unity ≠ uniformity

Unity does not equal uniformity. Many subconsciously believe that this is how unity functions. There are a lot of people who think that unity among believers looks like everyone being in total agreement; that the church must be some sort of “yes-man” or “echo-chamber” for your biases on Scripture and other areas of life. People often think that the mark of unity is having the same views on social justice, politics, and theology, etc. I do not believe this is what Scripture teaches, I think our unity runs so much deeper then our opinions on these things. Our unity can go beyond the frustrations of inadequate broken human thinking.

God has been revealing areas in my life where I have failed in this regard. Yes, this article is a response to so much of what I see around me, but it is also a response to patterns that I have seen in my own life.

THE DEMONIZATION OF OUR DIFFERENCES

A lack of love and unity begins to poison the church when people demonize the differences that exist in the body of Christ. What is even worse is when church leaders begin to demand demonization of differences from their flock. Do not hear me wrong, I am not saying we should not strive for agreement, or wrestle with the Word of God, or speak against false teachers, those things are important, lets keep doing that. What I fear is that we have taken this to an unhealthy extreme. We are drawing lines, labeling people, and going to war over things that Jesus never did.

I have been discouraged by the extreme sides people in the church take, this usually manifests itself in politics or theology. People cling so tightly to an ideology, whether that be right or left politics, progressive or conservative Christianity, that they become unable to really have open, unbiased, and productive conversations. This resistant thinking creates an environment where people are quickly and without a second thought dismissed and labeled a heretic or seen as less of a Christian for their interpretation of Scripture. People become crippled from their politics influencing their faith, they become crippled from their tradition or denomination influencing their doctrine, individuals become polarized by prominent figures shaping their thinking and it creates a false sense of Spiritual maturity and an atmosphere of cynicism.

Let me step on some toes real quick. We have distorted the practical outworking of boldness, and spiritual maturity to mean relentlessly standing against those you disagree with. It is not spiritual maturity, it is arrogance, it is a complete disregard for conversation and unity. You are not more mature for trying to replace the mystery of scripture with certainty, for replacing grace with aggression. A spiritually mature person is open-minded and acknowledges the grey areas that exist, without compromising their own convictions on Scripture. These things must be held in tension, you can have a firm conviction without becoming egotistical. Sometimes people can be so arrogant in assuming that they know for a fact that their interpretation of a particular passage in Scripture is the correct one, or that the way their church functions is the correct way. This to me looks like spiritual laziness, you do not want to do the hard work of wrestling with a mysterious God or other perspectives on faith and life. You do not want to abandon the comfort zone of your contextual tradition! Let me stop before I start a war. . .

I exhort you, do not just try to make a point, try to promote unity.

WHAT MATTERS TO GOD?

Will these differences that seem so insurmountable at this moment really matter? What matters to God? Will God be pleased if you can pass a theology test but fail at following Jesus and His heart for unity among his people?

So many of us have such a critical spirit, and we have become more known for what we are against than what we are for. We are more focused on what our differences are than what our commonalities are. We define ourselves, our churches, and others by differences and camps rather than similarities. Here is the reality: we are all attempting to describe and discover the God we love. So why do you label and hate people when at best you have barely scratched the surface of an incomprehensible God?

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, and your ways are not my ways.” This is the LORD’s declaration. “For as heaven is higher than earth, so my ways are higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

Isaiah 55:8–9 (CSB)