138. UNITY/DISUNITY
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Behold how good and how pleasant it is for the brethren to dwell together in unity! (Ps.133:1).
1. We are one Family, one wife, one Body, one Bride, and we're working together for the Bridegroom.
2. Even weak men when united are powerful.
3. We are all soul brothers--a nation all of one blood, the blood of Jesus.
4. A true friend is one soul in two bodies.
5. There is no brotherhood of man without the Fatherhood of God.
6. We are not only one in spirit, but one in body, both in sex and sacrificial service to others.
7. The chain is no stronger than its weakest link.
8. The family that prays together stays together.
9. People that can't work with anybody else usually can't work with God either.
10. The unity of the flesh is symbolic of the unity of the spirit.
11. Only the Letters and the Lord can keep us unified and united in ideals, actions, spirit and goals!
12. The Lord rewards unity in His love!--Keep it loving!
13. It takes two to make a fight!
14. In unity there is strength!
15. The most powerful, the most far-reaching, the most effective and the longest-lasting empires of this world were those with unified leadership and a unified people working in tremendous cooperation together toward a unified goal.
16. Unity of the spirit is the greatest unity of all.
17. The great English historian Toynbee said: "To unite the World, you'd have to unite its religions"!
18. The secret of the Early Church was obedience and unity!
19. God help us to stay poor, and weak, and despised, and scattered, united only by His Love, His Spirit, and His Word!
20. Whatever we do, let's stick together till and when He comes, and then we'll run things right, the way they oughtta be, and there'll be no more sorrow nor crying nor pain nor death nor tears!
21. As Ben Franklin said, "We had better hang together, or it's a sure thing we are going to hang separately!"
22. The Early Church was not bound together by a dictatorial, hierarchical, centralised government, frozen together with formalities, but they were only united by His Spirit, governed by His Word, and melted together in His love, with an absolute minimum of supervision by the Apostles.
23. The strength of the church has always been its unity in the Lord.
24. Unity in the spirit, mind and heart should be far supreme and come first, and unity in the flesh will follow.
25. The ultimate in unity is one heart, one soul, one mind, one body!
26. Your victory is my victory, and all our victories are the Lord's victories!
27. This was Jesus' last prayer: "That they may be one, even as We are one." (Jn.17:21-23)
28. Like a mighty army moves the Church of God
Brothers we are treading where the saints have trod;
We are not divided, all one body we,
One in hope and doctrine, one in charity.
29. Christians may not always see eye-to-eye, but they can walk arm-in-arm.
30. United we stand, divided we fall.
31. Never get so far apart you can't stay together in spirit.
32. The things on which we agree are far more important than all the little things on which we disagree.
33. Let's get it together and keep it always in all ways together, with all of us always together.
34. Always go 2 by 2--stick together.
35. The only way to win this war is to fight it together against the enemy and not each other.
36. God always seems to bless harmony, people living together at peace with each other and helping each other and showing a large measure of love for each other.
37. A co-op is not a bunch of independent people doing their own thing and going their own way, it's a bunch of people who are each sacrificing their own personal independence to cooperate, share, sacrifice and work in unison, because in unity there is strength!
38. For God's sake and your own sake and His work's sake and even the World's sake, please work together so that you may be found worthy of those greater responsibilities of His coming Kingdom on Earth and that you may learn the lessons now that you will need to know in the days to come when you will be needed to rule the whole World.
39. We all need to work together, we need to listen to each other, counsel together, agree together, decide together and then work it out together.
40. Let's talk together, discuss together, counsel together, agree together, decide together, love together, go together, do it together, bear together, care together, grow together, work together, and enjoy the fruits of our labours together!
41. My Lord, if you must have fusses and arguments, have them in private, not in public and not before others!
42. About the only time when you don't knock heads together is when you're both going the same direction.
43. As the missionaries used to tell us, the biggest problem on the field was not the outside enemy, but the inside enemy: Personality clashes between missionaries, fusses, and money problems and all kinds of things inside the family of missionaries.
44. My Dad used to say that you can't have two families living underneath the same roof, and that's true, really. Unless you're really one family and really love each other, it doesn't work.
45. People that can't work with anybody else usually can't work with God either.
46. "Little" seeds of doubt and division and jealousy and bitterness that you sow have a way of quickly growing into huge wicked giants that can be more dangerous than you ever intended and do more damage to others than you had ever planned and even threaten to destroy you!
47. The Children of God are still marching on because we stick together: Sticking together in doctrine and fellowship and communication, which is extremely important.
48. The Devil first used Judas to try to bring division and dissension to destroy confidence in leadership.
49. There's something about the power of the spirit of two people: God's dynamics of the spirit really operate amazingly! The Lord says, "When one can only chase a thousand, two can put ten thousand to flight."
50. Murmuring is the voice of the Enemy and his doubts, and a critical spirit sows dissension, disunity and discord amongst brethren, one of the seven abominations to God! (Pr.6:16-19)
51. Our spiritual Enemy is always looking for a weakness, a way to enter our defenses, and is casting fiery darts into the city of our own fellowship, trying to sow dissension, jealousy, covetousness, bickering, selfishness and internal discord so we'll get so busy fighting amongst ourselves we won't even notice our walls of spiritual strength from the Lord are crumbling from neglect or smouldering with sin, giving a place for the Enemy to enter in and destroy us and God's work. Only the cool winds and rains of God's purifying chastisements and the waters of His Word can smother the flames of disunity in His Love and wash away the black filth of our lack of love and loyalty, so we can unite against the foe, save His own and fill the Earth with God's light.
52. "Divide and conquer" is the Devil's own slogan! (Mt.12:25)
53. Sowing division in Homes is a frequent Judas method.
54. Doubt, fear, discouragement and murmuring kill!
55. Are you having problems in your part of the Father's Estate? Has the Evil Sorcerer sown the evil seeds of jealousy or contention in your Garden?--Are they growing into bitter nagging gnawing choking weeds of discontent, dissension, bitterness and strife? Are they making a way for the wicked giants of discouragement, doubt, fear, despair and even thoughts of self-destruction to enter in?
56. Call on the Father for help and "He will show thee great and mighty things thou knowest not of!"--Like the strong defending Axe of His Word that will chop down and destroy all those evil weeds and chase away the giants of gloom and bitterness and turn your ashes into lilies to make you all happy again!
57. You must forgive those who've wronged you, and seek forgiveness of those you have wronged, and take them by the hand back into your circle of love and fellowship in happy joyful labours and pleasures together, especially your own brothers and sisters and fathers and mothers and children and loving companions!
58. Undermining confidence in others' leadership before their own followers is absolutely forbidden in this outfit and almost the unpardonable sin, unless absolutely necessary according to Mt.18:15-17.
59. If I hear of any more disunity and public quarrels and criticisms before the Family, disagreement before others, contention and criticism of each other, either before others or behind their backs to others, I'm going to lower the rod.
60. For you who want division, we will gladly give it to you--division from us! You can go back to the churches, who are feuding, overgrown, retarded children in fancy nurseries and who specialise in this sort of thing!
61. "He that is not with Me is against Me." (Mt.12:30)
62. "Now I beseech you brethren, by the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no division among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgement." (1Cor.1:10)
63. Only in the folly of this World do men fight each other for fickle fame and fortune.
64. We are not divided, all one body we, one in hope, one in doctrine, one in charity.
65. To hell with all the differences, discriminations and prejudices!--To hell with the Worldly, fleshly, Satanic, nationalistic, divisive spirit which has nearly destroyed the Earth with its divisions and wars!
66. Not all voices are of God. If it is not according to His Word or if it causes you to be discontent or bitter, dissatisfied or unhappy or critical of others--these things are not of the Lord and you must rebuke the Enemy in Jesus' Name when he tempts you with these negative thoughts.
67. Sometimes Jesus' disciples argued with Him, or questioned Him about something they didn't understand--but which of them do you ever recall making outright criticisms of Him and His policies in such a way that it could have brought division? In John 12 for example, we find Judas questioning Jesus' permitting Mary to pour the pound of costly ointment on His feet. Wasn't that a rather stinging criticism of Jesus? Wasn't this something that could have brought division? Why did he say it unless he was trying to bring division?
68. Anybody who will seriously question is a doubter: Doubts are the voice of unbelief. Questions are the result of doubts. Doubts voice questions, and the questions become criticisms. Criticism is disloyalty and it brings division.
69. The fires of division within your city can make you vulnerable to attack from the Enemy without. The hot destructive fires within can cause the walls of your defenses to crumble, giving the Enemy an opportunity to enter.
70. The first thing to do was to repair the wall, the gap--and show the Enemy that they were prepared to fight them, and not let them in! And immediately when the great knight summoned the people to face the real Enemy, the fire went out just like that--they didn't have to put it out!--God put it out! And the minute they dropped all their fleshly attempts to try to put out the fire themselves, and obeyed his call and turned to repair the breach and fight the Enemy, God put out the fire!
71. The danger of the fires from within is that they distract you from the greater danger without. The danger from within is serious in that it weakens your defenses against the outer danger and distracts from the main job!
72. Only the Enemy tries to divide and conquer...You know what God wants! Are you willing to make some accommodations and sacrifices to help make this possible?
73. As any missionary can tell you, most of the troubles on the mission field come not from without but from within!
74. When you're doubting in your own mind, you're thinking the Enemy's thoughts! When you're voicing your thoughts to others, you're spreading Satan's propaganda.--And it's all designed to bring division, and through division, destruction of the Work of God.
75. People are quicker to find fault than to value virtue.
76. We may not be the most beautiful birds nor sing the most beautiful songs, but at least we sing together, and if we sing loud enough we can drown everyone else out and overcome everything!
77. The Lord loves to give the answers and He has to give the answers when He sees we're united in love and prayer and purpose and mind and heart and spirit, of one mind, one heart, in one place. This is the marvel and the secret of the Day of Pentecost.
78. Unity demonstrates faith by obedience.
(See Also No. C, 61, 70, 75A, 189, 191, 249, 263, 290, 325, 325B, 331, 335C, 337B, 706, 752, 781, 848-2, 849, 950, 1001, 1115, 1383, 1586.)
79. PSA.55:12-14 For it was not an enemy that reproached me; then I could have borne it: neither was it he that hated me that did magnify himself against me; then I would have hid myself from him: But it was thou, a man mine equal, my guide, and mine acquaintance. We took sweet counsel together, and walked unto the house of God in company.
80. PSA.133:1 Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for the brethren to dwell together in unity!
81. PRO.25:8,9 Go not forth hastily to strive, lest thou know not what to do in the end thereof, when thy neighbour hath put thee to shame. Debate thy cause with thy neighbour himself; and discover not a secret to another.
82. ECC.4:9,10,12 Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labour. For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow: but woe to him that is alone when he falleth; for he hath not another to help him up. And if one prevail against him, two shall withstand him; and a threefold cord is not quickly broken.
83. EZE.22:30 And I sought for a man among them that should make up the hedge and stand in the gap before Me for the land, that I should not destroy it.
84. AMO.3:3 Can two walk together, except they be agreed?
85. MAT.12:25 And Jesus knew their thoughts, and said unto them, Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand.
86. MAR.3:24,25 And if a kingdom be divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand.
87. JOH.17:11b Holy Father, keep through Thine Own Name those whom Thou hast given Me, that they may be one, as We are.
88. JOH.17:21-24 That they all may be one; as Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be one in Us: that the World may believe that Thou hast sent Me. And the glory which Thou gavest Me I have given them; that they may be one, even as We are one: I in them, and Thou in Me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the World may know that Thou hast sent Me, and hast loved them, as Thou hast loved Me. Father, I will that they also, whom Thou hast given Me, be with Me where I am; that they may behold My glory, which Thou hast given Me: for Thou lovedst Me before the foundation of the World.
89. ACT.1:14a These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication.
90. ACT. 2:46 And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart.
91. ACT.4:32 And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul: neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common.
92. ROM.15:5,6 Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus: That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
93. ROM.16:17 Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them.
94. 1CO.1:10 Now I beseech you, brethren, by the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.
95. 1CO.11:18b,19 I hear that there be divisions among you; and I partly believe it. For there must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you.
96. 1CO.12:12,13 For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.
97. 1CO.12:25-27 That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another. And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice with it. Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.
98. 1CO.14:33 For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.
99. 2CO.12:20 For I fear, lest, when I come, I shall not find you such as I would, and that I shall be found unto you such as ye would not: lest there be debates, envyings, wraths, strifes, backbitings, whisperings, swellings, tumults.
100. GAL.3:26-28 Ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.
101. EPH.1:10b Gather together in one all things in Christ.
102. EPH.2:14 For He is our peace, Who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us.
103. EPH.2:19-22 Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief corner stone; In Whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: In Whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.
104. EPH.4:31 Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice.
105. PHI.1:27b That ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the Gospel.
106. PHI.2:1,2 If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies, Fulfill ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.
107. COL.3:15 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful.
108. 1TH.5:13b Be at peace among yourselves.
109. 2TH.3:6,14,15 We command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly, and not after the tradition which he received of us. If any man obey not our word by this epistle, note that man, and have no company with him, that he may be ashamed. Yet count him not as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother.
110. 1TI.6:3-5 If any man teach otherwise, and consent not to wholesome words, even the Words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness; He is proud, knowing nothing, but doting about questions and strifes of words, whereof cometh envy, strife, railings, evil surmisings, Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness; from such withdraw thyself.
111. 2TI.2:23 But foolish and unlearned questions avoid, knowing that they do gender strifes.
112. HEB.12:15 Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled.
113. 2JO.10,11 If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed: For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds.
(See also 1Co.12:12-23; Eph.2:14-19; 4:4-6,12,13,16,25.)
Copyright (c) 1998 by The Family