A Ukrainian monk, a South African evangelist, and you are seated next to one another at a dinner event. You’ve never met and seemingly have little in common. Guests at other tables engage in lively conversation and you wish for different dinner partners. What’s your response?

Me? I attempt conversation, “So… what do you do?” But if that doesn’t spark interest, I settle in for a long, awkward night.

The host visits your table pronouncing, “How wonderful! I sat you together because you absolutely need each other.” Is your curiosity piqued?

This could be a picture of God’s church. Not only do all three belong, but you need each other. Each of you adds value.

Just as we long to belong, we long to be valued.

Jesus intentionally integrated diverse people groups in His church, all ethnicities and classes. He brought together Jews and Gentiles, slave and free, male and female (Galatians 3:28), unique groups that didn’t mingle. This must have challenged church harmony.

Some in the church wanted all believers to become Jewish, like Jesus. But the church decided believers should maintain their unique cultural qualities as they love God and love one another – showing kindness, honor, and humility. In other words, valuing each other.

Paul describes the early church as a family. God adopts every believer as His child, so everyone belongs to the family. In another of Paul’s favorite metaphors, the church as the body of Christ, every believer is needed for the church body to be whole. The church offers believers value and purpose.

God designed His church to meet our needs to belong and be valued by calling for harmony in the midst of diversity.

Like a body’s organs, each member’s unique contribution is essential and honorable. We need one another. “The eye cannot say to the hand, “I do not need you!”” and “if all the parts were the same, it could not be a body.” (1 Corinthians 12:14-21)

Together, gifts like leading worship, creating the budget, washing dishes and organizing closets help the church function effectively. “Our bodies are made up of many parts… We are all different but we depend on each other.” (Romans 12:4-5)

Imagine a community where every person is valued, no matter their background. That’s God’s vision for the church.

In addition to gifts, this multi-part body integrates members’ diverse and differing perspectives.

Believers come from all over the world and represent a variety of ethnicities. We experience a range of economic circumstances, family dynamics, schooling, values, and goals. Our cultural traditions and worldviews vary.

Roman society at the time Paul established the early church was as diverse and divisive as we are today. Ancestry, citizenship, wealth, and neighborhood influenced a person’s social class. The upper class held most of the wealth and power. All others belonged to the working class. A third of the population were slaves with no rights.

Non-Jewish people, aka Gentiles, worshiped gods representing wisdom, love and fertility, prosperity in agriculture and harvest, and the underworld. Modern society values the same ideals.

God’s chosen people, the Jews, were poor, oppressed, and mistrusted because they didn’t cater to the many Roman gods. As such, they were often blamed for calamity.

And yet, Jesus intentionally includes both Jewish and Gentile believers as members of His body, equally contributing value to the whole. “Go and make disciples of all people groups.” (Matthew 28:19)

Harmony amid diverse worldviews shapes a beautiful church.

Imagine a mosaic with thousands of vibrant, but broken shards—sky blue, winter white, grass green, and earthy brown. Each shard alone seems insignificant, but assembled they reveal the artist’s vision, Christ’s body. This is God’s intention for His church—a body where every person is essential to the beauty of the whole.

A mosaic artist deliberately chooses each piece. Likewise, God purposefully brings together our multi-cultural backgrounds and viewpoints to reflect His multi-faceted nature.

If we read and discuss scripture solely from our own perspective, our experiences limit our understanding of God. Adding a point of view from another class or culture broadens our understanding. We have so much to learn from one another.

Diversity enriches the church and reflects God’s nature.

This harmony amid diversity might be one reason the early church expanded rapidly. It attracted those seeking belonging and respect, purpose and value. Just like us, 1st century people longed to belong to a community where every person is valued.

Notice diversity in the body of Christ:

• Look for diverse worldviews already shaping your church: the spectrum of religious and political beliefs, generational mindsets, worship style.
• Find a podcast hosted by another denomination
• Listen to worship songs in a different musical genre
• Read the Bible in a different translation like the First Nations Version (FNV) is a translation following the Indigenous tradition of storytelling

Together, we can create a mosaic of love and understanding that reflects God’s beauty to the world.
Let’s be the church the world longs to see.

This post is part 2 of a 3-part series about God’s call for a unified, diverse church. Part 1 assured us that we belong in God’s family, no matter who we are. Part 3 will show that achieving this harmonious body was as difficult for the early church as it is today.

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