Posted by The phrase “United we stand, divided we fall” is a very common phrase that’s been used by Sonny and Cher, Elton John, and is even Kentucky’s motto. I had heard it plenty of times before, but I had never given the phrase much thought until this week. I’ve been thinking about unity especially in relation to the body of Christ. 1 Corinthians 12:12-31 talks about this extensively, but verses 24-26 really focus on unity.
“But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.”
Sadly, oftentimes we fall very short of these verses. In a church, or within a group of believers it’s normal to find people gossiping about one another or causing strife. These things cause division within the body, making it ineffective. It’s the same with the human body. If a person’s body is attacking itself, they have an autoimmune disease of some sort and need serious treatment, or else they will die. If there is division in the body of Christ, that makes what they do less effective.
Imagine how amazing it would be if people within a church worked together as a whole to reach a community. What if a group of churches ignored the differences in denominations and worked together to share the gospel with people around them. I believe that if people but God first instead of their petty issues with another believer, then God could do something amazing in their lives.
So, if you have problems with another believer, sit down and talk it out with them. Fix the problem! If you gossip about people (I’m guilty of this too) then stop! My question to you is: are you promoting division or unity within the body of Christ?
Work in Progress 