January 3
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THE EXCELLENCY OF BROTHERLY UNITY
Behold, how good and how pleasant it is
For brothers to dwell together in unity!
2 It is like the precious oil upon the head,
Coming down upon the beard,
Even Aaron’s beard,
Coming down upon the edge of his robes.
3 It is like the dew of Hermon
Coming down upon the mountains of Zion;
For there the LORD commanded the blessing—life forever. – Psalm 133
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David stresses in this psalm the excellency of brotherly unity. Many churches have fallen because of the lack of brotherly unity. Unity is borne out of love. Division comes from selfishness. When there is division in a person’s heart or in a relationship or church, there is a lack of surrender to love. In this psalm, David illustrates what results from oneness in spirit. It allows us to display the pursuit of peace and genuine love for God and his people.
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ADORATION: Praise be to you God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. You are three in one God, all united to bring glory to the Almighty. Since the beginning of time, you have operated in harmony with each other.
CONFESSION: Forgive me whenever I separate myself from you by independent thinking and following the dictates of my selfish nature. Forgive me whenever I do not submit to someone who has authority over me when I know they are believing lies.
THANKSGIVING: Thank you for the gift of brotherly love. Without it, there will be more chaos in this already corrupted world.
SUPPLICATION: I pray for all those who are at war with themselves, with others and with authorities. Remind them of the example of humility you showed the world when you came and lived amongst humans. Warn us each time we succumb to conflict or proving we are right and others are wrong.
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REFLECTION
• Why do you think we are called for unity in the church?
• What happens when division and selfish ambition corrupts the body of Christ?