The Importance of Unity
God has left us with no small amount of evidence for how important unity is.
Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!
Psalm 133:1
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
So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.
Philippians 2:1-2
There are many other verses that could be reference also. God places a great deal of focus on unity. However, you’ll notice something about the last couple of verse. In 2 Corinthians we see “agree with one another” and in Philippians 2 we see “being of the same mind”, “having the same love”, and “being in full accord and of one mind”.
Backward Efforts
The question that could be asked is: “Which comes first?” Do people who dwell together in unity eventually come to find themselves of one mind or do we need to strive to have the same values, mind, and love as a requirement for unity?
If we’re honest, a lot of Christian movements assume the first. They would love if their congregants were primarily in fellowship with unbelievers. They want their church to be full of unbelievers hearing the gospel weekly even if they keep rolling their eyes week after week. Their Sunday service becomes one of entertainment, because it needs to appeal to people who aren’t yet interested in God. If you keep being kind to people who reject God, maybe someday you’ll get through to them right?
In the book where God inspired men to give practical observation about how life works, we find this verse:
Drive out a scoffer, and strife will go out, and quarreling and abuse will cease.
Proverbs 22:10
The issue with inviting unbelief to dwell with believers is that a scoffer produces conflict, quarreling, and abuse. Such a person is capable of destroying not just unity between themselves and others, but also unity between believers they are around.
The apostles warned the early church about this very effect.
It is these who cause divisions, worldly people, devoid of the Spirit.
Jude 1:19
I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them. For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naïve.
Romans 16:17-18
As for a person who stirs up division, after warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him, knowing that such a person is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned.
Titus 3:10-11
While a pastor certain needs to encourage the evangelistic efforts in his congregation (sharing the gospel with those who have never heard) he should not encourage continued fellowship with those who reject it. To invite the world into your congregation is to seek harm to the unity of believers. A person can be given a few opportunities to repent (as we see in Titus 3) but if a person unrepentantly persists fellowship must be broken.
Do We See This?
The church has never been more divided and individualistic in many congregations. Believers feel lonely and isolated from any sense of community. We have not been deliberate about cultivating fellowship of one mind and love. In fact, many would say it would be wicked to require a sense of shared beliefs for fellowship. After all, isn’t the point of the church to convert the world? Well, I have another post about the damage of that single-minded focus, but the short answer is that is not the sole purpose of the church.
If we trust God, we don’t need to worry that we’re going to drive people away that we could have reached by obeying his commands. He commands that we dwell in unity, and that doing that requires that we reject scoffers and those who willfully resist being of one mind with the church. The most effective strategy for reaching his lost sheep is to keep a Christian community that those who know his voice will recognize. If we make an indistinct sound as believers, allowing our message to be muddied by unbelievers in our communities, who will those whom God is calling to himself find?
