Why Cant We be Friends?

Last night I had a conversation with a friend that turned into a borderline word brawl. For some reason we got to discussing some theological differences and our views of God. I said things that really seemed to make my friend a tiny bit uncomfortable. We started to challenge each others thoughts and reasons for our beliefs and that made the conversation turn into a heated discussion. I would throw out the occasional sarcastic comment to cover up my inability to use my words wisely. I thank God for what came out of that conversation because I wound up learning a huge biblical truth that seems to have been lost in our time and that truth is unity. I have always been a person who loves to stir the pot of people's thinking and when I would do this it would cause me to become disconnected from the person I was discussing with and look down upon them. I would end up not being unified with that person any longer because of our theological differences. What I re-learned last night was that even those who disagree need to still be unified and love the other person that they disagree with. The Church is every person who stands under the banner of Christ and that is the essential to unity. Biblical interpretation and theological understanding are secondary aspects to understanding God better but if those start to separate us then maybe they just need to be thrown to the wayside until we are mature enough to discuss those topics. My prayer is that the Church will understand that unity is God's own will for His children and may we work toward that goal!