We have already seen what the church is, the expression of the church, the oneness of the church, and the ground of the church. It is clear that there is only one church in the universe, and there is only one church in each locality. However, in today’s deformed Christianity there are “churches” everywhere, clearly indicating that the church is divided. Therefore, we must now look at the division of the church.
In brief, there are two causes for division: Satan’s damage and man’s fleshly preferences.
God’s intention is to build up His church locality by locality so that there would be a local church in every place as the expression of the Body of Christ in order to express Christ. God is wise in His intention. If there were only one church in each locality with no confusion or divisions, and if all the local churches were one in expressing Christ, preaching Christ, and leading people to know God on the earth, this would be glorious. The church in each locality as an expression of the Body of Christ is a foretaste of the coming New Jerusalem, the expression of God.
Satan does not want such an expression; thus, he tries his best to damage it. Satan damages the church through man’s preferences. When people appreciate a certain person, they establish a “church” based on that person; when they appreciate a certain truth, they establish a “church” according to that particular truth. All the different sects and denominations in Christianity today simply express man’s preferences. The Corinthian believers were an example of this. Some of them chose to be of Paul, others to be of Apollos, and still others to be of Cephas (1 Cor. 1:12). Paul said that they had preferences because they were of the flesh (3:4). These preferences were of the flesh. The situation of division in Christianity today also comes from the preferences of man’s flesh. Satan utilizes the preferences in man’s flesh to damage the work of the church. This is the true situation.
With any matter, there is a cause and there is an effect. With the division of the church, there is a cause and there is also an effect. The effect has two aspects.
The church as the Body of Christ is one both universally and locally. However, once the church is divided, the oneness of the Body of Christ is lost. The situation of division that is prevalent today causes the Body of Christ to be “cut into pieces.” Hence, instead of being one, the Body has been dismembered.
According to rough statistics, there are approximately two thousand sects in Christianity. In other words, there are approximately two thousand different kinds of “churches” on the earth today. This is truly a terrible result of the division of the church.
When I speak with people concerning the gospel, I am often asked, “If the Jesus whom you preach is the same as the One preached by Such-and-such Church, why are there so many different churches in your Christian religion?” This is a difficult question for new ones to answer. The division of the church is truly a shame to the Lord.
We must know the source of division. Divisions in China were brought in mainly by brothers from the West. We thank the Western brothers for bringing the gospel to China, and we are grateful to them for bringing us the Bible. Sadly, however, they brought their sects and denominations as well. We must acknowledge that bringing so many different denominations was a huge mistake. They should not have been divided into denominations, and they should have brought us only one church. How pleasant it would be if no one divided themselves into denominations, but everyone stood on one ground and took the same way. Regrettably, today’s Christianity is full of sects and denominations, whether in the West or in the East. They have been divided and set in their divisions for many years. These many sects and denominations are the result of the division of the church.