Text: Ephesians 4:13, 3-5, Philippians 1:27, Psalms 133:1-3
Ephesians 13 Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:
Ephesians 3 Endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4 There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; 5 One Lord, one faith, one baptism,
Philippians 27 Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel;
Psalms 133 1 Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! 2 It is like the precious ointment upon the head, tat ran down upon the beard, even Aaron's beard: that went down to the skirts of his garments; 3 As the dew of Hermon, and as the dew that descended upon the mountains of Zion: for there the LORD commanded the blessing, even life for evermore.
I. Two Types Of Unity
There can be no unity outside the Word of God
Psalms 133 looked ahead to Israel's breach that divided it into two nations - Israel and Judah
This will not be fully healed unto the Second Coming of Christ
There are two types of unity - man-made unity and that which is produced by God through the Holy Spirit
The great push for unity in the apostate system began with the National Counsel of Churches and the World Counsel of Churches
It is satanic because it is not Scriptural
The Catholic Church has tried to "unify" with the Protestant's in recent decades without renouncing its unscriptural practices.
Unscriptural unity is one of the greatest dangers facing the modern Church.
Man made unity can only be done if Scripture and the Gospel is compromised
There is a division between the Apostate and the True Church with the Cross being that diving line!
The Apostate Church will have its unity with Satan at its foundation, the True Church will be unified around the Word of God
This fake unity will always be discernable by those who truly know the Lord - the Holy Spirit vs. the Spirit of Antichrist!
II. The Unity of the Faith (Gospel, Word of God, Christ)
There is no true Christian unity unless its grounded in the Cross of Christ - i.e. The Gospel i.e. The Word of God
Those who proclaim the Gospel are FRIENDS of the gospel; those who add and take away from it are enemies of the Cross!
True unity is centered on the PERSON, the WORD of Christ! Who he is, what He did, and why it is important
The gospel has either been added to or subtracted from these last days to produce man made unity
There is an offense to the Cross
Paul told the Philippians of Christ's:
A. Preexistence with God; B. His preexistence AS GOD; C. HIs death on the cross; D. His Exaltation (Phil 2:6-9)
The True gospel reconciles SINNERS to God; it does NOT UNIFY the church with evil
Attacks on the Gospel come from within the Church that will threaten TRUE unity but produce FALSE UNITY (Acts 20:17-35; 28-30)
Paul blasted additions to the Gospel - we are to "strive for the faith of the gospel!" The CONTENT is
III. The Unity of the Spirit points to God's Word and the Unity of the Faith (Eph. 4:13)
The Bible is the pattern and unchanging Authority on all things for the Christian1 (Acts 2:42)
Careful exegesis or Study of the Scriptures (PREACHING) nurtures the unity of the spirit
Paul speaks of the unity of the spirit in Ephesians 4:3
True love attains to this type unity, not unity based on man (Eph. 4:2)
1 Corinthians 12:13 - There is ONE BODY, ONE SPIRIT - not other spirits!"
Ephesians 4:4 - people tossed to and from because they are part of a false unity!
Gospel preaching aims to bring people into the UNITY of the SPIRIT!
Psalms 133:2 - "its like the OIL poured upon Aaron's beard" - the ANOINTING unifies the TRUE body!
The gospel offends sinners; the apostate gospel applauds sinners and pushes agendas
The goal of preaching is the UNITY OF THE FAITH which is only produced by the UNITY OF THE SPIRIT!
Romans 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.
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