The calling of unity on the body of Christ
How far away have we gotten from what the church should look like that we need to talk about unity within the body. It is a sad state, the division within the church. The squabbling and petty arguments over doctrines. It is not of the Spirit at all, and we know this does not please our Father in heaven.
It is very carnal. I do not like that word but it is all that comes to mind. It is very ‘of the flesh’ of us to be bickering and arguing about how often to do communion, spiritual gifts, what to wear to service. Honestly, it makes us look like fools to outsiders and tarnishes the beautiful name of Jesus.
We must be willing to rise above the differences. We must focus on Jesus himself and the greatest commandments we have been given, and start to move past our doctrinal differences. We are to love God with all our heart, soul and mind, and we are to love others. That is what our focus should be. If we can focus on these things, then our arguments will fade away. Our bickering will come to an end and we can welcome others in, see the church grow, and watch with excitement as our fellow brothers and sisters grow in maturity.
I believe the root of this issue is selfishness. We are focused on ourselves, our interpretation, and we get frustrated when others do not see things from our point of view. But scripture tells us we are to take the focus off of ourselves, and put it on to God and those around us. Scripture tells us we are to keep our guard up against false doctrines, but not to harden our hearts because of it. Not to turn our backs on individuals because of it. But to always extend love and truth. We need to learn how to have a conversation again. How to disagree with someone but still talk with them and learn from the conversation. Not go straight to anger. But reason and enjoy our time together despite our differences. Culture has lost its way and this is rare to come by now. But for the church it should be easy. It should come without hesitation or struggle. Why? Because we are called to live by the Spirit. We are called to daily surrender everything, and walk by the Spirit.
If we all could agree on love for God and others, and to take responsibility for growing in our maturity in Christ, then the church would become what we should be. The church would be more welcoming and we can work together to spread the gospel!
We can do this. It actually is easier than it seems. There are 3 things all of us can do to ensure we are doing our part in encouraging unity within the body of Christ.
Put the focus on God, not ourselves
Commit to personally mature in Christ
Pray for others and strength
When we are struggling with disagreeing with someone, we should go to prayer. Prayer should be our first response to pretty much everything in life! If you pray for someone, it literally takes the anger out of your heart. It immediately changes your mindset and moves you back towards love. Prayer is a beautiful tool that we need to be utilizing in this area. God wants to help us in this, but He also wants us to come to Him for help!
Ladies, let’s decide today to stop bickering. To put an end to it. To apologize to that person and decide to love them instead. Agape love is actionable, it is not simply emotional. So make that decision. Put an end to arguments over doctrines, and choose to walk in unity with your brothers and sisters. Pray continually for strength and help in this. Over time, we will see the church rise in beauty and unity, representing Christ and working as His body and displaying His love for all to see!
