In our modern society, we have allowed unity to be the rally cry of the age. While often gaps do need to be bridged, there are some gaps that should not be. There are some alliances that should not be made. This includes within the church.

There are times when not everyone should be accepted or a part. The apostle Paul is about to warn the believers about this in I Corinthians 11:17-19. Now first, let’s recognize that Paul is not divisive by nature. In fact, the majority of I Corinthians 11, Paul is reprimanding the church of Corinth concerning their unneeded divisions during their time of communion. 

But the divisions the apostle Paul warned them not to create were unneeded divisions. The church of Corinth was celebrating communion and dividing themselves during their feast by social and economic class. The rich were eating lavishly while the poor went hungry. He scolds them, essentially saying, how can you have unity of the gospel but divide yourself economically while you have Christ in common.

Good Divisions

So it is interesting here that he would talk about good division. But the division he says must take place is not division by social class, but by belief or lack thereof. He says that “there must be factions among you.” Why? “In order that those who are genuine among you may be recognized.” 

In other words, there are people among them that do not believe in the gospel of Jesus Christ. They will not believe in the gospel of Jesus Christ. They believe another gospel. There can’t be unity within a body if they don’t have unity in Christ because that is what the time of communion is all about.

This is not to say that there cannot be skeptics or people searching in the church. I’ve written about this before in Why I Love Skeptics in the Church. No one starts out believing without hearing, the apostle Paul says. What we are not talking about is searchers, but those who are opposed to the gospel. They are working against the church. These people should be divided and actually removed.

Final Thoughts

There are times when church division is good. There are times when those who are opposed to the gospel need to be removed. Why? Because they are not working with the church or searching, but just opposing the church. This is a way of protecting the church.

Thanks for taking time to read this Maddening Theology post. If you enjoyed this content you can find Pastor Tim’s sermons at www.cornerstoneforestcity.org. You can also join us at 520 Marion St. Browndale, PA 18421 on Sundays at 10 AM. To make following the blog easier you can also register. You can also join us on Facebook at Cornerstone Forest City. Also, don’t forget to download our APP on iTunes  or Googleplay.