“How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity!  It 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.  It is as if the dew of Hermon were falling on Mount Zion.  For there the Lord bestows His blessing, even life forevermore.”
Psalm 133:1

Remember the television show M*A*S*H?  It was based on an American emergency medical unit in the Korean War.  This group of people was composed of some very different personalities.  There was Hawkeye Pierce, B.J., and Father Mulcahy.  There was Colonel Potter, Radar, and Hotlips Houlihan.  They were always playing jokes on one another and arguing over different political views and the war.  But there was always one thing that brought these characters together.  It did not matter what particular argument was going on or what particular practical joke was being pulled, when they heard the sound of the choppers bringing in wounded, they always were united in the O.R.

In our day of hurting and wounded people, we cannot afford to be one more church that spends all of its time arguing over things that will not matter in the light of eternity.  We must bring our differences together and allow the Lord to merge them in unity of the Spirit.

Just as Aaron, the high priest, was anointed on his head and the oil ran down his body, so the Holy Spirit descends from our great High Priest, Jesus Christ.  Anointing always brings harmony.

Prayer Focus: Pray that, throughout the fulfilling of the vision God has given Impact, we will experience genuine harmony resulting from the Holy Spirit’s presence among us.  Ask God to show you specific ways you can contribute toward the unity of believers at Impact.  Do you know anyone who adds to the disharmony of the church?  How is God guiding you to respond to that division?  Are you divided?  Many times people just need their questions answered.  Ask God to help you lead a unified cause to see more lives changed… starting with your own!

“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”
Matthew 28:19

Moments before the resurrected Jesus returned triumphantly to heaven, He left His disciples with this promise:  “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8).  After He spoke these words, Jesus ascended before their very eyes.

With this scene fixed in your mind, consider this question:  Was Jesus’ promise only for those disciples who were physically present that day?  The answer carries implications for us as believers today.

Those assembled with Jesus that day were no doubt profoundly affected by everything He did and said following the Resurrection.  They took it all to heart.  But the promise wasn’t exclusively for them, any more than hundreds of other promises in God’s Word were meant only for the relative handful of people who originally heard or read them.

In the “true” Lord’s Prayer, recorded in John 17, Jesus prayed for spiritual fruitfulness and unity among the disciples.  And He said, “My prayer is not for them alone.  I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you” (John 17:20-21).  Many of the plans and the promises of God encompass all believers, not just those who were blessed to literally see and hear the Messiah.

Prayer Focus:  Pray today our entire church family will have the spiritual vision to see the reality of these truths and to act in obedience to them.  With that in mind – we have received power in the Holy Spirit to be witnesses.  Everyone is a witness even though we are not all evangelists.  Sharing our faith is 100% imperative. 

Talk to God right now about your witness.  How are you doing?  If the last words Jesus spoke were about us having power for witness… don’t you think that is something you should do?  Now?  What does that look like?