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The Importance Of Unity Within The Body Of Christ
Unity is an extraordinary power that God gave to humankind through the classic example of the tower of Babel story within the scriptures, “And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined doing.” – Genesis 11:6
If ungodly people can build a tower reaching heaven, how much more can we Christians do if we are united in Christ?
When we put all the parts of the body of Christ together, there is nothing that we can’t accomplish.
Even Jesus prayed for unity among His followers shortly before He went to the cross. He prayed, “Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name, the name you gave me, so that they may be one as we are one” – John 17:11
Later in the same prayer, Jesus asked, “that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us?
I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one—I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity” – John 17:21–23.
So obviously, Christian unity is essential to our Lord.
Then Jesus prayed for “complete unity” so that “the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me” (verse 23).
When Christians are united in Christ, the world sees two things clearly: Jesus was sent by the Father, and Christ Jesus loves His church.
In Romans 15:5–6, we see another, more general reason that Christian unity is essential: “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” (ESV).
The bottom line is God’s glory. God’s people should be speaking with one voice in glorifying God.
Christian unity comes with Christian maturity, and we always strive to attain it.
Paul instructs us to “make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:3).
Helping us toward that unity are the gifts of the Spirit. God has given each Christian different gifts, and their exercise in the church’s edification leads to more and more unity. One purpose of the gifts is that,
“we all reach unity in the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ” (Ephesians 4:13).
Unity in the church also foreshadows worship in heaven, where a great multitude “from every nation, tribe, people, and language” stands before God and cries out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.”
We are members of the body of Christ; we become unified when we pray, study God’s word, and work together to share the gospel.
When division threatens God’s people today, we can pray for one another. Through individual prayer for others, even towards those we disagree with, God softens our hearts and gives us much-renewed patience.
Prayer matters because we live in a fallen world where sin affects every aspect of life. But Christians have a powerful weapon that needs to be more utilized. Each of us has a choice. Today, we can continue trying to repair our divided “kingdoms” or humble ourselves and pray. May we be a people that come together to seek the Lord united through prayer.
The Ark connect lets you stay distraction-free in prayer and make the most of your time online. It allows you to uphold each other in prayer and share the littlest to the most extraordinary things the Lord has done for you. By bringing people of different demographics and denominations together in prayer, we can provide a safe place for global Christian communities to grow and give back to the Lord in word and deed.
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Blogs The Importance Of Unity Within The Body Of Christ Unity is an extraordinary power that God gave to humankind through the classic example of the tower of Babel …