The Spirit of Unity among Believers—Romans 15:5-6

"May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ" (Romans 15:5-6)

As believers we are called into one body, the body of Christ Jesus. We are to strive for unity among ourselves in all things. Unity is the state of being one or single of minded. We are to be likeminded with Christ and renew our minds to the endurance and encouragement the scripture offers us. We should make an effort to dwell in the spirit of unity between believers; there should be no divisions or arguments among us. We should live in mutual harmony out of love for each other in accordance with Christ Jesus.

Paul wrote to the Church at Ephesus, "As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit-just as you were called to one hope when you were called" ( Ephesians 4:1-4 ). It takes effort to get a long and be in agreement with other brothers and sisters in Christ. It is definitely a lesson in love. It takes humility, patience and endurance but we are to be eager to guard and keep this harmony and oneness into which we were called. Unity is produced by the spirit of God and it has the power to bind us together in peace.  We were called to one hope and as such we have more in common with each other than not, so we should recognize this and strive to live in mutuality in Christ Jesus.

David said in the Psalms, "How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity!" ( Psalm 133:1 ). This is because there is power in the unified body of Christ Jesus. When we are in singleness of mind then we are a force to be reckoned with. The opposite is also true, if there are fights and quarreling among us then we keep ourselves out of service to the real battles in life.

Look at what happened on the day of Pentecost. The Bible says that the disciples were all together in one accord, and suddenly a sound like a mighty rushing wind came down from heaven and filled the house where they were staying. The disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other tongues. The sound drew a large crowd from the town and they heard the disciples speaking to them, each in their own language. The crowd marveled as Peter addressed them with the good news of Christ. Three thousand people were added to their numbers that day (Acts 2). All of this happened because they were together in one accord or in unity among themselves and the power of God was present and able to work among them.

Consider what continued to happen as a result of that day, "They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved" ( Acts 2:42-47 ). They continued in unity and oneness and many wonderful things happened among them and the kingdom grew as a result.

When we are in singleness of mind then the power of God is able to work among us. Paul said in today's passage that we bring glory and praise to God our Father in this way. Out of one heart and one mouth we will glorify Him. Today, I pray that you make every effort to live in unity with other believers. May the spirit of God grant you the love and patience required to live in singleness of mind so that the power of God will be evident in your lives and through it bring glory to God.

 

Juli Camarin

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