Unity in the Lord

Samuel Pan, Ph.D.

Among the churches established by the Apostle Paul, there seemed to be a common problem on church unity. So in his epistles, whether to the church in Corinth (1 Cor. 1:10-12), in Philippi (Phil. 4:2-3), or in Ephesus (Eph. 4:2-6), he addressed the same issue of unity.

For example, the church in Corinth had a major problem of divisions (1 Cor. 1:10-12). One of the causes was their incorrect view and use of spiritual gifts, although they did “not lack any spiritual gift” (1 Cor. 1:7). Hence Paul used three chapters (ch. 12-14) to address this issue.

Unfortunately, many of our churches today are like the early churches -- not lacking in spiritual gifts, yet struggling with the issue of unity. In 1 Cor. 12:12-27, Paul used the concept of the body to convey the reason why a church must keep the unity in the Lord. Let’s learn from Paul’s teaching on this vital issue.

In Christ’s Body We Are One Body

Paul says in 1 Cor. 12:12-13,

The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body--whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free--and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.

Here he uses the human body to illustrate the important truths about Christ’s church. In Christ’s church, Christ is the head (Col. 1:18); all the believers, regardless of their races or nationalities, form the one body of Christ (v. 13). This one body of Christ is referred to as Christ’s universal church.

In 1983, while I was studying at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, my wife Dorothy and I participated in summer overseas mission to Japan. While we were there, we had opportunities to worship with the Japanese believers, and also to live in some of their home. One important lesson we learned was that we could worship with the Japanese believers in one Spirit. Since then, we have had the same experiences with other nationals as well. Although our languages and cultures are different, we can always worship the same Lord in the same Spirit. This verifies that all the believers belong to one body of Christ.

Such truths parallel with our physical body — for a normal person has only one head and one body. Just as God made our physical body with one head and one body, so does God want His church to have only one head and one body.

Therefore, since a church is one body, we must keep the unity in the Lord. When we keep the unity in the Lord, God will bless us because we obey his will.

In Christ’s Body We Have Many Parts

Paul continues to say in vv. 14 and in 17-18,

Now the body is not made up of one part but of many. . . . If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be.

Here Paul did not just talk about the parts of the human body, he was rather referring to the members of Christ’s church. Just as our body has many different parts in which each has its unique function, so Christ’s church has many different members, among whom each has his/her unique spiritual gift.

Concerning different spiritual gifts, Paul also mentions in Rom. 12:4-6a:

Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given us.

Therefore, in Christ’s church, although we have only one body, we have many members who have different gifts which are not for competing, but for the common good of the body (1 Cor. 12:7).

Can we accept one another’s differences? Do we appreciate one another’s unique gifts in our church?

In Christ’s Body We Need One Another

Lastly, in vv. 21, 25, Paul says,

The eye cannot say to the hand, ‘I don't need you!’ And the head cannot say to the feet, ‘I don't need you!’. . . there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other.

Each of the many parts of the body has unique functions for the common good of the body. For example, when we eat, we need the cooperation of our eyes, hands, nose, tongue, teeth, and stomach. If any of these parts were to go on strike, eating would not be an enjoyable thing but a chore to us.

Likewise, for a church to grow both quantitatively and qualitatively, we need some to serve, some to care, some to evangelize, some to teach, some to administrate, and some to give.

The word “gift” in Greek is “charisma”, meaning “gift of grace”. Though each believer is endowed with at least one spiritual gift, none has all the spiritual gifts. That means that all of us receive only partially of the complete grace that God gives to His church. Without the contributions of other believers, we cannot enjoy the full benefits of this complete grace.

Dorothy and I once bought a 2000-piece puzzle of a beautiful view of nature. As we worked on and off, it took about a year to finish the project. But just about to finish, we realized that a few pieces were missing. We wrote to the company about the situation. The company graciously sent us a new box of the same puzzle--only the cuttings were different. So we had to do it all over again, and it took another year to finish the work. Thank God, this time we did not miss any piece. To commemorate our efforts, we glued and framed the 2000-piece puzzle!

Just like each piece in a puzzle is different, each member’s spiritual gift represents only one piece of God’s complete grace to His church. Unless and until all the members contribute their spiritual gifts, a church will not enjoy the full benefits of God’s grace. 1 Peter 4:10 therefore says, “Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.”

Are we all using our spiritual gifts to serve one another in our church? In our church, are all the members encouraged to use their spiritual gifts? Have we truly appreciated the contributions of the other members’ spiritual gifts?

Since keeping the unity in the Lord is God’s will, let us in all things keep the unity in our church. To keep the unity in the Lord, we need to remember three things. First, we are one body connected to the one and only head—Jesus Christ. Second, God has given each of us certain unique spiritual gifts as part of the complete grace given to the whole church. And third, in order to enjoy the full benefits of this grace, all of us must use our spiritual gifts faithfully in serving one another. Only when we keep the unity in the Lord will we experience God’s total blessings in our church.