By Mike Cope
I was born and raised and later graduated just 18 miles from Ozark Bible College. Back to that in a moment.
There were so many blessings in the little church where I was raised in southwest Missouri. But one of them was not a strong youth group. We were small and, for the most part, weak. Most of the teens in that youth group were people I saw only on Sunday mornings””and for many of them, it seemed they were there only because of parental enforcement!
Eighteen miles from me was this incredible campus, full of devoted Christian leaders and teachers and students who, for the most part, were highly motivated.
But I didn”t know there even was such a thing as Ozark Bible College until I was in my late 20s.
A Decisive Divide
In the church where I was raised, the divide of 1906 was decisive: one group had decided to follow the ways of Christ (in worshiping without instruments), and the other had decided to follow the preferences of men (by using instruments).
The people who taught this at our church were sincere, God-loving people. But their poor understanding of the gospel (in elevating this issue to a matter of central concern) was costly to me and to many others.
Now I know the truth about Ozark Bible College (now called Ozark Christian College). When I spoke there several years ago, all kinds of emotions were erupting inside me. I met Ken Idleman, who”s what I envision a Christian college president to be. I met several of the faculty””people who kept talking about the mission of Christ. And since then I”ve observed that many of their graduates are going out eager to participate in the work of God in this world.
That campus was just 20 minutes from me, but I never knew it.
I can still understand how we might have disagreed about instrumental music. I can understand the reasoning behind the two positions.
But how we got to believe that one side was the people of the God and the other was a misguided “denomination” (in all the pejorative connotations that were intended)””that, I can”t figure out.
Singing a cappella or singing with instrumental accompaniment is not what makes us the people of God! No wonder so many people from our heritage have gone to their deathbeds worried about going to Hell. If perfect biblical interpretation is the key to salvation, then we”re all doomed.
But salvation is a gift of God through Jesus Christ. Being “in Christ” rather than being biblical scholars is our hope.
Wonder and Concern
I can”t help but wonder how much different my high school years might have been had I benefited from the people and resources of that campus. And even more, I”m concerned about all the many people and ministries in churches of Christ and Christian churches who could have blessed each other through the years.
I”m sure in some ways I”ve inadvertently contributed to this division. And for that, I”m so sorry. We are full brothers and sisters in Christ, and that should be reflected in the way we treat one another and minister side-by-side with one another.
There”s so much talk of reconciliation as the hundredth year since the formal division approaches. And I”m thankful for all of those places””lectureships, conferences, meetings””where that reconciliation will have a public face. That”s important.
But the essence of this reconciliation will be at quieter, local levels. It will mean family members apologizing for making such a big fuss about the differences. It will mean mutual forgiveness. It will mean churches planted together, ministries supported together, campus ministries united, and teen groups nurtured together.
Right now I”m anxious to learn from my brothers and sisters in the Christian church who are so passionate about missional living and church planting. I”m anxious to learn how you”re feeding the poor, welcoming the outcasts, sheltering the homeless, teaching the lost, sending out missionaries, and working against injustices in this world. I want to learn what you”ve discovered about leadership and about discipleship.
I”m eager to finally meet other parts of the family””members I didn”t know existed until I was an adult.
A Breakfast Parable
For 14 years, I”ve been having breakfast most Wednesday mornings at the infamous Towne Crier restaurant in Abilene, Texas. It”s been a wonderful time to be with preachers from other churches in town.
As members have drifted back and forth from one church to another over “major differences,” we”ve just smiled, enjoyed our friendship, and remembered that what goes around comes around.
It”s rare for anyone to order anything other than the “one egg special.” (Yes, it may remind you of the “blue plate special” that Barney used to order at the diner in Mayberry.) One egg, meat, and bread. $2.19.
We get the same thing. But we order it so differently!
I”m the “normal” one egg special guy: one egg over medium, bacon, and a biscuit””with water. No bells and whistles. Just pass me the strawberry jam.
Eddie orders the same thing, except that he has iced tea. That”s right: iced tea for breakfast. When the waitresses see him coming, they know it”s time to pour the tea.
Terry”s one egg special goes like this: one egg scrambled, bacon, and a pancake. (Believe it or not, they”ll substitute a pancake for the biscuit.) Water.
Don adds another interesting twist: “I”d like the one egg special with an extra egg.” Now I”m not Einstein, but wouldn”t that be a two egg special? Apparently not. Coffee.
Phil is Mr. Atkins. He asks for extra bacon instead of the biscuit. Bring on the protein; hold the carbs. Diet Dr. Pepper to drink.
So there you have it. We place five “one egg special” orders. But they look very different.
It”s funny to us that some of our members probably think our churches are vastly different. But we”re all just one egg specials. One may be low carb, one may have the extra egg, and another is guzzling iced tea.
But we”re way more similar than most people suspect. In small worlds, minuscule differences can look VERY LARGE!
Can you imagine how much energy is burned in many communities by members of various churches talking in outrage about what another church is teaching or doing? I”d like to think that in those communities, one morning a week the ministers are getting together for a bit of Towne Crier Koinonia: a one egg special, a helping of trust and deep concern, a little humor, and a mutual respect in Christ.
If I know our heritage in churches of Christ and Christian churches at all, I suspect that it will be around meal tables where we will experience the fellowship we should have been enjoying all these years.
Mike Cope is preaching minister with the Highland Church of Christ in Abilene, Texas, and adjunct professor at Abilene Christian University.
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