Daily Devotional
Finding Unity Within Diversity

August 30, 2024

Ponder This

What goes into assembling a jury for a trial? Typically, the desire is to assemble a group of people who can come together to give a verdict on the decision in question. That’s what our Lord did when He took the apostles. These apostles had been with our Lord for three years: They lived with Him. They walked with Him. They were companions. They ate together. They fellowshipped together.

They were not the type of jury you would expect. John was a young man. He was a visionary. He was sort of a philosopher type. Simon Peter was the opposite of John, a big, hardworking fisherman. Then there was Simon the Zealot. He was a political activist. And then there was Matthew the tax collector. Matthew had sold out to the Roman government. Many thought of him as a turncoat.

Can you imagine having Simon and Matthew on the same jury and trying to ask them to reach a unanimous verdict about anything? All these men had different backgrounds, viewpoints, ideals, and ideas but they all agreed on one thing: what they witnessed in Christ. We are to function the same way today as the Church.

• What are some of the differences between you and some others in your congregation? How do you overcome those differences in Christ?
• How have you seen God work through differences to bring Himself glory?

Practice This

Think about someone in your church you struggle relating to. Pray Christ’s blessing on that person and seek unity in Christ.