GOD'S WORK IN COMMUNITY

DAILY READING

 Psalm 133

Sermon Discussion Starters

DEVOTION / REFLECTION

See How They love One Another!

by Elaine Pierce

I love the first verse of this psalm - it's so positive and encouraging:

How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity!

Don't we all want life to be like that? No quarrels.....no differences.....everyone happy all the time....but take a look at the second verse: 

It [living together in unity] is like precious oil poured on the head, running down on the beard, running down on Aaron's beard, down upon the collar of his robes.

Huh? If you take a look at Exodus 30:22-30, you will learn more about this 'precious oil.' It was costly, time consuming to make, and rare. It was only to be used for Aaron and his priests.  

So unity is a precious thing. It is not to be taken for granted. And I don't know if living in unity necessarily means a lack of conflict. Look at the last verse of this short psalm:

For there the Lord bestows his blessing, even life forevermore.  

We will receive the Lord's blessing - but that doesn't mean we won't experience strife. An ancient Roman Christian, Tertullian, lived during a time of intense persecution against the church. In 197 AD he wrote a letter to the Roman authorities pleading for justice for the church against cruel opposition. It was a very long letter (50 chapters!) but a quote from this letter endures today. He describes how the church cares for its members like this:

See how they love one another!

Is that what our friends and neighbors say about UALC? May it be so! Lord, we pray for unity in the body of Christ right here in Columbus. May we care for one another in times of need and in times of joy, and may we be a witness to the God who loves us and longs to bring others into his kingdom.  Amen.  

The Blessing of Life Together

As we focus this week on Small Groups, and their impact and importance in our lives, use the daily readings to reinforce our need for this type of community. We were created to care for one another, love one another and touch one another's lives.

STUDY THE SCRIPTURE

Click here to access the reading from Psalm 133 

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You will find the Sermon Notes for today’s message here.

REFLECTION

One Anothering
by Elaine Pierce

Psalm 133:

How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity!

Ecclesiastics 4:10-12

Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work:  If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!  Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone?  Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

Acts 2:46-47:

Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people.

What do these passages have in common? King David wrote about living together in unity in the Psalms, our passage for today. In Ecclesiastics, King Solomon talks about how important it is to have a friend to help you, and to keep you warm. And in Acts, Luke, the physician, tells us about how the first Christians met together and grew in their faith.

Where would you be without the help of others? Could Solomon have built the temple by himself? When Moses needed help, he turned to his brother, Aaron. Did Noah need his family to help him build the ark? When Paul was blinded by the bolt of lightning, Ananias came alongside and cared for him.

God has designed us for community. This pandemic has certainly made it harder to be in community, but thanks to technology, we can zoom with our friends and loved ones. We can share prayer requests on Facebook. We can even use the computers in our pockets as phones and call those we love, and those who are isolated and lonely.

The pandemic will end, Lord willing. There will be a vaccine or a cure. But in the meantime, God was not surprised by this, and he longs for us to live in unity. The last verse of this short psalm says it well: For there [in community with others] the Lord bestows his blessing, even life forevermore.

Life forevermore. Meditate on that for a while. (Even go back and read the accounts in Revelation about what this life will look like – almost beyond description). I am grateful for the community of believers at UALC, and I am grateful for my small groups, where I can encourage – and be encouraged – by others who are walking this journey with me.

Ecclesiastics says, “a cord of three strands is not easily broken.” That third strand – the presence of God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit – makes all the difference. Thanks be to the Lord for the body of Christ.

UALC’S CAMPAIGN OF PRAYER - SUNDAY

SCRIPTURES - Pray the Scriptures. Some examples are Psalm 91:1-15 / Psalm 121:5-8 / John 14:27 / Philippians 4:6-7 / 2 Timothy 1:7

Together in the same boat

"How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity!”  Psalm 133:1

When she was in high school, my daughter-in-law had rowed on their Midwest champion crew team.  Not knowing a lot about the sport, I asked her what quality was most crucial for success in crew.  Was it strength?  Technique?  Timing?  Her response surprised me. “Trust,” she said, “Each person has to be able to trust in the commitment of everyone else in the boat.”

Applying every ounce of energy with precisely honed technique requires the assurance that each team member is doing likewise, and it is inspired by the knowledge that everyone else in the boat is counting on the same from us.  This is true in crew; it is true, also, in life.

When a brother or sister in Christ is called or gifted differently than we are, we can trust that God knows what he is doing and that he has a specific purpose for that believer.  We need not be discouraged from our shared task.  

When we see a flaw in another, we can trust that God sees it more clearly than we do and that sanctification is the Coach’s responsibility.  We need not be distracted from the race or our role in it.  

When we see more needs around us than we can possibly meet, we can trust God to recruit other teammates who are just as passionate and capable as we are, and better fitted to the need.  We need not be disheartened.

We cannot afford to be distracted from the race by our differences, our flaws or even our shortfalls.  Ours is to commit our all and to trust each other.

For God is developing each of us; he is coaching all of us. 

"[Love] always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres."  1 Corinthians 13:7

[To see the daily reading, Psalm 133, click here.]

Conflicted about Conflict

Psalm 133:1 (NIV)

How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity!  

I hate conflict.  I find it difficult to face uncomfortable situations and address them head on. I suspect many of you reading this feel much like I do.  It used to be so bad that my husband would compare my temperament to that of our Golden Retriever, Izzy, who would jump up on me if ever he heard a raised voice.  His tail would wag he'd and pant nervously, using every trick in the book to bring peace back to his world.

Naturally, I had to grin when I read verse one of today's scripture.  Age and wisdom have taught me how to hurdle this shortcoming.  While peace is wonderful, there are times when it is necessary to face truth and speak it with love.  Facing difficult situations is part of life. We would never want to ignore warning signs of illness or disease.  It might not be high on your list of things you want to do, but some things we have to face, if only for the peace it brings.

Once conflict is faced and we have stepped out of denial, relief washes over us. There is such a feeling of contentment and perhaps even a thought of, "Why did I wait so long?" When family disputes are discussed and when fractured friendships are mended, then truly we can know “How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity!”

Is there something you have been avoiding, someone who needs to hear from you a few words of love or forgiveness? Is it time you have that difficult conversation with a loved one or co-worker?  Let your words be the balm for someone's heart today.

Psalm 133