Written by Dynamis Ministries | October 24, 2024
Back in 2015, an online viral phenomenon swept across the internet and became known as “The Dress.” As you may suspect, this craze centered around a photograph of a dress. But what made this image a viral sensation was that some viewers thought the colors of the dress were blue and black, while others thought the dress was white and gold. People across the globe were commenting and reposting this picture on various social media platforms along with their stance on what color scheme they perceived the dress to be. At its peak, this simple photograph was shared on the Twitter platform almost 4.5 million times in 24 hours! And in case you’re wondering, it has been confirmed that the dress is blue and black!
This viral sensation from nearly 10 years ago shows that we can be divided by just about anything these days. Sometimes, these dividing lines can be silly, like in the case of The Dress, but more often than not, they can be much more destructive. We see it in our communities across the country and maybe even experience it in our own families—how division can stir up anger and break relationships. Being divided from others is heartbreaking for several reasons, not to mention it is in stark contrast to God’s design for his people and his Church.
Throughout the New Testament, from the ministry of Jesus to the growth of the early Church, one overarching theme is the importance of the followers of Jesus to live in unity, not only with fellow believers but also amongst those outside of the Church. There are many places in Scripture where this is evident, either as a direct command or as portrayed in an example to follow, but one noteworthy passage that highlights this idea of unity is in Acts 4. And perhaps it’s no coincidence that this piece of Scripture is also a key generosity passage. Let’s go there now:
“Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common…There was not a needy person among them for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need” (Acts 4: 32, 34-35).
This passage highlights many things about radical generosity that moved the early church forward—sacrificial giving, leveraging personal resources and caring for individual needs in the community. However, there is one minor detail that is easily overlooked, and that is what spurred these people on to be generous in the first place. The beginning of this passage shows us that the generosity of the early Church hinged on the precursor that they were “of one heart and soul.”
In other words, the early church’s generosity was a reflection of their unity!
Today, we as the Church need to be unified more than ever. The world is becoming increasingly divided, which creates confusion, anger, hatred and a slew of other attitudes and actions that do not align with God’s design for how his people should live. Let’s resist the forces that lead to division and let’s spur on a spirit of unity that can spread in our homes, schools, workplaces and communities. As we take steps to grow in “one heart and soul,” we’ll not only be resembling the original design of the early Church, but we’ll be allowing space for greater generosity in our lives too.
