It was God's eternal purpose to unite all things in Christ (Eph. 1:9, 10). Christ declared that he would establish but one fold (John 10: 16); he prayed that all his followers might be perfectly united and put that union as a necessary condition for the conversion of the world (John 17:20-23); he died to unite all in one body (Eph. 2: 14-16), of which he is the head (Col. 1: 18). If we turn to the book of Acts, we discover that the Holy Spirit, through the Apostles, did establish but one church, and that it was thoroughly united in love, teaching and practice. If there ever was an excuse for different Christian denominations, it was for a Jewish Christian denomination and a Gentile Christian denomination; but the Holy Spirit did not establish such denominations and Paul put forth the effort of his life to prevent such a breach. Where in all history can you find twelve men more radically different mentally and temperamentally than the Apostles? Yet the Holy Spirit did not establish separate churches to cater to and further develop these temperamental eccentricities. All were united in one church so they could counterbalance and complement each other and thus perfect their own character and give greater symmetry to the church. "And when the day of Pentecost was fully come they were all with _one accord in one place_" (Acts 2:1). After three thousand were added unto them we read, "They continued daily with _one accord_ in the temple" (Acts 2: 46), while farther on we read, "And the multitude of them that believed were of _one heart_ and of _one soul_" (Acts 4: 32). From the Epistles of Paul we learn that there was but one church in each community. Christ's relation to the church makes it impossible for Christians to be loyal to him and at the same time divided. All must be perfectly united in allegiance to him as king, lie is the head of the body of which his followers are members. All the members of the body are perfectly united to each other and to the head; and, although the members may differ in function, they are all directed by the same commandments, motives and purposes. As soon as a tendency toward division became manifest it was severely rebuked and ascribed to the carnal nature. Paul, in writing to the Corinthians, says, "Now, I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same things, and that there be no division among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment" ... "For ye are yet carnal; for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal and walk as men?" (I Cor. 1: 10; 3:3).