My dear readers, division is such a hot topic. It can be so hard to nail down all the fine lines we walk as followers of the Messiah. To learn to 'rightly divide' and exegete, to recognize the true Gospel from the false deviants, to identify where we should walk away from other professing believers to where we should accept our differences. As Torah followers we see this even more so, from being hurt by those who have divided from us when we crossed over, to causing those division ourselves over secondary, tertiary and even irrelevant issues. So today I want to try and tackle where we should be drawing our battle lines according to scripture, and where we absolutely should not be.
As believers one of the verses we should all be putting in the forefront of our walks is found in 2 Timothy 2:15, Do all you can to present yourself to God as someone worthy of His approval, as a worker with no need to be ashamed, because he deals straightforwardly with the Word of the Truth. Other versions use the words we have all heard and are familiar with, that we 'rightly divide the Word of Truth'. Mishlei 4:25-27 essentially repeats what we hear in D'varim 5:29(32), Therefore, you are to be careful to do as Adonai your God has ordered you; you are not to deviate either to the right or the left. As Torah Observers we have certain ideas what these mean, certainly it is encouragement for our Torah walks with Y'shua, and it is, what it it is not, however, is a statement to break off with those who do not yet understand the entirety of the roll of Elohim's mitzvot in our lives.
Y'shua himself showed this in Mattityahu 5:19 when he said, So whoever disobeys the least of these mitzvot and teaches others to do so will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven. But whoever obeys them and so teaches will be called great in the Kingdom of Heaven. So we can not then say that our observance of the Torah is what sets us as saved, even those who do not understand and teach their poor observance are still counted in the Kingdom of Heaven!
Now, I know I just stepped on a lot of toes, a lot of verses are often taken to the extreme to show that those who do not keep the Torah do not love Y'shua, or are not showing the fruit etc. However we must allow scripture to interpret scripture, not our pride that wants to say we are more righteous because Elohim has taken the scales off our eyes and not theirs yet. Yes, I am being on the harsh side, I as well deserve the repromand for my behavior at times toward those who misunderstand the Torah. We must remember that it is just that, misunderstanding. Believing what they have been taught. Is it wrong? Yes. It is an issue of salvation? Absolutely Not, and we as Torah observant believers need to stop treating it as if it is and thus not only contradicting scripture but potentially redefining the Gospel and becoming false prophets ourselves. This is a subject many can go back and forth on for days, so rather than place argument (and division) let us then move to looking to what is a biblical reason to divide.
So what then is the primary line scripture draws to divide? The absolute first issue is the very core of our faith, the Messiah. 1 Timothy 6:3 and the first part of 4 says, If anyone teaches differently and does not and does not agree to the sound precepts of our Lord Yeshua the Messiah and to the doctrine that is in keeping with godliness, he is swollen with conceit and understands nothing. Thus we must be staying away from the teachings of those who deny Y'shua. This would of course include those of the New Age, Paganism, Rabbinic Judaism and many more. What is then more tricky is finding the line of those who use the name of the Messiah in vain, creating an anti-christ. Catholicism, Jehovah Witnesses, Mormonism, and Bethel to name a few. When we redefine Y'shua, from removing his Diety to making him only a Prophet, when we remove what he did such as making the resurrection purely spiritual, we have deviated from who He is and what He did for us. There may be similarities, there may be the same name, but it is no longer the same God. This is the very first line that as believers we should be holding to, this is the very central tenant of our faith which makes us followers of Y'shua. In Yochanan 14:6-7 Y'shua tells us, Yeshua said, "I am the Way, the Truth and the Life; no one comes to the Father except through me. Because you have known me, you will know my Father; from now on, you do know him - in fact you have seen him." 1 Yochanan 4 helps us to then rightly divide the true Messiah from the false.
Another reason we are called to divide is when someone is rejecting rebuke. Mattityahu 18:15-17 says, "Moreover, if your brother commits a sin against you, go and show him his fault - but privately, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won back your brother. If he doesn't listen, take one or two others with you that every accusation can be supported by the tesimony of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to hear them, tell the congregation; and if he refuses to listen even to the congregation, treat him s you would a pagan or a tax-collector. As we can see, there are steps before we separate from someone like this, and as those steps progress we can see the basis of them is still doing this in grace, as Galatians 6:1-2 says, Brothers, suppose someone is caught doing something wrong. You who have the Spirit should set him right, but in a spirit of humility, keeping an eye on yourselves so that you won't be tempted too. We must be careful how we seek to bring people to accountability, lest we fall into sin and cause them to be divided against us for our sin. Yet, when they refuse the rebuke this is something to separate from them on. May we seek to remember Colossians 4:5-6 as we seek to guide people back onto the path of the Messiah, Behave wisely toward outsiders, making full use of every opportunity - let your conversation always be gracious and interesting, so that you will know how to respond to any particular individual.
Alongside rejecting rebuke is a command of certain sins people confessing to be believers are to be shunned over. 1 Corinthians 5:9-11 states, In my earlier letter I wrote you not to associate with people who engage in sexual immorality. I didn't mean the sexually immoral people outside your community, or the greedy, or the thieves or the idol-worshipers - for then you would have to leave the world altogether! No, what I wrote to you was not to associate with anyone who is supposedly a brother but who also engages in sexual immorality, is greedy, worships idols, is abusive, gets drunk or steals. With such a person you shouldn't even eat! Need I extrapolate?
Another line scripture has drawn is those who cause needless division. Romans 16:17 warns us, I urge you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put snares alongside the teaching in which you have been trained - Keep away from them. For this topic I highly encourage you to read all of Titus 3, but I will write out verse 10 to further this specific point, Warn a divisive person once, then a second time; and after that, have nothing more to do with him. So what are some of the things people can be divisive over which are not reasons scripture gave above?
- That they are the only teacher you should listen to. This is a massive issue as it encourages false doctrine to thrive untested. Divide from the teacher, do not let this divisive teacher cause you to divide unrighteously.
- To not associate or learn from those who don't keep Torah. They can have many wonderful things to teach us which are theologically sound, they follow Y'shua and simply misunderstand some of his mitzvot, keeping far more than even they know.
- Issues of Soteriology. Churches have divided over this issue for centuries, be they Arminian, Calvinist, or Molinist or hold to no firm stance. The issue of how our wills work in the grand system of Elohim, how He has worked through time and before time to save us is a facinating topic and taken to the two extremes definitely can go into territory which changes the Gospel and be an issue of legitimate division, but the basis of the discussion and the core of the three stances are all seeking to put scripture first and do not change the Gospel core - making it an issue to not divide over.
- Another common one through history is the issue of Continuationism and Cessationism, whether the Ruach is actively working through us for miracles and the like and how.
- Or the far more recent battle over biblical Complimentarianism and Egalitarianism. While I hold strong views on this subject I must recognize that a change to the parallels scripture draws us to give us images of the Messiah and his bride in no way actually affect the relationship they represent. In other words, just because an earthly marriage doesn't reflect the relationship of the Messiah and his Bride doesn't change the relationship of the Messiah or his Bride - so this can have no affect on the core Gospel teaching at that level.
- What of worship style? While scripture does give some very clear lines on types of worship we are not to do, and thus not take part in when other believers utilize them, things such as dancing, flags, standing still to sing, or even the particular instruments used are simply not a part of those restrictions!
- A common part we see in the Torah Observant crowd is division over the shape of the earth. While the argument for biblical authority can be pushed, and often is with great zeal, it in no way effects the core of the gospel and doe not truly reflect on the lack of authority a person holds to scripture. While the topic may then fascinate some it is not even an issue of theology, making it entirely irrelevant to the faith!
How then do we handle those who hold to teachings or doctrines we disagree with but are not cause to be divisive over? Denominations are a great way, keeping congregations more peaceful in application and allowing those of similar holdings to gather together. While we can choose who we gather with we should not then be making useless squabbles among them. Remembering 1 Corinthians 12:14- , For indeed the body is not one part but many. If the foot says, "I'm not a hand, so I'm not part of the body," that doesn't make it stop being a part of the body. And if the ear says, "I'm not an eye, so I'm not part of the body," that doesn't make it stop being a part of the body. If the whole body where an eye, how could it hear? If it were all hearing, how could it smell? But as it is God arranged each of the body parts in the body exactly as he wanted them. Now if they were all just one part, where would the body be? But as it is, there is indeed many parts, yet just one body. So the eye can not say to the hand, "I don't need you"; or the head to the feet, "I don't need you." On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be less important turn out to be all the more necessary; and upon body parts we consider to be less dignified we bestow greater dignity; and the parts that aren't attractive are the ones we make as attractive as we can, while our attractive parts have no need for such treatment. Indeed, God has put the body together in such a way that he gives greater dignity to those that lack it, so that there will be no disagreements within the body, but rather all the parts will be equally concerned for all the others. Thus if one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it; and if one part is honored, all the parts share its happiness.
May we as those parts seek to have a loving concern for the other parts, to help them, and to look for the way Elohim is using them also. When we divide let it be for defense of the True Gospel, that salvation is by faith in the real Messiah alone and not by what we do or know but by his Grace over our sin. When we divide let it be for keeping our congregations undefiled by those who willfully trample of the atonement of the Messiah by knowingly continuing in sin. May we not divide over anything less and instead seek to encourage each other in the faith with love, grace, and seeking to see the best in those we disagree with. Shalom.