"If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from His love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion then make my joy complete by being likemined having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose." Philippians 2:1-2

Last week we looked at several aspects of fellowship and our unity, our oneness in Christ.
"To sum up, let all be harmonious, sympathetic, brotherly, kindhearted, and humble in spirit." 1 Peter 3:8

Scripture has much to say of unity and using the words of the Apostle Peter's summation in the above verse could further open unity up to us.
(I would urge you to do your own study.) Scripture, also, warns that lack of unity brings with it a division in the Church. Let's not let this creep into our fellowship.

Scripture tells us that division weakens:
Jesus said in Luke 11:17,
"But He knew their thoughts, and said to them, 'Any kingdom divided against itself is laid waste and a house divided against itself falls.'"

The Apostle Paul to the Corinthians,
"Now I exhort you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak of the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment." 1 Corinthians 1:10

In 1 Corinthians 3:3 Paul again addresses the division among the Corinthians, speaking to them 'as to carnal, as to babes in Christ.'
"For you are still carnal. For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men?"

Once again, Paul speaks of the division that exist among them, "In the first place, I hear that when you come together as a church, there are divisions among you, and to some extent I believe it." 1 Corinthians 11:18

Paul writes in Philippians 4:2-3
"I plead with Euodia and I plead with Syntche to agree with each other in the Lord. Yes, and I ask you, loyal yokefellow, help these women who have contended at my side in the cause of the gospel..."

In my NIV Study Bible there is this comment on Philippians 4:2-3.
"The disagreement between Euodia and Syntche is serious enough to be mentioned in a letter to be read publicly, but Paul seems confident that these women will be reconciled. His handling of the situation is a model of tact--he does not take sides but encourages others closer to the situation to promote reconciliation." End of quote.

Division in the Church is very serious and is harmful to all. The following is a quote from T. Austin Sparks, from "The Cup and The Fire" Chapter 3.
"Let some rift go on, and just see the havoc that delay, over putting that right, will work! If you have the Spirit - and of course I am addressing those who are suppose to have the Spirit - you should know that, if you are out of joint with another member the Body of Christ to which you belong, it is, as it is with a dislocation in the natural physical body; there is an ache, a perpetual ache..." End of Quote.

Let us do as Paul says in Ephesians 4,
"Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.
And be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you." Vs. 31-32

And let us heed Jesus' commandment,
"This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you." John 15:12

Thank you Lord for bringing to our attention the destruction that a division in the Church can bring. May Your Holy Spirit expose any ought anyone has against another so that it may be healed quickly through forgiveness and reconciliation for the good of all. Most importantly, that the testimony of Christ would be seen by all in our oneness.

So I end with Matthew 5:16,
"Let your light shine before men, in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven."
Amen