Building Godly Character: Unity

Jesus Christ is our cornerstone, faith is our foundation, gratitude, obedience, humility, forgiveness, love , self discipline, and hope are the pillars. Our Godly character is coming along nicely. It is beginning to look like an amazing structure. BUT have you ever helped frame a home. You know you have the foundation, and the 2 by six studs that hold up the home and it is begining to look like something but it is strong but wobly. You know what I mean you can shake it keeping it square is almost impossible. With a simple push your nice beautiful rectangular frames with perfect 90 degree angles can become skewed or funny looking parallelograms and everything is off kilter. You need a piece of ply wood, OSB it doesn’t matter. One piece will change everything. All of the sudden your building gets firm. It ties it all together and it will become solid. That is the power of Christian unity. The foundation is never really shakeable but all those pillars in trouble until they are tied together.

Christians need unity!

1 Corinthians 1:10–13 Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. For it has been declared to me concerning you, my brethren, by those of Chloe’s household, that there are contentions among you. Now I say this, that each of you says, “I am of Paul,” or “I am of Apollos,” or “I am of Cephas,” or “I am of Christ.” Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?

The Corinthian church is something else. The two books of the Corinthians are so important to the scripture but they are hard to read. I don’t like reading parts of them. You know the parts like there are things that should not be named in a church going on… Things that the Gentiles don’t even do like a man having his father’s wife. That is not fun to read, but you want to know what the devil wants to do? He wants to discredit the church and bring out every problem a church has ever had. Today there are cults our there, that deviate from the truth, there are corrupt members and pastors out their. There are terrible scandals in the church. Therefore I see the importance of Corinthians. We Need Corinthians. Because there are very dangerous things in this world that can destroy a church one of them is disunity. That is what Paul starts his book to the Corinthian church by tackling even before some of the gross stuff

1 Corinthians 1 is going to help guide my outline this morning. so keep your bookmark there

Believers should be united in heart about Jesus Christ.

Acts 4:12 Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.

Christians have one calling.

Ephesians 4:3–6 endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.

The unity comes from the Spirit, there is one body of believers, one faith, one baptism one God. There is one one one.

There are many churches, but only one CHURCH!

Revelation 19:9 Then he said to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!’ ” And he said to me, “These are the true sayings of God.

Those who find themselves at the marriage supper of the lamb are part of the one true church the bride of Christ. Do people sneak in and masquerade as believers but are not sure we will talk about them later.

Threats to unity.

Ecumenicism - the idea that everyone who claims Christ no matter their doctrinal differences should be included in the work of the gospel.

The ecumenical movement sounds wonderful, it sounds like unity, but be careful.

Jude 3–4 Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints. For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ.

The idea that oh well we believe just a little different than you but that’s ok sounds good. As a matter of fact we kind of use that often we do stuff with people from different churches all the time who do things a little different, BUT there are churches that have real big problems and even though they might have a cross they really should not be calling themselves Christians.

Immorality in the church.

Titus 3:9–11 But avoid foolish disputes, genealogies, contentions, and strivings about the law; for they are unprofitable and useless. Reject a divisive man after the first and second admonition, knowing that such a person is warped and sinning, being self-condemned.

There are people who walk into church and their behaviors and beliefs are sent by the devil to destroy the unity of the church. Are sinners are allowed to come into church. Sure we are all sinners saved by grace but when you want the church to embrace sin that is a problem. Just because the church is full of sinners saved by grace doesn’t mean we celebrate it also there are people who would want the church to believe things that are false and don’t come from the scriptures.

Be careful, there are people who would divide the church.

Romans 16:17 Now I urge you, brethren, note those who cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the doctrine which you learned, and avoid them.

Some people are trouble makers. They raise problems but they don’t have any Biblical reason for what they are doing. They base their conflict on improper doctrine or immorality in the church. The person who might want a church to hey homosexuality is ok! Jesus isn’t God or the person who might say I think that everyone in church should always where a neck tie to church every time they enter. My question is where in the Bible does it say that. Jesus would have a field day with that.

Jesus wanted His’ disciples to have a unique relationship with each other.

John 13:34–35 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.

Jesus wanted love and unity for the church and agape love amongst Christians to be an identifiable trait amongst Christians. People who want to divide and fight against the unity of the church because of their unscriptural beliefs and their obscene behaviors are acting as an instrument of the devil. Weather they believe it or not. God wants the church to be unified. The devil wants to divide it apart.

Jesus wants us to be unified.

John 17:20–21 I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.

Unity in diversity is a key characteristic of God.

Deuteronomy 6:4 Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one!

This is so important. We have one GOD! Jews and Muslims alike attack Christians as polytheistic. That is because mono theism is so important to them. It is so important to me too. I don’t have three God’s I have ONE! But He is three persons in one. Jesus prayed that you would be that unified in heart. He also prayed that His disciples would be that unified. I think that Jesus understands that there is problem that there are baptists and methodists and catholics Jesus prayers will be answered. When we get to heaven we will all be believers ONE BODY! It is our job to fight for the importance of that here and now. Christian Character says that we should fight to work together for the sake of Jesus Christ.

Unified about Jesus.

Romans 15:5 Now may the God of patience and comfort grant you to be like-minded toward one another, according to Christ Jesus,

Unified in our worship.

Romans 15:6 that you may with one mind and one mouth glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

With one mouth we should glory God. He has been so good to us. This includes more than just music. When you come into church. Do you say and I know a lot of you that come in and you reiterate that statement. All my life you have been faithful, All my life you have been so so good,

The Holy Spirit is the glue that holds the church together.

Ephesians 2:21–22 in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.

If we are building Godly Character and we want to begin to tie all this together it is the Holy Spirit that is going to be the glue that holds this building together. Take him out of the equation the building falls apart. The building will fall apart. I will stand on the fact that we need to make the Holy Spirit vital. Building a church without the holy spirit is like building a home without nails screws and glue. It was holds us together.

There is strength in unity.

Ephesians 4:4–5 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism

Remember what happens to a frame when you begin to tie it together. When you put the trusses on the roof when you put the sheathing on the outside. It begins to be solid. That is what happens when we master unity. Don’t be divided.

We need to be united in our hope, united in the spirit, united in Jesus Christ.

The church will be a spiritual refuge when it is unified.

Psalm 133:1 Behold, how good and how pleasant it is For brethren to dwell together in unity!

We are building Godly character. I don’t want us buying shacks built on sand. I want us to build fortresses that are built on the rock. You know where we are going to find that strength of materials. The building plans are right here in the scripture

It brings joy to God’s people when we are one.

Philippians 2:2 fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.

Strive to be unified.

Philippians 1:27 Only let your conduct be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of your affairs, that you stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel,