a boat load of trials.  But he says …

 

3b)  knowing that tribulation works patience;  (KJV)

 

Because once you get through a trial, then the next one that comes, you’re better equipped to go through that trial.  You go through a bunch of trials, dozens and dozens of trials over decades, you’re a bit more patient and you don’t get so wigged out about it and you kind of ease through the trial.  Not that you don’t get upset.  Not that you don’t lose sleep occasionally, but you know God is working things out and as long as you stay close to God, you see the light at the end of the tunnel.  Tribulations and trials work patience.

 

4)  And patience, experience; and experience, hope;

 

If you’ve come through trials before, that gives you the experience to know that you can come through this one too.  It’s going to work out.  When you say it’s going to work out, that’s hope.  It’s going to work out.  God is going to get us through this.  

 

So we must develop patience with each other and with the situations we are in.  

In Luke 21: 19, it tells us that patience allows us to take control of ourselves.  We control ourselves if we have patience.  Those who are impatient tend to do things that are rash and tend to do things that are hurtful.

 

Luke 21: 19.  In your patience possess your souls (life).  

 

The word “possess” means to take control of, to grab onto.  So if we have patience with ourselves and with others, we’re not going to lose control.  I’ve seen people in God’s Church with short fuses.  It doesn’t take much for them to explode and lose control.  They lose control of their mind; it’s given over to anger.  They lose control of their mouth; it’s given over to saying things that should not be said.  It’s given over to hatred and bitterness and resentment.  We’re being told here, if we will just put a lid on it (Dorothy likes to say, “Put a sock in it.”) and it will go a long way toward having unity and peace.  But if we insist that it’s my way or the highway, then guess what’s going to happen?  It’s going to be the highway.  The person is going to leave and ultimately guess what’s going to happen?  They’re going to be a Church of one, ultimately a Church of one, because if it’s my way or the highway, I don’t have room for anybody else’s thinking.  I don’t have room for anyone else’s differences or opinions or thoughts.

 

That leads us to the final point.  This is something we all need to remember in having unity.  When you are perfect, then you can expect other people to be perfect.  When I’m perfect, then I can expect others to be perfect.  

 

Look at Matthew 7, a very key scripture.  I think you know where we’re going; the first five verses of Matthew 7.  This is so important and yet people don’t apply it.  Christ says…

 

Matthew 7: 1.  Judge not that you be not judged.

 

The word “judge” here has the connotation of condemning.  It’s Strong’s 2919, krino, and it means to decide mentally or judicially by implication to try (meaning put them on trial) to condemn and to punish.  He’s saying don’t put someone on trial in your mind and condemn them and punish them.  Don’t do that.  Judge not that you be not judged.  Don’t condemn people.

 

2)  For with what judgment you judge (In other words, with the harshness that you judge others, Christ is going to judge you.)  and with what measure you mete …

Meaning if you keep them on a very short leash, then you’re going to be kept on a short leash.  If you cut them some slack, you’re going to be cut some slack.  

 

2b)  it shall be measured to you again.

3)  And why do you behold the mote that is in your brother’s eye, but not consider the beam (plank) in your own eye?  (KJV)

 

If you look into the Greek, the word “beam” is talking about a rafter, a beam in a home, a big long beam.  He says you’ve got one in your eye and you’re all concerned.  Your focus is on your brother because he has a little bit of sawdust in his eye and you’ve got this giant roof rafter in your own eye.  So many people are so concerned about their brother’s sins and they look and inspect and put people under a microscope and, Boy, they’re after them if they don’t meet their standards, and all the time, they’re walking around with this giant 2x4 sticking out of their eyeball.  Christ says, “Don’t do that.”  

 

4)  Or how will you say to your brother, Let me pull the mote out of your eye; and, behold, a beam [is] in your own eye?  (KJV)

 

He says, “You are a hypocrite.”  We don’t want to be called hypocrites.

 

5)  You hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of your own eye; and then shall you see clearly to cast out the mote out of your brother’s eye.  (KJV)

 

“First, (He said), cast the beam out of your own eye.  You clean up yourself first, Christ is saying, and then you can see more clearly since you don’t have this roof rafter blinding your vision.  You can see very clearly then to help your brother.”

 

Notice Luke 15 starting in verse 1.  This is talking about principals and how we should operate, knowing the fact that we’re not perfect and neither is our brother and sister.

 

Luke 15: 1.  Then drew near unto him (referring to Christ) all the publicans and sinners for to hear him.

 

People got upset with Christ that He would sit and eat with someone who is a sinner.  Oh, they railed on Him about that, the high and mighty religious leaders of the day.

 

2)  And the Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying, This man receives sinners and eats with them.

 

Christ heard them …

 

3)  And he spoke this parable unto them, saying,

4)  What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, does not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness and go after that which is lost, until he find it?

5)  And when he has found [it], he lays [it] on his shoulders, rejoicing.  (KJV)

6)  And when he comes home, he calls together [his] friends and neighbors, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost.

7)  I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repents more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.

 

So Christ is saying that the shepherd went after the sheep that was lost, not to whip it and beat it, not to punish it, but to find it and bring it back.  As it applies to brethren getting along, you go to your brother in a spirit of humility and meekness with love of your brother and say, “Look, you’re off track here, and I’m your brother.  I’m here to tell you.”  You know, the wounds of a friend are better than the kisses of an enemy.  

 

Let’s understand, the principal here is, we love our brother and sister.  Galatians 6:1 says those of you who are spiritual and you find your brother in a fault, you go to them with a spiritual mind.  

 

So let’s understand that one of the principals we should use is, we should have love and compassion for others and we should go in a spirit of meekness and humility and realize, “I’m not perfect and I shouldn’t expect perfection of my brother or sister when I am so woefully inadequate.”

 

Final scripture under this point is Jude, the half brother of Jesus Christ, the brother of James.  We’re going to read verses 21 through 24 and I’ll read it out of the NIV.  This tells us how we should relate to one another, the principals of the fact that we’re not perfect and neither is our brother or sister.

 

Jude 21.  Keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.  (NIV)

 

We are waiting for Christ to come, but he says, “Wait in the love of God.  Have love surround you.”

 

22)  Be merciful to those who doubt;

 

There are some people that are confused.  There are some people that are unsure about certain doctrines or issues, and we should be merciful unto them.  If they’re not jamming it down your throat and trying to create a following and drag people away, if they’re confused about a doctrine or not totally clear, be merciful.  Sit down and have a Bible study and go through it.

 

23)  snatch others from the fire and save them;

 

That’s like leaving the ninety-nine and going after the one.  They’re ready to go into the lake of fire.  He says, “Snatch them away and save them.”  Sometimes to have to say honestly to someone, “Look, you are in a wrong spirit.”  You do it calmly.  You don’t yell at them.  “You’re in a wrong spirit.  You need to change.  Your life is on the line.”  I’ve had to say that to people.  You don’t condemn them.  You don’t yell at them.  You don’t put them down.  You just say, “I’m worried about you.  I’m very worried about you, because you’re doing this and this and if you don’t change, you’re going into the lake of fire.

 

23b)  to others show mercy, mixed with fear –

 

Meaning fear on the person who is going after them.

 

23c)  hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.

 

So you don’t be corrupted by their sins.

 

24)  To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy.

 

So those are some of the attitudes we should have toward one another.

 

Now let’s summarize.  We’ve seen that we’re all part of the body of Christ and yet we are all different - totally different.  We outlined a lot of those differences.  Some are helicopter pilots and some are fixed-wing pilots.  We are different and yet we are required to be of one mind, therefore, our goal should be true like mindedness with Christ which results in unity.  We’ve just seen how we do this.  

We have to seek the mind of Christ.  We don’t do that enough.  We need to pray every day, several times a day for the mind of Christ.  How would Christ say this?  How would Christ react to this?  How would Christ do this?  

 

We’ve got to get the big picture and we have to focus on the important things and not get distracted by the unimportant things.

 

We must separate salvational doctrine from non-salvational doctrine.  

 

We have to be able to discuss disagreements without being angry or bitter or upset, to calmly talk about certain issues.

 

We have to grow in humility and patience with one another.

 

If we do that and apply that, we’re going to have unity.  We’re going to be like minded.  We’re all going to have the mind of Christ.

 

Let’s close with one final scripture in II Corinthians 13 and verse 11.  Paul is closing his second letter.  The first one, they had all of these differences and problems and he outlined those problems.  He kicked that man out of the Church and the man repented.  They wanted to bring him back, but yet some people were against him, so now they had another problem and he’s trying to deal with all of this and he’s now saying …

 

II Corinthians 13: 11.  Finally, brethren (Corinthians and us today), farewell.  

 

This is the admonishment he leaves.

 

11b)  Be perfect (mature), be of good comfort (care for one another) be of one mind (that’s got to be the mind of Christ), live in peace (that’s the very name of our Church, the Pacific Church of God.  Pacific means peace),

 

He says if you’ll do that …

 

11c)  the God of love and peace shall be with you.   (KJV)

 

He’s bringing out two characteristics of God.  We know God is love.  We’re told that in the scriptures, but he says also, God of love and of peace.  God is a God of peace.  Do you think God doesn’t sleep at night?  We know God doesn’t sleep, but do you think God is in turmoil, that He couldn’t sleep if He wanted to?  Of course, not.  God is tranquil.  His mind is tranquil.  His mind is at peace and if we have that mind, we will be too.  He says the God of love and peace will be with you if you are of one mind and if you live in peace one with another.

 

So let’s understand that God wants us to attain unity and God wants us to be at peace.  Let’s do that through the mind of Jesus Christ.

 

 

Transcribed by rv

12/19/12