HOW DO WE CULTIVATE UNITY?

“To gather with God’s people in united adoration of the Father is as necessary to the Christian life as prayer.”– Martin Luther.

Unity is more than a good idea; it’s a scriptural command. This is why Paul writes, “Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace” (Ephesians 4:3).

For some, unity is a vague, dream-like wish for a day when Christians sweetly smile at each other and sing in harmony; disagreements are resolved and eliminated, and we all say, think, and do the same things. That is not how the scripture looks at unity. Scripturally,  unity is the idea that people from different backgrounds can come together to accomplish a shared mission and vision. It’s about recognizing that people are stronger together than they are individually. That does not mean we won’t have disagreements. There’s no such thing as a perfect church, organization, or family. Problems will arise. Tension will mount. But despite our differences, we can move forward together with sincerity, humility, and love.

Our unity is not based on shared cultures, personal interests, or personal tastes but on something much more profound.  It is not what we have in common that matters, but Who we have in common.  There are a thousand ways to splinter church unity and one way to unite it again.  We need to walk the same path and head in the same direction. Sometimes, Jesus will be all that connects us, but that connection is critical and will last for eternity.

A united church is a powerful tool.  Paul says we exist as a church so, “…all of you can join together with one voice, giving praise and glory to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 15:6) If we’re going to be successful doing that, it’s going to take everyone making that our goal.

When this occurs, different gifts, talents, and blessings become connected and integrated, and the result is a fantastic release of divine power that achieves and accomplishes the impossible. Unity empowers the Christian community to operate at full capacity. Unity is also a distinguishing mark of Jesus’s presence and power in the Christian community.

When the world sees this kind of love and unity, it is a powerful testimony to the truth of the gospel. Let us work even harder to improve our unity through the love we show in the communities we serve. A unified church brings glory to Jesus, and when Jesus is glorified, the world will sit up and take notice.

Discussion Questions:

1. How important is living in harmony?
2. How would you describe the power and impact of unity? When or where have you experienced that?