By Stu Streeter
VP of Church Multiplication and Ministry Advancement
“The sticking point of unity is not theological disagreement or a differing conviction; the sticking point is usually a failed collaboration.”
Though this is not a direct quote, it is my best attempt to quickly capture a concept discussed on a panel of four Kingdom leaders at this spring’s Microchurch Conference. The panel was led by a former Bonfire speaker, Brian Sanders of Tampa Underground, and the discussion circled the sticking points of collaboration and Christian unity. Also on that panel were Caroline Millar of Chalk Lab in the UK, Bryan Long of Pack in Singapore, and Jeff Vanderstelt of Soma Churches – another past Bonfire speaker. All four were discussing the difficulties of Kingdom endeavors given our high call to Christian unity in the body. They simply rejected the notion that we must wait until we reach comprehensive theological alignment with another Bible-believing Christian before we partner with them for Kingdom work.
Amidst a meandering discussion of these four brilliant minds, this concept I encapsulated in that sentence rose in the discussion, and everyone paused, seemingly recognizing the brilliance and sorrowful truth of it, as if four friends were giving language in real time to the sadness that has swept over the 900 people in that auditorium who have all, at various times in church work, seen a beautiful Kingdom endeavor fail or end with disagreement as the stated cause. They were proposing that this is the case far less often than anyone cares to admit, and the reality is that it is more often about failed collaboration when various partners are striving for recognition, fighting for power, or protecting loss for fear of pain.
I found myself immediately recollecting times that had happened in my experience, but after a quick mental cataloging of all the collaborations that failed because of a lack of Christian unity, I was taken back to a very recent experience in the NAB where just the opposite happened. It was beautiful, and you are part of it!
For the last year or so, I have had the privilege to gather over Zoom and in person with nineteen different pastors in the NAB representing eleven churches who are all involved in sending out church planters. I have marveled at the depth and authenticity of their collaboration and commitment to unity. They have not centered on the areas that could divide us, but rather found great unity in the Gospel of Jesus and the desire to take that Gospel further and wider through church planting.
These gatherings, and the fruit I believe that will come from the community of sending churches leading them, feels exactly like what I imagine it must have been like to be in those earliest meetings of the German Baptists in Philadelphia – a handful of churches coming together to accomplish in the Kingdom together what they could not do by themselves. I bet there were all kinds of differences of opinion in that room on matters of deeply-held theological conviction. In fact, we know that baptism of infants had already caused a stir in that circle, but somehow they saw the mission before them as the focus. Remaining true to their biblical convictions, they forged on together to serve those they all felt called to reach for the Gospel.
To be clear, this does not mean in that room of present-day NAB sending church leaders we did not have clear and strong disagreements on matters that are centrally important, such as women in ministry, the role of politics in the church, eschatology, or any number of other issues. These remain, but this group of diverse leaders have found a way, beautifully so, to come together around what we are committed to together.
Back at the Microchurch Conference, the discussion continued on for several more minutes, and those on the panel all cited examples of collaborative efforts for the Gospel that disintegrated when humility was abandoned, honesty was secondary, and pragmatism led the way. In each case, they could trace back the point where a squabble over theology was blamed, even though most recognized there were other powers at play blocking the collaboration. And all lamented what they believed to be God’s sorrow over a beautiful Kingdom partnership left divided.
I have recently begun asking myself a few good, and painful, questions when issues of division rise to the surface. I trust you will find them helpful as well:
- If everyone in question acquiesced to my position on this matter, would it increase my power and privilege by stripping another of theirs?
- Is there an opposing view of this, also rooted in Scripture, which I could better love, respect, and honor?
- Am I being sensitive to how my words and attitudes will land given another’s lived experience?
May the NAB continue to be deeply committed to our decades-old Statement of Beliefs while also looking for ways to partner with one another, even when – especially when – we might not agree on all theological matters.