One of my heroes is Bill Bright, founder of Campus Crusade for Christ, (CRU). Bill had a passion for reaching the world for Christ and under his capable watch the Jesus film was created and approximately five billion people have seen it and hundreds of millions have come to receive Christ. The Jesus film is taken verbatim straight out of the book of Luke and chronicles the life of Jesus and His crucifixion.
Bill Bright was confronted with people from various denominations and those who didn’t claim a denomination and didn’t want to work with anyone other than their own brand of “religion”. With some 43,000 denominations in the world it proved to be quite the challenge to try and get anything of major significance accomplished.
I read the following one day and it addresses this issue rather nicely.
“I was walking across a bridge one day, and I saw a man standing on the edge, about to jump off. So I ran over and said “Stop! Don’t do it!”
“Why shouldn’t I?” he said.
“Well, there’s so much to live for!”
“Like what?”
“Well . . . are you religious?”
He said yes.
I said, “Me too!
Are you Christian or Buddhist?”
“Christian.”
“Me too! Are you Catholic or Protestant?
“Protestant.”
“Me too!
Are you Episcopalian or Baptist?”
“Baptist”
“Wow! Me too! Are you Baptist Church of God or Baptist Church of the Lord?”
“Baptist Church of God!”
“Me too!
Are you original Baptist Church of God, or are you reformed Baptist Church of God?”
“Reformed Baptist Church of God!”
“Me too!
Are you Reformed Baptist Church of God, reformation of 1879, or Reformed Baptist Church of God, reformation of 1915?”
He said, “Reformed Baptist Church of God, reformation of 1915!”
I said, “Die, heretic scum”, and pushed him off.
Bright had a saying that I have adopted for the Jesus Alliance that makes a whole lot more sense. He simply said, “If you love Jesus I can work with you”; (so simple and yet so powerful).
It is my sincere hope that in 2016 more people will come to learn that God wants His church to be as one as He and the Father are One. Jesus prayed for this just prior to His death on the cross.
Unity is not one world religion or universalism like so many religious folks mistakenly espouse, it is the bride of Christ, His body of believers all over the world working together to achieve a common goal namely preaching the Gospel and discipling the nations as well as helping the poor and a myriad of other things.
Unity is commanded by God and it makes perfect sense to even the most irrational person. Remember one cannot fulfill the Great Commission alone; feed a continent alone; stop wars and hatred alone; end single parent families alone; stop addictions alone; but together we can change the world. Selah . . .
1 Cor. 1:10
I appeal to you, dear brothers and sisters, by the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ, to live in harmony with each other. Let there be no divisions in the church. Rather, be of one mind, united in thought and purpose.
December 29, 2015 – Click here to listen