Eph. 4:3, “Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.”
When we have so many people reading and writing, thinking, believing, and debating (or discussing what we've run across via the internet and other sources), we know that we are not always going to agree. Let us see the meaning of unity. According to an on-line dictionary, unity is:
(1.)The state of being one, singleness.
(2.)The state or quality of being in accord, harmony.
Well, we know that the first one applies to married couples mainly. You know you must have the same values as your spouse (i.e. not being unequally yoked and both equally agree with the same strength the same convictions). But what about the second one?
We must be in harmony or accord. As we know, even in the body of Christ we do not always agree! Churches split up over the simplest things. Why can’t we live in unity? Because Satan wants to keep the Body of Christ apart. Besides, what does the world we are trying to evangelize think when people leave the church over whether to have real wine or grape juice at communion. They will not be inclined to come and accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, when they show more tolerance to each other than we show to fellow believers. This is just what Satan wants. When we split up, Satan knows that we are not getting the spiritual encouragement we need to be useful to Christ. Satan scores again. Lincoln once said, “A house divided cannot stand.” How true is that! Since Satan has learned that he cannot destroy the church outwardly, he will tear it apart from the inside.
We will have differences. We must not let them separate us from each other. There are some cases where it is necessary that we remove ourselves from each other. We must only separate when it is a matter of Christian liberty not the kind of liberty John McArthur is talking about when he says, we live in an age when men, women, and even children are seeking liberation. "Do your own thing" is the manifesto of the freedom movement. Authority is being challenged as the individual follows the desire of his own heart. Self-centeredness is the motivating factor of worldly freedom. But that is not real freedom according to the Bible. Jesus said in John 8:34, "Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin." While the liberation movements can't really set a person free, Jesus can. He said, "If the Son, therefore, shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed" (John 8:36). Freedom comes in Jesus Christ. That is the manifesto of Christianity. One reason it is difficult for Christians to understand current liberation movements is that they can't relate to bondage because of their liberty in Christ. In essence, strive to be like Christ.
