This is a guest blog from Jared White of Finite Calls Infinite. Jared is a musician, a Web developer, a photographer, and a Charismatic Christian who believes that the Spirit of God is moving dramatically across the world today and impacting entire nations with the Gospel of the Kingdom.
In last week’s installment of “Does the world know?”, I introduced the topic of Christian unity and the relationship between the world’s knowledge of Jesus and the love Christians have for one another. This time around, I want to expand on the importance of unity in a fractured age.
Ever since the Fall of Man, the world has been teetering on the brink of chaos. We see that now more clearly the ever because the world is getting smaller every day. The rise of globalization and modern communications may promote a facade of worldwide solidarity, but we know better. Ideologies, philosophies, cultures, and beliefs are colliding with each other at an ever rapid pace, and love is given lip service as hatred drives people apart. Nations tout democracy even as their own people are unable to live side by side. Religions promise peace while their own followers attack those who do not agree with them. We live in a fractured age, but there is one constant which has the power to bring wholeness and restoration to everything in a lasting, permanent, and meaningful way — the “greatest story ever told” as it has been called.
What am I referring to? It is this: Jesus Christ is Lord over all and was sent by a loving God to save those who have gone astray, i.e., us. As beneficiaries of His divine love, all we have to to is accept it and receive it, and it has the power to change our lives. When we give ourselves to Christ’s love, selfishness gives way to generosity. Pride gives way to self-sacrifice. Corruption gives way to servant leadership. Animosity gives way to charity. And division in the community gives way to unity in the Spirit.
As unworthy recipients of “so great a salvation”, we are tasked with one mission above all else, and that is to love one another as Christ loves us. This isn’t just a feel-good notion, a fanciful idea that has no practical value, it is vital to the overall mission of Jesus Christ. When the world sees Christians loving one another, when the world see Christians laying down their lives for one another, when the world sees Christians living out the transformed life of grace, the world sits up and takes notice.
In my community here in Sonoma County, California, and specifically the city of Santa Rosa, there is a group of local pastors who have met regularly for a number of years to pray for the area and for one another and for unity in the Church. This loose coalition of pastors and churches has grown in stature and favor to the point where it now has the ear of the local government. We have been able to conduct county-wide events and launch community programs to bring healing and hope to the local populace in astonishing ways. Now other cities and para-church organizations in California are beginning to come to our group to see how they can take the unity and love of Christ to their own communities.
The reason I bring this up is that people are now beginning come to Christ and believe in who Jesus is and what He did because of the unity of churches that is growing in our city. I’ve heard some amazing testimonies already and this is just the beginning. Many local churches aren’t yet onboard, so much work remains to be done. But the evidence is clear: when the Church is divided, the community is fractured. When the Church comes together in love, the community is restored.
As Christians, we have been given the precious gift of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit of God cannot operate where there is division. A wise man once said that the unity of the Spirit is not that we hold to the exact same doctrines but that we love the same Father. When Christians come together to love the same Father, to worship the same God, to follow in the footsteps of Jesus together, and to carry out His mission to bring the Kingdom of Heaven down to earth, then the miraculous and regenerative power of the Holy Spirit is brought fully to bear. And when that happens, Light shines forth in the darkness, and humanity is made whole.
It can’t be this simple, right? It’s all very well to talk about Christian unity, but how can such a thing be when there are so many denominations, church networks, independent fellowships, home churches, fringe groups, traditions, and what not? How can we all possibly come together? What about error and false doctrines? What about sinful lifestyles? What do we do about that? I will attempt to share my thoughts on these questions next week in my final installment. In the meantime, I want to challenge you to consider the same questions I put forth in my last post:
- Does the world know?
- Does the world know that God sent Jesus to us?
- Does the world know that God loves His people just as He loves His Son?
- Has Jesus’ prayer been answered?
- Has the vision that He laid out in this prayer come to pass? If not, why not?
Rev. Andrew Conard 