God Hates Division

1 Cor 1:10-17

Pick 4 songs and divide church into 4 parts. This is one verse, could you imagine every song like that? Could you imagine if it was like this every week? Would our worship be what God intended it? This is exactly the situation that Paul was so angry with in our text. There is a time we may need to divide, but it should be the most rare of occurrences and only as a very last resort.

PRAYER

I. Called to be Holy

A. Paul writes a letter

1. Imagine Paul sitting at his desk reading a letter that had just come in on the ship from Corinth. In it Cloe tells him of the hardships going on in the congregation.

2. she talks about their divisions that are tearing the church apart.

3. She addresses some issues they are struggling with and that they need help finding the answers.

4. She goes on to give personal news of many who were near and dear to his heart at Corinth.

5. But he can’t get past that part of the letter about divisions.

6. He knows these people. He helped lead many of them to Christ.

7. What is wrong with them, don’t they see what they are doing?

8. And so, he picks up a piece of paper and begins to write a letter to the congregation in Corinth.

B. Paul reminds them of what they are in verses 1-3 READ

1. church of God

a) this is a group that belongs to God

2. Sanctified

a) They belong to God because they have been set apart by accepting and submitting to the sacrifice of Jesus Christ

3. Called to be holy

a) In accepting that gift, they were to be holy, or focused on God more than anything else.

b) They were to follow God’s perfect will.

4. That’s who you are.

C. Paul sets them up for bad news

1. Paul must have been in my business writing class. I remember learning that when you have to write a disciplinary letter, that you were to start it out by expressing the good the person has done or is doing. After thanking them and praising the good you then deal with the bad that has to be dealt with. At the close you again address the good that the person has exemplified.

2. My professor said with that approach, you are much more likely to get a positive response from the person than if you just went into a vitriolic tirade on their bad behavior whatever negative issue you were dealing with.

3. READ 16:19-24

II. Division in the Church

A. 4 in 1

1. Paul begins a discussion that lasts for 4 chapters of this book by identifying the factions in the church

2. That’s 25% of the book on this one issue. That alone tells you how concerned he is about the situation.

3. There were 4 groups that seemed to exist in the congregation; all feeling superior to the others.

4. Each group is basically saying our man is our pope!

5. Even the group that followed Christ was probably wrong in that they were probably claiming to follow the man rather than the savior.

B. Why is division bad?

1. If this church or any church had those kinds of factions in it, why wouldn’t it be better just to split up and go our separate ways?

2. Isn’t that the way the modern church deals with disagreements?

3. Paul answers that thought in 13

a) Is Christ divided?

b) Can anyone else save you but the Christ?

c) The obvious answer is no.

4. Team analogy

a) The U.S. Olympic basketball team a few years back was nearly eliminated from the world games because everyone on the team wanted to be the superstar. They wouldn’t pass, wouldn’t play together, they wanted all the glory for themselves. Because of that attitude they were beaten by teams that they should have absolutely destroyed and became a source of derision among the American fans because of there self-centered attitudes.

b) Just as a sports team has no place for factions neither should the church. And, when we do, the cause of Christ suffers for it.

5. I have often wondered what Christ thinks when he looks at all those who claim to follow him and sees the divisions that keep us fighting each other rather than Satan?

III. Is Baptism Important?

A. The “Baptism isn’t important” text

1. Many people point to this text to say that baptism is a good thing, but no essential like we make it to be.

2. If it was essential, then Paul would have been proud to have baptized as many as he could have of this congregation.

B. Context of the text

1. Why was Paul writing this letter?

a) Because there were divisions in the church and one group was using him as their significant person.

b) If he was writing to tell them that divisions based on man was wrong, then of course he would play down his part in baptizing people, because he wasn’t important, the savior was.

2. Paul makes the claim that it isn’t being baptized BY a specific person that matter but being baptized INTO Christ that matters.

C. Conclusion

1. Paul begins this letter with a direct assault on division.

2. How can we ever be a family if all we do is fight and divide?

3. More importantly, how can God be glorified if all we do is fight and divide?

4. Our congregation has been blessed with very little strife over its history and we have never had a split.

5. If we continue to follow God’s will, and keep him our number 1 focus, we never will.