“There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all.”
—Ephesians 4:4–6

Sadly, there is a lot of division among believers today, and some of us don’t even realize how important it is to God that we do as much as possible to be in solidarity with the greater body of Christ. The older I get in the Lord, the more I realize how much unity is part of God’s heart. In Jesus’ last words in John 17, in what is called the high priestly prayer, He prayed, “That they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me” (v. 21).

When we walk in dissention with other believers, it grieves God’s heart. I realize that sometimes unity is not possible. Sometimes the other person won’t let us be in unity with them. But we should do everything we can in the Spirit to be at peace and in solidarity. The apostle Paul told us to avoid useless arguments that lead to nothing but dissension and to concentrate on the things we can do to build one another up (2 Tim. 2:20–26).

Sometimes people make doctrine overly divisive. One person believes the correct way to baptize is through immersion and another through sprinkling. Personally, I believe in baptizing by immersion, but if someone comes from a background where baptism was done by pouring or sprinkling, I’m not going to make an issue out of that and cause a separation in my relationship with that person. If the subject comes up, I’d be happy and blessed to share my view in love. But I’m not going to let that subject cause a break in the relationship.

I want to encourage you, beloved, to walk in unity. Walk in love. And when you do, you’ll experience Jesus’ pres- ence in your life in a greater way because the Bible says God is love, and He that loves knows God (1 John 4:7–8).

Father God, train me to walk in unity with others. Help me to avoid foolish arguments and be quick to forgive. I understand that disunity grieves Your heart, so I ask You to give me the grace to live in peace with all Your children as much as possible (Rom. 12:8), even when it is difficult for me in the natural.

Rabbi Kirt A. Schneider, Rivers of Divine Truth (Lake Mary, FL: Charisma House, 2021), Used by permission.