Good Morning and welcome in everybody. Today we are going to take a look at a passage of scripture, but before we do that, I wanted to tell you a little story.
When I was very young, we had some really old cookie cutters. Unlike the plastic ones that you find in the stores today, these were made out of tin, with little wooden handles on top. They were an antique back then, but more than likely, would still be in use today if they fell into the hands of the right children. After school, we would dump our homework on the floor, and begin rolling out some fresh cookie dough on the kitchen table. We would press down hard on the cutter, making sure that it cut all the way through. We would try to make as many as we could with our limited supply of dough and eventually placed them on a greased cookie sheet. After cooking for a short time in the oven, we would set them on the cooling rack, taking note of how similar they all were. You could hardly tell the difference from one cookie to the next, because each of them were exactly alike.
This reminds me of the Christian Life.
In the church, each of us are being molded and shaped into what God wants us to become, and the more that we submit to His will, the more we will become like each other. As we grow in Christ, we will grow closer together, sharing the same likeness, sharing the same beliefs, and sharing the same Love.
Philippians 2 ¹ If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies, ² Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.
Have you ever noticed how the world wants to be completely different from everybody else? Rather than conformity, they seek diversity. They want different clothes, they want different music, and they want different looks. They celebrate how different they are from each other, while in the church, the goal is the complete opposite. We are striving to conform to the will of God, which ultimately will result in each of us becoming exactly alike. Obedience to Christ will create a group of people who are joined together in one mind, and share perfect harmony and agreement with each other. This was the wish of the Apostle Paul. To be like-minded is to think alike. It is sharing the same thoughts and ideas, which are formed in us through faith and the teachings of Holy Scripture. In the church, Christians are not supposed to have different concepts or philosophies about God. They are not supposed to have diverse and contrary opinions, but be perfectly joined together in the Truth.
1 Corinthians 1 ¹⁰ Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. ¹¹ For it hath been declared unto me of you, my brethren, by them which are of the house of Chloe, that there are contentions among you.
In the church, we are all supposed to come together and focus our hearts on the teachings of Christ. Jesus and His Word is the source of our unity, and what brings us into closer relationships with each other. Faithful Christians are going to be very similar, like apples on a tree, or tomatoes on the vine.
In many large factories, they strive to keep everything similar when they manufacture a certain product. What they do is make the exact same thing by replicating it over and over again. They do this when they make cars. They will make a certain year and model and when they come off the assembly line, and each of them are exactly alike. They might have different colors, they might have some different rims, but for the most part, you cannot tell them apart. The church is like a Spiritual manufacturing plant as we are all being created into the image of the heavenly. We are becoming born again through God’s Holy Word.
Although we differ greatly in our outward appearance, we will become exactly alike through obedience to Christ. We will become of one heart, one mind, and one Spirit. We will share the same attributes, the same love, and the same virtues through faith in Christ. When we all focus our minds on the will of God, each of us can be transformed into His Spiritual likeness. Rather than a group of different people with different ideas and thoughts, we all become one with each other, joined together in a common purpose and a common direction. In the church we are all going to share similarities because we are joined together as one through the Holy Spirit. There is only one God and there is only one Holy Spirit, which can be received through faith in Jesus Christ.
“But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.” 1 Corinthians 12:11
“There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;” Ephesians 4:4
Like cookie dough, God is molding us into new Spiritual creatures, and when He is done, we will share like-mindedness with each other. But this is a unity that is only found through submission to God’s Word. The closer we become to the will of God, the more we will become alike.
“Be of the same mind one toward another…..Romans 12:16
How many of you like to eat a good burger? When I was in high school we used to have a little hamburger press that we kept in the kitchen drawer. It was two circular pieces of wood that were held together by a hinge. You took a small ball of meat, put it inside, and pressed down until you had a round, flat hamburger. After trimming off the excess meat, it was ready for the grill. The next ones that you made looked exactly the same, a process of duplication. Faithful Christians are going to be very similar to each other.
“Finally, be ye all of one mind…1 Peter 3:8
What’s one of your favorite meals at a restaurant? Fast food chains will focus on the perfect replication of their food. The meal that you ate last month in some other town, will be the exact same meal that you eat locally today. It had the same seasonings, the same condiments, and the same flavor. It’s a perfect duplication, and one that you come to expect. Faithful Christians are going to be very similar to each other. When you meet one, there will be another one just like them. They will be exactly alike, in both their actions and their deeds.
“Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel;” Philippians 1:27
Romans 1⁵ Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus: ⁶ That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
As the world seeks diversity, we must seek conformity. Rather than being different minded, we must become like-minded. True unity will happen when everybody strives together for the same thing; obedience, humility, and loving submission to the will of God.
Before you know it, everybody will be alike,… just like the cookies that came out of…
……The Cookie Cutter
Let’s think about these things for right now. We can be found on your web browser by searching, tlkjbc where you can find our diaries distributed through various platforms. We are not associated, nor affiliated with any other religious groups. You can get our entire podcast feeds directly, along with transcripts at tlkjbc.com or I suppose that you could find us somewhere up here, in the Great Northern Minnesota woods. Peace to you all, and Lord willing, we will talk with you some more tomorrow. Till then, bye bye everybody.
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