The Three Unnamed Sins, or Spiritual Unity, not Uniformity.

I was recently talking with a friend about unity in the Christian churches, and how so often we go to either of the two extremes: we either throw everyone out who doesn't believe exactly as we do in both primary and secondary doctrines, or we accept everyone into our midst, even if they believe differently than we do on primary doctrines; such things like salvation, etc.

There is a difference between unity, and uniformity; and too often we confuse the two. As a church we are called to be one, as our God is one: "One Lord, One faith, One baptism." True unity is being one with our Father and Savior and his Spirit, and with each other. The prayer of Jesus to his Father was "That they may be one, even as We are one."

However, we often mistake this Christian unity with uniformity, where we all have to think, act and look alike in every aspect of our lives. Many use this belief to teach that if someone is spiritually mature that person will think like they do, and if you do not agree, then you are not at the level of spiritual maturity that they are.

This is not biblical teaching. There is no such thing as levels in spiritual maturity, but rather depths in our walk with the Lord. As we walk with him, and become closer in our relationship with him, he leads us deeper in his word and in our commitment with him. However, this is different for each person. God deals with all of us in different ways at different times, just like anyone being taught something for the first time. When someone is just learning about construction, or medicine, or the culinary arts, they are not taught all 1,000 or 5,000 or 10,000 things that there are to know in that area, but rather slowly but surely they will continue to learn new things in their process of being taught.

The same applies to our Christian walk with the Lord. Convictions someone may have may not be the same as what another person does. And that is okay. God in his infinite wisdom works in each of us as He sees fit. The process he used on Elijah, on Elisha, and on Samuel where all different...they had different backgrounds, different cultures, and a different purpose and calling to fulfill...but they all served the same God!! He does the same in his church, working in each of us "according to the purpose of the One working all things according to the counsel of His will."

The Bible isn't some magic book, that tells us what spells to enchant in order to accomplish something in our lives, it is the Word of God, and being a living word it has many uses and applications in our lives. "The word of God is alive, powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword" "and is useful for doctrine, reproof, correction and instruction." When reading, studying and applying the Word of God to our lives, it is necessary that we remember that the bible is full of truth and teachings, but also parables, prophecies, multi-lateral teachings, and cultural issues. The bible takes on many cultural issues, whether a big group culture, a city culture, or a creed/belief culture; and although we can certainly learn from those teachings and even apply them to some area in our lives, it takes discernment to realize what actions and thoughts are in direct disobedience to Gods' word, and therefore must be shunned so as to be one with and in Christ, and which ones still allow us to have unity.

So, doesn't the bible talk about sin directly? Of course it does, the bible comes on stronger against sin than many of us today, unfortunately. There are several lists within its pages that specifically say "those that practice such things have no part in the kingdom of heaven!" However, if we are truly, brutally honest, there are also many things within its pages that tend to divide us, of which we are not in agreement with. Why is this the case? Does God not want unity? Does he not want us to be one in the Spirit and lead by the Spirit?

Of course! The answer lies within the question itself. God left us his Word to show us his will, and said that we must be led by his Spirit, who will guide us in all truth.

So, what about the gray areas, the stuff the bible doesn't specifically mention? The bible talks about music, and gives guidelines, but doesn't specifically say 'This type of music is good, this type is bad.' The same can be applied to many different areas that affect all of us, to varying degrees, in our Christian walk. Why did God not give us an instruction book, saying 'You can listen to Christian Country and Rock music, as long as it doesn't go past 78 beats per second?'

God desires a relationship with us. It is the very reason he created mankind, and the reason he created everything else around us, and sent his Son "to draw all mankind unto himself". Since we don't have an every-line-detailed instruction book, it is necessary to cultivate our relationship with our Heavenly Father, and strive to ever deepen our spiritual walk with him. Then he will lead us in the path of his righteousness. It is all about our own personal, close relationship with him. But that can be different for each individual.

But what about those areas in our collective lives when we don't agree on specific, secondary doctrines? How to be sure that we are walking in Christian unity, while striving to not push everyone to uniformity? Or, as Tom Wright put it, “We have to tell the difference between the differences that make a difference, and the differences that don’t make a difference.” I truly believe that this is what Jesus was saying when he said "By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." I believe he is talking about the areas that we disagree on, because 'It is nothing to get along with someone who wholly agrees with you on every matter.' the true example to the world on the Love of God, is when they see we love someone who thinks, talks, and acts differently than us, yet without breaking our convictions.

So, what about those gray areas in our lives? How can we personally apply to ourselves this new concept, without stepping over the line into sin? Even more so, how can we then define sin, personally, if the bible doesn't lay out every step and beat and line? Basically, what is sin, other than the black and white lists in the bible?

Sin has three parts, just like everything in the Bible has three areas, three ways of looking at things. Sin against God, sin against others, and sin against yourself.

Against God: if it goes against a personal conviction. God convicts people of things that are sin for them, although not necessarily for others. This could be because of teaching, because of culture, because of background, etc....but if you feel it is a sin, you can't do it, even if others have the liberty to do so.

When talking about difference of opinions and our actions, Paul said "Each one must be fully convinced in his own mind."

Against others: if it causes someone else to stumble, to think wrongly or do something that you are free to, but they aren't. They don't have the freedom you do, either because of teaching, culture, personal conviction or the place they're at in their spiritual walk; either way, it is sin to them, and sin to you, if you cause them to stumble. "By your freedom, this person is destroyed."

Against yourself: if it harms the temple of the Holy Spirit, causes you to lose control of your faculties. Many would point out drinking, drugs, and altering our body in this category... however, not exercising, our way of eating, etc. are also in this area...

"You are Gods temple, his Spirit lives in you. If anyone destroys Gods temple, God will destroy him."

And, all of these are ever changing. Because they are based on relationships, first with God, and our walk with him and our depth in that spiritual walk, and are also based on our culture, our experiences, our place in life, these can all change. God in His infinite wisdom is leading each of us on a path of discovery in him, and everything he does in our lives is to prepare us for his mission, his will in our lives, the purpose for which we were born. Which is why it's okay for someone's convictions to change over time.

Why do many not teach this, but rather strive towards uniformity, towards controlling what others believe?

We like to put up fences to keep people in line, but fences always make us want to get to the greener grass. The fence needs to be in our mind, our heart, and our walk with God. Then it's not fences put up to keep us in pasture, but rather like those invisible electric collars that dogs wear...it's not something you see, but you know it's there, and it keeps you from straying too far from home.

Many people like to control others, and/or are scared of what happens when liberties are taken too far. And not without reason. Galatians warns us of Christians using their spiritual liberty to walk in licentiousness... and in doing so trample the precious blood of Christ that was shed on Calvary.

But the answer is not legalism, because spiritual liberty is different from licentiousness. Rather, it's personal responsibility in our personal relationship with the Lord, and allowing him to guide and lead us in our relationship.

That is what brings us to unity, true biblical unity, rather than uniformity.

For further study, read Romans chapter 14, and 1 Corinthians chapter 8.