Unity at all costs

SUMMARY: A united people are difficult to defeat. The church is governed by values of the Kingdom and Christ, which must be translated into love for God, fidelity to his word and love for one another. In the story of the conquest of the promised land, the qualities of the people that God began to raise up as a chosen nation are inspiration for today's Christian. Good intentions can be overridden by over-emotionalism, as seen in the Israelites who erected an alternate altar without consulting the Lord. Conflicts arise in the church because forgiveness and mercy are lacking, and misunderstandings abound when only gossip is heeded. The Lord Jesus Christ wants a united church, whose members hold high the doctrine of forgiveness and godliness, the practice of fellowship and brotherhood. For the world to believe, we must be united, unanimous in feeling, upright in walking, willing to give the best of each one of us to the Lord of the church. Despite the storms, gossip, misunderstandings, and the fragility of the weak in faith, the Lord wants the unity of his people at all costs.

A united people will be difficult to defeat. All the virtue of a people rests in its sense of unity and in the certainty of those convictions that become values over time. The convictions engender the values . Today many people talk about values: ethical and moral values, values of behavior and social conduct, values of the family, of marriage, of parenthood, etc. The church is a people governed by values: the values of the Kingdom, the values of Christ. These values must be translated into the church in love for God himself, in fidelity to his word and consequently, in love for one another.

Loving God is commandment and law and the only guarantee that, empowered by his Spirit, we can follow him in all his ways and serve him with heart and soul.