Have you ever wanted to ‘really belong’? Have you ever felt like you were all alone in this world? I’m not talking about the absence of a mate, or the absence of a family member which produces aloneness; but rather, the feeling of having no place to call ‘home’. Have you ever longed to just feel like you are a vital ‘part’ of something? That feeling is what happens when UNITY is lacking in your life. That’s right. UNITY is the thing that is being craved.
God, who created us, did so with the thought in mind that we would need to belong! He devised His plan in such a way as to provide us with someone to belong to (Jesus Christ), somewhere to long for (our eternal home), and something to be a part of (the Body of Christ.).
Jesus prayed that we would have that sense of belonging when he said, “That they all may be one…in us” and “that they may be one even as we are one”.[1] Paul explicitly told us that we are so important to each other that we cannot even say that one member of the Body of Christ is unneeded .[2] And in Ephesians it says that we all are to have unity in spirit, and in faith.[3] The feeling of ONENESS is one of the strongest feelings a human can experience; next to the exhilaration of overwhelming love. Love brings closeness; but unity brings oneness! Unity satisfies that yearning to ‘fit’. Love gives us heartfelt pleasure, but unity gives us heavenly placement and purpose.
The Christian’s purpose is clear – save those who are lost, set the captives free. Yet, isn’t that just another way of saying, “reach those souls who have never tasted what true love and true unity is all about”? They may have sampled some meager feelings of unity (even love) from off the dinner plates of life’s experiences, but they have never banqueted off of the feast which only God can provide. They need to become one with God and His People – people like YOU!
Do you feel like YOU belong? If not, perhaps you should consider a FULL surrender of your own inner reservations and become a participating member of His church. God has offered us something to become one with; not something that will become changed to be one with us. As WE humble ourselves (and rest willingly in the palm and plan of God) God promises that all our needs will be filled. That includes our need for unity. Working WITH God’s Spirit, God’s Son, and God’s saints is the most satisfying sense of unity that you will ever experience. Chose – to become ONE! Chose – to belong instead of to long. And chose to help others to get their longings fulfilled as well. Unity and love are God’s offerings to us all.
[1] John 17:21-22 [2] 1 Cor. 12:21,23-24 [3] Eph. 4:3,13
Original Copyright: © Anthony J. Massotti Th.M., Th.M. 1/24/1999