One Yet Different
We began a new combined adult Bible class last Sunday morning. We wanted everyone to attend because we are discussing a topic so important and relevant that we didn’t want anyone to miss it. The title – in many ways – says it all! One Yet Different. Our country is rift with divisiveness and polarized positions that seem so far apart that unity appears to be a lost commodity. Democracy is built on compromising, but no one wants to compromise. Politics is supposed to be a tool for positive change, but politics is fueling the division rather than healing it. On the short list of options for how to deal with social ills, the only one that is a true answer is Jesus. Only in Jesus can we be one, even with many things that make us different. In Christ, even a division spanning centuries of anger and prejudice that caused Jews and Gentiles to refuse to walk on the same side of the street could be united. In Christ, a gender divide that turned women into possessions, slaves, and voiceless members of society turned male and female in to ONE. In Christ, one of the most egregious social divisions in history – slavery – turned bond and free into ONE. In Christ, every Child of God is made part of Abraham’s descendants and equal members of the covenant with God.(Galatians 3:28) That is the principle of unity in Christ! Our job, as His children, is to make sure it’s a reality and not just theological theory!
We began last Sunday by looking at The Beauty of Difference & The Beast of Division. Like the old song says, “Everything is beautiful, in its own way.” We either learn or decide to see something different as ugly, only because we choose to! Every class will examine three fundamental elements: Difference, Division, and Decision. Difference is a fact! It’s God-made and makes us uniquely beautiful! But somewhere – someone told us that different was less, unequal, and undeserving – and we made the decision to buy into it. Jesus calls on us to rise above that kind of thinking and see each other as ONE in Him! We must show the world that love covers a multitude of differences – just it it does with a multitude of sins.
We are not trying to solve the social ills that plague our times. We want to show the world what it means to be guided by Jesus and His love. Come and join us this Sunday and the following Sundays through June. This Sunday, at 9:00 AM and merging with our assembly at 10:00, we are looking at Joe & Joey Christian – what does Jesus want us to be. It is the last part of establishing our foundation for the rest of the classes. We will be looking at Generational, Racial, Gender, and Neighborhood differences in the remaining weeks. Again – not what our society should do, but what we need to do as a family of God to show the way. We’d love to have you be part of this great study and adventure.
