In 1 Corinthians 1:10, the Apostle Paul states, “I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought.”

There are many reasons why unity is so important, but I only want to speak of one key issue today — the value of unsaved souls. When a group of people calling themselves Christians are arguing, fussing, mad at each other, talking about each other and just being unloving to one another, there is no way that those calling themselves non-Christians will be attracted to the message of Jesus that they are trying to teach. In effect, what these people are saying by their actions is that the unsaved have no or little value to them at all.

Several years ago, a man came into our church seeking a changed life, leaving that evening a new person after turning his life over to Jesus Christ. He told me that the week before, he had visited a church with this same purpose only to find members in a heated argument at a church-business meeting. It got so bad that he didn’t stay around to talk to anybody about his need.

On a positive note, I have a friend around Atlanta who moved there and was looking for a church with which to get involved. He found one that was reaching many for Christ, but he didn’t like the music. He told me that seeing lives changed was more important to him than hearing his kind of music, especially seeing his sister and grandchildren find Jesus there.

Jesus says in John 13:35 that others will know we are Christians by our love for one another. Over the years, how many people seeking a changed life have been turned off by seeing Christians acting like selfish children? If for no other reason than reaching lost people, we ought to do whatever it takes to be unified with those we call brothers and sisters in the Lord.

May God forgive us for putting ourselves above others. There is hope; we can love one another, be unified and be the examples that draw others to desire to proudly be called Christians.