Without unity in our congregation there’s no way we can please God and expect Him to bless us. Unity in the church is so important because it glorifies God, serving as a powerful witness to the world that Jesus’ message is true. It allows believers to function as a unified spiritual family, supporting and strengthening each other in their journey. Furthermore, it enables the church to be a powerful force for good, effectively accomplishing its God-given mission by focusing energy outwards rather than on internal divisions.
We can not be divided but united.
Here are some key reasons why unity is important in the church:
- Glorifies God
- When believers live in unity, it reflects the harmony and love of God.
- This harmonious community brings praise to the Father and demonstrates His wisdom and glory to the world.
- Witness to the World
- A unified church provides a compelling picture of Christ’s love, acting as a beacon of light to those seeking truth.
- Jesus Himself prayed for His followers to be one, so that the world would believe in Him, making unity a critical element of evangelism.
- Spiritual Strength and Support
- In a unified church, believers are stronger together than when they are apart, able to learn more and grow in their community.
- It creates an environment where members can support each other through life’s challenges, providing strength and courage.
- Effective Ministry and Mission
- Unity enables the church to be a powerful force, working together for a common goal and accomplishing incredible things for God.
- When energy is not wasted on internal conflict, it can be redirected to serve those outside the church, fulfilling its purpose to reach the lost.
- Reflection of the Gospel
- Unity is a visible expression of the core truth of the gospel: reconciliation with God and one another through Christ.
- It demonstrates that believers from diverse backgrounds can be united by the one Spirit and one Lord, creating an uncommon love that stands out in a fragmented world.
The call to fight for the joy of unity.
“Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity! It is like the precious oil on the head, running down on the beard, on the beard of Aaron, running down on the collar of his robes! It is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the mountains of Zion! For there the LORD has commanded the blessing, life forevermore.” Psalm 133
It is both good and pleasant when a church lives its life together in a unified manner. It’s like the anointed blessing of God in so much abundance that it covers us with God’s blessing from the top of our head to our feet. It is here (in unified fellowship), that God has commanded the very blessing of eternal life. In other words, when we live in a unified manner, we experience a taste of the world to come, where we will live eternally in perfect unity.
I truly believe that if we want to experience a taste of heaven, experience the joy of our Saviour, and provide a faithful picture of Christ to the world, we need to fight for unity in our churches. Satan wants nothing more than to divide believers in the local church.
Scripture is clear about the goodness of unity.
We’ve already seen in Psalm 133 that we experience goodness and joy when we dwell together in unity. We experience the blessing of God’s very life. But consider these passages as well.
When we pursue unity, the God of love and peace dwells with us.
Finally, brothers, rejoice. Aim for restoration, comfort one another, agree with one another, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you. 2 Corinthians 13:11
When we live in unity with each other, we glorify God together.
May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 15:5-6
When we are unified, we will be effective, be built up, and experience the love of Christ.
From whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.
Ephesians 4:16
When we are unified, the world will see Christ in us.
“I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.”
John 17:20-21
Scripture is clear about the dangers of division.
Consider this passage from 1 Corinthians 1:10-13
I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment. For it has been reported to me by Chloe’s people that there is quarrelling among you, my brothers. What I mean is that each one of you says, “I follow Paul,” or “I follow Apollos,” or “I follow Cephas,” or “I follow Christ.” Is Christ divided? 1 Cor. 1:10-13
Paul is clear. When the church is divided, it is a clear sign we are
1) not following Christ faithfully and
2) presenting a false picture of Christ to the world.
Scripture calls the church to be unified as a picture of God’s unity.
Consider Paul’s reasoning in 1 Cor. 12 where he says, “For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ.” In other words, our unity is a picture of who Christ is. As we are unified, we show the world the unity of Christ. His reasoning is the same in Eph. 4 where he calls the church to “maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” Why? Because there is “one God and Father of all.” This is how we (Eph. 4:1) “walk in a manner worthy” of our calling. We are one because God is one. This is also why John can say that if someone says he belongs to God but is divided from his christian brother, he is a liar (1 John 4). The unity of God makes us a unified people.
Unity is rooted in the gospel, itself. We create a picture of the unified nature of God and our union with him by living in a unified way in the church. In the local church, we are “incarnating” visibly the invisible reality of our union with Christ. This is the core purpose of why the church exists. The church is the visible picture of God’s glory on the earth. If we are not living in unity with each other, we are not creating a faithful picture of who he is. The church is the bride of Christ and just like a marriage there must be unity if that relationship for it to grow into a bond that can not be broken.
Allow me to finish on this note by saying unity is very important, even in a marriage between husband and wife.
Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another in the fear of God. Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Saviour of the body.
Therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish. So husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies; he who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord does the church.
For we are members of His body, of His flesh and of His bones. “For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church. Nevertheless let each one of you in particular so love his own wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband. Ephesians 5:17-33
Lesson was delivered by: Bro. Robert H Brown
