What is it about "unity" that is so elusive?
Why can we, as people, never seem to completely agree on anything?
More specifically, what is keeping us, who call ourselves Christians, from being unified? From presenting a unified front to the rest of the world?
There are thousands upon thousands of Protestant denominations worldwide. The exact number is up for debate, but on its face, there is very little of what we could call "unity". We are divided and we bicker over issues that seem small and petty to the rest of the world. This is an point of contention that may keep others from coming to know Christ. I know that it was a obstacle for me. What if, however, we weren't as divided as it seemed?
It goes without saying that we are a diverse people and that our diversity has been established by God. Does this mean that we are to remain divided? Is it Gods will that we are to continue to debate minutia? In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul states that:
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 4:4-6
This would lead me to believe that we are all unified under these essential truths of our faith. If this is the case, then perhaps, some of the things that divide us are less essential. Perhaps, our diversity, when viewed as a collective adds more perspective to the whole and the picture produced is clearer than any picture that we could view on our own. Maybe that is part of what is being spoken to in 1 Corinthians 13:12
Our diversity is addressed again in the book of Revelation. There, it speaks about "every nation, tribe, people and language". It doesn't say, "one tribe". It says "every".
Perhaps our little differences allow us each to reach individuals for Christ that our peers could not reach. What if God has taken mankind's pride at Babel and redeemed it into a method of bringing more of His children home? That sounds like a God looking to include, not exclude
That sounds like the God I know.
Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.
Romans 10:13
Questions: What keeps you from connecting with other Christians in unity? What can we as the body of Christ do to be more unified? How can we love others despite our differences?
