Thoughts on Church Unity

There are many ways that congregations evaluate unity within the church at large, and I think it is fair to say that most of their measuring sticks consist of a doctrinal checklist that tends to exclude based on perceived differences. I am always amazed, however, with the simple statement that Paul gives in I Corinthians 1:2 of the overriding truth of our unity. Paul writes to "those that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours. " To put it simply, if we are Christians, then we have an inherent unity with every other person who calls upon the name of Jesus Christ, no matter what creed or confession or denomination they claim for themselves. This is disturbing to us, because most of these people look tremendously different than us in the way they express their spiritual beliefs. But the simple reading of Paul’s salutation means that we have a spiritual unity with the old Presbyterian hymn singer, the Reformed psalm chanter, and the nondenominational praise choruser. We have unity with full immersion believers-only Baptists, with three-fold immersion Orthodox believers, and with those who sprinkle babies. We have unity with altar callers, incense users, sacramentalists and iconoclasts. We have as much unity with the drummer in the black pentecostal church as the organist in the High Anglican church. We may not feel comfortable admitting it, but the scripture leaves us very little room to wiggle about…."with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both their Lord and ours.”

So here are some thoughts that I have on the church as pertains to its oneness and catholicity:

1 Jesus Christ is building up only one church, of which He is the fullness and the head, whether we like it or not.
2. The church is composed of “whosoever calls upon the name of the Lord” for salvation and gathers together in His name on the basis of His work of grace.
3. Such a church at large is intended to be catholic (universal) and includes a multitude of congregations which possess a diversity in the midst of their inherent unity. As the scripture says, they come out “from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.” Unity must never be reduced to uniformity.
4. If we acknowledge the Church as catholic, we acknowledge sharing a common faith with those who do not necessarily express their spirituality as we do, but who nonetheless belong to Jesus Christ. This view of catholicitiy was summed up in the 17th century by the German protestant theologian Rupert Meldenius. "Unity in essentials, liberty in incidentals, and in all things, charity."
5. We must be careful not to make the basis of our unity shared doctrine, but rather our shared Lord and Deliverer, Jesus. The “word” always points to “The Word”.
6. In my mind, there is no congregation or denomination on earth which is fully catholic, for no church possesses in the full and absolute sense the wholeness of the gospel as its exclusive possession. Each congregation has a claim upon and a responsibility towards all other bodies of believers, and cannot be “complete” without them.
7. The church does not belong to us; it is the bride of Christ. We are, as John the Baptist stated, the friends of the bridegroom that hear His voice and find joy in His pleasure towards His bride.
May we share the prayer of Jesus as our own during this Lenten season, “may all be one, even as You Father are in Me, and I in You…that the world may believe that You have sent Me.”