United in the Lord

The sermon opens with powerful images of devastating civil wars — the American Civil War (1861–1865) and the Korean War (1950–1953) — to illustrate that no organization or society can survive internal division. The pastor brings this into the local church context, noting that a group of members had recently split off to form a new congregation, and explains that this happened not because God lacked power to protect the church, but because of human sinful nature and the freedom of choice.

The theological heart of the sermon is Jesus's prayer in John 17:9–11 and 20–23, described as the final and most significant prayer He offered for His disciples before the crucifixion. Jesus did not pray for His disciples to be spared from hardship, to receive material blessings, or even for numerical church growth — instead, He repeatedly prayed four times for unity, a unity that mirrors the absolute oneness between the Father and the Son within the Trinity. The pastor emphasizes that this very unity is the testimony to the world that the Father sent Jesus.

The sermon uses vivid illustrations to underscore the importance of unity: migrating birds flying in V-formation to increase their strength, and the moving image of male emperor penguins huddling together in Arctic blizzards to protect each other and their chicks. The pastor also employs the metaphor of the human body — when organs refuse to cooperate — and diseases like cancer or lupus — when the immune system attacks the body itself — as pictures of the danger of division within the church.

The pastor cites multiple Scripture passages showing that division is not a new problem but existed from the earliest churches: the conflict between Hebrews and Hellenists in Acts 6, factionalism at Corinth (1 Corinthians 1), the dispute between Euodia and Syntyche at Philippi (Philippians 4), and Paul's exhortations in Ephesians 4 and Colossians 3. The devil exploits real practical problems within the church to sow discord and division.

The final section outlines three practical steps for resolving conflict in the church: self-examination, actively seeking reconciliation or giving correction according to Matthew 18:15–17, and offering sincere forgiveness from the heart following Christ's example. The sermon concludes with Jesus's promise in Matthew 18:18–20 — that where there is unity, He will be present and will grant requests — calling the congregation to pursue the shared purpose of glorifying God rather than seeking personal benefit.