Distance Devotions – April 26, 2020
Psalm 133:1 – Unity Among the Brethren
Ps 133:1 A Song of degrees of David. Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!
The Bible speaks of separation. There are professed believers from who we must separate over sin issues as laid out in 1 Corinthians 5. Further, we are also told to separate from those who teach and promote false doctrine. There are also limits on how much friendship we can have with unbelievers. Yoking up with unbelievers in marriage and other entanglements are forbidden. We must be balanced we begin to talk about unity. Unity is spoken of in glowing terms. We are told to endeavor to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. It must be a worthy cause to receive such accolades from the God of heaven.
Unity, sweet unity among those who know the Lord is a wondrous thing indeed. Notice how the Lord describes it: good and pleasant. Thomas Haweis said: Among the deadliest evils which have befallen the church of God, we may justly reckon the divisions, disputes, and animosities which have from time to time so grievously rent it, disfigured its beauty, destroyed its peace. O that we had passed at last the water of strife, and begun to taste the blessedness of loving one another out of a pure heart fervently. We do, after all, have the same Father and all who are born again belong to the same family. The desire to get along with our brethren is natural. Not at the expense of doctrine or deportment, but certainly we should be willing to forego some things that we might enjoy a broader range of fellowship. Paul the Apostle said he would forego eating meat if in doing so he would avoid offending his Christian brother.
The tendency of some to demand that everyone jump up and down in their basket has led to wars among preachers. It is a sad commentary on modern Christianity that we have separated one from another over small and insignificant issues. Defend doctrine, yes! Defend purity and holiness, yes! But by all means let us set aside those things that do not really matter. One man has his congregation observe the Lord’s Supper every week, another leads in Communion monthly, and yet another leads in the lord’s Supper quarterly. These things should not keep us apart. I am a premillennialist, but I have friends who are not. I see no reason to fall out with a brother over prophecy. Let us seek as much unity as possible, yea, let us endeavor (work hard) at it for the Word of God says it is a good and pleasant thing.
Pastor F. J. Weems III