In a letter from Birmingham Jail, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. wrote, “If today’s church does not recapture the sacrificial spirit of the early church, it will lose its authenticity, forfeit the loyalty of millions, and be dismissed as an irrelevant social club with no meaning for the twentieth century.”
The Book of Acts gives us insight into this sacrificial spirit Dr. King was referring to. Chapter four, verse thirty-two, says that “All the believers were one in heart and mind.”
They embraced unity radically—choosing to live with pure hearts that collaborated to speak truth to power and withstand extreme persecution for the sake of God’s Kingdom. The rest of Acts records the result: the Holy Spirit moved among them powerfully, drawing many to new life in Christ.
We see how important unity is to God’s heart in the story of Ananias and Sapphira. The account begins in Acts 4 when Barnabas, a devout believer, sells a field he owns and brings the money to the disciples to be used for God’s work. Barnabas’s intentions are pure, and the believers thank him for his generosity.
A couple named Ananias and Sapphira see this and desire similar recognition. So, they also sell a piece of property and bring a monetary gift to the disciples. However, their gift exposes a spirit of consumerism, not one of collaboration. One of wanting to build their own reputation; not God’s Kingdom. Upon giving their gift, Ananias and Sapphira lie, stating they’d given the full income from the land, when really, they’d kept some money for themselves.
Peter gave both a chance to correct their lie, but neither did. So, he informed them that though the gift was not required, because they gave it with divisive intentions, there would be grave consequences. That day, both Ananias and Sapphira died, causing a holy fear to sweep throughout the early church.
This example might feel extreme, but the symbolism is real: disunity will always kill the work God wants to do among us. True collaboration is what builds God’s Kingdom, as it produces unified hearts, genuine generosity, and deep honor for God’s work—not our own.
In John 17, Jesus prayed for every member of the Church, present and future, to understand the importance of our unity to our witness. He prayed “that they will all be one, just as you and I are one—as you are in me, Father, and I am in you… May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me…” (verses 21, 23)
It’s never been more important for the Church to heed Dr. King’s words. The work of collaboration will never be easy, but with unity, the prize is always worth the price. I truly believe that as we work to become the Church Jesus prayed for, we will see a revival surge through our hearts, homes, churches, communities and nations!
