Daily Word – Friday 26 September 2008

The way God designed our bodies is a model for understanding our lives together as a church: every part dependent on every other part, the parts we mention and the parts we don't, the parts we see and the parts we don't. If one part hurts, every other part is involved in the hurt, and in the healing. If one part flourishes, every other part enters into the exuberance.

1 Corinthians 12:20-25 (The Message)

Why is it that we seem to get hung up on our doctrinal differences rather than celebrating the things we have in common?

We all too quickly use words like sect and cult when we disagree on doctrine, but the truth is that as long as we agree that Jesus Christ died on the cross and shed His blood for our redemption, the rest is, more often than not, just mans opinion.

We tend to get into arguments about things like: - if we should hold church on a Saturday or Sunday, or if we should celebrate Christmas and Easter; what we should and should not eat, or whether or not we need to speak in tongues, if, when and how the rapture will happen, and so the list goes on and on and on.

We have to remember that our salvation and our relationship with Jesus is personal, and so too is His word, and the way He speaks to us and works in our life!

We are one body and Christ is our head and so we need to concentrate on loving and encouraging one another, celebrating that which we have in common, and leave the rest for God to deal with.

Why do we presume to think that the God of the cosmos is unable to direct and correct his children? And why do we think we have the right to do His job, thinking that because God has worked in our lives in a certain way, He must work the same way in everyone elses life!

Our responsibility is to ‘believe in the Lord Jesus Christ’, place our lives into His hands and walk in love with those around us. HE WILL DO THE REST!!!

Stay fervently focused,

Much love

Chrissy