Staying Focused on Jesus in a Divided World

In our increasingly polarized society, it’s easy to lose sight of what truly matters. We live in a world where everyone seems to be shouting, telling us who to trust, who to follow, who to fear, and who to oppose. But what happens when good things slowly begin to replace the best thing in our spiritual lives?

What Happens When Good Things Replace the Best Thing?

Paul addresses this very issue with the Corinthian church in First Corinthians 1:10-13. The Corinthians weren’t terrible people – they loved Jesus, were spiritually active, and incredibly gifted. However, they had begun organizing themselves around leaders instead of around Christ. Paul writes: “I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another in what you say and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly united in mind and thought.” The problem wasn’t that they lacked passion. Their passion had become fragmented, causing them to lose their impact and influence.

How Division Starts in the Church

Division in the church usually starts with misplaced focus. The Corinthians were saying things like:

“I follow Paul”
“I follow Apollos”
“I follow Cephas”
“I follow Christ” (even this group was acting superior)

What we rally around shapes how we relate to one another. It’s like being at a family dinner where everyone starts arguing about whose cooking is best, and suddenly the debate becomes the focus instead of enjoying the meal and family time together.

Why Unity Matters for Kingdom Influence

Unity isn’t uniformity – it’s shared devotion. It’s being united on the right thing: Jesus Christ. Jesus himself prayed for this in John 17: “that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” There’s something about believers being united in Christ that has a powerful impact on the world around us. The church doesn’t lose its influence because it lacks passion, but because that passion becomes fragmented.

Leaders Are Gifts, Not Foundations

Paul asks three piercing questions: “Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized in the name of Paul?” The implied answer to all is “no.” God uses leaders to teach, challenge, and help us grow, but leaders were never meant to carry the weight of our identity. Our identity must be found in Christ alone. As Paul writes in First Corinthians 3:11: “For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.”

How the Cross Keeps Us United

The cross and the message of “Christ and him crucified” keeps us humble and together. When our focus is on the cross, we can stay centered on the best thing instead of being fragmented by good things that aren’t the best thing. The gospel message – that Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose again on the third day – is the good news that has the power to change lives. This is what we’re called to share.

Three Truths About the Cross

All of us are rescued the same way – “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”

None of us have earned our place – “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.”

The cross levels the ground – Humility isn’t weakness; it’s what holds the body together and helps us stay united instead of divided.

Living in a Loud World

We live in a loud world where everyone is shouting, but Jesus speaks in a quiet, steady voice that requires us to listen. It’s easy to let the loud voices of the world shape us more than the gentle voice of Jesus. Paul wasn’t telling the Corinthians they were terrible – he was saying they needed to come back to the center, to what really matters. As Hebrews tells us, we must “fix our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith.”

Questions for Self-Reflection

Consider these important questions:

What is shaping my spiritual center right now?
What’s the loudest voice I seem to be listening to?
How is that voice shaping how I see others, react to others, speak to others, and love others?
Where might Jesus be inviting me to loosen my grip on identity-level attachments?

Three Practical Challenges

Listen more than you defend
Reflect more than you react (think before you speak)
Love more than you label

The third challenge is perhaps the most important. We’ve started labeling people more and more often, and once we label someone as something we don’t care for, we feel empowered to dismiss them completely and no longer love them. Jesus always saw the beauty of our potential. He never got hung up on the labels we carry – He just loves us and invites us to hang out with Him.

Life Application

This week, challenge yourself to “love more than you label.” Unity doesn’t require agreement on everything, but it does require humility centered on Jesus. Ask yourself: What labels have I placed on others that prevent me from loving them well? What labels have I accepted about myself that hold me back from experiencing God’s love fully? Keep your eyes on Jesus. Identify where good things might have taken the place of the best thing in your spiritual life. Ask Jesus to help you stay centered on Him and love others well, because that’s where life is truly found.

Reflection Questions:

How can I listen for Jesus’s quiet voice above the loud voices of the world this week?
What “good thing” in my life might be slowly replacing my focus on Jesus as the “best thing”?
Who in my life do I need to love instead of label, and how can I take a practical step toward that this week?

Steve Lawes is a Church Consultant and also provides coaching for pastors, churches, ministries and church planters.