The Importance of Unity

Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! —Psalm 133:1, KJV

We all have our opinions, and we are sure that we are right. And right beside our opinion is our pride.

If I hold to a particular point of view and you don’t go along with me, then my pride is at stake. It is natural for me to want to be proved right, to have my opinion validated. So I want you to agree with me. If you do agree with me, I like it. But the fact that I want you to agree with my opinion doesn’t make it right.

That’s why the unity of the Spirit is a remarkable achievement. The unity of the Spirit is not natural, but it is supernatural; therefore, it cannot be explained naturally. What do I mean by that?

When we come across a person who is ambitious to achieve, we can understand this too, because this is natural. But unity of the Spirit is supernatural. It means that our natural ways, where we want to be heard and make our opinion felt, are not important, and we are willing to step down.

There are three observations that I suggest are important.

First, blessing is given where there is unity: “For there the Lord bestows his blessing” (Ps. 133:3).

Second, unity is what Satan fears most. He will come alongside like an angel of light to make you think something is of the Lord when it is not. The devil will remind you of every wrong in other people.

Third, unity of the Spirit is not an optional matter. Some of us have lost credibility with others because we have to have our way all the time, and people feel they are walking on eggshells because we are so difficult and so abrasive. What we need to do is to come to the place where the Holy Spirit is ungrieved, and we are willing to feel messy and not look so good; then the anointing will flow.

Excerpted from Higher Ground (Christian Focus Publications Ltd., 1995).