Unity in Jesus

We are surrounded by broken relationships. A world filled with people that rather separate than stick it out, walk away rather than standing strong and choose themselves rather than choosing others. It’s not new news that our world is filled with brokenness and sin. Sadly, disunity in today’s culture seems to be expected. But, what if we were dedicated to unity?

In his article, Other People Are Better Than You (and Other Ideas to Promote Church Unity), Brant Hansen challenges fellow Christians to “Be radically charitable to your Christian brothers and sisters.” To choose the more difficult path; to demonstrate love and consider someone else better than yourself. Don’t insult, mock, presume intention, belittle or ignore, but rather let kindness be spread throughout your conversations and interactions. We see this played out clearly on social platforms. We can cast judgement and use our words to destroy another person, all from the privacy of our devices. We can unfollow, unfriend and block all the people who disagree with us or think differently then us. We can walk away when it gets sticky or spout harsh words when we’re offended, rather then pursuing a person in love and kindness.

As Christians, we have to remember that the world is watching us. They watch how we speak and act towards those around us. They watch to see if the things we say about love, unity and kindness overflow into our actions. As we attempt to love the world like Jesus, we cannot forget to love our brothers and sisters too. Unity is at the core of who we are as believers; Jesus himself unifies us. That’s why we don’t have to look the same or grow up the same to be part of the same family. We can live in unity because it’s the love of Jesus that unifies us.

Let’s be people who let kindness drip from our words and flow from our actions. Let’s be people who choose unity over winning an argument. Let’s be people who love those around us despite our differences.