What should be the basis of unity? Will just any unity suffice? Jesus prayed to God for unity of His followers by saying “that they all might be one” (John 17:21). How are we to be one? In His same prayer Jesus gives the basis for unity by saying “Sanctify them by your truth, your word is truth” (John 17:17). Unity can only be based on God’s word of truth as found only in the Bible. The problem in today’s denominational world is men have added to and taken away from God’s word with their many differing creeds. Human opinion is made equal and superior to the word of God. We are warned in Revelation 22:18-19 if we add to or take away from God’s word, we will lose our souls. The denominational world with all of its disunity is exactly what Satan wants. The word denomination comes from a root word which means division. Denominationalism is a betrayal of Christ.

Paul tells us how to have Biblical unity. “Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and same judgment” (1 Corinthians 1:10). In order to have the same mind and same judgment we must have only the same beliefs and practices as found only in the New Testament. We must limit what we do to be saved and what we do in worship to only what God has authorized in scripture. This is the only way to have the unity for which Christ prayed and for which Paul pleaded. Throughout the Bible man’s worship and service to God was either accepted or rejected depending on man’s obedience to God’s commands (Genesis 4:4-5, Leviticus 10:1-2).

There can be no unity between those who follow human opinion and those who follow only the word of God as found in the Bible. We are commanded, “Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness?…Therefore come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord” (2 Corinthians 6:14, 17). Here we are forbidden to have unity with those who follow the false doctrines of men.

How can the denominational world defend their many differing doctrines when they cannot justify them scripturally? They can’t. In trying to justify what one does he asks, “Is it a salvation issue?” In other words, “Does it really matter?” If one can shift the focus then there is no necessity in proving or defending one’s unscriptural practice. Anything that differs from God’s word is sin and sin is a salvation issue, “For the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). In speaking of the doctrine of Christ, “If anyone comes to you and does not bring this doctrine, do not receive him into your house nor greet him; for he who greets him shares in his evil deeds” (2 John 10-11). Let’s not share in the evil deeds of the denominational world in joining with them or giving them any encouragement in their evil deeds. If we do, we will be spending eternity with them.

-Ron Boatwright

Article from http://www.netbiblestudy.net/bulletin/ which has links to many other resources for personal Bible study.

– Jerry D. Sturgill

Jeremiah was a prophet who experienced great hardship. If we had to undergo the trials Jeremiah faced, we would likely not hold up as well as he did. We would find it hard to be joyful. Even residents of his hometown, Anathoth, were plotting to murder him. When the prophet grew impatient and complained to God about his wicked persecutors, God promised He would punish them (Jer. 11:21-23). Yet, God also gave Jeremiah a challenge for greater faith, asking, “If you have run with the footmen, and they have wearied you, then how can you contend with horses? And if in the land of peace, in which you trusted, they wearied you, then how will you do in the floodplain of the Jordan?” (Jer. 12:5).

Jeremiah had become wearied or impatient with the footmen. False prophets who said Judah would never be destroyed contended with Jeremiah who preached the truth that God would use Babylon to punish Judah for her sins. God said of these false prophets, “I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran. I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied” (Jer. 23:21). The false prophets who contended with Jeremiah gave him a good run and caused him to become weary. Yet, things were about to get worse.

Jeremiah was wearied when the land of Judah was still “a land of peace,” but soon Babylon would come with a flood of cavalry. The Hebrew word translated “contend” in Jeremiah 12:5 means to “become hot” or “angry;” it seems to refer to a heated race. Jeremiah had not seen anything yet. Soon, he would race horses.

Who can win a footrace with a horse? Oddly enough, there are annual races in our world that test this very question. Since 1980 an annual horse vs. man marathon has been held near Llanwrtyd Wells, a town in Wales. Only twice (2004 and 2007) has a human won—when weather conditions were particularly hot. In our own country, Prescott, AZ hosts an annual “Man Against Horse” race with distances up to 50 miles. Humans seem to have a better chance at winning the hotter the weather and the longer the distance.

Sometimes we must go through a “fiery trial” (1 Pet. 4:12). No matter how hard life gets, it could always be worse. God tested His people in ancient times in the “furnace of affliction” (Isa. 48:10). Today, we go through tests of our faith as well. Yet, we must not give up. We must remember that the Christian life is an endurance race (Heb. 12:1). We must not grow weary in doing good (Gal. 6:9; 2 Thess. 3:13). Keep fighting the good fight and keeping the faith until your race is finished and you receive the crown of righteousness at the last day (2 Tim. 4:7-8).

-Mark Day

            With the changes that have recently taken place in our lives, one that has stood above the rest is not seeing my brothers and sisters in Christ on a weekly basis. The truth is most of us have not appreciated the blessing of communing with our Lord regularly until now. What I miss most is what the Church has been doing since it was established (Acts 2:41-42). How we long to return to God and one another! Part of God’s plan for the Church was for us to encourage one another when we meet (1 Thess. 5:11-13). Though we are not meeting physically currently, we can still encourage one another in different ways. Take heart that we are not the first to be in this position. In fact, God’s people spent a majority of their time longing to return as well.

            While in Egypt, Israel longed for God like we could never understand. They were in bondage; unable to enjoy the freedoms we are blessed with (Ex. 2:23-25). They certainly were not allowed to worship God as He desired while in Egypt. Moses was sent to Pharaoh so that the Israelites could go into the desert and sacrifice to the Lord (Ex. 5:3). They were not allowed to worship God, but instead were given more work by Pharaoh (Ex. 5:8b-9). Later on, Pharaoh desired to compromise with Moses. Pharaoh would allow them to worship in Egypt, but would not allow them to go into the wilderness. This compromise was not acceptable to God and therefore was turned down; Israel was still unable to worship (Ex. 8:25-27). We long to open these doors once again, but could you imagine the longing these Israelites must have had for God? How blessed we are!

            The Psalms are full of writers who were longing for God (Ps. 42:1-2; 63:1; 73:25; 119:20; 119:81; 143:6-7). It is fair to say this is a continuous theme throughout. One Psalmist in particular highlighted his unrelenting desire to return to worship God with his people (Ps. 122). David sought to worship God (vs. 1-3) and to be with his people in Jerusalem (vs. 4-9). In the Old Covenant, the Jews were commanded to meet together only three times a year for festivals (Ex. 34:23; Deut. 16:16). The synagogues were not established till Israel was taken into captivity, meaning there were no weekly assemblies during the time of David. The three times a year that David went to the house of the Lord were special to him! Now that we are unable to worship God on a weekly basis, when things return to normal, will they be special to us?

            During Israel’s time in the promise land, they did not long for God as they ought to. They instead worshiped idols and false gods (Judg. 2:11-14; 2 Kgs. 17:10-23). All the way up to their exile and Jerusalem’s destruction, Israel forsook God (Jer. 44:1-22). Yet, when God allowed the Israelites to return from exile, they longed to serve Him (Ezra 6:19-22; 7:10; 8:21-23; 10:1-ff). When Nehemiah brought another wave of exiles back to Jerusalem, they showed a new dedication to keeping God’s Law that their forefathers never did (Neh. 8:1-12). They longed to keep God’s word, how about you?

            These are certainly unprecedented times we are currently in, but take heart that we are not the first to long for normalcy to return. The Israelites in Egypt, David, and the exiled Jews longed for God. They were unable to meet for a time but when the opportunity arose, they appreciated the time they had with God and each other even more. Will you have a new appreciation for God and His people when the Church gathers again? It is my prayer that this short time away from one another will magnify the importance of the Church coming together when we are able (Heb. 10:24-25).

–Brandon Foresha

When we are faced with a challenge in life, we need wisdom in order to navigate the situation. God has promised to help us to acquire true wisdom if we are willing to seek Him and ask for it, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him” (James 1:5). There is a wisdom of this world, but this is not what God gives. In the centuries leading up to the time of the New Testament, the Greeks were known for their philosophy— literally, love of wisdom. In 1 Corinthians 1:21-25, Paul wrote:

For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

Worldly wisdom does not necessarily bring one to a knowledge of God; in fact, it may be a hindrance to saving faith.

When James speaks of the wisdom God gives, he is referring to a spiritually upright walk that glorifies God, a wisdom that shines forth in the midst of trials. The world has always had its “wise men” who in their self-interest are motivated by envy and live morally bankrupt lives. However, God’s wisdom produces righteous motives that produce harmony with God and others. Consider how James elaborates on the difference in James 3:13-18:

Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom. But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic. For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there. But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

Now more than ever we need this wisdom from above. While God promises to give it to those who ask in faith, that does not mean we do not have to work for it. We are taught to pray, “Give us this day our daily bread” (Mt. 6:11); yet, even though the Lord provides sun, rain, and a multitude of blessings we could not provide on our own, we must still labor so that we may eat (2 Thess. 3:10). Likewise, we must apply effort to learn from God’s word and the experiences of life in order to gain true wisdom. Lord, give us your true wisdom from above, that we may become more like you through each challenge of life.

-Mark Day