Unity of the church....

I consider myself a very opinionated and passionate person with many convictions. Sometimes I just keep talking and talking and talking. I have a tendency to criticize my church and my pastors when I don't agree with what they are doing, the direction they choose to go, or what is preached on Sundays. Some of the criticism is legitimate and sometimes it isn't. I was recently talking to a friend about this, and she helped me try and understand it from a different perspective and she offered some tips to help me solve my troubles: talk to the pastors, try to understand things from other people's perspective and through our church's mission and vision, and try and make a difference if you see areas of lack in the church.

Recently the church was promoting this new series, and this involved encouraging every small group to take part in a book study. They would preach about it and promote the book on Sundays. I was so against it, that I grumbled about it, and told my cell group not to do it. So far, it looks like they do not want to do it.

But God recently convicted me that I was wrong and that I was destroying the unity of the church. Christ loves the church and died for her. Yes it's true that sometimes we don't agree with things, but there are ways to solve and deal with them. I examined why I was against the idea and I realized that the book's ideas and thoughts were not against God word. I also realized that the Pastor's were really trying to promote the book in service, which meant that it was really important to them. So God convicted me to submit to the elders of the church, plain and simple. It is for my own good, and for the good of the church to submit to them, so long what they tell us to do, does not violate scripture.

Christ died for the church. So I should love the church as much as He does and give it full priority, to help make her the church that God intends her to be, and to promote unity as much as possible.

It's true that we don't have to do everything they say, but we should rely on the Spirit and his word to give us discernment, but in general, we should submit to them out of reverence for Christ. Since I chose to be part of this church, I gave myself willingly to be under the authority of the Pastors, if I don't want to be, I should leave that church, but I'm not going to.

So many other things can destroy the church too: my own sins, other sins, how I treat other believers, and whether or not I make it my priority to edify the church. As it says in scripture, "...Don't you know that a little yeast works through the whole batch of dough?" 1 Cor 5: 6

But what do I do about all my convictions, thoughts, ideas and passions when it comes to the church? Lord, give me wisdom and guidance from your spirit, Holy word and godly counsel to understand how to deal with these things, what to fight for, what to submit to, and how to approach issues I have, in a way that pleases you.

-Amen-