How wonderful and pleasant it is when brothers live together in harmony! For harmony is as precious as the anointing oil that was poured over Aaron’s head, that ran down his beard and onto the border of his robe. Harmony is as refreshing as the dew from Mount Hermon that falls on the mountains of Zion. And there the LORD has pronounced his blessing, even life everlasting. (Psalms 133:1-3 NLT)
This is one of those feel-good passages that talk about the blessings of "getting along with one another."
David is the author of this psalm, and the best one to appreciate the blessing of unity. Under David’s leadership the twelve tribes of Israel were united.
They put aside tribal jealousy in a spirit of cooperation and became a united kingdom. This enabled David to strengthen the nation and establish the capital in Jerusalem.
Some Christians compete with one another as if they were on opposing teams. We need to be team-players.
The two images that are given in this passage paint a beautiful analogy of what true unity looks like - even in today's world: It is like oil coming down the beard of Aaron. And, it is like the refreshing dew coming down from Mt. Hermon onto the lower hills of Mt. Zion.
The first is kind of messy - oil flowing down Aaron's beard - even to the border of his robe.
When I anoint the sick - I usually just put a little oil on the tip of my finger and place my hand on their forehead. In this picture - it's almost as if they pour a bucket on his head.
The second is a refreshing picture of this massive mountain in the middle of a desert sending it's dew toward the lower hills. (To be honest, words cannot explain how beautiful this really is.)
We need the dew of fellowship if we’re to flourish in our faith. Unity cannot be manufactured by human effort; it is a gift produced by the Spirit. Unity is ours in Christ. Jesus prayed beneath the shadow of the cross that we “may all be one” (Jn 17:22).
Dew is a symbol of blessing. When Isaac blessed his son Jacob, he stated, “May God give you of heaven’s dew” (Gen 27:28), meaning the resource of prosperity.
In contrast, Isaac told Esau that his “dwelling will be away from the dew of heaven” (vs 39). Moses prayed that his teachings would “descend like dew” (Deut 32:2).
Proverbs describes the favor of a king “like dew on the grass” (19:12). Isaiah compares dew to the resurrection of our bodies (26:19).
And God declares in Hosea, “I will be like the dew to Israel, which will blossom like a lily” (14:5).
Blessings descend to us, but we ought to receive them together. We are blessed individually and collectively. What dew and oil have in common is that they are both flowing down. David focuses on the source and direction of these blessings. They come down from above upon God’s people.
“Unity” is a gift of grace, and “Life forevermore” is the ultimate blessing, salvation. When we live together in harmony as God’s people, we get a foretaste of eternal life. We are part of a “forever family”.
As we look around our church we see people we’re going to spend eternity with in heaven. Why not get to know them better now?
If we want a bit of heaven on earth, we can start now by uniting with fellow believers every way we can.
When Jewish pilgrims sang this psalm as they journeyed to Jerusalem, they did not sing solo or travel alone. They came to the feasts and holy days from many different walks of life, regions, and tribes. No matter how hard the pilgrimage conditions were, the fellowship of God’s people made the journey refreshing.
We too are pilgrims; we have a destination, our heavenly home, and we are traveling together. It’s foolish to try to be a believer in isolation.
The moment we become Christians, we become part of a body of believers, the Body of Christ.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote, “Our community with one another consists in what Christ has done for us.”
Christ is the basis of our fellowship. We are a family in Christ. No Christian is an only child. We can’t thrive in isolation. We need to see our identity in the Body of Christ.
We form together the visible shape of what God is like. We are a community rooted in relationship.
This doesn’t mean that we’re always one big happy family: “To dwell above with saints we love, oh that will be glory! To dwell below with saints we know…that’s a different story.”
When we trust Christ we gain resources to live godly lives, but we do not stop being sinners. Our personalities do not change. If we were quiet, analytical, unemotional before conversion to Christ, we’re not going to suddenly become touchy-feely extroverts.
We are who we are. God wants us to appreciate the diversity within His family. We may not think alike, but we should work together. We need to unconditionally accept one another and treat each other with dignity and respect.
The fact that we are all unique is an advantage. We’re visibly together when we worship, and we should remain in relationship through the week. We’re missing out if we only see each other on Sunday.
Philip Yancy writes, “Christianity is not a purely intellectual, internal faith. It can only be lived in community.”
So the question is not, “Am I going to be part of a community of faith” but “How am I going to live in this community of faith?”
We can pretend that we’re on our own, but eventually we realize how much we need each other.
If it is not visible that we care about one another, it is doubtful whether we love one another.
When believers come together, something supernatural happens; Jesus promises, “Where two or three come together in My Name, there am I with them” (Mt 18:20).
The author of Hebrews urges, “Let us consider how we can spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching” (10:25).
We are not solitary saints. We are incomplete until we find fellowship with others who share our faith. Jesus modeled community with His disciples.
They lived out their faith in connection with one another. They shared a common purpose, united around their Teacher.
The disciples didn’t always get along. There was some bickering and competitiveness.
Jesus had to remind them (and us) that we are all brothers, not rivals. Together we can all transformed the world around us.
How you treat other Christians really matters and has an impact on whether people are going to come to Christ or not.
No comments:
Post a Comment