Maintaining Christian Unity, Part 2

The absence or presence of unity has everything to do with the absence or presence of God in the midst of his people. Dr. Tony Evans says there's a direct link between how God relates to believers and how those believers relate to each other. When God sees unity, God brings blessing.

This is The Alternative with Dr. Tony Evans, author, speaker, senior pastor of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship in Dallas, Texas, and president of The Urban Alternative. Dr. Evans, it seems like no matter how much we talk about the value of diversity, our differences still separate us. You know, economic differences, cultural differences, political differences, and racial differences.

Is the answer just to figure out ways to put up with each other, or can we really hope for something better? Well Dave, a major theme in the Scripture is unity. In fact, it is so important that God will literally back away from a person, a family, a church, or a society that insists on illegitimate disunity. Unity is not loss of uniqueness. Unity is oneness of purpose. It is where there is a common goal to be reached and everybody's shooting toward that goal. And so, just like in football where you have different positions on the field, they're unique, but there's only one goal line that they're trying to move that ball to.

Well, the goal line is the purpose of God, to bring glory to God through the advancement of his kingdom. We have uniquenesses as individuals, from our family backgrounds, in our church styles of worship, even in our political perspectives. But if those differences can be pulled together toward God's goal, then what we can do is be excited about the different things everybody's bringing to the table because we're all shooting after one goal line. So, unity. Oneness of purpose, not sameness of being. All right. Well, we'll explore that further as we talk today about the power of a unified church.

Let's get started. At the heart of the goal of God in history was the creating of a united people, not because they were the same, but they were all pledging allegiance to the same Lord. And that is why the issue of unity is such a big deal in the Bible. The absence or presence of unity has everything to do with the absence or presence of God in the midst of his people. Verse 10 of 1st Corinthians 1. He says, I exhort you, brethren, in the name of Jesus Christ, that you all agree that there be no divisions among you, but you be made complete in the same mind and in the same judgment. There was a problem in this church. It was a problem of disharmony, disunity.

Paul is disgusted with their division. It's easy to say we are one in the spirit. We are one in the Lord.

Those words will roll out easily. But unless you and I understand what God has created and function within that, then the church will never be the church, no matter what you call it. Ephesians 4 says, Therefore, the prisoner of the Lord entreats you to walk in a manner worthy of a calling with which you have been called with all humility and gentleness and patience, showing forbearance to one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace. God doesn't need you to create unity. He doesn't need me to create unity. He says unity has already been created. He says, What I want you to do is preserve the unity. Don't make it. You're gonna mess with it.

I want you to preserve it. Take the unity that already exists and keep it from unraveling. Now, that's not how most of us approach unity. We approach unity from the standpoint of let's get unified. Paul doesn't approach it that way. Paul says we are unified. Don't mess with it.

The flip. How can we be unified and be so dis-unified? Because the unity that already exists has not been maintained. But what keeps it from being maintained?

The absence of the spirit. He says preserve, be diligent to preserve the unity of the spirit. Now that word diligent, let me start there, means hard work. Is hard work keeping unity? Let me illustrate about marriage.

If easy to get married, a quick flight to Las Vegas, you can get married quick. That ain't the work. The work is staying married once you get married, right?

Tell the truth, shame the devil. He says be diligent, that is work hard, at preserving what has already taken place. You are married, the work. People want to know why is marriage so hard? Because unifying folk who are different is hard. That's why it's hard.

When you date, then can go home. That's a blessing. That's hard work. He says work hard to preserve the unity, here it is, that belongs to the spirit. Translation, you can only preserve, watch this now, this is deep, spiritual unity spiritually.

Let me say that again because I'm going to shoot this one right away. You can only preserve spiritual unity spiritually. Most of us try to preserve spiritual unity secularly.

It's as simple and as hard as that. We spend so much time outside of the spirit trying to fix stuff that the spirit can't fix it. What then are we doing? Here's what we're doing, the opposite from what 2 Corinthians chapter 5 verse 16 says, and here's what it says. Paul makes a statement that we have missed. He says we no longer look at any man according to the flesh.

He says we no longer evaluate anything based on external status and qualifications of men. The problem of this unity is the problem of the flesh. We're reacting like mere men, which Paul calls carnality.

It is a secular way of living, a secular way of thinking. It is man's way of operating because we are disconnected from the spirit of God. We are disconnected from the harmony of God. He goes on and says there's one body, only one church, one spirit. You are called in the hope of your calling one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of us all and through all and in all. When my kids were small and even today when there is a conflict that arises, they will call me and say, Dad, help me with this conflict.

Why? Because it would be the Father whose job it was to give the harmonious solution to the problem. It is the role of the spirit to produce the oneness that you already have. It's your job and my job to be in the spirit so we know it when we see it.

The problem is we don't know what it means to be in the spirit. And that's why conflicts exist. When conflicts, there's surely going to be conflicts. There are conflicts all through the Bible. But when they are unresolved month after month, year after year, decade after decade, somebody is in the flesh. It could be one person in the flesh not allowing the spirit to get through or could be both parties in the flesh. And until you get that spiritual thing addressed, that's the cause of the visible conflict, whether in the church or in sibling relationships or in the marriage or wherever it is. But you name the name of Jesus Christ until the spiritual cause is addressed.

You'll put Band-Aids on until the next opportunity to go off. A few weeks ago, it was real cold and the house was freezing, freezing cold and nothing was working. So I called the air conditioning heating guy. I said, my heat's not working.

It's freezing in here. He came over. Oh, he says, you have a very simple problem. Now, it wasn't simple to me. I got these two big heating units, the one for this side of the house. It wasn't working.

And I was cold. I'm thinking how much this is going to cost. I'm thinking about how big this, I might have to replace this whole unit. I got to pick up this whole thing and get a new one. You know, I'm thinking about all that.

But the pro comes in, he says, $25 problem. I said, there you go. I said, what's the problem? He said, your igniter. This furnace, it's self igniting. It's designed to ignite automatically. But your igniter is not working. Small little thing that big. I'm looking at a huge problem. My house is cold. When I got a tiny reason. A little $25 igniter is not igniting all that I already possess.

Do you follow me? I didn't need a new heater. My heater was fine. My heater was working.

But I wasn't getting any heat. How come I can have all this stuff and be so cold? How can I have all this stuff and be so trembling? How can I have all this stuff and be so miserable?

How can I have all this stuff and be so put off? Because my igniter, the little thing that sets a flame, the big thing was not operative. And it doesn't matter how much big stuff you've got.

If the igniter isn't igniting it, the big stuff does you no good. If you have come to faith in Jesus Christ, you got all the big stuff. If any man is in Christ, he's a new creature. All things pass away. All things become new.

You got all the big stuff. He gives you a new heart. He gives you a new consciousness. He gives you forgiveness of sins. He gives you empowerment.

You got all the big stuff. Then how come you so cold? God has an igniter called the Holy Spirit. His job is to set the furnace of the new nature afire, to set it aflame. And if the church is a cold place to be, it's not because the parts aren't there.

The parts have already been built in. It's because the igniter didn't work yet. Because we are not allowing him to by responding spiritually. When Dr. Evans comes back in just a moment, he'll have more for us on how that igniter works and what it really means to be filled with the Holy Spirit. In the meantime, you can learn more about building unity in your church, in your neighborhood, and in our country with the help of Tony's current message collection, Faith, Hope, Unity. It explains how believers can set an example for the rest of the world by focusing on what draws us together instead of what pushes us apart. It's an honest assessment of how the sin of society has crept into the church, along with the biblical plan for healing the hurts and changing the future.

We're making this six-lesson set available right now on CD or instantly downloadable MP3s. As a special package, along with a powerful companion book, Oneness Embraced, Tony's signature work on Christian unity. They're our thank you gift when you make a contribution to help support his work here on the radio and around the world. Without your help, this ministry wouldn't be possible. So we want to send this to you as an expression of our appreciation. To take advantage of this limited time offer, just visit us at TonyEvans.org or give us a call at 1-800-800-3222.

That's 1-800-800-3222. I'll have our contact information again after part two of today's lesson and this. The Bible makes it clear that you know when God has cursed a land, when its fathers are nowhere to be found. Dr. Tony Evans says that what becomes of the next generation of men depends on what happens with this one. Our kids need to see men in their midst who love God and who love them. But what does it take to be that kind of man?

You can find out with the help of the Tony Evans Training Center's free course called Kingdom Man. It'll teach you to see past the phony images of manhood that society surrounds us with and become the loving leader that a wife and family would want to follow. As with all of our courses, there's in-depth study material you can work through at your own pace. Lots of exclusive content from Tony, tightly focused Q&A videos, and an online forum where you can collaborate with other students. It's almost like having a seminary on your smartphone. Check out the free course called Kingdom Man and the growing list of other subjects waiting for you.

Visit TonyEvans.org today and follow the link to the Tony Evans Training Center. How do you engage the Spirit, this thing of being filled with the Spirit? It sounds complicated, the filling of the Spirit, because, you know, Spirit, you know, it's just sort of out there.

How do you grab this thing? The filling of the Spirit is simply the application of the truth of God through a heart of love. You don't have to get otherworldly to be filled with the Spirit. All you have to do is apply God's truth, the Word, because He's the Spirit of truth, through a heart that cares. When that truth is applied through a heart that cares, the Spirit will fill up that activity and will begin to create the cosmic glue to hold things together rather than tear things apart. So important is this issue that Romans 16 says, verse 17, Now I urge you, brethren, keep your eye on those who cause dissensions and hindrances, contrary to the teaching which you have learned, and turn away from them.

For such men are slaves, not of the Lord Jesus Christ, but of their own appetites. And by their smooth and flattering speech, they deceive the heart of the unsuspecting. He says, keep your eye out for disunifiers and stay away from them. Do you know anybody in your life who lived to cause mess?

Mess is their middle name. He says, listen to their speech. He says, listen to what they say, because a disunifier tips his hat with his tongue.

How so? What is the spiritual that is biblically based loving approach they are giving to resolving the thing they are complaining about? That's what differentiates a concerned Christian from a spiritual gossip, because the biggest unifying use of the tongue in the New Testament is the sin of gossip.

Gossip is relaying information to others that you're unwilling to seek to help resolve yourself. You can camouflage it any way you want to. Let me tell you about this so we can pray about it together. You can camouflage it any way you want to. The question that you want to raise is, well, are you willing to go with me to talk to John Doe about this so that if in fact it is true, we can help in the fixing of it and not only in the discussing concerning it?

And the answer to that question lets you know where they are. The Bible gives specific guidelines to handling problems and conflicts and tells you how to deal with it if you can't deal with it between the two of you. The Bible gives specific guidelines on how to resolve it, but the dissenter doesn't want to use them or give you 50 million reasons why they won't use them. He says watch out for dissenters, for those who cause chaos. Another thing that keeps our unity is when you don't look only on your own things, Philippians 2, but you look also on the things of others. In other words, it's not just me, it's we. It's not just my, it's ours. That's how it is in a family. It just can't be you.

You're not single anymore. It's got to be us. That's how it is in a church. If I have any overriding responsibility, it is to give a clear vision that the church rallies around based on the word of God so that we all move in one direction. Let me close with a psalm. Psalm 133. Behold how good and how pleasant it is for brothers to dwell together in unity. It's like the precious oil upon the head coming down upon the beard, even Aaron's beard coming down upon the edge of his robes. It's like the dew of Herman coming down upon the mountains of Zion. And there the Lord commanded the blessing life forever.

Here's what I want to close with. When God sees unity, God brings blessing. That's what Psalm 133 says. He says, when the unity flows down, that flowing down, he says, is like oil. Oil had to do with the anointing of the priest. Therefore, oil is the symbol of the Holy Spirit. When the Holy Spirit is able and freely to come down, it starts at the head.

That's why there's got to be leadership at the top. And then it runs down on the robe and the robe covers the body. So when the oil comes down from heaven and it comes to the spiritual leadership and then out through the spiritual leaders and then the anointing of the Holy Spirit comes down on the robe, which covers the body, all the way down to the feet. When the Holy Spirit is able to work in an environment of unity, verse 3 says, you can be assured there'll be blessing right behind you. If you want to find blessing, you got to find harmony. And if you want to find harmony, you've got to be submitted to the Spirit of God.

It's not based first of all on personality or race or background or education. We are one in the Spirit. We are one in the Lord. Why was there so much power in the church in the book of Acts? It says because they were together in the Spirit. Why did the foundation of the floor begin to move in Acts chapter 4? Because it says, and they were on one accord, where two or three are gathered together, not just gathered in the same room, but when they are together.

And I am in the middle. God will not work where there is no unity. But you haven't begun to see what He will work when there is. Dr. Tony Evans, talking about the incredible power that unity can produce. And he'll come back in a moment to wrap up our program with a closing word of prayer.

So stay with us. First though, don't forget to request your copy of Tony's current six-part teaching series, Faith, Hope, Unity, a tribute to Black History Month. We're packaging these lessons along with his forward-thinking book, Oneness Embraced, and offering them together as a way of saying thanks for your contribution toward the support of this ministry. Contact us before time runs out at 1-800-800-3222, where members of our resource team are standing by to help you. Or visit TonyEvans.org, where you can make all the arrangements online, check out our huge selection of resources, and even sign up for Tony's weekly email devotional.

That's TonyEvans.org. There's a saying that kindness is a gift everyone can afford to give. Well, as we've mentioned before, Dr. Evans believes kindness is a gift that our society can't afford not to give. Take the time to show kindness to those you meet today. And in the name of Jesus, look for opportunities to demonstrate kindness to someone who needs a touch from God. You'll help make your community a better place when you demonstrate the love of God through your acts of kindness. Well, coming up on Monday, Dr. Evans explains that discrimination is a problem that doesn't seem to go away because it's not just a problem, but something much worse.

Join us next time to find out what it is and what to do about it. Right now, though, let's listen as he wraps up today's program in prayer. Let's pray. Father, I thank you for the Word of God that goes forth through this ministry and for every ear that hears it. I pray that you will use the Word in the life of each person individually so that they know that they are hearing from you and are transformed by what they hear. I pray that that transformation touches them at their place of need, wherever they're hurting, struggling, wherever they're in pain, or wherever they're celebrating. May you be the center of that, and may they be able to say because of the Word that they've heard and because of the true God that they're interacting with right now that you have showed up and shown off on their behalf doing good by them no matter what their circumstances happen to be. Thank you for how you're going to touch every listener today in your own special way. In Jesus' name, amen.