Movement Birmingham is committed to bringing the Kingdom of God to our city. In order for this to occur, every Christ follower must share in this responsibility. Each believer has different gifts, responsibilities and resources. Yet, we must all share in the advancement of the Kingdom. God has a master plan to advance His Kingdom, and the master plan begins with the unity of The Church.
Movement Birmingham believes that there are Five Circles where this unity must be regularly demonstrated:
Prayer
Service
Families
Equipping
Generosity
First
The circles must be unified and work cooperatively within the life of every believer. No Christ-follower can be a true disciple of Jesus Christ without surrendering fully to Him and allowing the Holy Spirit to develop each of these areas in their personal life. It may be helpful to define what we mean by a “disciple.” Dallas Willard has stated, “A disciple is one who has decided that the most important thing in their life is to learn to do what Jesus said to do.” To do the will of the Father was paramount for Jesus. It must be for every disciple as well.
The above definition is simple yet profound and comprehensive. A disciple withholds nothing from the Master. Yet, most of us will say that we are lacking in our growth in certain areas of the Five Circles. Perfection is not required, but growth is mandatory for a disciple. Disciplined growth within the Five Circles creates unity of purpose. With growth in each area, the disciple experiences an integration of values within the soul. Failure to practice discipline within any of the Five Circles leaves the soul fractured and in danger of disintegration.
Second
As each believer develops in their spiritual transformation in each of the Five Circles, it becomes possible for the Holy Spirit to spiritually unite the disciple with other believers. Our focus begins to move away from self and find its purpose in evangelizing, in discipling and in serving others. At this point, we see not only unity of the Five Circles within each believer, we begin to see believers being unified with other believers in the common purposes of the Gospel. This transformation then begins to influence the mission and the culture of the organizations in which the believers invest their time and resources. Unity is the natural outgrowth of believers surrendering to the power of the Gospel.
Third
The unity of churches and faith-based ministries naturally follows the unity of individual believers. Organizations adopt the values, character, and culture of those who lead the organization. An organization led by disciples of Christ who are committed to unity will produce churches and ministries seeking unity through selfless service to our City. Competition is replaced with collaboration. What was once chaotic is replaced with coherent values and clear vision. Now, the City’s churches and ministries speak with one voice for the Kingdom.
Unity of believers is one of the great hallmarks of scripture. The Psalmist describes this unity as a “precious oil.” In the High Priest Prayer Jesus asked his Father to “keep through Your Name those whom You have given Me, that they maybe one as We are.” In describing this concept of unity, the Apostle Paul said, “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, Who being in the form of God did not think it robbery to be equal with God but made Himself of no reputation incoming as a servant humbled Himself and became obedient to the death on the cross.”
The Kingdom of God will come to our City as believers and the organizations through which they serve seek unity through Biblical discipleship and the common unity of Kingdom dwellers.