Unity in Diversity: The Power of Sacrificial Love- 08/03/2025

The Roman church was growing fast! As a major city, people from diverse cultural backgrounds were flooding into the church in Rome and surrendering their lives to Jesus. Different racial groups (Jews and Gentiles) brought diverse histories, traditions, perspectives, and brokenness with them from before they were saved. These cultural differences led to differing convictions about what was acceptable when it came to “gray areas” like food and holy days. And with differing convictions came criticism, arguments, and disunity.

Paul is writing to the believers in Rome because he is concerned about potential disunity as the church becomes more diverse. Diversity is good, but disunity is not. Disunity is dangerous because it hinders the work of God in and through the church. Only a united church can fulfill God’s mission of reaching the lost with Christ’s love. But how do people from different cultures, races, places, and backgrounds come together as one body? How does a diverse church stay united? In today’s passage, Paul teaches us how to protect unity in diversity by surrendering selfishness, bearing one another’s weaknesses, and glorifying God as one.