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.… Is Christ divided? 1 Corinthians 1:10, 13a

Brothers & Sisters in Christ,

Christian unity is uniquely Christian. What I mean is, we are commanded as Christians to pursue a kind of unity—unique, supernatural even—that surpasses what humans are otherwise capable of. The basis for God’s expectation of unity among believers is the person and work of Jesus Christ. Jesus is one in his person, not many. Jesus died to take us from being many and divided to make us one with himself and with each other (see Eph 2:11-22). Who Jesus is, what Jesus has done—these are the uniquely Christian doctrines that inform our uniquely Christian pursuit of unity.

Corinth was a church wracked by division. Paul’s letter helps us understand some of the reasons Christians in Corinth were divided amongst themselves. More importantly though, Paul writes about how critical it was for them to resolve their differences and be reconciled to each other. "Is Christ divided?" he asks pointedly.

Not long ago, I spoke to a woman who, like me, claims Jesus as her Lord. In our short conversation she confessed, “I don’t want to be reconciled with you. Why would you want to be reconciled with me?” Shocked, I replied, “Because I’m commanded to.” She offered no reply, though she did thank me for talking with her. She and her family have now stepped away from Morningside.

In First Corinthians, Paul compares the church to a human body: “Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ” (1 Cor 12:12). Sure, there are diseases and disorders that cause our bodies not to function normally, healthily. But most of us take for granted that our hands and feet will move as our minds command. When it comes to unity in the church, Jesus is the mind who expects us to function according to his will. He wants us “perfectly united in mind and thought” (see also Phil 2:1-2) For that to happen, we must surrender our many minds and wills to his one mind and will. We must allow his Spirit to direct ours.

My current message series is all about Jesus—who he is, what he has done for us, how he reveals who God is, and who he calls us to be. Jesus is God’s One & Only. He expects us, his people, to make him our one and only Savior and Lord. Together, we make up the members of Christ’s body at Morningside Baptist Church. Only together can we fulfill his will on earth as it is in heaven.

I pray that the same Jesus whose broken body became the ransom for our broken souls would heal the broken and bleeding body of his church. I pray that we would each surrender our minds and wills to his perfect will for us. I pray that all we say and do would bring glory to our Lord as we protect and pursue the bond of unity in peace.

Yours in Christ,

The Personnel Committee oversaw the following changes over the course of the last quarter of 2023. Teddie Ussery's resignation from the committee lead to Seth Johnson's election to the position of chair. Jenny Hale also resigned before the end of the year leaving a seat vacancy. The Nomination Committee is in the process to fill the two vacancies. Both Julie Ann Crane and Zach Walsh received promotions to full-time status in their respective areas. The Personnel Committee approved the addition of NextGen Worship leader to the 2024 budget in order to bolster support of the Student and Young Adult Ministries. Recently Zach Hamsley has resigned his position as Digital Media Director. Those responsibilities have been shifted to Bobby Meltzer who already handles a large portion of the church's digital needs.  Morningside Personnel for 2024 is lean and ready for God's movement among His people.

The Missions Committee had a very successful project for Operation Christmas Child. Items were collected for several weeks and over 350 boxes were packed at our Dessert & Packing Party in November. Through our ‘gently loved’ Christmas decoration booth at the Bazaar, enough funds were collected to fully fund the shipping costs of these boxes. The Missions Committee also supported the Lottie Moon offering through the Christmas card mailbox and distributed prayer guides and offering envelopes for the Week of Prayer in December.

During the 4th quarter of 2023, the Bereavement Team had the privilege of serving meals to the families of three of our beloved members: Anne Lutz, Fran Pharis and Nancy Taylor. We hope and pray that these meals offered some small measure of comfort and respite for the families during their time of grief.

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, 
who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. 
~2 Corinthians 1:3-4