Together In Unity

"Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!”-Psalms 133:1

This amazing thought is penned by David and is one of the "Songs of Degrees." Wouldn’t it be amazing if congregations were able to lift up their voices “together” and sing… “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!”

Click here to hear a song on Unity!

The first time I ever heard this song sung was on one of the Maranatha Records Series sung by Psalty, the singing songbook. It has stuck with me ever since and yet as I get older, I see so much “dis-unity” amongst Christians, it’s no wonder that those outside the body of Christ have a hard time hearing the unifying message of Christ!

If you have ever been part of a group, a congregation, a body of believers, a church… you have undoubtedly witnessed issues or problems arise that the “group” has a hard time dealing with. Invariably, there are always people who are drawn to a particular group, and others who decide, for whatever reasons, to remove themselves from that same group. The very things that drew them “to” the group, no longer satisfy and at some point they leave looking for another group that has a greater attraction.

Our church group, like others, has not been immune and we have experienced members (many good friends of mine) leaving for a variety of reasons. Most of them that I have either spoken with, or read their comments on Facebook leave no doubt about their unhappiness or dissatisfaction with some aspect of the group of people they once were drawn to. My heart breaks over any group of people who suffer from disunity, but when it hits so close to home it affects everyone and the inevitable consequences of bitterness, taking up offences, pride, gossip, breaking of relationships, etc., takes its toll. Everyone loses in this scenario, the body of Christ is damaged and people suffer as a result.

As people divide, all the members of the once unified group are left to:

• Choose sides (after all there has to be the right side and wrong side).
• Wonder… “What happened?” Many of the newer members may be totally clueless to some long standing issues from the past.
• Decide who or what to blame. In the movie, National Treasure 2, Sadusky catches up with Ben and the following conversation takes place; “Someone’s got to go to prison, Ben, but you’ll feel better inside.” Ben asks, “Is there a door that doesn’t lead to prison?”
• Make judgments, and most of the time without the benefit of all of the facts.
• Sort out the pieces and try to make sense of it all.

Unfortunately, nothing good comes from any of it. Sometimes people choose to mend broken relationships, but sadly, most do not.

Perhaps David should have penned the Psalm to read, “Behold how really bad and how unpleasant it is for brethren not to dwell together in unity!”

God clearly gives direction on how to mend broken relationships.

1 Corinthians 3:3 advises us against carnal relationships full of envy and strife. "For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men?"

1 Peter 2:1 advises us in relationships to not be hateful, envious, deceptive, nor speak evil of others. "Wherefore laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies, and envies, and all evil speakings,"

James 3:14 advises us to rid ourselves the envy and strife that is in our hearts. “But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth.

Romans 13:13 advises us to walk honestly and not in strife and envy. "Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying."

To all who have ever had situations where unity suffers and broken relationships occur, I am reminded of an answer that Billy Graham wrote to a woman who had a broken relationship with her mother.His words hold the answer as he extends years of biblical wisdom and counsel to her…and for that matter to all of us.

He writes, "Thank you for your letter - and I too hope your experience will cause someone to think about the broken relationships in their lives and try to do something about them. The Bible says, "If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone" (Romans 12:18).

One of life's hardest lessons is that we cannot change the past - and this is especially true when death intrudes. Then the opportunity to say something we should have said, or to do something we should have done, is gone forever. It is a bitter lesson, and one that leaves guilt and regret in its wake. The only solution is to ask God to open our eyes to things we need to do, and then give us the courage and wisdom to do them.

What should you do? First, seek God's forgiveness for your sins -- not just this one, but all of them. God loves you, and the greatest discovery you will ever make is that He wants you to be His friend forever. By a simple prayer of faith ask Jesus Christ to come into your life. He will forgive your past and give you hope for the future.

Then ask God to help you learn from this experience, and to give you a new love and a new concern for others. Jesus said, "As I have loved you, so you must love one another" (John 13:34).

As always I welcome your thoughts or ideas on this topic that certainly has wide reaching effect to many.

In Him,

Steve Riddell