Unity

“Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron's beard: that went down to the skirts of his garments; As the dew of Hermon, and as the dew that descended upon the mountains of Zion: for there the Lord commanded the blessing, even life for evermore” (Psalm 133:1-3).

The key to this short 3 line Psalm lays in verse three.  “…for there the Lord commanded the blessing, even life for evermore”. Man’s unity is nothing but vanity if not joined together in worship and praise for the Lord. Here we will find true blessing and life everlasting. God commanded it.

The body of Christ which is His Church, is unified in the knowledge that, “There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all” (Ephesians 4:4-6).

Unity without the Lord and outside of His word is rebellion.

“He that keepeth his mouth keepeth his life: but he that openeth wide his lips shall have destruction” (Proverbs 13:3).

To keep our mouth is to guard it with faithfulness towards God and His word. We should always filter the intent and meaning of what we say through Him. It can be one of the most difficult things to do. The carnal self will rebel and want to offer up, “a piece of my mind”. Don’t.

Notice who reaps the benefit whomever heeds this Proverb. It is the speaker, not the listener. So when we are Hell bent on speaking our mind, the Proverb is trying to prevent us from being Hell sent by our own words.

The Toppling Pinnacle

Augustine referred to man’s government as the, “toppling pinnacle of earthly rule”. Think about it. Regardless of the heights achieved and powers gained, man’s government will always be temporal. It’s existence, nature and stature is in a constant state of flux. As the earth goes, so shall the earthly governments.

“The heathen raged, the kingdoms were moved: he uttered his voice, the earth melted” (Psalm 46:6).

“And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband” (Revelation 21:1-2).

There is only one eternal, perpetual government. It is from everlasting to everlasting, immutable, righteous and just.

“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this” (Isaiah 9:6-7).

Repentance, in part, is an act of retrospection. It is looking at and examining our past to present self, and discovering the iniquity in our lives. The yard stick to measure against is Jesus Christ. The final step is to take our sins, repent of our sins, then hand them over to Christ. Otherwise we will be left with a “weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us” (Hebrews 12:1).

We must understand that although we will never attain the perfection which is Christ while we are in this earthly body, we are never to retain the sin and guilt that we commit while here. Our goal is an ongoing, never ending process of discovery, repentance and relinquishing.

“Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:13-14).

The straighter the line between self and Christ, the fewer the stumbling blocks of sin that will we encounter. Repentance and God’s mercy and grace of forgiveness rids us of the weight of sin, the process of the high calling keeps our path clear.

Bill Hitchcock