The Beauty of Unity

Psalm 133:1—Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!

John 17 is commonly called “Christ’s High Priestly Prayer of Intercession.” In verses 20-26 Jesus prays specifically for US today. His emphasis is for the unification of Christians.  He prays that we may be ONE  (see John 17:21-23).

Unity amongst believers is a beautiful thing! It is so good, that God hates anyone who would seek to divide the brethren (Prov. 6:19).

The success of any group—a sports team, a business, a family, or a church—is contingent upon it’s unity. Therefore, Satan will do all he can to disrupt the unity of a church by sowing strife among Christians (1 Corinthians 1-2).

Unity is not automatic. You must work at it. There can only be unity when the individual members of a group agree to put the good of the group ahead his/her own wants  (Amos 3:3).  This requires an attitude of humility (viewing others as better than ourselves)… gentleness (putting off anger and demonstrating grace to each other)… patience (putting up with the abrasive personalities of others), and acceptanceof one another in love (just as Jesus accepted you, you and I must accept others on the same basis).

Do you demonstrate these characteristics in your church or group?