Unity of the Spirit
"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)
As we read in the Book of the Acts of the Apostles, we find that an important feature of the early church was their love and unity. The Greek word “homothumadon,” which occurs 10 of its 12 times in Acts and is translated “accord,” means “of one mind, or, of one passion,” and is used to describe the bond that existed between the believers. This unity in the Spirit that the early church enjoyed was like the blend of instruments in a great orchestra: each sounding their various parts, but all blending harmoniously into a mighty symphony, each note complementing every other.
When strife and division entered the church, it was dealt with very seriously because the Apostles understood the devastating effect that this would have on the assemblies. Reading Psalm 133, we understand that there is a close relationship between believers dwelling together in unity, and the anointing and blessing of the Lord on His body, which is the Church. Verse 2 of Psalm 133 describes the anointing of Aaron the priest, but this anointing is symbolic of the anointing of the Holy Spirit on the body of Christ. “For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.” The name Christ means “the anointed one,” and the anointing always starts at the Head, Who is Christ, and flows down to His body, which is every born again believer. When we allow contention into our midst, we hinder the flow of the Spirit in our assemblies and the blessing of God on our lives.
Paul’s words in Ephesians 4 are very relevant here, “With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 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 4:2-6).
What we see of Christianity today would grieve the Apostles of the first century church. We are so divided among our various denominations and factions that it is rare to find real fellowship outside of our own group. There are over 1500 separate Christian organizations all claiming to be the body of Christ, and possess the truth, and, often, excluding those who belong to another persuasion. In any given city, we find dozens of “churches” divided by their own particular slant on scriptural truth. Often, even among these groups that see “eye to eye,” we see members splintering away and forming another “church” based on something they see differently than the original group.
The truth is (please sit down, or hold onto something solid): God does not recognize any of these groups and assemblies as His church. That’s because it is not a building or temple that defines the true body or church of Christ. It is not a particular doctrine, or membership in a certain organization, that defines Christ’s body. The only church that God recognizes is the one that consists of every true believer who has been filled with His Spirit and baptized into His Body. This church has no visible walls, or boundaries; it is more of an organism than it is an organization. It has no membership list because, “the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are His.” (2 Timothy 2:19). The name of every true believer is written in heaven lest we erase those whom we think don’t belong because they may disagree with us. Jesus Himself was written off by the religious factions of His time. In fact, it was they who had Him murdered!
When will we realize that the minute we begin to think of ourselves as exclusive, and form walls (whether visible or unseen) that separate true believers, we hinder the work of God and cut off, in a measure, the precious anointing of the Holy Spirit.
Why is it that when we meet other Christians, one of the first things we ask is, “What church do you go to?” We are immediately sizing them up, wanting to know what “brand” of Christian they are. If they go somewhere that we know believes differently than we, then we begin building a wall, and fellowship is then strained. It is not important where they go, but Whom they know. “If we walk in the light, as He (Jesus) is in the light, then we have fellowship one with another.” (1 John 1:7). Just a couple of believers, lifting up the name of Jesus instead of their dogma or organization, will experience the presence of the Lord as they fellowship together; and they will walk away refreshed and built up in the Lord. This is the purest form of church. Jesus said, “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” (Matthew 18:20).
Please understand, I am not endorsing some ecumenical movement that ignores sin and compromises key foundational Christian doctrine for the sake of unity. I am suggesting that if we strive to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace, we would see an outpouring of the Spirit in ways that we thought were no longer possible in our day and age. The world would clearly recognize us as disciples of Jesus because of the love that we have toward one another, and they would be drawn to the Lord by what they see.
The last verse of Psalm 133 speaks of the dew of Mt. Hermon and likens it to the blessing of eternal life. God describes His Word as dew in Deuteronomy 32:2: “Give ear, O ye heavens, and I will speak; and hear, O earth, the words of my mouth. My doctrine shall drop as the rain, my speech shall distil as the dew, as the small rain upon the tender herb, and as the showers upon the grass: because I will publish the name of the LORD: ascribe ye greatness unto our God.” The dew spreads itself evenly on every blade of grass and every tender herb – none are left out. As we seek to “publish the name of the Lord,” we will find that the blessing of life will grace our lives, too, and the love of Jesus will govern our relationship and actions to others. We will discover that we are indeed a part of the body of Christ and that our “congregation” is much larger than we ever imagined. We will find that we don’t go to church, but that we are the Church! We will also experience the precious ointment that anoints the head of our Lord and Savior and flows down to every member of the Body: even to the skirts of the garment!
As we read in the Book of the Acts of the Apostles, we find that an important feature of the early church was their love and unity. The Greek word “homothumadon,” which occurs 10 of its 12 times in Acts and is translated “accord,” means “of one mind, or, of one passion,” and is used to describe the bond that existed between the believers. This unity in the Spirit that the early church enjoyed was like the blend of instruments in a great orchestra: each sounding their various parts, but all blending harmoniously into a mighty symphony, each note complementing every other.
When strife and division entered the church, it was dealt with very seriously because the Apostles understood the devastating effect that this would have on the assemblies. Reading Psalm 133, we understand that there is a close relationship between believers dwelling together in unity, and the anointing and blessing of the Lord on His body, which is the Church. Verse 2 of Psalm 133 describes the anointing of Aaron the priest, but this anointing is symbolic of the anointing of the Holy Spirit on the body of Christ. “For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.” The name Christ means “the anointed one,” and the anointing always starts at the Head, Who is Christ, and flows down to His body, which is every born again believer. When we allow contention into our midst, we hinder the flow of the Spirit in our assemblies and the blessing of God on our lives.
Paul’s words in Ephesians 4 are very relevant here, “With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 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 4:2-6).
What we see of Christianity today would grieve the Apostles of the first century church. We are so divided among our various denominations and factions that it is rare to find real fellowship outside of our own group. There are over 1500 separate Christian organizations all claiming to be the body of Christ, and possess the truth, and, often, excluding those who belong to another persuasion. In any given city, we find dozens of “churches” divided by their own particular slant on scriptural truth. Often, even among these groups that see “eye to eye,” we see members splintering away and forming another “church” based on something they see differently than the original group.
The truth is (please sit down, or hold onto something solid): God does not recognize any of these groups and assemblies as His church. That’s because it is not a building or temple that defines the true body or church of Christ. It is not a particular doctrine, or membership in a certain organization, that defines Christ’s body. The only church that God recognizes is the one that consists of every true believer who has been filled with His Spirit and baptized into His Body. This church has no visible walls, or boundaries; it is more of an organism than it is an organization. It has no membership list because, “the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are His.” (2 Timothy 2:19). The name of every true believer is written in heaven lest we erase those whom we think don’t belong because they may disagree with us. Jesus Himself was written off by the religious factions of His time. In fact, it was they who had Him murdered!
When will we realize that the minute we begin to think of ourselves as exclusive, and form walls (whether visible or unseen) that separate true believers, we hinder the work of God and cut off, in a measure, the precious anointing of the Holy Spirit.
Why is it that when we meet other Christians, one of the first things we ask is, “What church do you go to?” We are immediately sizing them up, wanting to know what “brand” of Christian they are. If they go somewhere that we know believes differently than we, then we begin building a wall, and fellowship is then strained. It is not important where they go, but Whom they know. “If we walk in the light, as He (Jesus) is in the light, then we have fellowship one with another.” (1 John 1:7). Just a couple of believers, lifting up the name of Jesus instead of their dogma or organization, will experience the presence of the Lord as they fellowship together; and they will walk away refreshed and built up in the Lord. This is the purest form of church. Jesus said, “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” (Matthew 18:20).
Please understand, I am not endorsing some ecumenical movement that ignores sin and compromises key foundational Christian doctrine for the sake of unity. I am suggesting that if we strive to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace, we would see an outpouring of the Spirit in ways that we thought were no longer possible in our day and age. The world would clearly recognize us as disciples of Jesus because of the love that we have toward one another, and they would be drawn to the Lord by what they see.
The last verse of Psalm 133 speaks of the dew of Mt. Hermon and likens it to the blessing of eternal life. God describes His Word as dew in Deuteronomy 32:2: “Give ear, O ye heavens, and I will speak; and hear, O earth, the words of my mouth. My doctrine shall drop as the rain, my speech shall distil as the dew, as the small rain upon the tender herb, and as the showers upon the grass: because I will publish the name of the LORD: ascribe ye greatness unto our God.” The dew spreads itself evenly on every blade of grass and every tender herb – none are left out. As we seek to “publish the name of the Lord,” we will find that the blessing of life will grace our lives, too, and the love of Jesus will govern our relationship and actions to others. We will discover that we are indeed a part of the body of Christ and that our “congregation” is much larger than we ever imagined. We will find that we don’t go to church, but that we are the Church! We will also experience the precious ointment that anoints the head of our Lord and Savior and flows down to every member of the Body: even to the skirts of the garment!
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