ONE IN HEART AND MIND

PASTOR RYAN LADEN – DEVOTIONALS

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What does unity in the Body of Christ mean to you? Do you assume that it means that everyone must agree on every point and share the same opinions as others? In our devotional today, we hear how the Holy Spirit led the people of the early church to join together for the good of god’s mission. 

Read the following passage and listen for the examples of unity found within the lives of these first believers. 

32 All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had. 33 With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all 34 that there were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned land or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales 35 and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone who had need.  36 Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus, whom the apostles called Barnabas (which means “son of encouragement”), 37 sold a field he owned and brought the money and put it at the apostles’ feet.

(Acts 4:32-37 NIV11)

One in Heart and Mind

One of the markers of commitment found in the life of the early church was described in verse 32 as, “All the believers were one in heart and mind.” 

•   What does that mean to you when you hear it?
•   Do you assume that it means that everyone in the church had to agree on every point, share the same opinions as all the others in the church?

Body

To me, when I think about this kind of purposeful unity, I think of the way that the Apostle Paul described the Body of Christ in the following passage.

25b But God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the parts that lacked it, 25 so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. 26 If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.

(1 Corinthians 12:25b-26 NIV11)

Embrace

Each believer in Christ has been called to play a vital part in the Body of Christ. As we embrace the people that make up the local church, we embrace the people that God has called to build his Body. 

When we all agree that our mission as believers is to follow Christ together, worship as one, and share in the mission given to us by the Lord in Acts 1:8 to be his witnesses everywhere we go, we begin to experience the gift of being of one heart and one mind. 

Challenge

We might not all think the same, act the same, or vote the same as members of the Body of Christ. But we will all seek to bring God glory if we are united with the others in our church. 

This is a challenge for a lot of us because we want things done in a way that suits our opinions about the church. We want our kind of music, our kind of leadership, and our kind of teaching and preaching, but this is not what the Lord wants for us. 

We are called by God to join together as one, seeking to show grace to those needing grace, encouragement to those needing encouragement, and support to those doing work worthy of our support. 

Club

The Body of Christ, the local church, was never intended to be treated like a country club. We do not screen people to determine whether they will fit within our preferred culture, class, or socio-economic preferences. 

Instead, we welcome those who profess Christ as their Lord and who are ready to join in with the mission of the church to be witnesses for Christ. 

You

If you have been waiting for a nudge from the Lord to get back into the local church, then consider this your nudge. You need to be a part of God’s family of faith, and your local church family needs you to join with them on their mission to be witnesses for Christ. 

Life is too short and too hard to try and go it alone. 

We were created to be a part of the Body of Christ, so choose to be a unified and loving part of the family of faith, rather than expecting the family to change to meet your preferences. 

In Christ, 

Ryan Laden

PASTOR RYAN LADEN

Senior Pastor at PARK HILL BAPTIST CHURCH

Worked at MTN. CHURCH

Former Senior pastor at Warnbro Community Church

Studies at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary

Studied at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary

Studied at Baylor University

Studied at Texas Tech University

Went to Castle Hills First Baptist

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