The Purpose of Biblical Unity

The following message was preached (in part) by Pastor Jim Vaught at Shepherds Table, hosted by Prison Fellowship in Lansdowne, Virginia, on July 5, 2007.  It is our prayer that it will be a blessing to the Body of Christ in your area.  

Purpose for Biblical Unity

In the New Testament, John the Beloved addressed the “Church of Ephesus.”  The Apostle Paul addressed “the Church of God which is at Corinth.”  So I will address the Church in your area on the subject of “the purpose for unity.”  I have been praying with a group of pastors every Tuesday morning for over twenty years. Together, we have been believing for and working toward unity among churches in our county.  The Lord brought me here by a prophetic vision for revival in this area, and I believe “unity among elders” to be a key to this happening.  I pray that it will be said of us what was said of the early Church in Acts 4:32:  “Now the multitude of those who believed were of one heart and one soul.”  

Paul wrote to the Church of Ephesus: “I therefore,  the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called,  with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.  There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all and in you all.”  (4:1-6) 

I will name five of the many reasons for UNITY in the Body of Christ in a geographical area.  I like the number of “five” because it is the number for grace, and we need much grace in this area.  Why unity?

 ONE.  FOR JESUS’ PLEASURE.

Jesus, our Lord and Savior, gets pleasure when His church comes in unity!  He gets pleasure from our corporate worship, from our corporate prayer, or even when we simply come together to break bread!  Psalm 133 says:  “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!”  (That which is pleasant gives pleasure.) “It is like the precious oil upon the head, running down on the beard, the beard of Aaron, running down on the edge of his garment.  It is like the dew of Hermon, descending upon the mountains of Zion, for there the Lord commanded the blessing - life forevermore!” I have observed over the past 40 years in ministry that almost every time, if not every time, when the Body of Christ in a region comes together for any occasion, there is a sweet presence of the Lord.  When the brethren dwell together in unity, the Lord commands a blessing, because it gives Him pleasure!

 TWO.  FOR KINGDOM ADVANCEMENT.

If we will walk in unity, we must share a common vision.  The vision has to be on the Kingdom of God.  We are all called to advance the Kingdom of God in our county.  Our task is not about “building our church” or “building our ministry,” but our task is about advancing the Kingdom of God on earth, as God’s Spirit moves through the Church!  Jesus said, “If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.”  Mark 3:24 

On July 4, we celebrated Independence Day, and it was a wonderful celebration for our nation!  But brothers and sisters, there is no room for an “independent spirit” in the Body of Christ! An independent spirit is usually rooted in fear and pride.  Yes, we are diverse.  And no, we will never agree doctrinally on all points.  But we must come together under the banner of the Lord Jesus Christ to allow His Holy Spirit to advance the Kingdom of God through us!   I dare not become so consumed by my little corner of the garden that I disregard the whole!  I must have a heart for God’s kingdom, not mine.

From time to time God will unite the church in a geographical area around a common vision for the specific purpose of advancing the Kingdom of God.  When the pastors and leaders are in loving relationships, the vision can be received from the Lord and realized corporately.  Intimacy causes conception, and vision is conceived in fellowship and birthed through prayer!  For example, God Himself may give vision for a corporate worship service, or a corporate prayer meeting, or an evangelistic meeting, or a community outreach, and He will raise up someone to lead!  I believe that one of the great reasons for the success of the Billy Graham Crusades is how they first work to bring the pastors and then the churches in an area in united vision.  I remember hearing Francis Frangipane say that he will not consider going to an area for a corporate conference UNTIL the majority of the pastors are praying together weekly!  But once the elders (pastors and leaders) are united, they can impart the vision to their individual congregations and ministries.

THREE.  FOR OUR EDIFICATION.

Every pastor must realize that he or she needs the pastor down the street. We individually and collectively need the other churches and various ministries in our area.  I am forever amazed at the wonderful gifting in my Christian brothers and sisters!  As I recognize these giftings as a gift to me personally and to the Body of Christ, I am edified!  I am so thankful when a fellow pastor gives me a prophetic Word.  I am edified when my brother prays for me or gives me a revelation from Scripture.  I get excited when someone speaks a word of wisdom during breakfast, and it is exactly what I need!  We also must realize that each one of us has giftings that others need!  It should be a regular practice and privilege to call a fellow pastor to give him a Word of encouragement or to simply pray with him!  We need one another! 

I liken this to my natural family. For over 40 years my blood brothers and sisters were not in close fellowship.  Distance, circumstances, and schedules kept us out of true fellowship.  Then the need arose for my widowed Mom to have long term care in her old age.   My family united around the vision of seeing that my Mom would have the best quality of life possible as long as she lived.  We began to meet together, pray together, fellowship, serve one another, and something wonderful happened.  I discovered the closeness that I had longed for these many years.  My brothers and sisters and I realized that we really do need one another, and we are all edified! 

FOUR.  FOR OUR SANCTIFICATION.

Ephesians 5:27 tells us that Jesus has a vision for His Church.  His vision is that “He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish.”  We know the Lord is progressively sanctifying His church, and He does this largely in the context of relationships with our natural family, with our church family, and with the body of Christ at large.

When we begin to fellowship together and we begin to have one on one loving respectful relationships, spots and wrinkles begin to surface.  As we serve one another and spend time with one another, all kinds of things may surface out of our hearts:  jealousy, envy, competition, unforgiveness, pride, wrong motives, selfishness, strife, prejudice, impatience, fear of man, etc.  I speak from my own and many others’ experiences.  This is why Paul said to the Ephesians:  “… walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” (vs. 1-3)   As we work through our differences, and confess our weaknesses, and embrace each other’s diversities, and choose to walk in love and forgiveness, we are sanctified. 

This point was confirmed to me in a publication I received across my desk today from Rick Joyner of Morning Star Ministries.  He gave the advantage of being in an immature church:  “We need all the frustrations and irritations of church life to become what we are called to be - Christlike.  Everyone will love the One who is perfect, but to love the imperfect and patiently give ourselves to helping them is the basic nature that the Lord demonstrated when He walked the earth.  For this reason, it is easier for us to mature when we are with the immature.” 

FIVE AND LASTLY.  FOR SPIRITUAL WARFARE. 

We could also say:  for protection and covering.  The Bible says that the Kingdom of God is being opposed by “principalities, powers, and rulers of darkness and wickedness in high places.” Eph. 6:12 for example, the forces of deception and accusation are coming against the people in our region and in our churches constantly.  

But thanks be to God, there is an eldership over The Church in every geographical area, and one of the specific purposes is for protection and covering.  There are two Greek words for “elders.”  One of them is episkopas and it means “to watch over” or “to cover.”  Just as a roof is there to keep out wind, rain, sun, and snow, elders cover and protect.  When Paul directed the believers in the church to be covered by an eldership, he was trying to protect them from the forces of darkness.  When the elders of a local church are in unity, there is a covering, a protection over the people in the local church.  The believers actually come under a supernatural protection of God.  Likewise, when the elders of the city-wide church or county-wide church are in unity, there comes a protection over that area from the forces of darkness, as the power of God is released against principalities and powers.  However, when the elders are only covering their individual church or ministry, and are not walking in unity with other elders in their area, the local church is covered, but principalities and powers are not held back from the secular society.

Therefore, I believe there is an absolute necessity for elders to make it a priority to get into respectful, friendly relationship and fellowship with other elders in the region for Jesus’ pleasure, for Kingdom advancement, for the body’s edification and sanctification, and especially for spiritual warfare!

Jim Vaught

Vaught Apostolic Team

569 Charlie Norman Road

Mt. Airy, NC 27030

336-786-7792

336-326-8100 (cell)

judyvaught@yahoo.com