Unity with Diversity

Why are there so many different Christian Churches in our community? (or any community for that matter). It’s a common question. We can sometimes be tempted to quickly assume that having many churches is by definition a bad thing. However, the different denominational groupings can actually aid our functional unity.

A naïve response to this diversity is to simply make the assertion there is a unity between the different gatherings of people meeting as “Christian churches”. This assertion can be made without actually stating what that unity is based on or how it is seen. The assertion may be true to a certain extent, in that those people gathering under one name and heritage may have a real unity in belief with others gathering under another name and heritage just around the corner, or in another region or country. That truth will hopefully motivate us to pray for other churches throughout our region, nation and world.

All those people who have come to place their trust in Jesus as the one who has acted on their behalf in dying on the cross instead of them bearing the punishment for their own sins are part of this one church. The fact that Jesus rose from the dead ensures that one day there will be a great heavenly gathering or Church. In theological jargon, this one church is the “universal” church. The one universal (or catholic in the original sense) Church has unity, not just in Rouse Hill or Kellyville, but world-wide across time and space. The unity of the one Christian Church is more fundamentally a unity forged by the core beliefs, identity and purpose of the people of God who are in Christ.

That unity need not be threatened by differing sub-cultures of church and times or patterns of gathering. There may be certain congregations that wish to express their unity by having combined gatherings. That is natural and appropriate, and will proceed well if all those congregations are adequately briefed on the purpose and can have real input into the gathering. But if that does not happen, any gathering promoted as a combined event will not actually be so.

Recognising the Differences

That is just the way it is. It is not bringing disunity to our churches to note this fact. Noting the differences actually clarifies the basis of the real unity we do have. Other groups often do have the same core beliefs and understandings despite real yet peripheral differences. The truth lying just below the surface is that there are different conceptions of what the core beliefs actually are. If there is difference here, there can still be helpful cooperation at organizations like the Ministers Association meetings. We can still relate warmly, smile at each other and shake hands. We can and should have cooperative unity. However it is doubtful that any gathering promoted as The Church would be able to be an honest presentation of those differences.

People who meet as a congregation or church under one name or denominational heritage can understand and appreciate the differences they have with those who meet at another location. They can also know the unity they have in the essentials of their faith. Alternatively they can appreciate the fact that although they meet within the same heritage as another congregation, there may be no significant unity in belief.

For example, two congregations meeting in the Anglican organization may or may not have unity in their direction on the essentials of Christianity. Or a certain Baptist congregation may have more unity with a Presbyterian congregation than another Baptist congregation. In the end, the unity we as churches have and express depends on the relationships between us, and in particular the relationships between the leaders.

The Gospel as the basis of Unity

This conception of unity is based on the premise that despite the many different church labels, cultures, structures and ways of doing things, the different organizations claiming to be serving the Christian Church only have real unity on the basis of one Faith. If that premise is true, then our basis of unity must always be the Gospel. As Ephesians 4:3-4 admonishes Christians “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- one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.”

Churches and their leaders are not meant to be promoting different gospels. (See the extremely harsh warning of Galatians 1:8 “But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned”). The difficulty comes when there are vastly different interpretations on what the “Gospel” actually is. This is not a difficulty if we don’t pretend we all believe the same thing. That means when other groups or Church leaders define the gospel message in a way that we feel undermines the Biblical Faith, we can and should be willing to graciously point that out. If we don’t, the unity we claim is a farce and the unity we display to the community will be no better than the Emperor’s new clothes.

Unity for effective witness

Yes, we are to seek to express any unity we have. That is a noble and thoroughly Biblical aim. We are to do that with love and charity. But we must never just sweep differences under the carpet. Jesus prays for oneness in those people the Father has given him (John 17:9) He asks “that they may be one”. This is not a prayer for one big gathering, but a prayer for unity of purpose and character in all true Christians.

Jesus goes on to give his reason for praying for this oneness in 17:21; “that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that ^they also may be in us, so that the world ^may believe that you have sent me. 22The glory that you have given me ^I have given to them, ^that they may be one even as we are one, 23 I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and ^loved them even as you loved me.”

Jesus prays for the oneness of Christians so that those who are not Christian would come to believe the truth about Jesus loving them and coming to save them. That is, it is focused on the message of Christ. The oneness Jesus prays for is a oneness of belief that is expressed in a oneness in relationships.

To assert we have unity if there are actually massive differences is not an answer to Jesus’ prayer. There is another reason why one cannot interpret this unity which Christ prays for as some sort of single organizational structure. It is impossible this side of heaven to unite all Christian gatherings. Until then, maybe we can meditate on a helpful motto coined by those seeking to maintain a cooperative unity: In non-essentials- flexibility, in essentials- clarity, in all things- charity.

Now there is nothing wrong with colour or energy. They can and should be encouraged in our gatherings, and I suspect a common desire is for more interest in our church meetings. However having colourful and energetic and even interesting meetings is no guarantee that we have had a truly edifying gathering.

Doctrine Divides as well as Unifies

When there is a push for unity which is hesitant about defining that unity on the basis of core belief, there is also a push to downplay Biblical teaching and doctrinal discussion. Why? Because it is said “doctrine divides”. Yes. It does, and that can be destructive. Church leaders, like all Christians, can get involved in “fruitless arguments and pointless controversies” that the scriptures warn us against (Titus 3:9).

Doctrine can also clearly define and establish a unity which is relevant and powerful and faithful to the Word of God.  The Churches in Rouse Hill who can work out a central thrust can have unity, and work together for the same purpose. For me, speaking as an Evangelical that purpose would be that more and more people in our area of North West Sydney will be presented with a simple, unadorned Gospel presentation so they can become Christians and grow in their Christian maturity, including their understanding of true Christian Unity.