Psalm 133:1 Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!
Ephesians 4:3-6 endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were 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 4:15,16 but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the Head-Christ-from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.
I looked up the word unity in both the Strong’s and the dictionary and this is what I discovered: In the Hebrew (ST 3162/3161) the word unity means a unit, alike, together, to be or become one, join, unite. In the Greek (ST 1775/1520), it means oneness, unanimity, primary numeral, ONE, a certain +abundantly man.
The dictionary defines unity like this: oneness; union or parts forming a complex whole; harmony; the number one; oneness of effect.
Then, I looked up “Body” in the Strong’s and in the Greek (ST 4983/4982) and was very excited to see that it is the same meaning as the word “save” (From Luke 9:56, 19:10, etc. Please see my post titled “SOZO” dated August 31, 2014) It is: to save, deliver, protect, heal, preserve, do, save (self), do well, be (make) whole.
The Father, Son and Holy Spirit are One, and we become one with them when we accept Christ as our Lord and Bridegroom, as our Savior. (Ephesians 2:14-16)
The Lord Jesus said in John 14:20 At that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you.
Unity in the Body of Christ is imperative if we are to be effective. If you look at the human body, you will notice that all parts work together for the complete and perfect function. It can’t and doesn’t split up and go every which way.
Unfortunately, the Body of Christ has done just that. We have different denominations, beliefs, traditions and laws.
I am reading a book titled “The Heavenly Man” by Our Chinese Christian brother Yun. He met the Lord at age 16 and began to preach and teach Jesus to hundreds of people. Because of his love of Christ, he was imprisoned and severely tortured.
Bibles were illegal in China at the time so not many had one. Westerners began to provide Bibles and the church grew even more, however, after a while, the providers began to put other books in with the Bibles…..ones that said you have to do this or have that, or any of our other doctrinal or denominational laws, rules, traditions…….you name it. Well, soon the Chinese believers got confused and disunity was begun in the Body.
We need to pull together as Christ’s Body. My pastor used to pray, “Lord, I would be happy if You would make me just the pinky toe of the Body.” The Lord showed him that every part of the body has an important function and that the toes give the body stability.
Every single one of you that has a relationship with Jesus Christ is important! Each one of you are required to make the Body whole and effective. Let’s come together in Him and allow Christ, the Head to lead us and see what happens!
My prayer for the Body of Christ is this:
That we would live according to our new life in the Holy Spirit and be directed by Him. I pray that God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ give you spiritual wisdom and understanding so that you might grow in your knowledge of Him. I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the wonderful future He has promised to those He has called and that you would realize what a rich and glorious inheritance He has given to His people. I pray that you would begin to understand the incredible greatness of His power for us who believe Him. I pray that from His glorious, unlimited resources He will give you mighty inner strength through His Holy Spirit and that Christ would be more and more at home in your hearts as you trust in Him. May your roots go down deep into the soil of God’s marvelous love and may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high and how deep His love really is. May you experience the love of Christ and be filled with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. I pray that you would be strong in the Lord’s mighty power. I pray that your love for each other will overflow more and more, and that you keep on growing in your knowledge and understanding, that you would understand what really matters, and that God would give you complete understanding of what He wants to do in your lives and to make you wise with spiritual wisdom. I pray that you will be strengthened with His glorious power and may you be filled with joy. Holy Spirit, help us to draw together as the Body of Christ. Now may the God of peace make you holy in every way, and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be kept blameless until that day when our Lord Jesus Christ comes again. God, who calls you, is faithful; He will do this. Amen!
References: All scriptures from NKJV; Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1990; Thorndike Barnhart Comprehensive Desk Dictionary, 1950; The Heavenly Man, Brother Yun with Paul Hattaway, Monarch Books, Mill Hill, London and Grand Rapids, Michigan, 2002; Photo taken by me in northern Maine. My husband cut a tree in pieces and we discovered this number one!
