Peace and mutual edification

Ostensibly, the work of Alexander Campbell, Barton W. Stone, and their cohorts was to "restore" the church to its New Testament oneness. Chief among their various goals was to combat the fractious nature of denominationalism that seemed to have won the day in the wake of the Protestant Reformation. What has resulted from their work is hardly the unity that they wished to see, but even more fracture, and in some cases, a body dedicated to separating itself from the rest of the Church on the grounds of patterns and doctrinal minutiae.

Indeed, if we read the history of the Restoration closely, we will see that even Stone and Campbell differed significantly on key doctrinal matters, like baptism. Stone was not immersed until late in life, and even then, refused to profess baptism for remission of sins, instead following a more Baptist theology that baptism was the answer of a good conscience toward God. Even so, these men could put these issues to the side and work together for the good of the Kingdom. How could that be?

For me, the answer lies in Romans, chapters 13 and 14. Here we see Paul addressing the Roman church about matters pertaining both to their worldly relationships and those found within the Church. There is a single unifying idea in Paul's words here: honoring one another in a Christlike manner and pursuing that which leads to "peace and mutual edification" above all else.

This week, I'm going to look in detail at these two chapters, outlining how I see them as a true model for restoring the Lord's Church. I invite you to investigate along with me and participate in a dialogue (note I didn't say diatribe!). We need to be about the business of fulfilling Christ's prayer to the father "that we all may be one."