All Together!

I have seen it so many times. I'm talking about personal conflicts between good people inside the church.

Why is it that some churches seem to go through divisions and personal conflicts so often? It really comes down to a proper understanding of what a church is all about. The church is, first and foremost, a place of love. Love is the most important element of any church. Jesus told us, in John 13:35, that people will know us by our love for each other.

Unity is the product of a loving church. Paul writes this about unity and love:

Colossians 3:14

“Beyond all these things put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity.”

Jesus wants His church to be characterized by love and unity. The mortal enemy of those two things is self. When we come to church, we each have to put our self aside. We put God at the forefront and make sure that we place the needs of others ahead of our own. That kind of selflessness produces the love and unity that characterize a loving and growing church.

When people come to church and continue to put their own needs above others, they jeopardize the unity that Christ gives to His church.

Selflessness and sacrifice are the keys to a productive and loving church; putting God first and praying for one other. That’s how the church works and it is what makes us different from the world around us.

Philippians 2:1-2

"Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose."