Thoughts on Unity and Integrity

Today's entry was written by Kathryn Applegate. Please note the views expressed here are those of the author, not necessarily of The BioLogos Foundation. You can read more about what BioLogos believes here.

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.

- Ephesians 4:3-6

“Love is something more stern and splendid than mere kindness,” wrote C.S. Lewis in The Problem of Pain. He went on, “Kindness, merely as such, cares not whether its object becomes good or bad, provided only that it escapes suffering.” God, the very source of love, isn’t merely kind to us—he is zealous for the purity and integrity of his people.

As such, followers of Jesus are zealous for purity and integrity of God’s people, not just in matters of morality but in the life of the mind as well. We make much of God when we try to understand how he speaks through the natural world, as well as in his written word.

Today, as we stop to worship and find our rest in the finished work of Christ, let us celebrate the unity we share in Him. As believers we don’t have uniformity in all opinions and convictions. But the unity we share is founded in a love that supersedes mere kindness—the costly love of the Son who gave up his life for his friends.

Through the Spirit of Christ, we experience a love so deep that it is zealous for the purity and integrity of the hearts and minds of all God’s people. True unity is only experienced through a spirit of love. And real love means striving for the best in each other, with humility and patience.