I watched a movie yesterday with a friend entitled, "Unbroken", this was an awesome movie about an American POW in Japan. The enemy did all kinds of evil things to him, starved him nearly to death, beat him unmercifully, made him work as a slave carrying baskets of coal up a ramp all day. There is one scene in the movie that really got me I almost jumped right out of my seat, the man in charge of the POW camp singled out this man because he was an olympic champion. He wanted to break him, so he stayed on him more than any of the other men. In this scene he stands him up in front of all his comrades and lines them all up and states that every single man in that camp was to punch this man in the face! The first man in line refuses to do this and then they bring out one of their buddies that was so beaten down that he couldn't even stand up, and they started to hit him over and over stating that if they didn't hit this other man in the face that they would hit this other terribly battered man, so he looks at his buddies and he says do it! Just hit me! Boy, something went off in my spirit and I looked at my friend and I said boy will that preach!
Isn't that what our enemy does at times? Doesn't he stir up trouble in our churches and get Christians to batter other Christians with false accusation, gossip, lies, back-biting?, etc. He doesn't have to attack them because he gets us to attack each other with racism, religious bondage, traditions of men, and so forth. I for one am sick of it! I will not be guilty of any friendly fire on my comrades in arms. We are in this battle together fighting the same enemy, serving the same God for the same common goal. To be saved, stay saved and endure to the end and make as many disciples along the way as possible. Why do we do this? This is beyond ridiculous. The Word of God tells us in Galatians 6:1 "Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, each one looking to yourself, so that you woo will not be tempted. Bear one another's burdens and thereby fulfill the law of Christ, what is the law of Christ? What one law did He set forth? John13:34 A new command I give you, love one another. As I have loved you, you must love one another.
I don't think a picture of love is gossiping about one another and back biting and stirring up division and strife among the brethren, do you? We need to be praying for one another. Praying for us all to have strength, to be healthy, prosperous and whole. What good does it do to speak evil of one another? Does this bring people to Christ? No!!! it does not! quite the opposite! When unsaved people see supposed Christians biting on each other, it really doesn't cause them to say, "Oh joy rapture, let me become a Christian too, look how well they treat each other!" This has to stop! If we are going to reach our families, our neighborhoods, our cities, our counties, our regions, our states, our nations, and other countries all across the world, we must get this thing right and get it right right now! James 3:16 says this: " For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work.
We as Christians need to get rid of all of the divisions between us and get in one mind and one accord which will allow the Holy Spirit of God to move in our midst and on our behalf. We can't have strife and division and expect God to do anything for us, in us , or through us. In the book of Acts when the disciples and followers of Jesus were in the upper room waiting for the first outpouring of the Holy Spirit, they had to first get into one mind and one accord and when they did, they Holy Spirit of God showed up, filled the room, filled them and began to manifest Himself in and through them. That's when the power came! We can't expect to do any significant work for Christ while we are bound up in the aforementioned things. We must learn to love one another, put first things first which is Jesus, the Author and finisher of our faith, show the love of God to every single person that we meet and get this gospel preached to all the world and then He will come. Let's quit our foolishness and get down to business! Loving one another like Christ loves and reaching people for Christ.
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