Maintaining unity in divided times is a challenge for Christians. Any group as large and diverse as the church is bound to struggle with this. But the times we live in seem especially divided.  We may wonder if our differences inevitably mean we will disown each other.

Jesus calls the church to be radically inclusive and unified at the same time. No easy feat. The only way such a diverse group can function as a community is if their collective identity has a common centre. That centre must be Jesus and Jesus alone. While this may seem obvious, in practice, we often forget. We insert our own pet political, theological or cultural issues into our definition of ‘us.’ While we feel justified in doing so, we’re causing division in the ranks. When we place something other than Jesus at the centre, we’re squatting on real estate that rightly belongs to him.

In a community as diverse as the church, disagreements are inevitable. But disunity is not. Disunity happens because we overemphasize our pet issue. More Jesus and less [insert issue] make for a more unified church. This doesn’t mean we won’t have disagreements. But those issues don’t become the boundary between ‘us’ and ‘them’. We can agree to disagree without breaking the bonds of fellowship.

In the end, maintaining unity in divided times means learning humility. We must stand against the urge to force our issue to the forefront. We can give space for others who love Jesus to disagree with us.

More Resources

Check out last week’s sermon: Good News About God

Watch the whole series on YouTube