the spirit of division

If you are the member of a church body and you have a vision from our Lord, then the spirit of division is at work within the members.  This spirit is a subtle creature and he has one objective, to divide the members of a healthy functioning body.  He has no limitations, no restrictions, he just wants to impede something good.  This spirit is so cunning he will convince a saint that they are justified to quarrel and hate a brother or sister.
 
1 Corinthians 1:11 It has been declared unto me of you, my brethren, by them of the house            of Chloe, that there are contentions among you.
 
Paul makes a special point of calling those folks his brethren, perhaps he wanted them to be aware of who they are.  One of the major sins we were delivered from was hatred, which is the root cause of strife.  Kenneth Copeland speaks of a church that got into major strife because the pastor wanted to replace the piano bench.  Do you know who won that debate?  The spirit of division!  I realize certain things need to be discussed and decisions made but is anything worth splitting a church over?  I submit to you that every church split happened because someone insisted on having their way.  No one prayed and sought the Lord for His wisdom.  The spirit of division is not a respector of persons, he will deceive whosoever is too immature to resist him.
 
Ephesians 4:11, 13-14 Jesus gave us the five fold ministry gifts for the maturing of the saints.  Until all come in the unity of the faith.  That we are no longer tossed to and fro.
 
If Christians are feuding with one another it’s on account of immaturity, either they are yet babies in Christ or they have not submitted to the five gifts Jesus gave us.  Baby Christians have a mind of their own, they do not have the mind of Christ.  Immature Christians are easily deceived, they stand for nothing and therefore fall for anything.  I have known several Christians that have been to Bible school and were believers for over twenty years.  They were the biggest babies I have ever met, they were always stirring up a pot of division.
 
Mathew 16:24 And Jesus said, if any man will come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.
 
The problem with some Christians is they think too highly of themselves and they expect a certain level of attention.  It is a common thing for children to demand attention and to think only of themselves.  Babies always want what someone else has, they will crawl over and take it and claim it as their own.
 
Mathew 20:27 And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant.
 
If you have a church full of servants the spirit of division will struggle to cause strife.  Humility acts as a shield between men and the devil, remember it was pride that got lucifer kicked out of heaven.  The spirit of division cannot coax a servant to lord himself over anyone, a servant is more concerned with the needs of others than their own.  What man would ever think that servitude would empower him over the wiles of the devil. 

---