Two Sides

Read Galatians 1:15-2:10.

Two sides will line up against each other night. Each will try to convince you that their side, their viewpoint is right, and for 90 minutes, they will debate the major and minor issues of the day. Likely, both will try to come up with and use some "zinger" sound bites that will replay over and over again on social media for the next few weeks. But at the end of the evening, rest assured, there will still be two sides. Our country is divided into many "sides" these days. We see it erupt in our city streets with violence. Last week, I made a post questioning whether one form of violence ever is really the answer to other violence. I wasn't attempting to make a political statement. I was trying more to reflect a teacher of the past who said, "Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that." And more than that, I was thinking of another teacher even further back who told us to love our enemies (Matthew 5:44), and even told his disciples that violence was not the way (Luke 9:54-55). Even so, a sign of our theological and political divisions crept up on my page as I was accused of demonstrating "white privilege" and an uncaring attitude. By colleagues in ministry. Brothers in the faith. We are divided. Two sides, at least.  I thought of that again as I read this morning of Paul's relationship with the Jerusalem church. He describes the early days in his own words in his letter to the Galatians. He talks ever so briefly about his conversion, and then his determination to work out his theology directly in prayer with Jesus. But then the time did come where Paul went to Jerusalem, not, it seems, looking so much for affirmation from those who were recognized as early leaders. Rather, Paul seems to be seeking to make sure that what he teaches is in line with what has been taught since the time of Jesus, that he and the Jerusalem church are not working at cross purposes. They may be reaching different people, different audiences, but they still needed to be unified in the big issues. They were, after all, serving the same Lord, the same cause. We claim to all want the same thing in our churches, in our country, but there is very little evidence of it. We seem intent on tearing down the very fabric of our nation so that "my way" can be seen to be right. But the core of who we are is unity amidst diversity. Anyone ever heard of e pluribus unum--out of many, one? In the words of John Wesley, “Though we cannot think alike, may we not love alike? May we not be of one heart, though we are not of one opinion? Without all doubt, we may." The same thing is true in our churches. (In fact, Wesley was referring to the churches when he said that.) We're so intent on building our church, and proving why ours is better than others, that we forget we serve the same Lord. Unity in the midst of diversity. Loving one another. Can we save our country or will we literally tear each other apart? Can the church be better than the world around us? Only if we follow the example of Paul who learned to love others from the one who loved us all the way to the cross.