Christian Unity In a Broken World

We live in a broken and deeply fractured world, yet God calls His children to live in unity. The Christian life is about relationships. God wants us to have a good relationship with Him and He wants His children to have good relationships with one another. In John 13:35, Jesus prayed for God’s children, and gave them a new commandment: “that you love one another, even as I have loved you.”

Four Essential Principles for Christian Unity

There are four essential principles which Christians must accept if we are to live in unity with other Christians in our broken world.

1. We must embrace the “brotherhood” of believers.

Genesis 1:27-28 makes it clear that all humans are created in the image of God. Because of that, each person has inherent and infinite worth and is loved by God equally.

Beyond that (the “physical brotherhood” of all mankind), for Christians, there is a “spiritual brotherhood.” Christians are all spiritual siblings. We are united in the Body of Christ, and God wants us to live in unity (John 17:22-23).

2. We must do unto others as we would have others do unto us.

In the beatitudes in Luke 6, Jesus teaches the values that should govern truly Christian behavior. They are revolutionary, counter-cultural, and require a heavenly value system.

In Luke 6:31, He offers a paramount principle that encompasses everything: “Do unto others as you would have others do unto you.” This principle of biblical love, if applied today, would solve most of the world’s problems by tomorrow.

3. We must repent when we do wrong.

When we do wrong against someone, our responsibility is to repent and turn from that sin. “If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:8-9). Then, we need to reconcile with the person we wronged (Mathew 5:23-24).

4. We must forgive when we are wronged.

There are two sides to the “coin of forgiveness.” As hard as it can be to repent when we are the one who has sinned, the other side of the coin can sometimes be even harder. When we are wronged, our responsibility is to forgive. “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us” (Matthew 6:12-15). We are not to retaliate. Romans 12:19 says, “Never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God.”  The goal among God’s people is always unity (John 17:21-23).

Scripture is very clear about the issue of unity and oneness among Christians.

Conclusion

In her book, Tramp for the Lord, holocaust survivor Corrie ten Boom told a compelling story about the price of “oneness” among Christians.

It was in a church in Munich that I saw him – a balding, heavyset man in a gray overcoat, a brown felt hat clutched between his hands.  People were filing out of the basement room where I had just spoken, moving along the rows of wooden chairs to the door at the rear.  It was 1947 and I had come from Holland to defeated Germany with the message that God forgives.

It was the truth they needed most to hear in that bitter, bombed-out land, and I gave them my favorite mental picture.  Maybe because the sea is never far from a Hollander’s mind, I liked to think that that’s where forgiven sins were thrown.  “When we confess our sins,” I said, “God casts them in to the deepest ocean, gone forever.  And even though I cannot find a Scripture for it, I believed God then places a sign out there that says, NO FISHING ALLOWED.”

The solemn faces stared back at me, not quite daring to believe.  There were never questions after a talk in Germany in 1947.  People stood up in silence, in silence collected their wraps, in silence left the room.

And that’s when I saw him, working his way forward against the others.  One moment I saw the overcoat and the brown hat; the next, a blue uniform and a visored cap with its skull and crossbones.  It came back with a rush: the huge room with its harsh overhead lights; the pathetic pile of dresses and shoes in the center of the floor; the shame of walking naked past this man.

The place was the Ravensbruck concentration camp, and the man who was making his way forward had been a guard – one of the most cruel guards.

Now he was in front of me, hand thrust out: “A fine message, Fraulein!  How good it is to know that, as you say, all our sins are at the bottom of the sea!”

And I, who had spoken so glibly of forgiveness, fumbled in my pocketbook rather than take that hand.  He would not remember me, of course – how could he remember one prisoner among thousands of women?

But I remembered him and the leather crop swinging from his belt.  I was face-to-face with one of my captors and my blood seemed to freeze.

“You mentioned Ravensbruck in your talk,” he was saying.  “I was a guard there.”  No, he did not remember me,

“But since that time,” he went on, “I have become a Christian.  I know that God has forgiven me for the cruel things I did there, but I would like to hear if from your lips as well.  Fraulein,” – again the hand came out – “will you forgive me?”

And I stood there – I whose sins had again and again to be forgiven – and could not forgive.  My sister Betsie had died in that place – could he erase her slow terrible death simply for the asking?

It could not have been many seconds that he stood there – hand held out – but to me it seemed hours as I wrestled with the most difficult thing I had ever had to do.  For I had to do it – I knew that.

And still I stood there with the coldness clutching my heart.  But forgiveness is not an emotion – I knew that too. Forgiveness is an act of the will, and the will can function regardless of the temperature of the heart.  “Jesus, help me!”  I prayed silently.  “I can lift my hand; I can do that much.  You supply the feeling.”

And so woodenly, mechanically, I thrust my hand into the one stretched out to me.  And as I did, an incredible thing took place.  The current started in my shoulder, raced down my arm, sprang into our joined hands.  And then this healing warmth seemed to flood my whole being, bringing tears to my eyes.

“I forgive you, brother!”  I cried.  “With all my heart.”

For a long moment we grasped each other’s hands, the former guard and the former prisoner.

Few of us will ever have to do anything as difficult as that. However, we must all be prepared to pay whatever price God may ask us to pay to be able to live in Christian unity in a broken world.

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