Unity in Christ - World Communion Sunday
Colossians 1:9-14
October 1, 2023
There is no longer Jew or Greek;
there is no longer slave or free;
there is no longer male and female,
for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.
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Humans have a long tradition of subdividing and classifying each other. The letter to the Galatians was written to early Christians in what we now think of as Turkey. It was a crossroads not only of the Roman Empire, but also of Africa, Asia, and Europe. With so many different cultures, mannerisms, languages, and appearances, they wrestled with questions about what was essential to being a Christian.
Early Christians wrestled with what it meant for a non-Jewish person to become a Christian. Should they be circumcised or not? Should non-Jewish Christians adhere to Jewish religious law? How does a wide variety of very different people become part of the family of God?
Jesus radically breaks down human divisions and categories, not only bringing people to himself but also to each other. We become not only one with Christ but also with each other.
