There are different ways to distinguish a church from a cult. Churches hold to a broad consensus of orthodox beliefs while cults invariably elevate a small number of uniquely unorthodox beliefs. Churches tend to foster a context in which leaders are accountable to their congregations while cults tend to foster a context in which leaders demand mindless obedience. Churches expect loyalty to the word of God while cults expect loyalty to the words of a charismatic leader. And then there is this: Churches tend to reflect unity amid diversity while cults tend to display unity premised upon uniformity.

The gospel of Jesus Christ is meant to transform those who believe it to such a degree that communities structured around it are markedly different from those that are not. When the gospel is honored and valued, it fosters love and unity among people who would otherwise be cold and distant. And in that way gospel communities should reflect a kind of gospel diversity—a community in which a diverse group of people honor, enjoy, and serve one another.
As we look around a church we ought to see people with a wide range of differences experiencing the deepest kind of unity—different races and ethnicities, different ages and socioeconomics, different convictions on politics, different convictions on education, different convictions on vaccinations, and so on. The gospel that was sufficient to bind Jew to Gentile and Gentile to Jew is sufficient to bind any two—or any two hundred—Christians together. The gospel that fostered unity between vegetarians and meat-eaters is plenty strong enough to foster unity between maskers and non-maskers.
Yet a little honest self-examination will probably reveal that we all have a cultist lurking within ourselves. We may pay lip service to diversity, but when it comes down to it we find that our natural instinct is toward uniformity—a uniformity to our own emphases, our own convictions, our own preferences.
We acknowledge that Christians have freedom to disagree when it comes to the ways we educate our children, yet find we look with a disparaging eye at those who have strong convictions that are the exact opposite of our own. We say that we want our church to reflect the ethnic diversity of the surrounding community, but then find that the traditions and ideals of another culture grate against our own. We distinguish between essential and non-essential beliefs—we may even say something like “in essentials unity, in non-essentials liberty, in all things charity”—yet still find ourselves thinking how much better this church would be if we did not have to love people who believed this or acted like that. Like the strong toward the weak in Romans 14, we can despise people who live by different convictions, and like the weak toward the strong, we can so easily pass judgment on them.
The inner cultist tries to convince us that life would be better, relationships would be easier, the church would be safer, if only everyone was the same—the same as me. Yet such a community would display little of the gospel because it would require little divine grace. It takes no divine power to foster community amid uniformity. But it takes great divine power to bind together those who are in so many ways so very different—those who continue to live by conscience, who continue to value their culture, who continue to hold to their convictions.
So when you look out at your church and see a person whose convictions are opposite yours on a key issue, be grateful that you are part of the same church. When you see a person who places great value on what is so uninspiring to you and places little value on what is so close to your heart, be thankful that God has bound you together. When you look out and see diversity, don’t let your heart long for uniformity. For that would be a longing to be part of a cult rather than a church.

Grace and peace to you, my friends.

I have added a couple of Kindle deals with more possibly to come tomorrow.
(Yesterday on the blog: Family Update: An Engagement, a Scholarship, and a Beautiful Bench)
The Failure of Evangelical Elites
Carl Trueman has some extended thoughts on the failure of Evangelical elites. “Let me put it bluntly: Talking in an outraged voice about racism within the boundaries set by the woke culture is an excellent way of not talking about the pressing moral issues on which ­Christianity and the culture are opposed to each other: LGBTQ+ rights and abortion. Even Schleiermacher would cringe. Christian elites try to persuade the secular world that they aren’t so bad—no longer in terms of Enlightenment conceptions of reason, but in terms of the disordered moral preoccupations of the day.”
We All Have the Power of Caligula Now
Meanwhile, Alan Noble has some interesting (and disturbing) thoughts on pornography. “Pornography assumes that we are each our own and belong to ourselves. It’s a tool that promises to give us a kind of personal validation, a sense of identity, a taste of meaningfulness, and a glimpse of intimate belonging. But by its own logic, pornography, like modernity, is an empty promise.”
When Pastors Declare Victory Too Soon
“I used to think that turning a church around was like turning a business around: set a new vision, clean up the mess the old guy left, and get the charts pointing in the right direction.” But now Darryl has realized it’s far different.
Expressive Individualism: Our Twenty-First Century American Ba’al
Bruce Ashford: “Westerners in general, and Americans in particular, have learned to live life without any real reference to God. Because of our relative wealth, we tend not to lean on God for material provisions. Because of modern medicine, we rely on doctors and surgeons when our health is fragile, and don’t see God as the ultimate healer. Because of modern therapy, we tend to ignore the role he should play in the right ordering of our hearts and minds…”
What Is “the Name?”
Terry Johnson: “Were the Jehovah’s Witnesses right? Among their central boasts is that they have revived the covenantal name of God, the Hebrew YHWH, sometimes pronounced Yahweh and sometimes Jehovah, that Jesus came to restore. Ancient Hebrew has no vowels so the precise pronunciation may never be known. Given the growing practice among Evangelicals of referring in sermons and lectures to Yahweh, one would think that the Jehovah’s Witnesses were right.”
Dog Bites Man: Adventures in the Life of a Translation Consultant
How can someone help ensure the quality of a new translation when that person doesn’t speak the language? This article answers.
Pray for Those in Authority
“Authority and institutionalism have become less popular in recent years, but Scripture places emphasis on authority and organized religion is an irrevocable part of God’s plan for the world. We are commanded in Scripture to pray for those in authority (1 Timothy 2:1-2) and this command should be taken seriously.”
Flashback: Do We Care for the Sheep or Do We Use the Sheep?
There is a place for ambitious goals, I’m sure, but they must come after the sheep have been properly cared for, not before.

One of the chief purposes of trial and affliction is to make us send for our Savior. —Theodore Cuyler

My thanks goes to the Good Book Company for sponsoring the blog this week to tell you about the excellent God’s Big Promises Bible Storybook.

Today’s Kindle deals include mostly classics but at least one newer book as well.
(Yesterday on the blog: Cessationist: The Film)
The Battle for the Body
Is Carl Trueman overstating it? I’m not actually sure. “As the fourth century wrestled with the doctrine of God, the fifth with Christology and the nature of God’s grace, and the Reformation era with sacraments and salvation, so our age wrestles with the question of anthropology. What does it mean to be human? More specifically, what does it mean to be an embodied human? For we now find ourselves not so much in a battle for the Bible but in a battle for the body.”
Apple’s Mother Nature Ad: It’s Protestant Paganism.
Glen Scrivener: “You can imagine the pitch: Mother Nature visits Apple HQ to conduct a performance review. In the writers’ room at Saturday Night Live it would gain instant traction: It’s Gaia in the boardroom as a take-no-prisoners businesswoman.” He’s talking about that new Apple commercial that was universally panned.
Places I Can’t Go
This is a sweet reflection on parenting older kids. “I am grateful that the kids grew up and were able to leave home and fly; they are capable and thriving, and I feel excitement and joy for them in each new adventure. But sometimes, when I say goodbye before a long separation, I have a fleeting but powerful yearning for them to be back under my roof.”
The Element of Physical Attraction in Romantic Relationships
Here’s quite a long and interesting look at the element of physical attraction in romantic relationships—not something I’ve ever seen an article on, to my knowledge.
Can You Focus on the Bible Too Much?
I find bibliolatry one of the laziest charges a person can make against a Christian.
Loving the Truth and Speaking in Love
“The noisy gongs of acerbic and judgmental discernment bloggers, podcasters, vloggers and conference speakers are scattered throughout our social media feeds…and they’re here to stay. The uncharitableness with which such individuals speak online immediately ought to leave a bad taste in the mouth of Christ’s true lambs.” Yes!
Flashback: The Ones Who Sow and the Ones Who Reap
Though some may go unrecognized here, they shall be commended by the one who sees and knows all things. The ones who sow shall rejoice as much as the ones who reap, the ones who supported as much as the ones who accomplished.

In God’s plan, waiting is not an interruption or obstruction of the plan; waiting is part of the plan. —Paul David Tripp