There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
There is something special about people coming together in harmony because of a common cause. That cause can be any number of things: from shared interests to shared economic or social status to shared history to shared beliefs or passions. When people unify around a common goal, the community that is created can be very powerful. In fact, such a community can accomplish far more for the cause than can any single individual.
When the common cause around which people come together is Jesus Christ and his saving work in their lives, it is far more special. To join together because of a hobby or a mission or an experience is one thing, but to come together because of what God has done in Jesus Christ is another thing entirely. The community that is built in the latter circumstance is an order of magnitude more important—and more beneficial and satisfying—than any other community in which we might take part. Because of Christ, it does not matter what our background and history was. Because of Christ, it does not matter the family into which we were born, or the circumstances of our upbringing. Because of Christ, it does not matter what our culture or ethnicity or sex or socio-economic status are. It is not that these things become unimportant, mind you. Rather, it is that the most important thing is this: we belong to Christ. Because of this belonging, we are part of the community of God, unified in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus.
Let us all enjoy celebrating today what God has done.
–Ricky