One of Jesus's great concerns was unity among believers. In His great High Priestly prayer of John 17, He prayed, "I do not ask in behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word; that they may all be one; even as Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be in Us; that the world may believe that Thou didst send Me" (John 17:20-21). Paul expresses a similar concern. Indeed, it seems that one of the primary reasons for his letter to the church at Philippi was a call for unity. In Phil. 1:27, he says, "Conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ; so that whether I come and see you or remain absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel." Soon after he says, "If therefore there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose" (Phil. 2:1-2).
There is much more in Scripture on the topic of unity, but I'm wondering ... what does that look like? What was the intent here? Paul writes in 1 Cor. 12 that the Body of Christ operates as a body. That is, not everyone is the same, and not everyone has the same function. Thus, I would conclude that "unity" doesn't mean "sameness". But the concept of "of the same mind" is repeated. So maybe the idea is "sameness", at least in thought. I'm not sure.
The reason I'm not sure is because when I look at Christianity as a whole, I don't see "of the same mind". We are bombarded on all sides by differing views. Wikipedia, for instance, has a partial list of some 300 Christian denominations. While most share a basic set of doctrine upon which they agree, there are thousands of differences as well. Seventy-five percent of Americans call themselves "Christians", but their beliefs are as divergent as their numbers. And, of course, these divisions didn't start in America. They didn't even start at the Reformation. They date all the way back to the first days of Christianity, when Paul complained about the Corinthian church. "Each one of you is saying, 'I am of Paul,' and 'I of Apollos,' and 'I of Cephas,' and 'I of Christ.' Has Christ been divided?" (1 Cor 1:12-13). So it would seem that division has existed from the beginning.
So ... again I wonder, what does unity look like? Stroll through the blogs, and you'll find a wide division of viewpoints on a large number of topics. What would it look like if we were "of the same mind"? Look at the infighting that we all experience. What would it look like if we were one? I honestly don't know. I wonder if anyone does.
4 comments:
Not to argue, because I could be wrong...but I have had glimpses of it and it is a beautiful thing. But it is never perfect, as we are not perfect. The unity will be perfect when we are with Christ and not before. However, we should be desiring it and moving toward it.
The churches from Australia that I work for have such a beautiful gift of unity. I have yet to see anything like it in the US, though it is possible it is here. They don't fully agree with the church I attend (Calvary Chapel), nor that of my parents (a 5 point Calvinist Baptist), but they do not argue with us, because they strive for unity and growth in Him. We enjoy instead sharing in our common trust, the glory of the Lord and the blessedness of the Salvation we have in Christ Jesus.
They feel that the fellowship of the saints is the highest good on earth for the body to achieve, as it is the most effective witness to the outside and the most body building effective for the members of the universal church.
When I see how they treat each other and the maturity of their youth in Christ, I know they are walking in the Light more effectively than most churches.
They have blessed our lives immensely from allowing Christ to be extended to us through their love and actions. I have never felt more loved and built up by any church. When they share about what they believe, they never do it by putting down my beliefs or my church. Instead they just read the Word and discuss their understanding on the matter. There is no division, no strife, and no pride over it. If I don't agree I still feel completely united with them on the essentials of truth of the Gospel and the fruit of the Spirit. The love of the brethren. I never feel attacked or belittled.
They have impacted my life more than any other because of this approach. And this is where I long to be. In the same manner. John was really onto something when he talked about you know you have passed from death to life when you love the brethren.
My parents church is a 5 point Calvinist baptist which my parents and many of the congregation disagree with, yet they are still in unity as brethren. They don't agree with their pastor completely, but they love him dearly and they love each other. They don't argue with each other over these doctrines because they don't want the division over something that is just the opinions of men. And so they all glorify and serve God as a body.
That is what I think of as unity. That is why I like Calvary Chapels (not all, but many) because they don't fight and divide over Calvinism and Arminianism. I have had pastors on each side in Calvary Chapels and yet they never forcefully push their views. They teach the Word verse by verse, chapter by chapter and trust the Spirit to teach us. They don't get forceful on man's interpretation of doctrines for the most part.
This is my opinion of what it looks like to the best of my experiences.
What do you think it looks like?
Does "unity" necessarily mean "agreement"?
Because I feel like I have unity with my husband, but we do not agree on everything....
I admit, I am pressed for time today - but that's not the reason for this over-simplified answer. It really is my answer.
I believe those who are in Christ are "one," in the sense that Christ is talking about here. That doesn't mean there aren't differences in doctrine or other disagreements - it simply means that those who are true believers will be one with Him and "of the same mind" about that which counts most - faith in God. And although we all may disagree as to what that faith "looks like," we can rest assured that He knows - and those that have it right are "one."
As an aside, I actually believe denominationalism is healthier than the existence of a single physical church body. But that's another topic :)
Dear Samantha:
I think that is an excellent question. I am not sure I have the correct answers, but I will share with you what I have found and why I believe in striving for unity.
Colossians 3 says “Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity.” That would be to say put on Agape (which is not only God’s love, but brotherly love and we are brethren)…is to put on that which binds together.
We also have in Ephesians 4 Paul discussing how the body is one. Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. Now this word for unity does mean agreement.
So it is saying, exerting one’s self to guard and take care of the agreement of the Spirit in the bond of harmony of brethren and the Messiah’s peace. Where else do we discuss agreement of the Spirit? 1 John 5 says “Who is the one who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? This is the One who came by water and blood, Jesus Christ; not with the water only, but with the water and with the blood. It is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. For there are three that testify: the Spirit and the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement.” So it seems the unity or agreement of the Spirit is to believe the Jesus Christ is the Son of God. And this is our salvation and what makes us brethren.
As Paul continues in Ephesians 4 he also shares “until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.” This is saying until we all (the body of Christ) attain to the agreement of the faith, and of the precise and perfect knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect and completed group of women and men, etc” This is when we are face to face with Christ when we will be perfect. So again this agreement will happen completely and perfectly when we are with Christ and then we all know the PERFECT truth, not just our limited understanding of it.
In John 17 we have Jesus praying for our unity (oneness) so that the world will know that the Father sent the Son and that the Father loves us even as the Father loves the Son. Again this seems to require humility on our part to have that kind of bond and unity with the ENTIRE body of Christ, not just the select few we feel comfortable fellowshipping with.
I am not sure how I feel about denominationalism. I have seen state run churches have become corrupt, so Scott has a point. However, when we get to the point we believe that only if a person is a Baptist, Nazarene, Methodist, Lutheran, Calvinist, or Arminian, etc are they saved and part of our brethren, we have hit a huge stumbling block that offends Christ, since we are part of His body. We do have to focus on what unites us in Him and then iron sharpening iron is not a sin so long as we don’t act divisive or offensive if a person disagrees with us. This is all much easier said than done and I am far from perfecting what I speak, it is simply a deep desire of my heart. Sometimes loving actions speak so much louder to building up our brethren than all of our knowledge and doctrines. And I definitely think it speaks volumes more to those outside of the body.
So yes you can disagree with your husband, but still have the common thread that unites you, and the reason you strive to love him and build him up.
I love you sis, Julianne
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