Unity and Diversity

Introducing the Text

If I say that humanity struggles with division, I suspect that most of you won’t disagree with me. We see that in politics whenever politicians start talking about the opposing party. We see that in the world with military conflicts. We see that in families where parents don’t get along with each other or when siblings fight or when parents and children disagree. And we see it in the church, with over 200 different denominations in the US alone. We even see it within individual denominations, with arguments over worship styles or interaction with the world.

All this division results from sin and all this division is sinful. In our reading today, we’re encouraged to “maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” (Eph 4:3)

Unity of Spirit

We maintain unity by treating each other like we are united. By being humble and treating one another with patience and forgiveness. But all of this brings up an important question. What does it mean to be unified? Does it mean we agree on everything? Does it mean we are all exactly the same? Well, Ephesians actually goes on to say in 4:4-6 that

Ephesians 4:4–6 (ESV)

There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call—

one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.

So it seems like for us to be unified, the criteria are less than those we might put on ourselves. In fact, the Book of Concord - the book that describes and explains the teachings of our church - puts it this way. It says that

“there must be and remain one holy, Christian church. It is the assembly of all believers among whom the Gospel is purely preached and the holy sacraments are administered according to the Gospel. For this is enough for the true unity of the Christian church, that the Gospel is preached harmoniously according to a pure understanding and the sacraments are administered in conformity with the divine Word.”

In fewer words, the church unifies around the faithful delivery of God’s promises in His Word and in His Sacraments. God doesn’t leave that up to us either, He works through the Holy Spirit to bring us to know Him as Lord in faith. If our unity is built on that, if our unity is built on the promises of God - then it is unshakable.

What unifies all of us here at Edgewater? What makes us a united church? That we are rooted in the Gospel.

What unifies everyone in the LCMS? What makes us a united church body? That we are rooted in the Gospel.

What unifies all Christians? What makes us a united faith? That we are rooted in the Gospel.

Diversity of Talent

But unity does not mean conformity. We are unified, but that does not make us the same. Ephesians tells us that God gives the church all of these different roles for the proclamation and understanding of that Gospel.

I mean, just think about a country. What would happen if everyone in the country were farmers? They’d probably have plenty of food, but if the country were invaded they would be done. What would happen, then, if everyone in the country was a soldier? They’d probably not have major concerns about a potential invasion, but if you ever broke a leg or got a serious illness you’d be in serious trouble. What would happen, then, if everyone in the country was a doctor? They’d probably have injury and illness well in hand, but they’d run out of food pretty quick. In a unified country, you need some diversity of talent.

Edgewater is no different. There are a variety of people skilled in different ways to build up the unified church. We need some people to help with sound like Keith, so that the people in the back can hear the message. We need people gifted musically like the worship team, to lead us in thanking God for everything He’s done. We need people gifted with leadership like Matt, Trevor, and Debbie to make sure the church is doing what it ought to do. In the church, God has blessed us with a diversity of talent to make sure that the Gospel continues to go out into the world. God has put people in place to push us forward in the unity and maturity of our faith.

Even the larger church is no different. Different denominations connect people to the Gospel in different ways, they have different focuses, and they reach different people. That is a blessing that God has given the world so many avenues to hear about the saving work of Christ, about His death and resurrection for the forgiveness of sins.

A Balancing Act

In the closing words of this reading, we are called to grow into a reflection of Christ and speak the truth in love. That is the line that defines our unity, that we speak the truth.

You might’ve made it this far into the message and be thinking to yourself, “Josh, you’re sounding really idealistic right now.” You might be thinking about the reality that Christianity is divided and think “how can Josh stand up there and tell me that the church is united? I have eyes, I know that we’re not!”

You’re right, and sometimes unity is interrupted by our efforts to speak the truth in love. Sometimes unity is disrupted by disagreements about the sources of our unity. If a church fails to proclaim the Gospel or distorts that message or treats the sacraments in a less-than-faithful way, unity is interrupted because we can’t just ignore those errors. And that’s where some of these roles from Ephesians 4 might come in. Teachers to help bring people to a more faithful understanding, leaders to have difficult discussions about errors we make, or shepherds to push God’s people to the place they need to be. We have to deal with the brokenness of the world that can result in our distorting the message of the Gospel, distorting the source of our unity. And we will likely have to wait until Jesus returns to set that right.

But sometimes our unity is interrupted by things that are a lot less faithful than that. Sometimes the church can be divided by race. Sometimes the church can be divided over worship styles. Sometimes the church can be divided over politics. Sometimes the church can be divided over culture. Clothes, nationality, preaching style - there are so many more that we could list together. I’ll concede to you that sometimes we’re divided about things that are important, but sometimes we’re divided about things that are “important.” Sometime, we need to re-frame what is important so we don’t divide over anything less.

And that’s something we have to struggle with as a church, that’s something we have to struggle with in our families and our friendships, that something we have to struggle with in our world. We stand fast in the truth of the Gospel, working to make sure that it is faithfully proclaimed to the world that desperately needs to hear it - recognizing that sometimes that’s going to interrupt our unity. In those instances, we treat one another with humility, gentleness, patience, and forgiveness. And in the midst of all, we rejoice in the source of our unity. We rejoice in our one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all. Amen.