"E pluribus unum" the United States' unofficial motto, appears on our currency, meaning ‘out of many, one.’ The aspiration was that the 13 original colonies, ranging from the independent Yankees of New England, to the aristocrats of Virginia, to the farmers of the deep South, would find common ground in a new nation.
Today that motto is almost laughable given the fractures in our government, most recently on display in the longest ‘shutdown’ of the Federal government in the country’s history.
It isn’t just politicians that do not get along! Fighting among human beings is as old as history – including world wars, tribal wars, and family feuds!
Jesus invites you and me to live a different way, our inner peace with God causing us to live in peace with others. The most notable distinctive of Christianity is to be the LOVE that we have for one another and a UNITY that stands in stark contrast to the fractured relationships in this world.
Paul writes “In those days you were living apart from Christ. You were excluded from citizenship among the people of Israel, and you did not know the covenant promises God had made to them. You lived in this world without God and without hope. But now you have been united with Christ Jesus. Once you were far away from God, but now you have been brought near to him through the blood of Christ.” We are called INTO a new relationship with our Creator, through Christ Jesus. The result?
“You are members of God’s family. Together, we are his house, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. And the cornerstone is Christ Jesus himself. We are carefully joined together in him, becoming a holy temple for the Lord.” (Ephesians 2) Paul says that we (Christians) have become the new house of God, replacing the old Temple in Jerusalem where God was worshipped and His praise was declared!
Let me be honest – we ARE NOT doing a very good job of showing off our unity and love, are we? Christians are just as fractured in relationships as the rest of the world, our infighting darkening the glory of the Gospel and obscuring the pathway to redemption.
For centuries one group after another has splintered off from the Church to form yet another sect; dividing over worship styles, baptismal modes, differing convictions about standards of holiness, and … well, it is a very long list of things that divide us.
Only ONE thing can unite us – a profound love of Christ Jesus and the dwelling of the Spirit that turns rhetoric about love and unity into something REAL and ENDURING.
N.T. Wright observes that “the multi-ethnic nature of the Church (is) a sign to the powers of this world that Jesus is Lord. … churches that are divided along ethnic and/or cultural lines make nonsense of the idea of a ‘new creation’ and of the Church being the small advance model of that promised reality” of the Kingdom come! (The Vision of Ephesians, 2025)
IF we hope to regain a measure of credibility in our secular world, we must begin with prayer for reconciliation with one another, brother loving brother, sister loving sister, local congregations lifting up Christ rather than building their own little fiefdoms.
Individually, we must become humble enough to accept the grace of God and let Him transform us from people who idolize Self to those who are Servants of Christ. WE cannot live at war with each other – in our families, in our communities, or in our churches – and claim that Jesus is Lord.
As we meditate on Jesus’ words, let’s ask God, the Holy Spirit, to begin a whole new work in us, creating a temple in which His Spirit dwells- making us people who are – at the same time – HOLY and LOVING – in a way that is not superficial or sappy, but profoundly deep and lasting!
“Since I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other’s feet. I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you. I tell you the truth, slaves are not greater than their master. Nor is the messenger more important than the one who sends the message. Now that you know these things, God will bless you for doing them…. So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.” (John 13)
Lord, teach us to LOVE radically so that Your glory will shine brightly through us in a world of fighting and fear. Amen.
______________
Video of this blog
https://www.youtube.com/@JerScott55
