The Great Divide

The Great Divide

So it was about a year and a half ago that I asked myself the question: “Why do we have church splits, and not church mergers?” If we as the body of Christ are called to unity why is there so much separation?
This question was reinforced this weekend.
I took the opportunity this to go to a different church. The church is a fairly recent church plant, within the last ten years, and meets in a school. It’s a Christian school and recently added a second gym and more classrooms onto their building. As I pulled into the driveway I noticed that there were two signs for a church on either side of the entrance. One was for the church that I was planning to attend, and the second sign was for a separate church meeting in the new gymnasium. It caught me off guard; Two churches, same building, different denominations.
I was a bit early so I continued past to get a coffee and on the way to Starbucks I proceeded to pass another church just a block down.
Later on in the day I mentioned to a friend my observation, I stated my frustration over this separation. She made the point that we pray that God would move in our community so that there would be a church on every corner, and we forget that there already is a church on every corner.
I am not against the institution of a denomination, but sometimes I wonder what exactly the point is? I look around and it seems like we have missed the boat, we are so compartmentalized that we forget what it means to work together as the body of Christ. We are more like the hand that says, “I don’t need the eye” and separates itself from the eye. God has called us to unity for a reason!
We are living in a divided world; we are divided by our differences, our culture, land, time and space. Most of all we are separated by our sin! How can we minister in this world that is surrounded by separation if we too are separated? The call of Christ and the Gospel message is against the grain, it is completely opposite to the world. Yet the Church has been penetrated by the culture of our world.
Why are we separated when the gospel is a message of acceptance and unity?