IS THE BIBLE THE BASIS OF UNITY AND THE
 GROUND OF FELLOWSHIP?

“That which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you may have fellowship with us; and our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ.” (1 John 1:3)

Recently here in Denton we had a private gathering of brethren from some six or eight different persuasions within discipledom. No one was assigned to make a speech, and there was no program as such. We simply met to be with each other and to exchange views, somewhat extemporaneously, regarding our divisions. It was good to see brethren together who hardly ever have any contact. Several prayers were voluntarily offered in behalf of a deeper sense of brotherhood and better understanding. A fine spirit prevailed throughout, and surely the majority of the 30-odd brethren that were present left with the conviction that there should be more of such crossing of the party lines that have so long kept us apart.

Most of those present had something to say, and since I listened instead of talked at this meeting (something I might well do more often!) I had opportunity to observe a basic thesis running throughout all that was said. regardless of the segment of the brotherhood represented. The thesis was that the Bible is the basis of unity and the ground of fellowship. Several “non-Sunday School” brethren stressed this point, holding up the Bible and saying something like: “The only way for us to unite is by coming together on this book.”

An “anti-Herald of Truth” brother was most adamant in the claim that the restoration of fellowship is simply a matter of returning to the Bible. His counterpart, the “pro-Herald of Truth” brother, made it clear that he stands with the Bible and that the problem of our division can be solved only by taking what the Bible says. So it was in every instance where a brother proposed a solution: let’s take the Bible, for it is the basis of unity and fellowship.

Here were brethren from a half dozen factions, so divided that they cannot recognize each other in their public assemblies nor have fellowship with one another, contending that the answer to partyism is to get together on the Bible. They were all sincere and well-meaning, each really believing that the way to unity is what he calls “going by the Book.” They appeared oblivious to the fact that each one was simply imposing his own interpretation of the Bible upon the others. None could be so crude as to say, “When you see the Bible as I see it we can be in fellowship,” but that is exactly what was meant.

The “non-class” man is not going to “fellowship” the “class” brother until he sees classes like he does, and he calls this going by the Bible. So it is with all the rest, each assuming that his understanding of the Word of God is the correct one, thus making his interpretation the basis of fellowship. This is partyism. This “let’s just take the Bible” attitude causes more division than it cures, for it cures none. All these years we have sung the same tune — “just take the Bible” — and all these years we’ve been dividing and subdividing.

The thesis that the Bible is the basis of unity is a questionable one, if for no other reason on the ground that Christians have never been able to agree on so much of what the Bible teaches. If they must wait until they see the Bible alike, they will never be united. We may argue that unity is possible even if seeing the Bible alike on all points is impossible. Those who contend that we can see the Bible alike are the very ones who insist that everyone else see it their way.

If it is the Bible that is the basis of unity and fellowship, then how is it that the primitive Christians enjoyed both unity and fellowship without having the Bible? The saints at Corinth had no New Testament to hold up as the basis of fellowship when Paul wrote to them: “God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord” (1 Cor. 1:9) They were certainly in the fellowship, but the basis was the Christ rather than a book.

1 John 1:3 makes it clear that it is the person of Christ that is the ground of fellowship: “That which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you. . .” John is speaking of a person. “. . . so that you may have fellowship with us.” Notice that fellowship is between persons, not things or doctrines. John adds: “ . . . and our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ.”

In view of language like this we have to conclude that fellowship was real and meaningful in the early church long before there existed what we call the Bible. While the Bible is the precious Word of God, and vital to our nurture as saints of God, and even to the enrichment of our fellowship, we go too far to suppose that the Bible constitutes the basis for fellowship. It would be better to hold up the Bible and say: “The person of the Bible is the basis of unity.”

As these good brethren in our Denton gathering held aloft the Bible as the ground of fellowship they invariably quoted 1 John 1:7: “If we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” To walk in the light is made to mean to walk according to the Scriptures, and once again we are entangled in the same fallacy. One is not “walking in the light” if he supports some cooperative enterprise like Herald of Truth or if he uses instrumental music in the worship of the saints. Each party man rejects his brethren from the fellowship because they do not see in “the light” the same way he does, whether it be classes, colleges, organs, cups, or institutions. And so we all continue in our divided ways, protecting our factions by quoting and abusing 1 John 1:7.

One need not get out of the same passage to see what “the light” is, for 1 John 1:5 says: “God is light and in him is no darkness at all.” As one follows John’s use of light throughout his writings he can see that he is referring to the love of God that is given to us through the Christ. It would be correct to say, therefore, that the Christ is the light. Our Lord said: “I am the light of the world; he who follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life (John 8:12).

That the Christ is “the light” is further shown in John 12 where Jesus is talking of his departure from this world and says: “The light is with you for a little longer. Walk while you have the light, lest the darkness overtake you; he who walks in the darkness does not know where he goes. While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light” (verses 35-36).

So what does 1 John 1:7 mean? It means that if we are Christians together, if we are all in Christ who is the light, then we are in the fellowship together. It is juvenile to argue that “the light” refers to the Bible or to the New Testament Scriptures, and that we must all understand alike and obey alike all that the Bible says in order to have fellowship. If that is true, then fellowship has never been a reality at anytime in Christian history, and it never shall be.

The Ethiopian eunuch (Acts 8) will serve to illustrate the point. How much of the Bible did he have? He was reading from Isaiah and quite obviously had none of the New Testament Scriptures. How much did he know at the time of his baptism? Very little indeed insofar as Christianity is concerned. It was more a matter of what he believed, and his faith was in the Person of Christ. Was he in the light? Indeed he was; he “walked in the light” just as 1 John 1:7 says, but it was a person he had rather than a book. Was he not in the fellowship? Yes, he was, and that put him in fellowship with all others that were in the Christ, regardless of how much agreement or disagreement there might have been between them otherwise.

When the blessed Lord is made the basis of our oneness, then unity and fellowship are possible. When the correct understanding of a book is the ground, however precious and important the book, unity and fellowship will forever be beyond our reach. God gave the Christ to the world so that there might be peace on earth and goodwill toward men. The Christ unites men rather than divides them, and this is realized as men become “in Christ” together. It is when we together accept the Lordship of the Christ that we become brothers, and oh how precious that brotherhood should be!

Brothers in the Lord will have differences just as brothers in the flesh have differences, but this fact does not effect their brotherhood. Differences should, of course; be dissolved as this becomes possible, and error is certainly nor to be countenanced. But we are not to wait until all errors are made right and all differences resolved before we practice brotherhood, for on that basis we will have parties instead of brotherhood. God loves me and makes me his own in Christ despite my many errors and shortcomings. We must love and receive each other as brothers in Christ — and treat each other as such — despite our errors. Once brotherhood is a reality the time will be propitious for the study of differences. — Editor