What if you’re wrong?

“For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you.” — Romans 12:3

For centuries, people believed that Aristotle was right when he said that the heavier an object, the faster it would fall to earth. Anyone, of course, at any time, could’ve taken a heavy object and a light one and dropped them both from a great height to see whether or not the heavier object landed first. But no one did until nearly 2,000 years after Aristotle’s death.

In 1589, Galileo summoned learned professors to the base of the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Then he went to the top and pushed off a ten-pound and a one-pound weight at the same time. To their amazement, both landed at the very same instant. The power of belief was so strong, however, that the professors denied their eyesight. They continued to say Aristotle was right!

Modern physics today proves Galileo was correct. Yet it’s astonishing that these learned men, despite seeing reality before their eyes, would rather assume their preconceptions were correct than accept a new idea.

Very often, it’s our preconceptions and prejudices that cause division among the body of Christ. Even some of the most faithful men and women are guilty of assuming their way of doing things is the right way simply because that’s how it’s always been done. But true humility pushes our own agendas to the side and puts God’s agenda first.

So instead of leaning on what you’ve always thought, trust in what the Bible says is true with fresh eyes, putting your own preconceived notions aside and promoting unity among believers instead of division.

Prayer Challenge

Ask God to show you areas where you’ve assumed your way is the only way. Pray that He would release you from that and be a force for unity among the body of Christ.

Questions for thought

How can you focus on putting God’s agenda first this week?

What’s one way you can practice unity among the body of Christ?