Regifting: The Gift of Unity

“Many people in America today would say that divisiveness is one of the most dangerous issues in our common life, that factionalism and misguided allegiance keep us from being able to address the very serious challenges that confront us today: increasing disparity between rich and poor, climate change, global violence, competition for natural resources, migration due to war and famine.

 

And of course, each of these issues has its local manifestation:

• isolation of people in homogeneous neighborhoods;
• fear of strangers, of other races and nationalities, refugees, the homeless—or the despair of being the stranger, the refugee, or without a home;
• addiction, mental illness, trauma;
• a lack of individual commitment to the well-being of an entire town or city;
• a sense of powerlessness when it comes to self-regulating the use of fossil fuels, water, food.” ~Jane Lancaster Patterson

Paul is not necessarily emphasizing uniformity, completely, but a unity of thought and opinion about the Gospel.  

 

What’s at stake is the mission of the local church.  Paul asks rhetorically, “Is Christ divided?” If Christ had been divided internally about his mission as the Messiah, the witness would have been compromised.  Christ’s unity within himself birthed the church for future generations. We stand united in Christ and thus pass on to future generations a healthy and vibrant church.  

 

Next Step: “Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” (Ephesians 4:3-6)

 

Lessons: Isaiah 9:1-4, 1 Corinthians 1:10-18, Matthew 4:12-23

 

Watch: stlukecolumbus.com/ondemand

 

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