Unity

1 Peter 2:9-10 – “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. 10 Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.” 

Unity – the state of being united or joined as a whole.

The Apostle Paul stressed the importance of unity. As believers and members of the body of Christ, we must live in unity. We each came into this world with no choice in the matter. We were born into the circumstances and environments that are unique to each of us. We have different economic, social, cultural and family backgrounds, which make each of us a little different and influences our perception of everyone else. But the beauty of our faith is that we are united in a common love and common worship of Jesus Christ. Our ‘sameness’ is actually more powerful than our diversity. Here’s what Paul has to say:

Philippians 2:1-2 – “Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, 2 then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind.” 

Now we turn to Ephesians chapter 4, titled: Unity and Maturity in the Body of Christ. There is tremendous depth in the words of Paul as he explains the importance of unity and through that unity we grow together “until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.” (Ephesians 4:13).  Read that verse again. We are striving for unity in the faith, and Paul says at some point we will attain the whole measure of the fullness of Christ!  Do you hear the power of these words? Can you imagine having the full measure of the character of Christ? I wish there were a way to articulate or illustrate the power of unity in Ephesians 4. If you search YouTube you will find hour long sermons, detailed whiteboard drawings, and academic teachings that break down the verses of Ephesians 4 into deep detail. And as much as I LOVE this chapter, I leave you with this simple video: