«　WEEK 10　DAY 6　»

　　1Cor. 1:10 Now I beseech you, brothers, through the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be attuned in the same mind and in the same opinion.

　　Titus 3:10 A factious man, after a first and second admonition, refuse.

　　

　　In Greek, the word for party or sect (hairesis) is the same as the word for heresy (hairesis anglicized), which means to label something new in order to be different, resulting in a distinctive party—a sect. (Gal. 5:19-21) tell us clearly that sects come from men's flesh. They also show us that there are always factions and divisions before the formation of a sect…We should refuse this work of the flesh by following the Holy Spirit in us who sanctifies us.

　　In confronting factions…Apostle Paul gave his younger co-worker a frank and bold charge, which is also a charge to us, to refuse a factious person after sufficient admonition in love…that the Body of Christ may not suffer damage and that the truth of God may not be adulterated.

　　The following three key elements are the factors which cause the Christians (not counting the nominal ones) to be divided, to be constituted as sects.

　　The common faith of true Christians is unique. It includes the Triune God, the person and work of Christ, that is, the being of Christ and the doings of Christ, and the divine authority of the Bible. Besides these truths of our fundamental faith, to consider other matters to be the Christian faith (such as the method of baptism…, the system of church administration…, the tongue-speaking…, the head covering and foot washing…, or general doctrines…, the interpretation of prophecies, and the understanding of certain parts of the Scriptures) and to make them special creeds is to label something new in order to be different and will result in sects.

　　With the existence of special creeds, Christians will be divided into different groups, having special fellowships in their different circles outside of the believers' common fellowship. Such special fellowships cause those believers who practice them to be constituted as sects separate from the believers in general.

　　special creeds not only lead to special fellowships, but they also produce special names, such as the name of a certain denomination or a certain church. These special names, in a more tangible way, cause those who so label themselves to be constituted into named sects, resulting in denominations…The believers should only possess the unique and honorable name of Jesus Christ, and not exalt any other name besides this preeminent name.

　　The Spirit, that is, the Holy Spirit who lives in us, causes us to be constituted into the Body of Christ with God's life. Since there is one Body, there is also one Holy Spirit who lives in the Body. This one Holy Spirit is the oneness in the one Body. If we believers would live in this Spirit and walk according to this Spirit, the oneness of the Body of Christ would be kept. Otherwise, that oneness would be broken. the Apostle Paul beseeched us in Ephesians 4:2-3 to keep this oneness with such virtues as lowliness, meekness, longsuffering, bearing in love, and the uniting bond of peace…Therefore, we must endeavor to live in the Body of Christ to keep the oneness of the Body, not participating in any divisions, sects, or denominations. (Life Lesson, Vol 2, Knowing the Sects)