Unity

     How important is unity?  Biblically, it is very important.  But not all calls for unity are biblical unity.  It's important to know the difference.

      "Satan is using you to attack me!" the woman accused, looking scared, refusing to make eye contact.  This woman and I were supposed to be teamed up for a ministry, but we really didn't gel well,  That happens.  But I had just caught her in a lie, and I confronted this.  I wasn't able to let it go.  Rather than admit it, or deny it and try to explain that I perceived it differently than she had intended, she flew into attack mode.  Satan was using me to attack her, supposedly.  "You're destroying the unity!"  She continued.  I saw that I was getting nowhere with her, and I let it go for the time being, which turned out to be a big mistake, because the problem only got worse. 

     I have found that nine times out of ten, when someone shows concern about unity, it is really a misdirection to avoid being held accountable.  So many times, I have seen wrongdoers immediately go into the unity speech.  But before they did their wrong deed, they weren't interested in unity.  They were interested in their agenda.  

     When someone calls for unity, more often than not, they are asking you to compromise your heartfelt beliefs and convictions, ignore problematic behavior that will only get worse, refuse to hold others accountable, and pretend things are acceptable when they are not.  I have seen this in families, churches, ministries, communities, and political arenas.  

     Unity is only as good as what you're unified around.  In Christianity, we are unified around the truth of the Bible, and the Gospel message that Christ died for our sins and rose again.  These things are central in our focus.  There are times when people let issues in the background become too important, and lose that unity with fellow believers.  Paul addressed two women in Philippians 4:2-3, I beseech Euodias, and beseech Syntyche, that they be of the same mind in the Lord.  And I intreat thee also, true yokefellow, help those women which laboured with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and with other my fellowlabourers, whose names are in the book of life.  There are times when we are called to put differences aside and focus on the fundamentals.  Psalm 133:1 gives this sentiment when it says, Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!  But these and other passages about unity do not mean that we have to call a truce with evil.  

     We are called to fight!  In Jude verse 3 (Jude only has one chapter) we are told to contend for the faith.  The next verse tells us For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ.  So we know here we are to fight when it comes to evil creeping into Christianity, especially wrong teaching about Jesus.  We are to fight that!  

     In First Kings, we see Elijah making a stand against Ahab and Jezebel.  He didn't try to have unity with them.  In fact, all the prophets ran into these situations, where they had to speak out and, on the surface, seem to cause disunity.  What they were really doing was fighting against evil for what was right.  We are never to make a peace treaty with evil.  We are not to be unified with what isn't of God.  Second Corinthians 6:14 says, Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?  This verse is often used to teach against Christians dating and marrying unbelievers, and that is one way it can rightfully apply.  But it is really an even broader application.  Light and darkness don't mix.  Truth and error don't mix.  Good and evil don't mix.  This means we don't unify with evil ideas.  

     We are also called to wisdom, and told that God will give us wisdom if we ask (James 1:4-5).  Wisdom doesn't ignore problems for surface peace.  Wisdom is knowing how to address problems so that they don't affect the real unity.  In the scenario I stared with, this woman and I never had unity.  When I confronted her lie, and she accused me to destroying unity, she was really saying that I was shattering any illusions of peace we had on the surface.  But if we had real peace, she wouldn't have lied.  She wouldn't have had to accuse me to cover for her own sin.  I've seen other situations where someone did something very wrong, then told the wronged party they needed to move on and forgive and get over it.  They didn't want to be held accountable.  Don't let them distract you from doing right by their cries for unity.  Real unity matters, but sometimes, we have to go through unpleasant situations to get to it.  This means disturbing surface unity, because it isn't real.  What is real matters.  Don't sacrifice it for what isn't!