"ONE"
By: Daniel McMillin
The church historian Everett Ferguson rightly noted that “an important aspect of the church’s witness to the larger society is displaying the unity that is essential to the church and is God’s goal for humanity.” God designed the Church to be a unit so God’s people may be one with God and one another. The Church’s union is made possible through each member’s union with Christ (Gal. 3:28) through the Spirit (Eph. 4:3) at baptism (Acts 2:38, 41, 47; Rom. 6:3-7; 1 Cor. 12:13; Gal. 3:26-28). The death, burial, and resurrection act as the basis for the Church’s salvation and unity with God (Eph. 1:1-23). Since the barriers between God and man have been destroyed, sinners may now be reconciled to God through Christ (Eph. 2:1-16). In Jesus’ high priestly prayer in John 17, the basis for Christian unity is God’s triunity; that is, the oneness shared among the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is the foundation for the Church’s oneness (John 17:21-23). Since God is one, the Church must be one. The unity that is shared among God’s children is expressed through their union of mind (Rom. 15:5-6; 1 Cor. 1:10; Phil. 1:27; 2:2; 1 Pet. 3:8) in love (Phil. 2:2; Col. 3:14) and activity (Acts 2:42-47) as they have all things in common (Acts 2:42, 44; 4:32).
The Church’s unity and diversity are best expressed in the metaphorical title “body” to describe the Church (Rom. 12:4-5; 1 Cor. 12:12-13; Eph. 4:4). Each member plays a vital role within the entire as the body is connected to the “head,” who is identified as Christ (Rom. 12:4-5; 1 Cor. 11:3; Eph. 1:22-23; 4:15; 5:23). Each member is necessarily connected to Christ as the body is closely connected with the head. Though the Church is filled with a vast array of diversity, as each member is different from another, they are all one in Christ. The early Church was filled with both males and females, Jews and Gentiles, slaves and masters, and yet, they were all one in Christ. The diversity within the Church increased the possibility of division, especially as they faced hardship, but Christians are called to bear with one another (Gal. 6:2; Col. 3:13-14) and preserve the unity of the Christian faith (1 Cor. 1:10; Eph. 4:3). The unity of the Spirit and faith mentioned in Ephesians 4:1-13, is made possible when each Christian is in agreement: “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.”
The goal of the Mt. Pleasant church of Christ in 2025 is to seek to preserve, promote, and progress in the unity of the Spirit by faith. Each member will work together as they function within the body of Christ to exemplify the oneness formed by Christ. To intentionally increase Christian unity, the elders have decided to implement more opportunities for fellowship as we continue to have men’s and women’s bible studies, gather for monthly fellowship meals, and relaunch the champion groups. The more Christians assemble, the more united they will grow together. If there are any ideas that would be beneficial for applying Unity at Mt. Pleasant church of Christ, the eldership would love to hear your suggestions. Please see Richard Eubanks, Adam Warren, or Matt Williams.
