Unity - Tuned to Jesus
by Tom Ellsworth
In the quest for unity, one might think the United Nations would be a good place to start. Afterall, united is part of the name. However, given the seeming corruption and constant discord evident in that global organization, unity seems a distant dream.
Or what about the United Center in Chicago? It, too, has united in its name, but there seems to be little unity in that arena whenever the Chicago Bulls are on the court or the Blackhawks hockey team takes the ice.
Even in these United States, our states are not so united today!
When one is searching for unity, the Church should be the first place to look. Jesus prayed for unity in the church, “…that all of them may be one, Father, even as you are in me, and I am in you” (John 17:21 NIV). The New Testament writers also admonish the church to be united. Unfortunately, because we humans can be cantankerous at times, unity can be hard to come by even in the Lord’s church.
At times, it seems, we are better at building walls than tearing them down. I remember thirty-five years ago, when then President Ronald Reagan stood at the Brandenburg Gate, next to the Berlin Wall, on June 12, 1987, and challenged Mikhail Gorbachev, General Secretary of the Soviet Union, with these words, “Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate! Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!” Two years later, the wall came down and reunited East and West Germany! Tearing down the wall was the easy part; rebuilding unity was a far bigger challenge.
The church is not immune to this unity issue. In Acts, the first deacons were appointed in the church as a solution to the wall between Greek Jews and Hebrew Jews. Grecian widows were being missed or skipped by the food pantry ministry. I know of a church in southern Indiana with purple carpet because the congregation couldn’t agree on a color for the new carpet. Purple was installed because no one picked that color.
In this Stone/Campbell heritage we treasure so dearly, our quest for unity on the basis of biblical authority has been challenged by two major divisions in the last 200 plus years.
How, then, can we as leaders help build unity in the church?
Bear with each other (Colossians 3:13): This is the ability to put up with people’s quirks, oddities, and idiosyncrasies. It is, in part, realizing that while you are enduring their quirks, they are also enduring yours. Unity demands that we bear with each other. I like this little poem:
To live above with the saints we love;
Oh, that will be glory.
But to live below with the saints we know;
Well, that’s another story. Anonymous
I think “bearing with each other” is more than merely putting up with someone, I believe it is a positive approach to others. It is thinking the best of them, giving them a second chance to make a good impression. It’s being positive about that person when it would be easier to be negative. We all need to do our best to get along. Psalms 133:1 (NIV) reads, “How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity!” Be a leader who bears with each other and builds unity.
Be Humble to each other: Humility is not a cringing, groveling servility. It’s not viewing ourselves as the scum of the earth. Rather, humility is the absence of self-exaltation. It is always keeping a proper perspective on God’s place and our own place. “Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it is thinking of yourself less” (Rick Warren). Early in the summer, I watched as a big John Deere combine made its way through a wheat field near our home. I’m always reminded that it is not the heads of grain which stand tall that produce the most grain; the most productive are the ones with heads bowed low by the weight of many kernels of grain. And so it is with the harvest of our virtues – the humblest among us are generally the most productive in spiritual matters. Be a humble leader who models unity.
Encourage each other: William Arthur Ward said, “Flatter me, and I may not believe you. Criticize me, and I may not like you. Ignore me, and I may not forgive you. Encourage me, and I will not forget you.” Every generation in the church is valuable and contributes to the good of the Body. Therefore, each generation should encourage the others. Be a leader who encourages unity.
Unity is only possible when the common denominator is Jesus. Unity cannot be achieved by our own initiative. A.W. Tozer wrote in, "The Pursuit of God," “Has it ever occurred to you that one hundred pianos all turned to the same fork are automatically tuned to each other? They are of one accord by being tuned, not to each other, but to another standard to which each one must individually bow.” So it is in the church – unity is not found in our opinions, our talents, our styles, our accomplishments, our generation – it is found in Christ alone. If you want unity in your congregation, make certain you are tuned to Jesus.
