Unity – Our Common Goal

Psalm 133:1 – How good and pleasant it is
when God’s people live together in unity!

² It is like precious oil poured on the head,
running down on the beard,
running down on Aaron’s beard,
down on the collar of his robe.
³ It is as if the dew of Hermon
were falling on Mount Zion.
For there the LORD bestows his blessing,
even life forevermore.  (NIV)

I once was the pastor of two small country churches in southwest Virginia.  When one of the churches decided that the time had come to re-shingle the roof, much time was spent amongst the members as to what color shingles would be used.  When the decision was finally made, one couple was so unhappy with the decision that they left the church.  Much to my dismay, that coupled simply went to my other church – and caused even more division! 

If Christians who worship together cannot get along, can we blame anyone for calling us hypocrites?  Divisions among the people of God is nothing new.  In the Christian age, divisions within the church have been around as long as the church!  Paul’s first letter to the church in Corinth was written in response to the many factions that were dividing the church.  Paul wrote: “I appeal to you, dear brothers and sisters by the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ, to live in harmony with each other. Let there be no divisions in the church. Rather, be of one mind, united in thought and purpose.” (1 Cor. 1:10, NLT).

Psalm 133 gives us a picture of the ideal.  Unity among the people of God, according to this passage, is a good and pleasant thing.  The word ‘good’ in verse one, and the word precious in verse two, are the same Hebrew word which can be translated as desirable.  It is desirable that the Church get along!  This is true within a local congregation, and it is true with Christians worldwide.

This past week I attended the monthly breakfast of the Cleveland Ministerial Network.   Twenty to thirty pastors from a number of different churches and denominations sat together in unity, as we enjoyed coffee and breakfast.  Did we all believe the same way on every issue?  Of course not.  Did we all believe that women should be pastors, or that babies should be baptized?  Again, of course not.  We do, however, believe that Jesus Christ is Lord, and we share a belief in our common duty to live out our lives as a witness to the transforming power of the Good News.  We will not let our differences break our unity, but instead continue to seek common ground on which to stand together as we go about kingdom work.

Today, we all have kingdom work to do!  Let us not let our differences slow us down.  Let us continue to stand upon our common ground, remembering the words of Psalm 133:1 – How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity! 

Posted by Ramón Torres