1 Corinthians 4:5:
5 Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men's hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God.
2 Corinthians 3:4-6
4Such confidence as this is ours through Christ before God. 5Not
that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. 6He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant"not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.
1 Timothy 1:3-4:
3As I urged you when I went into Macedonia, stay there in Ephesus so that
you may command certain men not to teach false doctrines any longer 4nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies.
These promote controversies rather than God's work"which is by faith.
On Fellowship, the Church, and Other Believers
Hebrews 10:23-25
23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. 24And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. 25Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another"and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
1 Peter 3:8
8 Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble.
Ephesians 4:11-13
11 It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, 12to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
1 Timothy 6:20-22
20 Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to your care. Turn away from godless chatter and the opposing ideas of what is falsely called knowledge, 21which some have professed and in so doing have wandered from the faith.
Grace be with you.
1 John 1:2-5:
2The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us.
3We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that
you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. 4We write this to make our[
a] joy complete.
Revelation 2:1-3
1"To the angel[a] of the church in Ephesus write:
These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands: 2I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. 3You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary.
--Jesus holds the seven stars in his right hand and the seven golden lampstands are the churches. If God is so "anti-church" why in Revelation is he seen "walking among them"?
Correct Others in Love
Job 19:3-6
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Ten times now you have reproached me;
shamelessly you attack me.
4 If it is true that I have gone astray,
my error remains my concern alone.
5 If indeed you would exalt yourselves above me
and use my humiliation against me,
6 then know that God has wronged me
and drawn his net around me.
Wrong Approaches in Confronting
2 Corinthians 13:10-16
10This is why I write these things when I am absent, that when I come I may not have to be harsh in my use of authority"the authority the Lord gave me for building you up, not for tearing you down.
11Finally, brothers, good-bye. Aim for perfection, listen to my appeal,
be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you.
Warning to Those Who Cause Division
2 Timothy 3:6-11
8Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so also these men oppose the truth"
men of depraved minds, who, as far as the faith is concerned,
are rejected. 9But they will not get very far because, as in the case of those men,
their folly will be clear to everyone.
Differences of Opinion Don't Need to Affect Spiritual Unity
Romans 14:1-5:
1Accept him whose faith is weak,
without passing judgment on disputable matters. 2One man's faith allows him to eat everything, but another man, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. 3The man who eats everything must not look down on him who does not, and the man who does not eat everything must not condemn the man who does, for
God has accepted him. 4
Who are you to judge someone else's servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.
5One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind.
Corinthians 1:10-13:
10I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of
you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought. 11My brothers, some from Chloe's household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. 12What I mean is this: One of you says, "I follow Paul"; another, "I follow Apollos"; another, "I follow Cephas[
a]"; still another, "I follow Christ."
13Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized into[
b] the name of Paul?
Thoughts, Questions, Comments on These Passages
