Greetings! Grace and peace to you, all glory and honor be given to God in the name of the Son, Christ Jesus who taught us true love through His life given for us.
During these trying times on Earth and in our nation, we cannot turn a blind eye to the truth. Many of the woes and suffering we are enduring could be resolved with grace and ease if more of God’s children were united in Christ’s love.
If you aren’t already aware, Christianity is at a crisis point in the United States with a bleak future to come if no adjustments are made among the faithful and the churches. For example, do you happen to know how many believers left Christianity in our nation within 10 years?
More than 24 million (2009-2019, Pew Research Center).
Now, before you may start thinking down a darkened path: No, the problem isn’t with those who have left. They aren’t necessarily in Satan’s clutches, nor are they being led astray or deceived. The truth may be challenging to hear, but for the good of us all it must be said in the light for the greatest glory of God in the name of Jesus Christ.
For if the light of Christ was truly shining in the churches and amongst Christians as Jesus directed, believers and nonbelievers would be flocking en masse for fellowship, worship and praise, miracles, healings, and rejoicing as the earliest Christians did in in love and communion together—not leaving the faith.
The fact Christianity isn’t flourishing in the United States clearly indicates there’s a problem, especially given its prominent influence in the founding of our nation, and after multiple decades of Great Awakening revivals (1730-1755; 1790-1840; and 1855-1930) and the Jesus Movement (1960-1980). Something somewhere is not fully aligned with the glory and power of God.
Of course, we could fixate on history and point fingers at all of the recorded anti-Christlike actions of Christians in the nearly 2000-year timeline since Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection, but it will not solve this crisis. Christianity as a whole in the United States must wake up!
If status quo trajectory continues, that is, a 12% drop in self-identifying Christians in each upcoming decade, it will be within a generation or two when Christianity will no longer be the prevalent religion in the United States. And due to declining membership, the lights will continue to go out in the churches.
Christians must look united together towards the future now, before it is too late.
However, gathering all churches and denominations—and thereby all 205 million Christians in the United States—to unite together in one accord for the greatest glory and power of Christ to shine in our world is a challenging prospect. So many believers cannot seem to manage seeing beyond the plank in their own eye (Matthew 7) to stop separating themselves from their brothers and sisters in judgments. As in Romans 14, these stumbling blocks prevent unity in the love of Christ.
Within the last two centuries though, ecumenical efforts began among some churches, that is, a movement toward worldwide Christian unity. The Association for the Promotion of the Unity of Christians was founded in 1857 with participation by Anglicans, Roman Catholics and Orthodox Christians with a purpose for united prayer to restore visible unity for Christianity.
But, the Roman Catholics withdrew support, and later, in 1894, Pope Leo XIII separately encouraged Catholics to recite the rosary for the intention of Christian Unity. Shortly thereafter, in 1897, he decreed the days between Ascension and Pentecost to be dedicated to prayer for reconciliation. This week eventually became the International Week of Prayer for Christian Unity which is currently coordinated by the World Council of Churches (WCC).
A worldwide Christian interchurch organization, the WCC was founded in 1948 for the cause of ecumenism. With a fellowship of 349 denominations in more than 100 countries, the WCC includes 500+ million Christians worldwide. Yet, overall there are 2.5+ billion Christians in the world (reported in 2015 by Pew Research Center), and the WCC only represents 25%. If we turn to the United States’ National Council of Churches (NCC) founded in 1950, participation of 38 member communions and 35+ million Christians represents 17% of all Christians in our nation.
Indeed, across Christianity worldwide, it appears Apostle Paul’s teaching about the church as One body in Christ and in One Spirit, undivided and whole (Romans 12; 1 Corinthians 10; 1 Corinthians 12; Ephesians 4; and Colossians 3) remains unrealized on Earth. Even in the earliest years, Apostle Paul urged Christians to come to agreements without any divisions between them, and for all to be united in the same mind and the same judgment (1 Corinthians 1:10).
Yet, as of mid-2021, data from the Center for the Study of Global Christianity at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary reported a staggering 45,600 denominations worldwide. To put this in historical perspective, 13,100 denominations were reported in 1970, thus in a mere 50-year span the increase was more than 3 fold. Instead of reconciling together in unity as One in Christ, tens of thousands of new denominations and churches were established.
Undoubtedly, uniting the disparate and divided churches across the United States, and even greater, worldwide, is a Herculean task. Some people may believe true unity is an impossible feat; but we must remember all things are possible with God (Matthew 19:26). And thus, we arrive at the crux of this letter, and my call to service as an apostle sent by the will of God in the name of Jesus Christ back to the churches.
For nearly 2000 years, Christians have continued to argue, debate, quarrel, bicker, slander, and reject each other over matters of secondary importance. True unity on Earth as One among all church congregations and Christians will not come through creeds and doctrines; or agreement on sacraments; or which day of the week to attend church; or what type of food to eat; or any other distinctions between churches. Just look at the current state of the “One body of Christ” on Earth, tattered and torn amongst God’s divided and judgmental quarreling children!
In truth, what Christians first needed to look to as a “guiding light” of doctrine the entire time was to the Greatest Commandments Jesus gave to His disciples: to love God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength and to love your neighbors as yourself (Matthew 22; Mark 12; Luke 10; and John 13).
Jesus did not say His Greatest Commandments were to believe: (1) He was the Son of God; or, (2) He walked on earth in the flesh; or, (3) He was born of a Virgin mother; or, (4) in the Trinity; or, (5) any other aspect of the Christian traditions and religious practices. He said: LOVE.
The Greatest Commandments were not written into the Nicene or Apostles’ Creeds, for a belief and commitment to love was absent in both recitations. Love wasn’t the impetus for the Great Schism (1054) or the Protestant Reformation (1500s), or any division of the churches along the timeline of history.
And yet, love’s importance was continually reinforced by the first Apostles in the scriptures*, including as written unquestionably in the Second Epistle of John, for love IS walking in obedience to Jesus’ commands as was heard since the beginning: Jesus’ command was that we walk in love (2 John 1:6).
It is as clear today as it was long ago, if you profess to be a “Christian”—that is, a believer and follower of the teachings and ministry of Jesus Christ—more than anything else in this world, your charge is to adhere to His Greatest Commandments with your entire life. Period. The whole law and the prophets depend on these, as spoken by Jesus in Matthew 22:40 and reiterated by Apostle Paul in Romans 13:8-10.
This means, putting love above all else and doing everything within your will power and capabilities to live a life of love as Jesus demonstrated for us, whether personally or within lay or professional ministries, as well as, throughout communities and beyond. For Jesus said everyone would know who His disciples were because they would be showing love for one another (John 13:35). If this sounds like you and you’re already living a life of love, may the favor of God continue to pour out blessings of grace upon you each day.
For with love in our hearts, as in Romans 12:2, we see with a renewed and inspired mind in Christ: if all of the law depends on love, then truly the highest focus of all Christians and churches—and Christianity as a whole—should be on fulfilling the Greatest Commandments above all else.
This does not take away from specific beliefs and distinctions within each denomination, or anyone’s interpretations from one of the 1500 world language translations of The Bible (including 450+ translations in English alone). Rather, it breathes life into the One body of Christ on Earth, offering all Christians and churches the opportunity to unite in Christ’s name without other qualifiers that have created separation in judgments for 2000 years. If we reconcile in the perfect unity of the Greatest Commandments, our differences dissolve because we are already One together in Christ (1 John 4:12). For as in Colossians 3:14, love binds together in perfect unity.
From the scriptures we already know what we can expect to see when the Spirit of love is present: blessings; compassion and kindness; comforting and generous; great peace and harmony; all wrongs and offenses covered, and mutual respect upheld; forgiveness; doing no harm; great joy within hearts; and rejoicing together; among other good fruits.† It’s a win-win for everyone!
Imagine for a moment… the glory of All rejoicing in the heavens and on Earth when healing and miracles are magnified through the blessings and grace of God throughout communities because church congregations and Christians across the United States turned their love-lights on.
If we come to an accord on love—and truly love one another as we know we ought to do—the power and glory of God will shine through our nation as a beacon of light, as the City on the Hill. But this will only happen if Christians actually put Jesus’ Greatest Commandments above ALL ELSE for a better world for all of us, united in Christ’s love.
So, will you?
Will you answer Jesus’ call to love right now?
Will you commit to His Greatest Commandments to love with your entire life?
If so, I’m with you in unity together. In the Spirit of love, I fully accept all diversity in your beliefs and religious practices without judgment, no matter your denominational or nondenominational affiliation, even if you don’t attend regularly, or if you left the church somewhere along the way. This is what truly loving one another is, for I see the light of Christ in your love and honor your faith in God even if it looks different from where I am in Christ. Amen!
May the grace of Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the joy of the Holy Spirit be with you always.
In Christ’s service with love,
Shannon
www.shannonofjoy.com
*Romans 12 and 13; 1 Corinthians 13 and 16; Galatians 5; Ephesians 4 and 5; Philippians 2; Colossians 3; 1 Thessalonians 4; 1 Timothy 1; Hebrews 10; James 2; 1 Peter 1, 3, and 4; 2 Peter 1; 1 John 2, 3, 4; among other verses.
†For a full discussion of the attributes, qualities, and fruit of love please see “Inspired By Love for Life: True Disciples of Jesus Follow His Way,” and a search of all verses with the word “Love” in a Bible database.
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