Together Be One
Conflict happens. You never know when it’s going to happen. Two people are good friends. They work together in the church or community. And then one day, suddenly they are at odds with each other. A sharp word from one, a misunderstanding by the other, bitter responses said in haste. On both sides there is anger, hurt so great, and offense so deep, that it seems nothing can mend it. Sadly and tragically this happens within Christian communities where the whole attitude and atmosphere ought to be one of mutual love, forgiveness, support, and living out grace.
Like any other church, past and present, the Philippian church also experienced conflict, disagreements, and tensions. Paul addresses this now in these verses. He pleads with the persons in conflict to be united in the Lord. He appeals to the church to help them to be one. This appeal is important and urgent because conflict disturbs the unity of the church. It hinders the ability of the church to stand firm together as one body.
1. Together in Unity
In this letter, Paul does not teach so much and explicitly about unity as in some of his other letters. But the call to be united runs through Philippians like a golden thread. Already in chapter 1 verse 1, he reflects this unity by addressing his letter, “To all the holy ones in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, with the overseers and deacons.”
All the holy ones — Paul uses the inclusive “all of you” many times in this letter. Everyone who is in Christ Jesus belongs to God. No one is excluded. No one is more holy or better than the others. In Christ Jesus we are all equal before God. In Christ, through the Holy Spirit, we are all one, together in the one body. “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” (Eph 4:4-6). “Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink” (1 Cor 12:12-13).
Then he says, with the overseers and deacons. He includes the church leaders and so reinforces the unity of all God’s people, leaders and church members. He uses a small but powerful Greek word, σὺν, a preposition, which becomes a signature characteristic in Paul’s writings. This preposition can be added as a prefix to nouns and verbs to convey the meaning of together with, partners, fellowship, doing things together. He uses this to speak of co-workers, fellow soldiers, partners, or co-sharers. He calls them to contend along with, struggle together with, join together in following my example.
It is with this small word or prefix and the all-inclusive “all of you” that the theme of unity runs like a golden thread through Philippians. Together, we should be one, united, so that we can stand firm in the Lord against the enemies of the cross, the opponents of the church, and the evildoers. Because we are united with Christ we are called to have the same mind as Christ in our relationships with one another. We are called to unity through love and humility, serving others by looking out to the interests of others. Conflicts, disputes, and arguments disturb the unity of the church. It hinders our ability to stand firm together as one body. It hinders our kingdom living, our kingdom work, and our witness in the world.
2. Together We Help One Another
Therefore, together we must help one another to be of the same mind in the Lord, to make peace, and be one. In verse 3 Paul uses the “together with” prefix, σὺν, powerfully, four times to emphasize that together we must be one.
Help these women — the word used here is stronger than the English help. It means to gather together, to join together in helping, to participate in helping, and not just helping but to seize, take a hold of to support and assist.
He calls the person whom he instructs to help the women, true companion. The word actually means yokefellow, someone who bears part of the burden of the work; someone with whom you share a yoke. Imagine two horses or oxen — yoked together. Paul asked his yokefellow to help these women because they contended, struggled together with, alongside Paul and his other coworkers for the advance of the gospel. They were highly valued coworkers who participated in his struggles and mission. Therefore, it is urgent and important that they make peace and be reconciled.
Four words in Greek — join together in helping, yokefellow, contend together with, and coworkers. From this, we learn that together we must join in helping one another to be one, to be united by having the same mind in the Lord. We help one another because we are all yokefellows. We are united and yoked together because we are citizens of heaven. We share the same calling. We have the same mission—to proclaim the gospel of Christ and make disciples of all people. We are yokefellows because we are called to carry each other’s burdens (Gal 6:2). If we are not united we cannot pull together as one team, as one body. We cannot fulfill our calling and mission.
Together we help one another to be one because we are fellow soldiers. We are contending together as one person. We stand together linked like soldiers in the battle ranks, fighting next to each other, contending for the gospel of Christ and his kingdom. Conflict and disputes break the ranks and lines and so weaken us and our ability to contend together.
Together we help one another to be one because we are co-workers, partners. We are one body with many members, with many different gifts. The one body needs all of us. Together we need each other because we cannot do this alone, on our own.
3. Together We Need Each Other
Yes, every one of us pursues Christ. Every one of us is running this race with our eyes fixed on Jesus, holding on to Him. And yes, we should not allow our focus to shift away from Him. We should not look at the unbelievers and the things of this world. That will cause us to stumble, fall, and even stop running the race. But here is the good news. We are not running this race alone. We are running it together with other believers. We are running it together as a church, running to complete the race. It is not about competing with one another. It is not about winning but about finishing. Everyone who finishes wins the prize, that is, to gain Christ fully and everlasting life.
During this race, all of us get tired, we slow down, we stumble, we fall. Our focus shifts away from Jesus. We drift from the track towards the things of this world. So, we need to look out for one another while running this race. We need each other. To pick up the ones who fall. To come alongside to support and encourage the ones who get tired. To seize the hands of those who stray from the course, to admonish, guide, and bring them back into the race. Thus, together we need each other to be one, to stand firm in the Lord, and run this race together in unity. I have this vision — all of us as a church, running this race, eyes fixed on Jesus, pursuing Christ — but we are holding hands, running this race together as one body, using our different gifts to build up the body, to equip one another for our works of service and for living the kingdom life.
Sadly though it is true that we are still living in a broken world and sometimes our old self takes over. In every church, in every generation, there are influences, issues, events, strong personal viewpoints, and other things that cause divisions and conflicts. In the midst of disagreements, hardships, suffering, and difficult times, it is easy to turn on one another. And so, in this race, fellow believers push others out of the way, cut in front of others, trip up others. Some try to run it alone ignoring their brothers and sisters in Christ. Others continue to carry the pain and grudges from conflicts recent and long ago refusing to forgive and make peace, not living out grace while we are living in grace. As believers, we should not contend with one another but unite and stand firm in the Lord by having the same mind as Christ. Therefore, together we must make peace.
4. Together We Make Peace
Making peace is not an option but a command of our Lord. “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God” (Mt 5:9). Sermon on the Mount, Mt 5-7—Do not be angry with a brother or sister and do not call them names. Reconcile with them and settle matters quickly. Turn the other cheek. Give more than you are asked for. Love your enemies and forgive other people when they sin against you. Do not judge others and first take the plank out of your own eye, so that you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye. This is how we live as citizens of heaven. This is part of our DNA as God’s children. We are called to live in grace and live out grace. We are called to love others including our enemies. We are called to be peacemakers.
How? Paul gives the answer here and in Philippians 2. First, we make peace by being of the same mind in the Lord, having the same mind as Christ. This is not a hopeless demand for perfect agreement on every subject, doctrine, or issue. This means to focus on what unites us and what we have in common, the fundamentals, the essentials of the Christian faith — the gospel of Christ, salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ; the Trinity; the authority and inerrancy of God’s Word, the Bible; the deity, virgin birth, atoning death, bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ the Lord, and his coming back; the beauty of holiness and righteousness; the reality and ugliness of sin and evil; to follow the example of Christ and live in obedience to Him as Lord; fulfilling the Great Commission. We must work hard and humbly to develop agreement on these central matters. We must resolve to pursue like-mindedness with other believers on these.
When we do this, usually, the peripheral, non-essential issues will take care of themselves. And when there are differences of opinion we should make every effort and take time to dialogue together and sort out why we are looking at things differently. All of us should take our views, opinions and attitudes and submit them afresh, self-critically to the Scriptures. We should be willing to listen and be corrected. We should not stubbornly and pridefully stick to our guns because of egos, because we want to advance our views, and win. We should not try to manipulate others or use emotional blackmail. We should not adapt, change, trim, water down the gospel by appealing to practicalities and pragmatics. When it comes to the essentials and commands of our Lord there are not buts and no lines to be drawn. I cannot say that I obey my Lord but here I draw the line and from here on I do my own thing in my own way. Having the same mind as Christ means that I never abandon the rule of my Lord in my life, in all of my life, and therefore I never stop living as a kingdom citizen.
Second, together we make peace by having the same love. We are one when we obey and put into practice the Great Commandment of love. This self-giving, self-sacrificing love is the basis and source of our unity. It is the reason why we are united. Love is the life-blood of the body of Christ. This love is also our strategy, our method, our tool, and our weapon. It is through love that we are united. It is through love that we make peace. It is through love that we look out to the interests of others, honor and respect them above ourselves. It is through love that we stand firm in the Lord against the attacks of the enemy. It is through love that we proclaim the gospel of Christ to the world. When we are united in this same love Christ’s strength is most abundant, powerful, and effective in our lives and so also is our witness in the world.
Together be one. We are one and united when together we all have the same mind and heart as Christ. We are one when we love others with the same love, His love. Let us close with a Scripture reading that beautifully tells us how to be one, stand firm in the Lord, and live as kingdom citizens for his glory.
Colossians 3:12-17 — “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”