Unity at the Cross: The Call for Christian Unity Across Denominations and Churches

Jesus Christ calls His Church to pursue unity and strive to work together for the furtherance of His kingdom. “Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace” (Ephesians 4:3). The Church today exists with potential for division across the diverse denominations and churches it consists of; Christians often root their identity in their own theology over the Gospel. The Church Jesus founded is a spiritual church that is composed of all followers of Jesus and transcends the physical buildings in which we meet. We must strive for our identity to first be a follower of Jesus Christ and then be a member of a particular denomination or church at a much less focused level. When we view ourselves and all other Christians as followers of Christ first and foremost, we can find unity in the truths of the Gospel rather than division in tradition and secondary doctrine. A stumbling block for non-believers is often the disunity of the Church; we must be a light in the darkness and display love for one another as Christ loves us to be effective in witnessing to non-believers.

What is Unity?

Unity can be defined as “the state of being one; oneness.” What obstacles stand in the way of this oneness? These obstacles can be summed up in a single word which happens to be the antonym of unity: division. The division within the church can be attributed to two categories: organizational and personal. Organizational division refers to the theological differences that exist between specific denominations and churches. Understanding organizational division requires quite a bit of education on church history. Personal division refers to the lack of relationship or feeling of disdain that exists between one follower of Jesus and another follower of Jesus. This personal division is something each of us has the power to change ourselves to work toward personal unity. This personal unity does not imply complete theological or doctrinal agreement, but the unity as followers of Jesus Christ around the truth that He suffered and died for all of our sins and that only through Christ can we be redeemed and made righteous.

What does Unity look like?

I was personally afforded the opportunity to experience the power of unity in a Christian brotherhood I joined in college. The Christian brotherhood had 100+ members across a wide range of denominations; Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, Pentecostal, Catholic, and more. While theological differences existed between members, all of us came together for weekly worship and biblical study, outreach to the community, and mission to be a light on the university campus. While our weekly worship was held in a church during our chapter meetings, we had regular Worship Under the Stars events that were held on campus that were open to all and any person passing by could walk up and join. The unity exhibited when followers of Jesus Christ put aside personal doctrine and unite around the cross in worship is exceptionally powerful. I believe all followers of Christ are meant to live together in this unity, not at the expense of truth, but simply on the truth that is the Gospel and the love Jesus Christ has for each of us. This unity must be rooted in love for Christ and striving to love one another as Christ loves us.

What can I personally do to work toward Unity?

I believe an initial pivotal step toward unity is rooting our identities in being followers of Jesus Christ. When we identify ourselves to others, do we tell them we are Christian or a Follower of Jesus? Or do we immediately talk about the specific denomination or church we belong to? Is our ultimate goal to magnify Jesus Christ or magnify our denomination or church? When we focus on being a follower of Jesus first and foremost, we have instant commonality with all other followers of Jesus, regardless of where we go to church on Sundays.

The next step is developing relationship with other followers of Jesus. If we have the attitude of desiring relationship only with members of our denomination or church, it is quite easy to lose focus on the mission of the Church and develop disdain toward other Christians. Establish friendships with other Christians when opportunities arise or attend events and outreach opportunities offered to all Christians in your area. Discuss what Jesus has done in your life with them and listen to what He has done their lives. This is not to say that we should ignore differences in beliefs, but that they should be discussed in a loving way when they are brought up. This especially extends to public spaces, including social media, where non-believers can witness the discourse between Christians. Do not engage in heated theological disagreements or make disparaging remakes toward other Christians on social media for the world to see. This is not fruitful and only stands to cause personal division, not to mention make any non- believer think “thank goodness I’m not part of that mess.”

Unity at the Cross

The unity of followers of Jesus must be rooted in love for Jesus and love for each other. We must unite around Christ’s work on the Cross for the forgiveness of our sins and our salvation. When Christ returns, all who have faith in Christ will be standing together, redeemed and worshipping in His glory. “Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him” (Hebrews 9:28). Stand together with all others who are also waiting for Him; love one another as deeply as you can and strive to see the common purpose all followers of Christ have on this earth. Seek to move beyond the division of man-made doctrine and traditions to focus on the commonality all followers of Jesus Christ have in the Gospel. “Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble” (1 Peter 3:8).