How Pleasant To Dwell Together In Unity in the Body of Christ
Unity in the Body of Christ
Attending a multi-denominational event brought unity in the body of Christ to the forefront of my mind. When it comes to my faith, I am not much of a denomination kind of girl. If anyone asks me what religion I am or what my denomination is, I simply say, “I just love Jesus.” Do I have some immovable elements of my faith in Jesus? Yes, and I think we all should. I shared these in a previous blog post, Eleven Basic Premises Of My Christian Faith In Jesus.
I often say, “My God is not in a box.” Denominations tend to put God in their own box. The reality is we all do try to box God in to some degree. With all that said, the beauty of denominations is the grace of God on display.
With our finite human brain and existence, we can only fathom God and all the intricacies of His divine nature to a limited degree unless otherwise taught us by His Spirit. His Spirit does teach us divine mysteries, but still only to a certain point. Those divine mysteries God reveals to us and how we experience God personally become so important to our faith journey we often end up in a church or denomination most true to our personal revelation and experience of God.
Baptist Roots
I was raised in a Baptist church, which kind of Baptist, I really never knew. I never knew there were different kind of Baptists until I went to seminary. While attending my Baptist church as a child, issues arose that marked how my pursuit and practice of faith. I saw prejudices towards people of different races, an emphasis on rule following rather than relationship with Jesus, and a doctrine of cessationism.
For me the church at its best seemed dull, and at its worst, lifeless. I walked away from Jesus and the church the minute I left my parent’s house. However, I continued to please my parents by attending an occasional Easter and Christmas service. While I had my struggles related to my childhood church, I hold precious memories from those days as well.
United Methodist Days
At age thirty, Jesus started turning my eyes back to Him. My husband and I spent the next five years in a United Methodist church. My Sunday School teacher taught us from a Baptist based Bible study on Revelation and six months after returning to church, I committed my life to Jesus.
During that five years I grew in my walk with Jesus. The last year I was like a sponge soaking up Jesus in every opportunity. You could find my husband and I at every special church event in our community. We recorded preachers on television and watched them after work. Denomination did not matter. I wanted Jesus and I could not get enough of His word.
At the end of that year, God led us to move churches. During that move, I told God, “I am not going to a Baptist church” and reminded Him of my reasons based on my childhood church. However, another Baptist church was exactly where God sent us. The first day we attended the church the pastor preached on the gifts of the Spirit and that the gifts of the Spirit were alive today. I could not help but notice the families of other races in the church that were clearly loved and honored. Jesus had my attention.
Moving Churches Again
I spent the next ten years at that Baptist church. During that time, I attended New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary to get two certifications in women’s ministry and my bachelor’s degree in Christian Ministry. I graduated and ended up on staff at another Baptist church.
Two years later, another major shift sent me to a non-denominational church. I felt spiritually dry and drained and needed to separate from working on a church staff. I needed rest and revival in my spirit. So, going to a non-denominational church was right where I wanted to be. I did not want the box of any denomination any longer. I simply wanted Jesus, to worship, love, and live for Jesus. That is what I did for the next eight years at my non-denominational church. (Just so you know, non-denominational churches have their boxes too.)
Then Jesus brought a shaking and shifting in my life. All that I hoped would last a lifetime, came to a halt. Jesus had new plans for me and those plans sent me back to my spiritual roots, a Baptist church yet again.
Denominations And Unity
Throughout the past twenty-seven years of walking with Jesus I worshiped with many different people, in many different churches, from many different denominations. Some of my most wonderful days and memories have been at church. It really didn’t matter whether it was Baptist, Southern Baptist, United Methodist, Assembly of God, non-denominational… What mattered was how I encountered Jesus.
Recently, I attended a community event put on by our local Life Choices Pregnancy Resource Center. I loved every minute of it. Pastors and leaders from different denominations in our community came together to pray, worship, and lead our community in prayer and worship. It was a beautiful two hours of unity in the body of Christ.
Jesus blessed us with His presence, and I believe He delighted as we set aside different theological views, biases, and practices which often tend to divide us. We loved and honored one another, and we bound our hearts together for the sake of seeking God and honoring His gospel. For those two brief hours, each of us felt as if we experienced the tiniest glimpse of heaven. Everyone walked away knowing God was pleased.
With One Accord
That night reminded me of the unity in the body of Christ in the early church and how God demonstrated His power. The common power factor of the early church appears to be when the church was “with one accord” or homothumadon in the original Greek language. The meanings are with one accord, with one mind, and with one passion.
Ephesians 4:4 says,
“There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope of your calling;
one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all,
and through all, and in you all.”
Ephesians 4:4-6
No matter our denominational affiliation, we are called to be one, united in Christ to be one corporate body. God calls us to unity in the body of Christ for the sake of building His kingdom. Scripture captured moments of unity where God’s power shined brightly among the church and in their world. Take a look at the instances in Acts where the church came together praying and seeking God with one accord.
They experienced the first filling of the Holy Spirit. (Acts 1:14 and 2:1)
In their daily living and celebrating Jesus, God added to the church daily. (Acts 2:46-47)
They prayed for boldness and the Holy Spirit filled them with boldness to speak His word. (Acts 4:24)
Signs and wonders done among God’s people. (Acts 5:12)
Power in Unity
When the early church needed power in some area, they joined their hearts and minds together in prayer. Jesus created His church to be united because unity in the body of Christ produces supernatural results. I fully believe the same power factor of unity in the body of Christ displayed in the early church could bring us back to Holy Spirit power moments displayed in and through our lives in our day and time. While God’s power is available and accessible for us individually, I believe God delights in displaying His power through His church coming together.
Therefore, I ask you to join your heart and prayers with me and pray for unity in the body of Christ to be displayed on earth.
Much Love and Blessings!
