I typed this sentence, “The absolute truth in my opinion is” then I stopped and laughed as the sentence is an oxymoron. Right? Absolute and opinion in the same sentence just cannot be. What has caused division over and over again is that people have done and continue to do 2 things;

• Believe that one’s individual opinion is the Absolute Truth
• They drop the “in my opinion” & then stand on the absoluteness of what is someone’s opinion

The following is a fictional example in order to draw or illustrate this concept. The picture at the beginning of this post was drawn by an artist and displayed in a gallery. The artist does not explain the painting, instead encourages the audience to take from it what they believe it means for it contains much wisdom, knowledge and insight. The audience, impressed by the work and history of the artist, gather after the exhibition to discuss what this painting means.

John: I have known Matt (the artist) and his work for yeas and ABC is what this painting means

Steve: No John, you are wrong because 2 paintings ago Matt kind of indicated that his passion is about XYZ and this painting has to follow that same passion and therefore this painting means XYZ not ABC

Although Matt is the only one that ABSOLUTELY knows the TRUTH about the meaning of this picture, yet many opinions are being planted as “either” “or” and Johnites and Stevenites come to existence. What about the Mattites where are they??? Well, Matt is not taking sides and not giving any hints as to which, if there is any, is correct and which is incorrect. Matt wants them to work through this and choose for themselves. Choose what? Choose to see that neither XYZ nor ABC is the Absolute Truth, rather opinions. Opinions, that enhance the coming closer to understand Matt, rather than an “either” “or” meanings to the same painting. Then and only then there won’t be Stevenites and Johnites rather people striving to get closer and closer to the wisdom, knowledge and insight within this painting.

And that my friend is the wisdom, knowledge and insight of the Bible, how to humble oneself to admit that my opinion is just that and not the mind of God. And oh how we use the same Bible, the same word and the same verse to plant an opinion as absolute truth and create an empire based on THIS ABSOLUTE TRUTH. And another and another and another. How many Absolute Truths can there be based on ONE.

Did you know that 3 major Church splits that occurred around the 500 A.D. and 1,000 A.D. did come back and reunite around the 14-15 hundreds? That’s 500-1,000 years later they came back and reunited….. Surprised? Do not be. Reconciliation and reuniting are the highest forms of humility as it takes people breaking down WALLS that they themselves erected and fortified.

So have you thought about these questions; Did God intend to have so many divisions within His church/ Is it God’s plan for man to fight over what Jesus said or meant/ Is God looking at us delighted about our divisions or sad? Simple questions begging a simple answer, and that answer is; we have created the divisions and we need to undo it and reunite. It is possible not impossible. Why? Because it is indeed God’s plan for us to be united in Him. ALL united in Him. Till next week.