DILIGENTLY PRESERVING UNITY

“Being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:3).

The unity of the Spirit must be earnestly maintained by humble, gentle, patient, loving Christians. Today’s Scripture spells out the goal of the worthy walk: the unity of the Spirit. Jesus prayed for Christians “that they may all be one; even as Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be in Us; that the world may believe that Thou didst send Me” (John 17:21). Our witness to the world depends on our unity as believers. The world is full of discord, animosity, bitterness, and resentment. If in the midst of the world there is an oasis of unity and harmony, people will wonder what we have. Then we have the opportunity to say, “This is what Christ can do.” The world needs to see that the church is not just another social club, but an institution of God, supernaturally born, supernaturally sustained, with a supernatural destiny. Our unity depends on the virtues we have been studying: gentleness, patience, and forbearing love. Without them, unity is impossible. In addition, our unity requires diligence. The word translated “diligent” in Ephesians 4:3 carries the ideas of both zeal and urgency: “Let’s work on it, and work on it now.” We need full dedication. But don’t say first, “I’ll head the committee” or “I’ll make the posters.” This is a personal passage, and if you want to hurry and start working on unity, you need to start in your heart. Commit yourself first to walking worthy by matching your life with your theology. There is so much disunity and discord in the church today. We tend to focus on what divides us when we should instead focus on what unites us. We need to humble ourselves and learn to love each other and that will happen when we become what God wants us to be. Working at unity is a full-time task that demands maximum dedication and obedience from every Christian. Pray that God would unify His church around the world, and that He would begin with you.