By Landon Coleman
Pastor, Immanuel
Last month, I shared five ways people destroy the unity of their church. This month, I want to be more like K-Love. That is, I want to be more “positive and encouraging.” Rather than talking about ways unity is destroyed, I want to talk about ways unity is built, established, and maintained in a church. So, for those of you who want to do more than not destroy unity, here are seven ways you can build, establish, and maintain unity in your church.
First, become more like Christ. That may sound like an obvious, “Sunday school” answer, but it’s Paul’s answer in Philippians 2:1-11. The more your members have the mind of Christ, the more unified you will be as a church family.
Second, deal with disagreements. Too often people try to sweep conflict under the church rug instead of handling disagreement in a biblical way (Matthew 18:15-20). If there is an issue between two people, deal with it and deal with it quickly.
Third, refuse to gossip. Gossip is an issue that’s easy to spot in others and easy to overlook in ourselves. We may pass it off as sharing concerns or sharing prayer requests, but if we participate in gossip we are destroying unity in our church.
Fourth, apply 1 Corinthians 13. I know most people think of the “love” chapter as a passage you’re supposed to read at weddings. But the immediate context is clearly talking about the relationships we have in church, and love is essential for unity.
Fifth, get busy with the mission. Too often church members are divided and fighting because they’re not busy making disciples as Jesus commanded (Matthew 28:18-20). Get busy making disciples, and odds are you won’t have time to fight.
Sixth, have realistic expectations. I’m talking about the expectations you have about other church members, particularly about your leaders. Every member of your church is battling indwelling sin, so expect conflict and be prepared to work through conflict.
Seventh, be intentional about relationships. Relationships simply don’t happen on their own. If you want to promote real unity in your church, you’re going to have to go out of your way to build relationships with people you don’t know.
