Dear Church,
Unity is one of those beautiful words we all love to talk about, but few truly understand the cost of maintaining it. We praise it, we desire it, and we lament when we do not have it. Yet true unity does not happen by accident. It is built deliberately. It must be guarded carefully. And it always requires effort.
Jesus prayed for unity on the night before His crucifixion. “That they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me” (John 17:21). The unity of the church was tied directly to the credibility of the gospel before the watching world. That alone should tell us how precious unity is to God.
But unity does not mean sameness. God does not ask us to erase our personalities, our backgrounds, or our perspectives. He calls us to submit those things to love, humility, and His will. Unity is not achieved by uniformity, but by shared devotion to Christ as our head.
Paul begged the church at Ephesus to “walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:1-3). Notice that unity is not something we create. It is something God provides. Our responsibility is to keep it.
That word “endeavoring” means effort. It means work. It means unity will cost us pride. It will require us to apologize when we think we were right. It will mean choosing peace over being proven correct. Unity is not cheap, but it is priceless.
Satan fears a united congregation more than a large one. A church that truly loves one another, labors together, and refuses to allow small offenses to turn into deep divisions – becomes a powerful tool in God’s hand. That is why the enemy works so tirelessly to sow suspicion, discourage forgiveness, and magnify disagreements.
We protect unity by speaking with grace. We protect unity by refusing to gossip. We protect unity by addressing problems directly and lovingly. We protect unity by remembering that no brother or sister in Christ is our enemy.
There will always be challenges. There will always be potential for misunderstandings. There will always be moments when unity feels fragile. But that does not mean it is optional. Unity is a command to be obeyed, not a suggestion to be admired.
So let us labor for it. Let us pray for it. Let us sacrifice for it. Let us value it more than comfort and more than personal preference. Because unity is not maintained by accident. It is preserved by love that refuses to quit.