What If Church Unity Actually Cost Us Something?

We talk about church unity a lot.

We pray for unity.

We preach about unity.

We hold community worship nights and pastors' gatherings and talk about how wonderful it is when churches work together.

But I have been thinking about a harder question:

What does church unity look like when it actually costs our church something?

Because unity is easy when everyone benefits.

It becomes much more revealing when helping another church means giving away something we could have kept for ourselves.

We Are Not Competing Businesses

Somewhere along the way, churches can begin operating like businesses competing for the same market.

We may never say it that way.

But think about how easily we can begin measuring success.

How many people attend?

How large is the building?

How many volunteers do we have?

How many ministries are operating?

How many people watched this week?

How much are we growing?

None of those things are necessarily wrong. Growth can be wonderful. A large congregation can accomplish incredible things for the Kingdom of God.

The problem begins when growing our congregation becomes more important than strengthening Christ's Church.

Paul didn't describe the Church as competing organizations.

He described us as one Body.

“But now are they many members, yet but one body.”— 1 Corinthians 12:20 KJV

That changes everything.

If we truly believe we are one Body, another church isn't our competition.

Their health matters to us because they are part of us.

What Do We Do When Another Part of the Body Is Struggling?

Paul continues:

“That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another.”— 1 Corinthians 12:25 KJV

Notice the language.

The same care one for another.

And then:

“And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it...”— 1 Corinthians 12:26 KJV

Think about what happens when part of your physical body becomes weak.

Imagine one of your legs is injured.

Your other leg is incredibly strong.

Would your solution be to take whatever remaining strength exists in the injured leg and transfer it into the healthy one?

Of course not.

You would begin directing resources toward the injured member because your goal isn't to have the strongest right leg possible.

Your goal is to have a healthy body.

So why would the Body of Christ operate differently?

If one congregation has tremendous resources and another faithful congregation nearby is struggling, shouldn't our first thought be:

“How can we help strengthen them?”

Not:

“What do they have that could strengthen us?”

That distinction matters.

Are We Gathering Strength or Sending Strength?

Imagine a church with twelve capable worship leaders discovering that another congregation nearby doesn't have anyone to lead worship.

What if they prayed about sending two?

Imagine a church with fifty experienced children's workers discovering that another congregation has three exhausted volunteers trying to do everything.

What if they offered help?

Imagine a church with a large media department discovering that a small congregation can't figure out how to livestream its services.

What if they sent someone to train them?

Imagine a financially strong congregation discovering another church is faithfully feeding struggling families but desperately needs equipment.

What if they simply bought it?

Imagine a pastor with a large staff discovering that another pastor hasn't had a Sunday off in years.

What if they said:

“We'll send someone to preach. Go rest.”

That's unity.

It isn't about making every congregation the same size.

It isn't about large churches apologizing for being large.

And it isn't about small churches believing larger churches owe them something.

It's about recognizing that whatever God has placed in our hands can be used to strengthen more than our own congregation.

The Early Church Sent Strength

We actually see something like this in Acts.

When the church in Jerusalem heard that something was happening in Antioch, they didn't say:

“Bring those people here.”

Instead:

“Then tidings of these things came unto the ears of the church which was in Jerusalem: and they sent forth Barnabas, that he should go as far as Antioch.”— Acts 11:22 KJV

They sent someone.

They sent strength toward what God was already doing somewhere else.

Barnabas eventually found Saul and brought him into the work at Antioch.

Then something even more remarkable happened.

Antioch became strong.

And once it did, God called some of its strongest leaders away.

“As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them.”— Acts 13:2 KJV

Barnabas and Saul weren't disposable people sitting around with nothing to do.

They were valuable leaders.

Yet Antioch released them.

Why?

Because the mission was bigger than Antioch.

The Kingdom mattered more than keeping their strongest people in their own congregation.

What If Success Included What We Send?

Maybe we need another measurement of church health.

We often celebrate how many people a church can gather.

Maybe sometimes we should celebrate how many people it is willing to send.

How many churches has it strengthened?

How many ministries has it helped?

How many pastors has it encouraged?

How many leaders has it trained and released?

How many struggling congregations has it helped become healthy?

How many resources has it given away knowing there would be no direct return?

How many times has it said:

“We could use this ourselves, but they need it more right now”?

That looks like Kingdom thinking.

People Don't Belong to Pastors

There is an important caution here.

This doesn't mean churches own people.

Pastors don't own their congregations.

People belong to God.

Sometimes God genuinely calls someone from one congregation to another. Sometimes assignments change. Sometimes God closes one season and begins another.

When that happens, pastors should be willing to release people without bitterness, manipulation, guilt or control.

But there is another question worth asking.

Should churches actively seek to strengthen themselves by pulling strength away from congregations that are already struggling?

Especially when it comes to mature leaders?

Imagine discovering a gifted pastor, teacher, worship leader or ministry leader serving faithfully in a struggling congregation.

There are two very different questions we could ask.

“How could this person help our ministry?”

Or:

“How could we help this person succeed in the ministry God has already given them?”

Those questions reveal two very different postures.

One sees a resource.

The other sees a brother or sister.

What If We Sent Our Strongest People Toward the Need?

Here's where this becomes uncomfortable.

Suppose a church of 3,000 people discovers a congregation across town with 35 people that is struggling.

What would happen if the larger church stood before its congregation and said:

“There is another part of the Body that needs help. We're asking whether some mature families, children's workers, musicians and leaders might feel called to spend the next year helping strengthen that congregation.”

By modern church-growth standards, that might sound strange.

You're intentionally sending good people somewhere else?

Yes.

Because the goal isn't to build the largest possible congregation.

The goal is a healthy Body.

And if we truly believe that, then helping another congregation grow shouldn't feel like losing.

Their victory should become our victory.

Their breakthrough should become something we celebrate.

Their growth shouldn't threaten us.

Paul Refused the Competition

The Corinthian church had begun dividing itself around leaders.

Paul confronted it:

“For while one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal?”— 1 Corinthians 3:4 KJV

Then Paul explained:

“I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase.”— 1 Corinthians 3:6 KJV

Paul wasn't competing with Apollos.

Apollos wasn't stealing Paul's success.

One planted.

Another watered.

God gave the increase.

They were working the same field.

Maybe the modern Church needs to recover that mentality.

Your church reaching someone doesn't mean mine lost someone.

Your church growing doesn't mean mine failed.

Your ministry succeeding doesn't diminish what God is doing through someone else.

We aren't building competing kingdoms.

At least, we shouldn't be.

Unity Has to Become More Than an Event

Unity isn't merely getting several churches together once a year for a worship service.

That's wonderful, but unity has to become deeper than that.

Unity says:

Your burden matters to me.

Unity says:

Your success matters to me.

Unity says:

If I have something you need, I don't have to hoard it.

Unity says:

If God can use something He gave me to help you fulfill what He called you to do, I want to help.

Unity says:

I don't need your people to build what God called me to build. I want to help you equip them to build what God called you to build.

And sometimes unity says something even harder:

“God has given us plenty. You need some of this more than we do. Let us send it.”

That's when unity stops being something we preach and becomes something we practice.

One Body Means Their Struggle Is Our Struggle

What would happen in a community if churches really began thinking this way?

Imagine pastors no longer seeing one another primarily through attendance numbers.

Imagine churches sharing equipment.

Sharing knowledge.

Sharing volunteers when possible.

Helping struggling ministries.

Encouraging exhausted pastors.

Sending resources.

Training leaders and releasing them.

Promoting another church's outreach because reaching the community matters more than whose logo appears on the flyer.

Imagine a church being able to say:

“We helped another church grow this year.”

And celebrating that with the same excitement as increasing its own attendance.

That would confuse a business.

But it makes perfect sense for a body.

Because my hand doesn't become jealous when my foot becomes stronger.

They belong to the same body.

Maybe We've Been Asking the Wrong Question

The question can't only be:

“How do we make our church stronger?”

Maybe we need to start asking:

“How do we make the Church stronger?”

Sometimes the answers will be exactly the same.

Growing our congregation may strengthen the Kingdom.

Developing our leaders may strengthen the Kingdom.

Building ministries may strengthen the Kingdom.

But eventually there will come a moment when strengthening the Church may cost our church something.

Maybe it costs money.

Maybe resources.

Maybe time.

Maybe recognition.

Maybe volunteers.

Maybe even one of our strongest leaders.

And that's where we discover whether we actually believe what we've been preaching about unity.

Because Kingdom unity isn't proven when everybody wins without sacrifice.

Unity is revealed when I am willing to help you win even when I receive nothing from it.

Jesus doesn't have competing churches.

He has one Church expressed through many local congregations.

So perhaps one of the greatest signs of a healthy church isn't simply how much strength it can gather inside its walls.

Maybe it's how willing that church is to use its strength to strengthen the rest of the Body.

We don't need to build the strongest right leg.

We need a healthy Body.

And that means when another part is struggling, we don't ask what we can take from it.

We ask:

“What has God placed in our hands that could help?”

That is more than cooperation.

That is more than networking.

That is more than saying we support unity.

That is the Body caring for the Body.

Pastor Scott