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Power Failure

1 Corinthians 1

10: Now I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, by the name of our Lord

Jesus Christ, that all of you be in agreement and that there be no

divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the

same purpose.

11: For it has been reported to me by Chloe’s people

that there are quarrels among you, my brothers and sisters.

12: What I mean is that each of you says, “I belong to Paul,” or “I belong to Apollos,” or “I belong to

Cephas,” or “I belong to Christ.”

13: Has Christ been divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the

name of Paul?

14: I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, 15: so that no

one can say that you were baptized in my name. ...

17 For Christ did not send me to baptize but to proclaim the gospel, and not with eloquent wisdom, so

that the cross of Christ might not be emptied of

its power.

Paul’s world was divided.

Jew and Greek. Male and female. Rich and poor. Slave and

free. Corinth was no exception. But the Church in Corinth

was supposed to be an exception. It was supposed to offer

an alternative—a sense of community where everyone

could connect and belong. But something went badly

wrong. By carving out turf in the Church, Paul’s converts

were replicating the divisions in society and making genuine

fellowship impossible.

The Paul-party supported the founding apostle and his

teaching. The Apollos-assembly preferred more eloquent

and educated speakers. The Cephas-sect rallied around

Jesus’ right hand man, Peter the Rock. And the Christ-camp

may have been the most troublesome of all. We can imagine

an enthused elite taking its cue from Jesus alone and looking

down on others.

Sound familiar? Have you noticed how we rate speakers

as if they were film stars, idolise worship leaders as if

they were rock stars, and critique sermons as if they were

movies? It’s not wrong, of course, to favour certain traditions

and preachers. But to form fan clubs around speakers and

teachings—that is decidedly Corinthian! And the results are

appalling.

The word translated “division” in verse 10 means a tear,

as in a frayed cloth. It’s like a new patch sown on an old

garment. It tugs and pulls at the fabric until something finally

gives. Paul appeals that there be no tear among us. Unity

means holding together. You may disagree with someone

or something in your church. But you don’t have to rip away.

There is an alternative. You can stretch. It may hurt. But

ripping hurts you and others even more.

Have you ever experienced a brown out? It’s like a black

out, only the lights don’t go black. They go brown. It happens

often in developing nations. Someone turns on an appliance and all the lights

go dim, casting a sickly brown hue over everything. Paul sounds the alarm:

Human ideas and hero worship divide the Church and drain the Cross of its

power (1:17). The result? Spiritual brown out. The solution? Verse 10: “that all of

you be in agreement and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be

united in the same mind and the same purpose.”

PRAY.

■ “We have learned to fly the air like birds and swim the sea like fish, but we

have not learned the simple art of living together as brothers” [MARTIN LUTHER KING].

Think about sectors of society that we as Christians are generally prejudiced

against, consciously or unconsciously. Repent of any discriminatory act that

has been carried out, tolerated or dismissed as trivial.

■ Big on God’s heart are unity and reconciliation. Are we modelling this in our

city? How are we in terms of the classic divides between conservative and

charismatic, Chinese-speaking and English-speaking, big boy and small fry,

church and agency, local and foreign, male and female, young and old, rich

and poor? How is the public reading us? Time to repent from our pride and

prejudice.

■ The Lord detests those who sow discord (Proverbs 6:19). This calls for serious self

examination: Am I a divider or a unifier? Do I relish magnifying differences?

Am I in the habit of making comparisons? Am I chronic church-hopper, chasing

after eloquent speakers and entertaining ‘worship’? Have I idolised some and

despised others? Have I badmouthed and undermined those who do not see

eye to eye with me? Ask God to expose our blind spots and the character flaws

in our own lives that have contributed to the ripping of the Body. Let’s repent of

our shameful ways.

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Comment by Peter TAN on July 7, 2010 at 9:21am: Hi Sisters, you're most welcome! Sometimes, it does saddens me to be with a church (previously) that is "separated" by sect(s) of different social status and some "holier than thou" individuals. This is a clear sign that the children of God are allowing the evil-one to divide us, to sow discord and rip-apart the Body consciously or unconsciously . . .

Yes, the Son of God "came to serve, and not to be served". This is the essence of the Kingdom of God. I imagine seeing God face-to-face one day, and he will surely asked me: How many people have YOU served, not just how many people served YOU?! I will be mindful of this question for the rest of my life.

In my 40-days (LOVE S'PORE) journey of fast & pray, I am mindful that I too, am guilty of pointing fingers at others. Let us repent from our pride, prejudice and our shameful ways.

To God be the glory! ;-)

Comment by Sharon Theresa Theil on July 7, 2010 at 1:13am: Thank you! You are a Blessing!

Power Failure

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