 Team
You have probably heard the saying, “There is no I in team.” The point of that phrase is that we must work together to accomplish many things. This is, of course, true. Another phrase I have heard repeated often is, “We can do more together, than we can apart.” This is also true. We are created by God to be social and communal creatures. Even in the Biblical account of creation, God states that it is not good for man to be alone (Genesis 2:18). While this is referring directly to the covenant relationship of marriage, marriage is the fundamental building block undergirding all of society. God did not intend us to be lone wolves or small bands, including only those who are just like us. However, something must distinguish us from others or there really isn’t an “us” at all. Since this is the case, how should we define our unity? Certainly there is no “I” in the word “team” but there is a team. My point is simply that you must be able to recognize the players on both teams. So while I want to acknowledge and celebrate those who are on my team, I also must not forget that not everyone is on my team. Open Minded When someone starts defining who belongs on which team (especially theologically) many will start to criticize them for not being open minded enough. These rather noble and sophisticated critics want to help us backward thinkers understand the nuance and beauty of being open to new experiences and to the wisdom that others have gained from their standpoint and culture. The problem however with an open mind is that it cannot ever come to a conviction or principled stand on any matter. While I do think that we all need to interact with more humility and less pugnaciousness, this does not mean that we should not be willing to take a convictional stand and let that stand divide us as it will. Humility does not mean that we should not also stand boldly for the truth even in fellowship with other true Christians. I would remind you that the Apostle Paul opposed the Apostle Peter to his face when Peter’s practice was not in line with the gospel (Galatians 2:11-14). Sound Mind Brethren, we must be of sound mind. Our problem is that we are still in a state of recovery from our sinful past. As such, we need our minds renewed by the perfect word of God (Romans 12:2). Here, Paul points out that we are made into God honoring and life sacrificing disciples of Jesus Christ. Paul also told Titus that this renewal was spiritual and could only be accomplished by the power and working of the Holy Spirit (Titus 3:5). We need our thoughts redesigned by the Holy Spirit and redirected by the Scriptures so that we can discern the world around us from a biblical perspective. We are blinded by our sight. We see all kinds of things around us and forget the truth that can only be seen by faith. We need minds that are not simply open to any wind of doctrine (Ephesians 4:14) but are setted on the truth which God has finally and infallibly revealed in the Bible. Same Mind Beloved, rather than unity for unity’s sake, what we need is like-mindedness. Thankfully, the Lord has established groups where we can find this kind of agreement and fidelity. Those groups are called local churches. I take a view that is probably pretty strange in our day, that denominations are good. Most people assume that denominations are a sign of weakness in Christianity, because just look how divided we are. But what if, in the system of denominations that we have, we actually have diversity in Christendom, but unity in the churches. I believe that the best thing for the Kingdom of God in the world is for each and every true gospel preaching, Bible believing church to be united in their doctrinal conviction and fraternal fellowship. This means that we should never be willing to sacrifice the unity and commitment of the local congregation for some kind of larger ecumenism. I am a Baptist, and as such, I believe in the autonomous local church and the need of cooperation in our mission with other churches to reach the lost and disciple the nations, but those goals will be best accomplished by strong and united local churches.
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