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Scripture:
May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony
with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, that together you may with one
voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. (– Romans 15:5-6 ESV)
A blessed day my dear brothers and sisters in Christ, Welcome back to another
episode of the Prayer Blends!
Before we start, I just want to share a story about my friend.
John was outside looking for something to eat. After searching for a while, he
found bread that is so big that he cannot lift by himself so he went home and
told his friends about what he found. What was once a struggle became an easy
task with the help of his friends and He shared the food with them and they
all enjoyed the fruits of their labor?
Let us pray. Yes Lord Hallelujah, we worship and glorify your name. Thank you,
God, for this time and opportunity to study your word. Thank you, Lord, for
the spiritual food that we are about to receive. We are not here by accident
but because of the Holy Spirit speaking through us that we are here gathered
in your name. Thank you, Lord, for the stable internet connection because it
is a useful tool that you have given us to preach your word. Lord God, I
pray that please open our spiritual eyes and hearts as we dig deeper into
studying your word tonight. Bless the reading of your words. Use me Lord to
speak through the hearts of those who need to hear this message. Lord I gladly
boast my nothingness that apart from you I am nothing, we are nothing.
We need your love Lord, We need your Holy Spirit, We need your presence, and
we need you, Lord. This is my prayer in Jesus’ mighty name. Amen!
Unity means the quality or state of being made one.
Let us find out the truths in this verse:
God is the master reconciler.
Reconcile means, according to Merriam-Webster dictionary, to restore
friendship or harmony.
Everything God does always multiply and generates unity.
1. Between God and man, since we were separated by God because of our sin
(Genesis 3), He sent His only begotten Son here on earth to redeem us from our
sins and restore our relationship with God. (1st part of John 3:16)
2. Between Creation and God, we can look at the time of Noah when God decided
to flood the earth because of the sins of man “So the Lord said, “I will wipe
from the face of the earth the human race I have created—and with them, the
animals, the birds and the creatures that move along the ground—for I regret
that I have made them.” – Genesis 6:7 NIV but Noah found favor in the eyes of
God so he spared Noah and his family (v8)
3. Between Jews and Gentiles, Jews and Gentile are separated because of their
customs and traditions but because of Jesus, the salvation offered to the Jews
first became free for everyone willing to receive it. We can check the story
in Acts 10, when Cornelius, a Roman officer, had a vision from God to invite
Peter in his household. When Peter obeyed God, this opened the door for the
Holy Spirit to move and the entire household of the centurion surrendered
their lives to Jesus.
The cross is the only place where the irreconcilable becomes reconciled.
So what happens next when we’re united? What is our Goal? Why does God want us
to be united?
Ephesians 1: 9-10 states, “making known to us the mystery of his will,
according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the
fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on
earth.”
In other words, In Christ, God revealed the mystery of his will, which is to
bring unity to all things in heaven and in the earth.
We all have experienced the devastatingly divisive power of sin. Sin separates
us from God and from each other. But at the cross, Jesus demolished the power
of sin. That is why the whole point of Christ’s work was to reconcile that
which was pulled apart.
Our goal why God wants us to live in harmony with one another, in accord with
Christ Jesus, that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ.
And lastly, when we are united by living harmoniously through Christ Jesus, we
are fulfilling one of the principal commandments of God that is to love your
neighbor as yourself.
When we are obeying God’s commandments, He is very pleased in us and when he
is pleased with us, we will be rewarded according to the riches of His glory.
May the grace of the Lord Jesus be with us all.
Photo by: Helena Lopes
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