The unity of the church is God's glory and delight. When a church is unified, it promotes a better picture of God to the world.
The Bible stresses that in Christ there is no Jew or Greek, slave or free, male or female. However, biblical unity does not demand homogeneity in personality, politics or culture.
Music
Music is an essential aspect of worship that brings people together and helps create a sense of unity. Music is also an important medium to convey God’s message of love, forgiveness and reconciliation. Music can also help build relationships within the church and promote unity among believers. However, if the focus of the music ministry is placed too heavily on the quality of the musicians or the style of the songs then the purpose of the musical element will be distorted.
Incorporating global Christian musics into a church’s worship enables the congregation to view the majesty and holiness of Christ in multivalent ways. For example, African styles of worship tend to have a celebrative character that energizes praise while Thai Christian worship music, with its elegantly slow and measured rhythms, is densely packed with symbolic significance.
Church leaders can foster unity in their music ministries by building relationships with their teams. This includes taking time to get to know the members of the music team, rehearsing and learning how each member thinks, encouraging the team biblically and in prayer, and celebrating and lamenting with them.
In addition to building relationships with the music team, pastors and consistories need to be attentive to a theological perspective that entails theological sensitivity for music’s function in the church. In a world where diversity is the norm, church leaders should be careful not to oversimplify music’s role in the church. For example, a Nigerian song in praise of the Christ-child performed by a choir of twelve djembe drums at a large Southern California church offered an opportunity for these Christians to share an important component of their faith with believers from their present locale. community for jesus
Hymns
Hymns are an important part of worship, providing a rich reservoir of teaching and praising. They are more often than not biblical, and their lyrics often reflect basic beliefs of the faith. A church’s history can be traced through its hymns, revealing the changing ideas and concerns that have shaped its faith community.
The use of hymns is not limited to Christian churches, and even secular societies have used songs for their own purposes. However, it is more difficult to trace the history of secular music, as most records have been lost or destroyed, and the only existing sources are often very incomplete and unreliable. Hymns, by contrast, have survived intact for centuries.
In an age where the church can easily be distracted by the latest musical trend it is especially vital to keep hymns as a focus of its worship. When old hymns are removed from the congregation’s repertoire it sends a message that they are no longer relevant, and older members will feel that their church does not value them.
A good hymn is a reminder that God is worthy of worship in spirit and truth, and that our lives are to be centered on Him alone. Its words may call us to praise Him, petition Him for breakthrough, cry out for revival, or proclaim His unending love for all peoples. When these themes are taught, sung and believed in unity by a whole body of believers the impact is enormous. A song such as “A thousand hallelujahs to magnify Your name” reminds us that God alone deserves all glory, honor and praise. He is the only one who can rescue and redeem our world.
Scripture
The biblical witness is resounding about God’s desire for unity among His people. Jesus prayed for it on the night before He was crucified (John 17:20-23), and Paul pleaded with the Corinthians “that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and in the same purpose” (1 Cor. 1:10). Moreover, throughout the Bible believers are encouraged to be like-minded, considerate of others’ feelings, humble, and selfless—all key elements for worshipping in unity.
When people from different cultural backgrounds, languages, and denominations join together in a single worship service, it can be a powerful testimony to the world of God’s love and power. It can also serve to challenge the skepticism of those who do not believe in Christ by demonstrating the life-changing power of the gospel.
Nevertheless, the unity of the church is not to be defined by the varying cultural preferences of its members. The most fundamental and important element is the common belief in Christ’s message of salvation. This is why a church’s unity must be based on Scripture and right doctrine, not the language it uses, the types of music or food it eats, or the traditions that it maintains.
One example of this is the way in which the Apostle Paul sought to demonstrate unity between Jewish and Gentile Christians by raising money for the poor Jewish Christians in Jerusalem. He emphasized this point in Ephesians 4:4-6 by saying, “There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all” (Eph. 4:16).
Prayer
In addition to music, prayer is another way we worship in unity. It can take many forms, including prayers for our community and the world. It is also a time to praise God for his goodness and love. When people come together to pray, they are showing that they care about the community and have a desire to see God's will done.
The early church was devoted to worship and prayer, even during persecution. The Apostle Paul encouraged Christians to come together and lift their voices in prayer, urging them to "pray without ceasing" (Ephesians 6:18). Churches that spend time praying together begin to see miracles in their ministry, as they are drawn closer to God and are able to focus on his needs rather than their own.
When the body of Christ is divided, it presents a distorted picture of God to the world. Churches that operate in unity testify to the Trinity's eternal Three-In-Oneness and help bring God's glory to the world.
When a church celebrates its unity through worship, it can serve as a model for communities to follow. This can be as simple as hosting a worship experience at a different church in the area on consecutive Sundays or as complex as participating in a modern-day pilgrimage that invites Christians to join with their neighbors in a shared experience of faith across denominational and racial lines. It is also important to support the work of Christian unity by donating to organizations that promote it. For example, Lutheran World Federation offers resources and supports events that celebrate the unity of Christians in Jesus Christ.
Communion
In a Christian community, one of the most important things members can do is serve together. In fact, this is a key part of the evangelism strategy that COMMUNITAS promotes for its followers: “We believe it is the duty of every Christian to bear witness to Jesus Christ by serving others.”
In addition to their service to one another, a spiritual community can help to foster unity through sacraments. These are ritual acts that symbolize God’s abiding presence in the church, bind the church to the Lord and each other, and renew believers’ relationship with the Holy Spirit. Among these sacraments are baptism, confirmation, the blessing of children, the Lord’s Supper, marriage, ministration to the sick and ordination.
The Bible, especially the Old Testament and the New Testament, is central to a person’s faith in a spiritual community. It is read and referenced daily, both in public worship and in private study. The Community of Christ recognizes both the Jewish Old Testament and the Christian New Testament as Scripture, and encourages prayerful meditation on its teaching.
The spiritual community can also be helpful in correcting individual members of the fellowship, as the biblical example of Aquila and Priscilla shows (Acts 18:24-28). It is often easier to address sin or problems with a larger group rather than one person.
The Community of Christ also seeks to support the ecumenical movement by making a good effort to avoid expressions, judgments and actions that do not represent our separated brethren with truth and fairness. It also encourages dialogue between competent experts from different Churches and Communities, so that everyone gains a truer knowledge and more just appreciation of the teaching and religious life of each Communion.