Unity and Respect

Unity: a condition of harmony; a totality of related parts



Respect: an act of giving particular attention; consideration



I believe that the Bible teaches that we, as Christians, brothers and sisters in Jesus, are to be in unity.

I believe that the Bible teaches that we, as Christians, the body of Christ, are to show respect to others, even those who don’t believe or act as we do.



I believe that for the church to be the church, as Jesus established us to be, we have to be in unity and we have to show respect.



The Bible puts great value on unity among God’s people.



Psalm 133:1

Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity.



Ephesians 4:1-3

I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.



1 Peter 3:8

Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, a humble mind.



No doubt that God wants us as His people to live with each other in unity. It is good and pleasant to God when we do. Paul and Peter both mention it as part of living out what it means to be a follower of Jesus.



Unity is not uniformity.



Uniformity means that I have to be just like you and you just like me. That is impossible. God created us to be unique. He did not create me like you or you like me.



Unity is being in harmony with each other. We are different but as the Holy Spirit blends us together, we in our individual uniqueness make something more beautiful and stronger than we are alone.



So, what is the number one obstacle to unity? It is when we sincerely disagree. How then do we handle that so it does not create disunity?



The answer is not blowing in the wind or found in human based efforts but in the Bible. Romans 14 shows us how to maintain unity when we have direct God-led convictions.



Romans 14:1-4

As for the one who is weak in faith, welcome him, but not to quarrel over opinions. One person believes he may eat anything, while the weak person eats only vegetables. Let not the one who eats despise the one who abstains, and let not the one who abstains pass judgment on the one who eats, for God has welcomed him. Who are you to pass judgment on the servant of another? It is before his own master that he stands or falls. And he will be upheld, for the Lord is able to make his stand.



We are not to judge those whose convictions are different from ours. It is not our calling or our position to do so.



Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is living without judging others because that is God’s right, not ours.



Romans 14:5-8

One person esteems one day as better than another, while another esteems all days alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. The one who observes the day, observes it in honor of the Lord. The one who eats, eats in honor of the Lord, since he gives thanks to God, while the one who abstains, abstains in honor of the Lord and gives thanks to God. For none of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s.



Whatever our convictions are, they must be “to the Lord,” that is, developed out of a sense of obedience to Jesus.



Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is living based on God-led conviction based on our desire to obey Jesus.    



Romans 14:22-23

The faith that you have, keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who has no reason to pass judgment on himself for what he approves. But he eats, because the eating is not from faith. For whoever does not proceed from faith is sin.



Whatever convictions we have developed as “to the Lord,” we must be true to them.



If we go against our convictions, we are sinning, even though others may have perfect freedom in that particular thing.



Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is staying true to what God has led us to do and who He has called us to be.



Taking those steps when we are in disagreement will lead to maintaining unity.



Unity is being who God has called us to be, doing what God has called us to do in harmony with my brothers and sister in Jesus.



When we are as God’s people in unity, then we can show respect for each other and all others.  



Respect does not mean that I agree with what others believe, but that I give them respect by giving them the freedom to believe.



I have a friend who sent out a Facebook post about the proper way to greet a Muslim at Ramadan. He ministers to international students some of whom are Muslims. I very much appreciated the information. I don’t regularly relate to Muslims, but as much as I like to say “Merry Christmas” as a greeting at Christmas and have it returned then I want to respect the belief of others by giving a proper response to their belief greetings.



It is not that I share their belief. I don’t need to in order to show respect for them.



Raise the Roof and Raise the Roof is honoring Jesus as our Lord by respecting the belief of others as He did.



I know what I believe based on the Bible.

I want all I do to be based on what I believe from the Bible.

I want to follow what I believe based on the Bible.

I want to refrain from judging others.

I want to give people freedom to believe and seek truth which will lead them to Jesus.



Our unity as God’s people brings us into harmony with each other and frees us to respect others by giving them freedom.



In Unity and Respect Raising the Roof and Removing the Walls,

                                           Joe