Working Together

Luke 9:49-50

John responded, “Master, we saw someone driving out demons in Your name, and we tried to stop him because he does not follow us.” “Don’t stop him,” Jesus told him, “because whoever is not against you is for you.”

Competition destroys relationships more than anything else I know. Unless we realize as Christians that we are all on the same team, we will not progress toward the goal of reaching the world for Christ. When competition between churches becomes evident, it can be particularly damaging to the faith of believers and to the drawing of unbelievers to the church, and Satan does all he can to try to instigate competition where the only prize to be won is his by stopping the growth of the kingdom of God.

John and the other disciples saw a man casting out demons in Jesus’s name, and they tried to stop him. This man had not been through the same training as they had experienced at the very feet of Jesus, and they were trying to protect their territory and make sure the man did not use Jesus’s name inappropriately. The man, however, apparently wanted people to be healed and set free and had simply learned that demons would flee in Jesus’s name. The man did not oppose the work of the disciples but merely tried to extend it beyond their reach. As Jesus explained to John, the man was not against them; he was for them in their mission.

As Christians, we should be working together to expand God’s kingdom. When we lose sight of God’s kingdom and start trying to build our own, competition steps in to claim its territory. If we fight each other, the only winner in the game is Satan. We must turn the tables on him and start working together as one body in Christ.

While I appreciate and respect the difference in doctrines taught by various denominations, I truly love it when denominations can work together toward the common goal of spreading the good news of Jesus Christ to the world. In fact, the world needs to see us cooperating more and competing less. They will know us by our love for one another. We don’t need to let doctrine divide us; we need to work together to complete the Great Commission God has called us to do of making disciples of all nations. Our name should become small so His name can become great. As Jesus clearly instructed, whoever is not against you is for you. May we tarry on together.

Have a blessed day!