Agree to Disagree

Main Point: We can disagree politically without eroding our unity.

“In my role as a pastor, I’m not trying to get everyone to agree on everything so much as I’m attempting to create environments where our disagreements don’t automatically become cause for disunity.” —Rich Villodas

Anyone who tells you that you have to vote for their political party to be a Christian has abandoned the

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God — not by works, so that no one can boast. —Ephesians 2:8-9

If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. —Romans 10:9

Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.” —Matthew 16:23

Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life f will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? —Matthew 16:24-26

Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion… —Philippians 2:1

If we have been

“100% of the people we disagree with are created in the image of God.” —Rev. Benjamin Cremer

…Then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. —Philippians 2:2

Our aim is

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. —Philippians 2:3-4

The message people must get from us is, “I care more about

In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death — even death on a cross! —Philippians 2:5-8

• God is
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  ; a political party is
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  .
• We do not
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  under a political figure, but we are
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  in the person of Jesus Christ.
• It’s our
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  that defines us, not
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  .
• The Bible is our
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  , not our
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  views.
• We need to spend more
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  with Jesus than listening to political leaders. —Jason Jimenez

Takeaway: It is our relationship with Jesus, not a political party, that defines us.

Discussion Questions
1. In what ways can political disagreements threaten the unity of a church, and how can we prevent that from happening?
2. How does Ephesians 2:8-9 challenge the idea that someone’s salvation is connected to their political beliefs?
3. In what ways can we practically live out Philippians 2:3-4, putting others’ interests above our own, especially when we disagree with their views?
4. How does the phrase “Our aim is unity, not conformity” resonate with you, especially in today’s political climate? What is the difference between the two?
Table Discussion Question: Why do you think it’s important for our identity to be rooted in Jesus, rather than in political parties or ideologies?