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of those things. But none of those are the main thing. When you leave here this morning, I'd like you to shake hands with at least three people you don't know, and say to them, "The blood of Christ brought us together this morning." When that is not THE priority, any other priority will ultimately divide us.
The thing, above all else, that joins Christians together is the atonement—the saving work of Christ on the cross. Paul alludes to it in verse 13 ("Is Christ divided? Was it Paul who was crucified for you?") and then comes back to it in 17b: "that the cross of Christ will not be emptied of its effect." According to the NIV Application Commentary, verse 17b introduces the thought that will form the main idea of 1:18-2:5. The focus of Christian proclamation must remain clearly centered on the message of the crucifixion rather than baptism or any other doctrine, however important in its own right it may be. "Words of human wisdom" ["clever words" in the HCSB]… refer to that which is merely "human" and therefore separate from the divinely transforming message of the atonement (44).
In other words, the crucifixion - Christ's saving work for us on the cross - is what brings us together. It ought to be, and truly only can be, the one thing that unites us. If we are united only because we are all in a great Sunday school class, we will be divided from those who aren't in that class with us. If we are united only because we go to the 11:00 worship service, then we are split from those that go to the 9:30 service. But if we are united because Jesus paid for our sins on the cross, then we are truly united. Church is a place where people who have no other natural reason for associating with one another come together in love because they have all been redeemed by the blood of Jesus. If the crucifixion is the only thing we have in common, then it's enough to have in common.
Conclusion
I'd like you to take a few minutes to look around this room. Why are you here with these people, in this church, at this hour? Are you friends with these people? I certainly hope so. But friendship isn't enough to keep us together. Are the people around you from a similar racial background, or economic level? Do you have a group of friends here that all like to ride motorcycles together, or scrapbook, or follow [insert local sports team]? There's nothing wrong w