Purpose in Division – Part 1

Though some won’t admit it, there is a place of division in the life of every believer.

Hebrews 4:12 – For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

If you mention the word “division” to many believers, one of the first things that comes to their mind is “a house divided against itself cannot stand.”  That is mentioned several times in Scripture, but perhaps the most revealing passage is Matthew 12:25-26.  Sadly, I think, most folks think of a “house divided against itself” as referring to Christians being against Christians, but that is not the case.  While we surely understand the need and desire for unity within the Kingdom of God, this passage is actually revealing one of the great weaknesses of the kingdom of darkness.  It is a kingdom divided.  There is no such thing as true unity in the kingdom of darkness (Satan).  It is a kingdom ruled by fear, saturated with greed and envy, with every one of its members bound by the slavish result of sin.  The kingdom of darkness WILL BE defeated.  In fact, it already has; we’re simply required to demonstrate that truth by the way we live.

It should be clear to the believer why division among the enemies of our soul would serve us well.  It means their ultimate manifest defeat.  But what is the purpose of division as it relates to the body of Christ, the kingdom of God, and the individual believers?  As one writer once put it, “Much, and in many ways.”  In this first part of our study, we will look at one of the prime Scriptures related to division.  Paul writes his spiritual son, Timothy, with these words; “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”   From one’s first steps into the kingdom of God and its working, the study of God’s Word is one of the paramount issues in which he should be constantly engaged.  And in that study, the Word of the Lord commands us to “rightly divide” the Word of Truth, that is, the Scriptures.  I will state it very clearly.  The RIGHT DIVISION of God’s Word is of absolute necessity.  And if His Word can be “rightly” divided, then it can be wrongly divided, too.  Sadly, in our present world, especially in a time when a great falling away of the church is so evident, and when Christians are largely ruled by  fear, tradition, and a gross lack of teaching in the Word of God, the right dividing of the Word of God stands out as more important than ever.  Division of the right kind needs to be addressed.

Manna for Today – Hebrews 4:9-16; 2 Timothy 2:15; Genesis 1:6-7; Exodus 14:15-22; Joshua 3:5-4:18; 2 Kings 2:5-9; 2 Kings 2:12-15