Cultivating the Psychology of Cooperation

A local church, as long as it is indwelt by the Holy Spirit, cannot entertain the psychology of competition.

When it begins to compete with another church, it is a true church of God no longer; it has voided its character and gone down onto a lower level. The Spirit that indwells it is no longer divine; it is human merely, and its activities are pitched on the plane of the natural. Wherever the spirit of competition between brethren rears its head, there will be found carnality, selfishness and sin. The only way to deal with it is to tag it for what it is and put it away in the sorrows of repentance. The Holy Spirit always cooperates with Himself in His members. The Spirit-directed body does not tear itself apart by competition. The ambitions of the various members are submerged in the glory of the Head, and whatever brings honor to the Head meets with the most eager approval of the members. We should cultivate the idea that we are co-workers rather than competitors. We should ask God to give us the psychology of cooperation. We should learn to think of ourselves as being members in particular of one and the same body, and we should reject with indignation every suggestion of the enemy designed to divide our efforts.

Verse

I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. 1 Corinthains 3:6-7

Thought

Since the church, its ministry, its servants, its people are God's, ministers and people cooperate in serving and glorifying God. A physical body in which the individual members compete rather than cooperate illustrates the chaos that results when compet

Prayer

By Your Spirit, Lord, remind me that I am one member of Your family. May I relate to other believers, other ministers as to family members with whom to cooperate not compete.