Sermon – 1 Corinthians 1:1-9 - “Divisions in the Church”

Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard
Pitts Creek and Beaver Dam Presbyterian Churches
Sermon – 1 Corinthians 1:1-9 - “Divisions in the Church”
January 23, 2011

Today we are continuing with our look at the a letter from the Apostle Paul to the church at Corinth. Paul knows the people of this church well having established the church five years before. But Paul has receive disturbing news of what is happening at the Corinthian church and this letter is his response. Last week we looked at the beginning of the letter where Paul gives thanks to God for all the blessings that have enriched the Corinthian church. Today we will be looking at some of the problem facing this church. But first, let's pray.

“Grant unto us, O Lord, to be occupied in the mysteries of thy Heavenly wisdom, with true progress in piety, to thy glory and our own edification. Amen.” (John Calvin)
10 I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought. 11 My brothers, some from Chloe's household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. 12 What I mean is this: One of you says, "I follow Paul"; another, "I follow Apollos"; another, "I follow Cephas"; still another, "I follow Christ." 13 Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized into the name of Paul? 14 I am thankful that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius, 15 so no one can say that you were baptized into my name. 16 (Yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I don't remember if I baptized anyone else.) 17 For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel-- not with words of human wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. 18 For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

Conflict! There's not supposed to be any conflict in churches. We all love each other. How could there be strife and division within the church? But here it is in the New Testament. The Corinthian church is divided into factions. There seems to be a problem with baptisms. And some are even denying that Jesus died on the cross. These issues have split the church. Conflicts and divisions have continued plaguing churches for two thousand years. And Presbyterian church is not immune to this problem.

Just thirty years after Francis Makemie helped establish the first presbytery in Philadelphia the Presbyterian church faced its first conflict and division. It was the 1730s and the Great Awakening had come to America. The itinerant preaching of George Whitefield and others was causing people to weep, faint, scream, and go into epileptic seizures in worship. Some Presbyterians who wanted to hold faith and reason together decently and in order were concerned about the “enthusiasts”. The church divided into New Side Presbyterians, supporting the new pietism, and Old Side Presbyterians who found the changes suspect. This division lasted a generation until God was able to work on the hearts of God's people and the Presbyterian church reunited when the differences no longer seemed so large.

But then a new crises hit the church. The country was growing westward. Missionaries where sent to establish new churches and an agreement was reached between the Presbyterian and Congregational churches to work together in this evangelization effort. As a result new Congregational pastors would arrive at churches run by the elders. And Presbyterian pastors would take churches where the congregation ruled things. And churches back east found themselves supporting new churches with different governing styles. New School Presbyterians accepted all of this. Old School Presbyterians wanted to maintain elder rule in churches. Once again the church split until God has time to work on our hearts and reunite us when we realized that our differences were not that great.

But then the greatest division ever occurred in the Presbyterian Church. It was 1861 and the issue was slavery. Southern Presbyterians argued that the Bible never tells slave owners to free their slaves. They are only told to treat them properly. Northern Presbyterians said that we are commanded to love our neighbors, and no one can love someone and keep that person as a slave. In 1861 the church divided over this issue. And it took 122 years for God to work on our hearts until we could reach a consensus that slavery is wrong and in 1983 the church was finally reunited.

Conflicts within the Presbyterian church continued in the 20th century. Some where fearful that the writings of Darwin called into question that validity of our faith in God and in God's creation. Many wanted the Presbyterian church to specifically define the essential tenants, the fundamentals, of our faith. Others wanted to understand faith in a way that was more consistent with science and began looking at scripture taking into account its historical context and its genre and language. These challenges divided the church until God worked on our hearts through institutions like Fuller Seminary that taught us that thinking and reason are not incompatible with biblical faith.

The Presbyterian has Church been divided for the last fifty years over the issue of the ordination of women as elders and ministers of the word and sacrament. Some still argue that Paul said women should be silent in church. While other see the enormous contribution that women have made to our faith. Even Paul commended Junia, a woman, as an apostle. This division continues to this day as the Presbyterian Church in America will not ordain women to these roles while the Presbyterian Church USA encourages women to taken leadership positions in our church.

The current conflict in the Presbyterian Church USA is over the ordination of homosexuals as deacons, elders and ministers of the word and sacrament. Some point out that the Bible is critical of homosexual behavior and we should not ordain what the Bible condemns. Others point out that our culture has begun to accept homosexuality as a legitimate lifestyle and claim that no one under 30 would ever join an organization that they perceive as being anti-gay. Should we ordain practicing homosexuals as deacons, elders and ministers of the word and sacrament? This question comes before the General Assembly every two years. We are roughly evenly divided on the answer. Whichever side we choose churches on the other side will probably leave the denomination. God had not yet worked on our hearts to bring us together on this one.

Maybe we can learn from history. Once before we faced a similar crises over the issue of ordination. It was 1789 and the Presbyterian Church was organizing into a national denomination. Regional synods were coming together. And pastors from different synods were being examined on their faith before becoming pastors in the Presbyterian Church USA. The standard of faith they used was the Westminster Confession. The Westminster Confession says, “Those of mankind that are predestined unto life, God … hath chosen in Christ, unto everlasting glory” (6.018). That's the good news, we are chosen by God.. But the Westminster Confession also says, “The rest of mankind, God was pleased, … to pass by, and to ordain them to dishonor and wrath for their sin” (6.020). This is called double predestination, God has chose some for salvation and some for damnation. Many Presbyterian pastors in 1789 could not accept double predestination and argued that nowhere in scripture does it say that God chooses some for condemnation. They argued that God offers salvation to all who repent. The church had to decided what to about all the pastors who could not, in good conscience, accept the Westminster standards.

The church decided, given this division, that God had not yet given them clear knowledge of what to do. So they decided on this plan. Any pastor who could not fully accept the Westminster Confession of Faith would state this to the church. This was called a scruple. And the presbytery would listen to the scruple together with the statement of faith of the pastor and his biography and they would prayerfully ask God if this particular person was being called as a minister in the new denomination. This let God decide who should be ordained and who should not. This worked and our church became open to theological reform, but only after a period of prayerful discernment of God's will.

There are some arguing that the same solution would work in our current situation. If we decide to either ordain homosexuals or not the church will be divided. So we need to engage in a period of prayerful discernment asking God what we should do. If a practicing homosexual experiences a call from God to ordained ministry the session or presbytery should pray and ask God what to do, and then follow God where God leads. In other words we let God decide for us. And the hope is that through this process God will work on our hearts and eventually bring us to consensus on this divisive issue.

This is the issue facing the church today. Last summer the 219th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church USA adopted language that would replace language in the Book of Order that prohibits practicing homosexuals from serving in ordained offices in the church with language that sessions and presbyteries should prayerfully evaluate each instance in the light of scripture and our confessions of faith. If a majority of presbyteries approve this change it will become effective, if not then the current language prohibiting homosexual ordination will remain. Last Tuesday New Castle Presbytery, approved the change. We will know in a few weeks whether it passes or not. Many fear that this change will allow practicing homosexuals to serve in ordained offices. Those fears might be realized. Others fear that we have not opened our doors wide enough. What we can be sure of is that God is working on our hearts and one day Presbyterians will wonder why we were so divided.

Father in heaven, our church is divided. American culture is beginning to accept homosexuality as a legitimate lifestyle. Many are asking why we do not ordain homosexuals to the offices of deacon, elder and minister of the word and sacrament. Faithful people disagree on how to answer this question. So we ask for guidance. Shape our hearts around yours so that your will be done. Amen.