It is my privilege to stand before you this day…a day where we are reminded of the Nature of God as understand the doctrine of the Trinity and where we give remembrance to all who served, and those who died for our great land.
As I sought out from our Lord what I should share with you today, “unity” was impressed upon me. To Jesus, unity is critical and in one of His final prayers, He prayed: “Holy Father, you have given me your name; now protect them by the power of your name so that they will be united just as we are.” [youversion]John 19:11[/youversion]
Did you catch that? “That they will be united just as we are.”
Jesus spent considerable time teaching that He and the Father were one, and in John 14, He taught that “the Helper, the Holy Spirit” would be sent from the Father through Jesus to them.
Just as God is indivisible, Jesus desired His followers to be indivisible, as well. The unity of believers, united to God through Christ by the aid of the Holy Spirit creates a bond nothing can shatter.
I couldn’t help but relate this to my military experience. Unity of Command was critical to the function of every unit, without with mission was subject to failure.
The prevailing concept was each subordinate unit knew the mission and mission order two echelons above them.
The squad not only had to know the mission of the platoon, but that of their company command. The platoon knew that of the company and of the battalion. The company, that of the battalion and the brigade. The battalion, that of the brigade and the division HQ, and so on.
Unlike other armies, where the soldiers only do what they were ordered to do, our military ensures that every soldier knows what the mission is. If the squad leader is out of action, the squad continues on with the mission, regardless.
All the staff, including special staff, such as the chaplain, all knew the mission and what part they played in mission completion. Even though I played no combatant role, my knowledge of the mission put me in a position where I could advise; and there was more than one occasion where my insights contributed to the mission’s effectiveness.
However, if confidence was lost in the command, unity of command suffered, and moral would plummet.
Plus, there is always forces that play against unity, and it is a constant effort to sustain unity under pressure of divisiveness and other detractors.
Jesus faced this divisiveness frequently. Even up to the end, His disciples squabble as to who would be first in His kingdom.
On one occasion Jesus drew considerable attention after casting out an evil spirit. Many who witnessed it thought that Jesus really might be the promised Messiah come to save them.
Yet, there were the naysayers, who countered that in order to possess this power Jesus may just be Satan himself. Jesus defied their ridiculous speculation, for why would Satan cast out Satan, how could his kingdom stand if so divided against itself.
Knowing their thoughts, he said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and no city or house divided against itself will stand.” [youversion]Matthew 12:25[/youversion]
Again, unity in the Kingdom of God is not only central but crucial.
Just as no army can prevail if divided, the effect of the Kingdom of God fails if divided.
Throughout the Bible God revealed what lends toward unity.
Let’s look at the references from Isaiah, Romans and Ephesians for clues for establishing and maintaining unity.
1. Reclaim Your Identity. We live by the Spirit, not by the Flesh.
-In Isaiah 6, when the prophet envisioned the King, Lord of Heaven’s Armies sitting in His full glory, Isaiah saw himself as worthless in comparison.
+The accumulative guilt was too much for him to bear as he stood before an almighty God.
+Isaiah needed to be made mission capable. His worthless identity of himself impaired him from understanding what God had in store for him.
+Once God’s angel touched his lips with a burning coal from the altar, his guilt was taken away and his sin atoned for. Isa. 6:7: “And he touched my mouth and said: ‘Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.’”
-Paul wrote of this in chapter 8 [v1] in his letter to the Romans, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”
+In verse 9, Paul makes clear our identity, “You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit…”
Our flesh or selfish desires are what in the military we would call “training distractors.” When we think only what benefits “me,” it compromises unity and we lose the identity God intends for us.
2. Train, Maintain, and Sustain your Identity.
Anyone in the military cannot escape the importance of training. “Train to fight and fight as you were trained,” is the mantra.
-In Verse 5 of [youversion]Romans 8[/youversion], Paul reveals that what you think determines what you feel and what you feel determines how you behave:
+ “For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit.”
Training for every soldier is similar. They all must understand the same thing before they can implement what they’ve learned.
Same thing for the believer. If you are only thinking what it is for yourself. If you worry about things you can’t control. If you are anxious and insecure, it’s going to affect the way you act not only around others but before God.
Training requires Maintaining.
-In [youversion]Ephesians 6:10[/youversion], Paul states, “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.”
Our life as a Christian is to be lived. Just to think correctly isn’t enough, we must live what we think. When you are committed to live a life in the Spirit, you become strong in the Lord and find God’s strength in your life.
But to Maintain what strength you’ve obtained, you need to Sustain your Gains.
To do this, Paul informs us in verses 11 to “Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.”
He lists them in verses 13 and following:
-For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared.
-hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil.
-Put on salvation as your helmet,
-take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
3. All of this requires vigilance. Every soldier on the battlefield know the importance of Situational Awareness; without which one risks their own safety, as well as, the security of their comrades. Yet, complacency, mission creep, fatigue, and the mundane eke away from such vigilance.
In verse 18, Paul warns against this, “Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.”
Knowing your identity as a forgiven child of God, putting into practice the disciplines of training, maintaining and sustaining, as well as, keeping vigilant all assist you to preserve the unity God desires for us all.
4. However, as I alluded to before, we all must know the mission.
Matthew records in his testimony in chapter 28:19-20, what Jesus’ prime mission for us, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.”
This is my mission, this is your mission, this is the Church’s mission and it hasn’t changed for nearly 2,000 years. It’s not only my job to make disciples, but it’s also my job, along with other seasoned disciples, to train you to do this mission. And, once you’re trained, you’re to teach others to do the same.
That’s the mission! We you forget the mission, you lose focus and it all becomes about you and not the mission.
At the same time, as every military planner knows, key to every mission is to know your enemy.
Paul identifies our enemies in verse 12 of chapter 6:
“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.”
Paul would claim you are fooling yourself if you think that politics and politicians are the blame for what’s wrong in our world. Or, the degradation of the family, vicious crime, opioids, racism, #metoo, slack morality, Hollywood, big business, out of touch academia, the school board, etc.…
My friends these are all symptoms of a greater more underlying force that seeks to seduce, control, and divide you. The Apostle Peter once said that Satan is as a roving lion seeking to devour its prey.
“Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.” 1 Peter 5:8
In other words, don’t allow yourself to keep drinking the Kool aid that’s being forced down your throats every day; when behind every school shooting, each incident of a police officer killing, or an innocent victim dying, evil’s behind it. Evil is behind misogyny, sexism, racism, and every act of hatred.
We must know our enemy in order to combat it. And, as Christians we must know our enemy as we seek those who are lost, forlorn, hurting, broken, depressed and despairing and introduce them to a Savior who wants nothing more than forgive them and give them a new identity in Him.
The trinitarian model for God demonstrates to us the union God wants with us and between us. When we feel discord, it’s an indicator that we’ve lost that unity.
With this in mind, before you go, in these times of great division, I invite you to unite, unite as one in Christ, with Christ in command and Christ leading our way.
Pledge of a Good Soldier of Christ Jesus
[youversion]2 Timothy 2:3[/youversion] “Endure suffering along with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus.”
I am a soldier in the army of my God.
The Lord Jesus Christ is my Commanding Officer.
The Holy Scripture is my code of conduct.
Faith, prayer and the Word are my weapons of warfare.
I have been taught by the Holy Spirit, trained by experience,
tried by adversity and tested by fire.
I confess that I openly chose to serve in this army,
but understand that God chose me first and I am now commissioned for eternity.
I will not get out, sell out, be talked out or pushed out.
I am faithful, reliable, capable and dependable.
If my God needs me, I am there. I am a soldier.
No one must call me, remind me, entice me or lure me.
I am in place, saluting my King, obeying His orders,
praising His name and building His Kingdom!
I am committed.
I cannot have my feelings hurt bad enough to turn me around.
I cannot be discouraged enough to turn me aside.
I cannot lose enough to cause me to quit.
The devil cannot defeat me. People cannot disillusion me.
Weather cannot weary me. Sickness cannot stop me.
Battles cannot beat me. Money cannot buy me.
Governments cannot silence me, and hell cannot handle me.
I am a Soldier!
Even death cannot destroy me.
I am a soldier in the army of Christ Jesus, and I will not give up.
I will not turn around.
I am God’s soldier, marching heaven-bound.