Unity does not grab our attention. It does not make the news alert. No one pays to see unity. We like the idea of peace and love, but we don’t watch TV or movies to watch everyone get along. We pay to see rivals fight it out.
Saturated in a well-oiled, hypercritical, quick trigger culture of conflict, the people of God, however, are called to a fight before the fighting begins. This fight, and it is a fight, is with our flesh. It is a fight against the devil. It is a fight opposing world forces. It is a fight that stares down division. It is a fight that refuses to bend to the pressure of factions. It is a fight for unity.
After three chapters of laying biblical foundations in his letter to the Ephesians, the very first practical application Paul gave was to urge these believers to live united. There is no indication of a fight already in progress, so he made this preemptive strike:
Therefore I, the prisoner in the Lord, urge you to live worthy of the calling you have received, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3making every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit — just as you were called to one hope at your calling — 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all. Ephesians 4:1-6 (CSB)
At this point, Paul was a prisoner in Rome. He was there because of false charges brought on him by jealous, but powerful Jews back in Jerusalem. Being a Roman citizen, he exercised his right to appeal his case to Caesar. For two years he waited in prison in Caesarea on trumped up charges. Finally, just before putting Paul on a ship for Italy, governor Felix received King Agrippa and his wife Bernice, and decided to present Paul’s case to them. After hearing Paul’s testimony and the false charges against him, even Agrippa said, “This man could have been released if he had not appealed to Caesar” (Acts 26:32).
Nevertheless, Paul was put on a ship with other prisoners and off they went on a Mediterranean cruise to Rome. This ship wasn’t exactly a Royal Caribbean cruise line. Aside from the rough seas and eventual shipwreck, the conditions were deplorable.
Enduring unfair imprisonment, isolation from friends, and physical hardship, Paul could have called himself a prisoner of Rome or of Caesar or of the Jews, but instead, as he told the Ephesians to make every effort to protect their unity, he called himself “the prisoner in the Lord.”
His appeal to Christian unity was from a platform of voluntary personal sacrifice. He willingly put aside his personal interests for the interests of others so he could say, “The Gospel is too important for any of us to make our comforts or preferences an idol that undermines our love for one another.”
So what should a church fight really look like?
We fight for unity with repentance.
Our flesh naturally seeks center stage. Left unchecked, we will schedule and finance our lives around our personal interests. This self-preoccupation quickly erodes our concern for others and our commitment to the Gospel. Jealousies and factions follow closely behind. So the heavy lifting of unity is not only in appreciating other people or listening to opposing points of view, but in daily repentance where carnal and selfish preferences are put to death for the sake of the Gospel.
We fight for unity with energy.
Conflict often erupts from the churning waters of passivity when we assume physical proximity, shared interests, or a common commitment to Christ automatically produces a unity of heart. Paul was under no such illusion. Instead, he said, “make every effort.” He wasn’t saying, “Work hard to resolve conflict.” He was saying, “Do everything you can to build and maintain unity.” Unity is never automatic. It requires taking a genuine interest in others, seeking to understand, showing grace, changing priorities, and expending energy to help others grow in Christ.
We fight for unity with our church.
If you are ever tempted to think the church is a utopian escape from real life, think again. The church is a factory floor where Jesus refines us, shapes us, and equips us for His mission. It’s in the church, not outside of it, where our view of God is tested and our approach to the Scripture is developed. It’s in the church where our sin is confronted, and where what is profitable is championed over what is permissible. It’s in the church where we learn to love people over time as we walk in friendship through years of seasons that include triumphs, trials, gains, losses, faithfulness, sin, and returning again.
The people of God must fight, not against one another, but for our unity with one another. We fight by slaying our pride to consider that on occasion we could be wrong. We fight as students refusing to compromise core doctrines of the faith, but constantly nurturing an appetite for greater understanding and insight into the Word of God. We fight by speaking only in ways that build up one another. We fight by humbly asking others to walk beside us as we work out our salvation in the power of the Holy Spirit.
We fight it out now so there’s no need to fight it out later.
