Why the stress of unification?
Paul explains that the purpose of unity is kingdom work: 'so that the Gentiles may glorify God for His mercy' (Romans 15:9). The glory of God is displayed through a loving union of God's people, and as the Church joins lives together, God draws people to His side.
Aside from my passion for the topic, you're probably wondering why I am blogging about unity. My purpose with this post is to encourage the Church to be how she is designed to be: unified as one body with one spirit for one common purpose.
America does not place a high premium on unity. We sacrifice community to make way for individualism without blinking an eye. Even if we do engage socially, we must ask if our motives are pure. Do we socialize to serve or to be served? Do we ask what we can do for our community or expect to glean from the lives of other people? I'd argue that a problem in our culture today is individualism at an extreme level. By placing too much emphasis on this value, we think of ourselves as deserving, resulting in splintered churches, broken friendships, dysfunctional families, and divided universities that refuse to set pride aside in order to stand strong together for the glory of God. We are sitting in our self-constructed versions of hell by refusing to bridge differences, reconnect, reconcile, and heal.
You've probably seen this played out, but just in case you need evidence consider the following:
A person is dissatisfied with a church decision and decides to leave out of spite.
A woman is tired of a friend group and decides to leave to find a better one.
A husband has 'fallen out of love' with his wife and decides to leave to marry a younger one.
In terms of culture or preferences:
We have denominations, exclusive groups, and generational schisms that are all results of dissatisfaction or an inability to overstep individualism.
(I'm not anti-denominatinal, but the question of the heart must always be present. Are we truly divided, or are we preserving values in a healthy way? The issue here is the cause of splitting and the refusal to be united with the bond of the Spirit and a belief in Jesus Christ).
The examples are endless. As an individualistic society, we have become so selfish that any sign of discomfort causes us to bolt. Instead of working on preserving our relationships, we jettison them, because hey, we've got options and people are as disposable as yesterday's garbage.
This is important to take note of, because as someone who is a part of the American society (and simply a flesh-filled world), I am surrounded by individualism. Though not inherently evil, I think we distort it because of our sinful natures, and the reason why this is so crucial to notice is because of it's kingdom implications.
As a church splits, as a friendship breaks, as a family falls apart, or as peers become adversaries, the body of Christ fractures.
Imagine being someone from the outside looking in. Would you want to be a part of such a group? What person would consider becoming a Christian if being a Christian meant being enemies?
Additionally, Jesus thought unity to be a value of importance, and if Jesus though it to be significant, then I want to also.
We must consider one element: differences. Obviously, cultural and theological differences exist, otherwise divisions would not exist. How do we handle these differences?
Firstly, love must be at the center. When asked what the Greatest Commandment was, Jesus said it was to love God, with the second being like it, to love others as oneself. These two principles are at the core of God's heart and all else hinges off of them. However a situation is handled, love must be at the center.
Regarding differences, one must discern between what matters and what does not.
Oftentimes differences arise due to cultural variety; one group prefers fill-in-the-blank while another group prefers quite the opposite. To respond biblically to cultural diversity, we need to consider God's role in it all.
I believe whole-heartedly that God authored human diversity, and if this is true then that means Christians are called to see diversity as He sees it: good. As a believer, my heart should be to want to honor all pieces of the Creator's handiwork, and that includes cultural diversity.
Now, you may think I am referring to cultural diversity as being a completely different geographical location than North America, and though this is partially what I mean, I think we can take it deeper (and closer to home). I think there are cultural differences within generations and even within generational people groups. Think about it: your preferences are most likely different than those of your grandparents or even your parents, and this is not bad. In fact, it can be quite beautiful. Your preferences may even differ from those of similar age around you. The truth is, every human being is uniquely crafted, and this is beautiful.
What's equally glorious is this next truth: though each different from one another, we are all unified in that we are each created in the image of God.
Every human being differs to serve the body in a special way. What would a body be if every part was a nose? How colorful would a bag of M&Ms be if every one was red? How would a puzzle be a puzzle if each piece was exactly the same as the one next to it?
You've most likely heard this all before, sermons on unity on such, but do you truly believe it? Do you truly live it?
I often forget, or worse-I intentionally choose my own selfish desires. Engaging with people of variety is not an easy feat, because it can oftentimes push us out of our comfort zones. Most of us do not welcome diversity with open arms as it can force us to change. Open-mindedness or appreciation for what is different disrupts our cozy, comfortable, safe-havens of hell. It exposes us to our own deficiencies, even, because it means that we must rely on other people to contribute their piece of the puzzle.
It means loving, and that means trusting God.
It means humbling down and admitting that other people are uniquely crafted because of their differences. It means affirming people and appreciating the beauty that God has chosen to express in others. It means not only honoring other traditions, heritages, or preferences but perhaps even celebrating them, because through such cultural traits God is trying to teach us more about Himself.
Denying other people their cultural traits or personal preferences can often mean veiling the revelation of God, and what's ironic is that we think we are able to do so. We convince ourselves that we can simply leave a situation, refuse to comply, or turn a blind eye and that somehow God and all of His gloriousness will not be revealed.
His glory will be revealed, but we will thwart ourselves from receiving bits of His glory, and in doing so we can cause ourselves and perhaps others spiritual harm.
Of course, I am not necessarily advocating a peace at any price position. I am arguing that oftentimes disunity within the Church happens because of Christians fighting the wrong battles. We often splinter over individual preferences and personalities rather than violations at the core of the biblical faith.
Responding to sin within the body is completely different than responding to cultural preferences.
Dear Church, we need to strive for unity. If you're a college student and you're reading these words, then I hope you take them to heart. There is power in being young; oftentimes it means being passionate, authentic, and zealous (in the best way). To all of the college students out there, you have the ability to unify the Church. If the importance of unification hasn't sunk it yet, then consider the biblical teaching on unity of God's people and how it reflects His glory by carrying out His kingdom call.
Let's take it back to Jesus. When praying in John 17, Christ saturates His disciples in truth and divine requests saying, 'I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you (the Father). Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name, so that they may be one as we are one' (v 11). Jesus is concerned with unity, praying that it is protected and reflective of the Godhead: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Jesus knew that unity would be a consistent struggle for us, His followers, but like the disciples before us we have a Savior who is interceding on our behalf. He has put a bit of Himself inside each of us so that we can live out the unified call of the Church: to live in love.
To quote Duane Elmer:
'The body of Christ, when its members live together in unity, becomes the visible manifestation of the triune God'.Through our unified love we declare what we claim to believe: that God loves us and sent His Son to secure our redemption. By embracing disunity, we fail to live out our convictions, which is faltering to ourselves and other people. The world desperately needs Christians whose lives match their convictions, because what this will mean is people living out love, and the world needs love.
Unification is foundational to every other task God wants to complete through His Church. It is vital to the furthering and thriving of the kingdom.
I'm not sure practically speaking what this looks like for you, but for me it means appreciating the gifts of other people. It means loving anyone no matter how we may view a topic or concept. It means setting aside my own pride so that I can worship with other believers. It means not only honoring other people but celebrating them. It means prioritizing relationships and valuing what God values-other people. It means intensely fixing my eyes upon the life of Christ, because He is the perfect model of acceptance of one another. He treated every person with honor even though every person is undeserving, openly rebellious, and downright hateful toward Him. Being the Church means so much more than sitting in a pew or attending a bible study or claiming to believe the Gospel or forcing yourself to sit through chapel each day.
It means love.
