All Scripture quotations are taken from the New American Standard Bible 1995 Ed. (NASB95)

In the fierce struggle to protect and increasingly appreciate our unity with the brethren we assemble with on a weekly basis, there are at least three ways that Paul lays out to accomplish this most crucial of goals. First, he urges believers to aim for the same goals. Second, he enjoins his audiences to focus on others’ concerns, rather than their own. Third, he calls for Christians to tolerate and put up with the annoyances and faults of their brethren.

So, to start off, we’ll examine the single-minded ambitions that he commands the Philippians to strive for in his letter to them. He starts the central portion of the letter by writing:

“Only conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ . . . so that . . . I will hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel . . . do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.” – Phil. 1:27; 2:4

Notice the single-mindedness that Paul urges the Philippians to – standing with one spirit, and with one mind striving, or “competing” for the gospel. And then the others-centeredness that he describes, as looking out for others’ interests, and not only for one’s own. This will inevitably flow from an attitude that sees yourself as an equal member of the Lord’s body, and essential to the well-being of your brethren, and the promotion of our mission on earth. Here, that mission is described as “the faith of the gospel,” or the preaching of and testifying to the gospel. Hence, unity of thinking and purpose can only come as we give up thinking of ourselves as prominent individuals, and endeavor to always think of ourselves, our lives, and our pursuits in relation to the pursuits and needs of our brethren. Again, I like to call this “others-centeredness,” which I first heard from a new covenant theologian named Geoff Volker.

The second requirement for guarding and growing our unity as believers is putting up with each other’s annoyances and sins. Paul describes this discipline in his letters to the Ephesians and the Colossians like this:

“. . . walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, being diligent to maintain the unity of the Spirit . . .” – Eph. 4:1-3

“Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other . . .” – Eph. 4:32

“. . . bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone . . .” – Col. 3:13a

The first passage clearly proves that one of the most effective means of maintaining our unity as believers is by patiently “showing tolerance for one another in love”. This phrase that Paul uses is the same one in Colossians 3:13, here translated “bearing with one another”. In other words, he’s telling them to “put up with” each other, as they are regularly assaulted with personality quirks, eccentricities, mistakes, and even unintentional sins against them from their brethren.

Now, let me ask you a question: are you so engaged in deep relationships with your fellowship that you often run the risk of being offended by their unnerving traits, mistakes, and occasional sins? Because what is implied by Paul’s instructions for toleration and forgiveness is that these believers will be so intimately connected with each other, that they will often be making mistakes in their treatment of each other, so that it’s critical that these virtues are exercised with patience. Just think about life in a household – if it’s functioning healthfully, the members will be around each other so often, that they’ll often do things that tend to unintentionally rub each other the wrong way. Although it’s a sad reality that we are usually so easily offended, and so easily sin against each other, these statements of Paul show us that local assemblies of believers should experience the same sort of struggles and temptations.

Hence, it’s not only reasonable, but also expedient, that we as God’s children should be “kind to one another” and “tender-hearted,” so that we’ll always be eager to forgive our brethren who wrong us in the smallest and subtlest of ways. Peter puts it this way in his first letter:

“Above all, keep fervent in your love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins.” — 1 Peter 4:8

Lastly, preserving and promoting Christian unity in God’s family demands that we pursue what’s best and beneficial mostly for our brethren, and not for ourselves. If you’re thinking that we already went over this facet, your right. However, I want to reiterate it, and develop it further.

As we’ve already read, Paul puts this discipline in the words of looking out for “the interests of others” (Phil. 2:4). But elsewhere he explains and illustrates this practice more specifically, so his audiences know why and how they should do this. In general, we know that it must be done out of love for our brethren, and the desire to live out our unity as the body. But let’s see how Paul develops this point:

“. . . and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.” – Eph. 5:2

“Beyond all these things [virtues] put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity.” – Col. 3:14

“Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in honor . . .” — Ro. 12:10

In the verse from Ephesians, Paul tells us that that kind of love that will pursue the interests of our brethren is Christlike, sacrificial, love. First, it’s love based on the knowledge that Jesus loved us in such a way that He gave His life up in our place on the cross. Second, it’s love for the brethren based on the fact that Jesus loved them in that same way. Third, it’s love for God that Jesus demonstrated when He sacrificed Himself to please the Father as “an offering and a sacrifice to God”. Thus, our love for the brethren has these three orientations – inward, outward, and upward. And such love that motivates us to give up our selfish desires and goals to promote the well-being and goals of our brother can only come from appreciating the Lord’s love for us as individuals, and for His people as a whole. This is why Paul defines love in Colossians as “the perfect bond of unity” (Col. 3:14).

Finally, just as in Philippians, Paul expresses the fruit of brotherly devotion in terms of others-centeredness when he follows that calling with the instruction to prefer “one another in honor” (Ro. 12:10). That is, the Romans, and all believers, must honor each other, rather than themselves. And think about how beautifully and effectively this selfless love and honoring will work if it’s done faithfully – if everyone looks out for everyone else’s needs, then everyone’s needs will be met. Which is the next main sphere of Christian community that the apostles give more attention to.