“I Will Be a Unifying Church Member” (Ephesians 4:1-6) - I AM A CHURCH MEMBER II -

Unity Takes Work 

I once heard a funny story about how hard it is to keep the unity of the church. There was a man who was standing in the middle of the Golden Gate Bridge, admiring the view. And he heard another tourist say quietly, “What an awesome God!” So he turned to him and asked, “Oh, are you a Christian?” The tourist said, “Yes, I am a Christian.” He said, “So am I,” and they shook hands. Then, he asked, “Are you a liberal or a fundamental Christian?” The tourist said, “I'm a fundamental Christian.” He said, “So am I,” and they smiled and nodded to each other. He said, “Are you a covenant or dispensational fundamental Christian?” The tourist said, “I'm a dispensational fundamental Christian.” He said, “So am I,” and they slapped one another on the back and agreed to exchange Christmas cards each year. He said, “Are you an early Acts, mid Acts, or late Acts dispensational fundamental Christian?” The tourist said, “I'm a late Acts dispensational fundamental Christian.” He said, “You heretic!” and he pushed him off the bridge.[1]

In today’s passage Paul exhorts us, “Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace” (3). That doesn’t mean we should maintain the unity of the church at the expense of truth. In this matter it would be wise to follow St. Augustine’s approach: “In the essential things of our faith, unity; in non-essentials, freedom; in everything, love.” I want to draw your attention to this: Paul doesn’t say that we Christians ought to “create” unity; instead, he exhorts us to “preserve” the unity already established by the blood of Christ. The Bible says, “For Christ himself has brought peace to us. He united Jews and Gentiles (all the different people!) into one people (one Church!) when, in his own body on the cross, he broke down the wall of hostility that separated us.” (Eph 2:14, NLT) Jesus did it! He reconciled us to God, and to each other through his death on the Cross. Unity is a given, and now we are called to maintain the unity of the church. As we know, unity takes work. It takes sacrifice.

Gossip 

There are at least three main obstacles to the unity of the church. And Paul urges us to overcome those obstacles for the sake of unity. The first obstacle we as a church face is the sin of gossip. Gossip is destructive in the church. It is like cancerous cells in the body of Christ. It creates divisions and sows discord. It tears apart the unity and renders the church sick and powerless. Few weeks ago when we studied Romans 12:9-21, “Three Simple Rules,” we learned about how can we deal with our own gossip. And the basic principle was if you are not sure whether something is gossip or not, don’t mention it. Keep your tongue under control. Unless it builds up those involved and the body of Christ, don’t tell anyone else’s story.

So now we know how can we deal with our own gossip. But how do we refuse to listen to someone who wants to spread gossip? How can we deal with gossip in others and in the church? Bill Gothard tells us five questions to ask before we listen to an evil report or negative talk:[2] 

1. What is your reason for telling me? 
2. Where did you get your information? 
3. Have you gone to those directly involved? 
4. Have you personally checked out all of the facts? 
5. Can I quote you if I check this out? 

Perhaps you may not remember all these five questions at the moment. If so, ask this one question to yourselves: “Is this report or talk building up those involved and the church?” If not, gently rebuke him or her. Confront that person in love. Kindly say, “I would rather not hear any gossip and I would hope it wouldn’t continue to spread. Lovingly say, “You should go directly to the person involved, or to the pastor.” If there are just a few more members like you, other church members will know that gossip is not tolerated in this church. And our church will be a place of joy and unity. Sisters and brothers in Christ, we are called to be a source of unity, not a source of gossip. Let us stop gossip when it’s shared with us and look for ways to encourage people and build up the church instead. Let us be a unifier! That is our calling! 

Unforgiving Heart 

The second obstacle to the unity of the church is unforgiving heart. Unforgiveness is an enemy of church unity. In Colossians 3:12-13 Paul says, “As God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.” (NRSV) Forgiveness is essential to the unity of the church. Church unity is torn apart when church members refuse to forgive, when they refuse to seek forgiveness.

Forgiveness is not easy. Too many times we have anger and hurt because of something another member said or did or failed to do. Anger rears its ugly head. Bitterness keeps coming back. We may have to let go of resentment over and over again. Forgiveness takes work. But as we come to the cross of Christ, we begin to comprehend the depth of our own sins and the wonder of God’ grace. We begin to realize Christ loved me so much that He died on a cross to forgive me. If the Lord has forgiven me – even me, who am I to refuse to forgive others? I must forgive. You must forgive. We must forgive. Do you have any grudges you’ve been harboring? Identify them, and forgive the people involved today.

Forgiveness is a two-way street. Not only do we ought to forgive, but also we are to seek forgiveness. There was an occasion when I had to stand up for what I believe it is right. At that time I firmly believed I did the right thing, and I said the right thing. One day I had a chance to meet one of my mentors. After hearing my story and prayer concerns, he said something disturbing in this way: “Victor, I admire your willingness to take a stand for the truth of the gospel. I stand with you. But you may still need to apologize if you have unnecessarily hurt other’s feeling in expressing your beliefs.” My first response was denial. But as I was praying and asking the guidance of the Holy Spirit, I realized that I may be theologically right, but I was relationally wrong. So I went to see those involved and did ask for forgiveness. Too many times we hurt other’s feelings because we are imperfect. But, too often we don’t even realize it. We need the help of the Holy Spirit. We need to work with Him to identify the ways in which we have hurt other’s feelings and contributed to division within the church. With humility, let us come and ask the Holy Spirit to identity our words and deeds. And if He convicts us of our sin, let us confess our actions and seek forgiveness.

My Way 

The third and the most fundamental obstacle to the unity of the church is self-centeredness or selfishness. By nature, we are constantly seeking things “our way.” Too often, we expect the church to cater to our preferences and our needs. We serve the church “my way.” Of course, our preferences, our desires, our ways clash with each other, and the church becomes a battle ground. Then, how can we overcome our self-centered human nature? The cure for this is to die to self and to live to Christ. It is to deny ourselves and submit to Christ. In Ephesians 2:20 Paul calls Jesus Christ the chief cornerstone of the church. In ancient architecture, the cornerstone was the most important stone in a building. It was the building stone that held the entire structure together. Here Paul is saying everything in and about the church rests on Jesus’ authority. He is the one who connects us all together. In Christ there is one body, one Spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God (4-6). 7 times of “oneness” – perfect unity! This oneness doesn’t mean we agree with everyone all the time. For instance, we may disagree about the proper mode of baptism. But this oneness does mean we are willing to sacrifice our own preferences as secondary issues, and to seek the will of Christ and obey Him to keep the unity of the church!

As I close, I would like to share a story of the testing of a candidate for missions work. A missionary candidate was summoned to come before a certain interviewer. A veteran missionary himself instructed the young man to come to his house at 5 a.m. So the young man got up at 4 and arrived at the examiner’s house by 4:55. “Wait for me,” the examiner said as he ushered the candidate into his study. Then he disappeared. Three hours later he returned and said, “How do you spell baker?” “B-a-k-e-r,” answered the young man. “How’s your math?” asked the examiner. “What’s two plus two?” “Four,” answered the young man. That evening, the veteran missionary met with his mission board and said, “I highly recommend this young man for ministry. I tested him on self-denial. He rolled out of bed and showed up at 4:55 a.m. Patience? I made him wait three hours in my study, and he didn’t say a word. Temper? I asked him to spell baker, and he didn’t become agitated. Humility? I asked him what two plus two was and he answered readily. This man will make a great missionary, just the kind we need.”[3]

Making Much of Christ 

Not all of us in this room may not have been called to be a missionary. But all of us are called to have a “missionary mindset” – Making much of Christ and serving His Church with all humility and gentleness, with patience and love! (2). Keeping church unity itself is not our purpose. Our ultimate goal is to make much of Christ. We make much of Christ by stopping the gossip. We make much of Christ by forgiving and seeking forgiveness. We make much of Christ by setting aside our ways and following His ways. As we make much of Christ, church unity comes and the church become the most loving place in the world. So brothers and sisters in Christ, let us make much of Christ together above all things!

----------
[1] Nicky Gumbel, Alpha Course, “Talk 15: What About the Church?”
[2] Steven J. Cole, “Lesson 13: Have You Heard about Gossip?” (2 Samuel 13-15), https://bible.org/seriespage/lesson-13-have-you-heard-about-gossip-2-samuel-13-15
[3] Jon Courson, Jon Courson’s Application Commentary: Vol 3, New Testament (Thomas Nelson, 2003), 974.