UNITY....It's not what you think it is!!!
Unity is a buzz word in most areas of our culture and society these days. However, the understanding of what unity actually means has been lost. These days unity means to think the same, to speak the same and to believe the same. In reality people are talking about being homogenous, rather than being un unison with others.
This problem is also faced by the modern church as it grapples with the common problems that are faced by people all around the world. Political activism, rigid dogma, and the invasion of worldly culture into the church have compromised the biblical meaning of ‘Unity’. Within many churches these days they are pushing the same worldly agenda where ‘Unity’ means that everyone in the congregation must think the same, act the same, speak the same, believe the same - all in the name of unity.
That is not the biblical model of unity.
Here’s an analogy from the Bible to help with the concept of unity.
In Proverbs 6:6-8, Solomon exhorts us to “Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise! It has no commander, no overseer or ruler, yet it stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest.”
So, let’s consider the ant shall we. Ants live in a colony, massive underground cities that have multitudes of different chambers, each with their own purpose and structure - much like our urban areas, industrial centres and the like. Ant colonies also have different types of ants within their structure and hierarchy - each of these has specific roles that they do not waver from. These include:
The Queen - who produces the eggs and starts the colony.
The Worker - who looks after the eggs and maintain the colony, which includes in some ants farming underground fungi for food.
The Harvester - who goes out searching for food items to bring back to the colony.
The Soldier - who literally lays its life down for the security of the colony and protects the harvester ants while they are out foraging.
Even with those differences the survival of the colony, its overall health and reproductive viability is the priority of the ants.
Jesus called us to be the salt and light of the world (Matthew 5:13-16), to go and make disciples of all the world (Matthew 28:16-20), to love others as Christ loved us (John 15:12-13).
In his letter to the church in Ephesus, Paul states, “As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.” (Ephesians 4:1-6)
It is interesting that Paul starts this section of scripture noting that he is a prisoner. By doing so he is providing the reader with a context and perspective of the things he is about to say.
It makes his next statement all the more powerful. “Live your life worthy of your calling” - basically Paul is saying that we need to give all our energy, focus and effort for living for the Kingdom of God - not for the world. He is saying, ‘Make it count people’.
Paul then refers to the ‘Fruits fo the Spirit’ as evidence and examples of how we should live that ‘worthy’ life. The attitudes and actions of humility, gentleness, patience, love and peace are all necessary for unity to exist and to perpetuate further in time.
In this passage Paul refers to the unity of ‘the Spirit’ meaning the Holy Spirit. If we, as Christians, who have the Holy Spirit indwelling within us, are not in unity - it means that we are not listening to the Holy Spirit, nor are we walking in His guidance.
Paul strengthens his argument by noting several unifying points:
There is only one body of Christ (all the believers - Jew and gentile) - which places all of the believers in one group and not in the various groups that were forming int those days (and still continue to form today in the form of denominations and para-church groups).
There is only one Holy Spirit - without which we cannot have the unity, nor the knowledge on how to interpret the scriptures.
There is only one hope - Jesus Christ who died and rose again to extinguish our sins forever, and reestablish humanities relationship with Yahweh.
There is only one Lord - Jesus Christ, who is our ‘Lord’ in the political and hierarchal sense. Jesus is King of Kings, Lord of Lords. We need to remember to acknowledge him in that role in our lives.
There is only one faith - in Jesus Christ as the son of God, who died and rose again.
There is only one baptist - into the body of Christ, in reference to water baptism.
There is only one God (not many Gods) - who is supreme and omnipotent. The God Yahweh that we worship.
There is only one ‘Father’ - who is part of the godhead whose will is done within time/space and outside of time/space. Who created all things, and rules over all.
Paul shows us, especially in this divided world in which we live, and the divided Christian body which we are a part of - that we need to be united in purpose - the purpose of living lives worthy of our calling, worthy of serving our Lord and Saviour.
Psalm 133:1 states plainly - “How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity!” - There is truth in these words, profound truth. Things are much more pleasant in our communities, in our churches and in our families when all the Christians are living in unity.
Perhaps, one of the reasons the world cannot stand Christians is that they claim to stand for the Kingdom of God, but we do not reflect it in our lack of unity and love. Maybe it is time for us to repent, and b unified for the salvation of as many souls as we can manage before our Lord returns - which is sooner than many realise.
We the church need to be more unified, especially in this time when the world is now deliberately attacking the moral, biblical standards that we live by. Unified in purpose, unified in our stance against evil.