Where Is The Love…A House Divided
Posted on July 9, 2011 by S. Thurston
“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:34-35)
And knowing their thoughts Jesus said to them, “Any kingdom divided against itself is laid waste ; and any city or house divided against itself will not stand. ” (Matthew 12:25)
There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling ; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all. (Ephesians 4:4-6)
And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ. As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming ; but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ, from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love. (Ephesians 4:11-16)
To get straight to the point, something is wrong. Something is very very wrong. We claim to be Christians. We smile in each other’s faces. We even create cliques of churches, commonly known as associations of churches. We organize these cliques at the national, state, and local levels. As individual believers, congregations, and associations, we all claim to be followers of Jesus Christ. All claim to do the work of the Lord.
Yet…
Amongst the African American (Black American) community, it is normal for churches to be in competition with one another, and not work together because of a desire for their name to be on the marquee. And as we peer inside of so many and so many of these churches, we find all forms of hatred, greed, lust, and religious hypocracy taking place. We find people that call themselves Pastors, being served instead of being servers of which Jesus commanded them to be, we find such ministers lording themselves over the flock of the Lord in disobedience to what the LORD commanded. And we find such ministers allowing themselves to be glorifed and worshipped instead of directing all worship and glory unto the Lord Jesus Christ.
All such things, on the part of such individuals, congregations, and ministers, have either destroyed or otherwise diminished the impact of Jesus Christ on a person’s life. And before the very eyes of the Most High God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, His children are being destroyed in the very neighborhoods that His house resides. And because of this foolishness that we do, it is no wonder that so many who would come to Jesus Christ for forgiveness, salvation, and deliverance instead turn around and walk back out and into the world.
And anyone that tries to say that these things are not true, need only look at the statistics regarding the overall condition of Black people in this country. Despite all the government programs and monies spent on black people, to address these issues, we are still at the top of the charts in unemployment, displacement, murder, incarceration, aids, cancer, heart disease, poverty, drug addictions, crimes, ect. We are still at the bottom of the list in areas like education.
And if nothing else has proven more true, it is this…
We can spend all the money we want on these issues, but without Lord Jesus Christ, we are wasting our time. Without us coming together in true godly love, working as one body in Jesus Christ, as He commanded us to do, without this, we will truly be destroyed. Destroyed not by the white man, not by the government, not by “they”, but instead by our lack of faith in God, and our deficient belief in the ability for Jesus Christ to enable us to be used by God to address the issues His children face on earth.
The issue is this. If we cannot truly recognized that because of what Jesus Christ did for us on that tree, where He died and bled so that we may be forgiven, saved unto eternal life, and delivered from the bondage of sin, then nothing else we do in this life will matter nor bear fruit.
It is imparative that we realize that through the blood of Jesus Christ, and through His blood alone, do we have the ability to love one another and work together as our Father in heaven directed us to in Ephesians chapter 4.
We must recognize that it will not be by our strength nor ability that we can solve the problems that face us. It is only through Lord Jesus that such can be done. That is why Jesus tells us in John 14:5-6 and John 15:4-9, respectively:
Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going, how do we know the way ?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life ; no one comes to the Father but through Me.”
“Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. “I am the vine, you are the branches ; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing . “If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away as a branch and dries up; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire and they are burned. “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. “My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples. “Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love.”
The most beautiful thing, about all this, is spoken to us by the Lord in Romans 5:8-9,
But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him.
This means that not only can those of us, who are guilty of the things spoken of earlier, be forgiven; we can also come to love one another, work together as Christ Jesus intended, and address and resolve the problems we and our people face, all through the power and authority of Lord Jesus Christ.
The Lord tells us how in 2 Chronicles 7:14,
“if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.”
Let us all be able to know in our heart of hearts, as Paul says in Philippians 4:12-13,
I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity ; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.
Let us enable, through Lord Jesus Christ, the children of God to say, while in the midst of trials and tribulations, pains and persecutions, “I will lift up my eyes to the mountains ; From where shall my help come ? My help comes from the LORD, Who made heaven and earth. He will not allow your foot to slip ; He who keeps you will not slumber.”
Knowing, as the LORD tells us in 1John5:4-5,
For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world–our faith. Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?
So that at the end of our days, we can say as Paul said in 2Timothy4:7-8,
I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.
For the glory of the Most High God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
AMEN
