We All Belong to God

As our society becomes more fractured, the call to unity becomes more urgent. We all claim to want unity, but most of us do nothing to accomplish such a concept. Some even doubt it is possible. No, I’m not writing about our political division. I’m thinking about our spiritual division. The world is divided, and it is up to us to work on unity. There is only one problem. Nobody seems to know where to begin.

Brethren, he who observes the day, observes it in honor of the Lord. He also who eats, eats in honor of the Lord, since he gives thanks to God; while he who abstains, abstains in honor of the Lord, and gives thanks to God. None of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord; so then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s. For to this end Christ died and lived again, that he might be Lord both of the dead and of the living.

Romans 14.6-9

Sometimes we forget that God came to save all humanity, not just our particular tribe. He didn’t come only for Christians, but also for Jews, Hindus, Buddhists, Muslims, and even atheists. God “desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” (1^st Timothy 2.4) As Saint Paul reminds us in today’s passage, “we are the Lord’s.” That means all of us.

It is easy to say it, but not so easy to believe it. We don’t deny that many refuse to believe in God, let alone whether He became a human Himself. They also still belong to God. They also are His children, no different than we are His children. Sure, maybe we were baptized and pretend to live Christian lives, but most of us live double or even triple lives.

We are Christians on Sunday morning, secularists Monday through Friday, and hedonists on Saturday. Can we really deny it? If it were not true, would Saint Paul have reason to write “He who eats…he who abstains?” Cleary the Christians of the ancient Church struggled, just as we struggle, to live proper Christian lives.

So, let’s get to it. If we all belong to the Lord, those who behave properly and those who do not, how does that affect our interactions? Here are a few questions to reflect upon…

• If we all belong to the Lord, do we treat everyone we meet as if we are united already?
• If we all belong to the Lord, do we invite everyone to join us in worship as if they already belong?
• If we all belong to the Lord, do we share our gifts with others as if they already deserve a share?
• If we all belong to the Lord, do we love others as if they already love us?

These few sample questions demand an answer if we are going to call ourselves Christians. It doesn’t mean everyone will join us in worship. It doesn’t mean everyone will believe the truth about God. It doesn’t mean we will always get it right. It does mean we need to do better in trying to cure the division that exists among us.

God wants it. He prayed for it. Shortly before He ascended the Holy Cross for our salvation Christ prayed, “Now I am no longer in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to You. Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are.” (John 17.11)

There is only one who prefers division, the price of division, Satan. He is known by many names. He is called the ‘One Who Divides” Ο Διάβολος, and he is working overtime to further our division to destroy us. Don’t allow him to make any more progress. Fight for unity. Fight for God. Fight for the Church, because we all belong to the Lord.