Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Psalm 133:1 Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!
MESSAGES FROM INDIA (II)
What determines which people you spend most of your time with (apart from family members which you are stuck with)? What determines who your friends are? Whether we realize it or not, we usually decide who our friends are based on our similarities, interests, personality traits, etc. The same goes for finding a spouse. Notice the growing popularity of businesses like eharmony.com or cupid.com which go to great lengths to make sure that there is enough common ground to build a relationship.
The common bond or unity that the psalmist speaks of is a much deeper and richer unity. It transcends personality traits, common interests, even cultures and languages. It is the unity that God gives by bringing together all those who believe in him. He brings together an amazingly diverse cross section of people by giving them faith in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior from sin.
That is the relationship we have with all of our brothers and sisters in Nigeria, Congo, Tanzania, Kenya, India, etc. We are half a world away from one another, but we dwell in close unity. God has brought us together in Christ. We come from very different walks of life and our cultures are as different as night and day, but we share that common ground, bowing down together at the foot of the cross. When we meet there is a communication gap, but words are not needed to express the close fellowship and blessed unity of working together shoulder to shoulder in the Lord's kingdom. We praise and exalt the same God who has brought us out of the darkness and depravation of our sin into the glorious light and abundant life given through Jesus Christ. Blessed be the tie that binds our hearts in Christian love!
