Here at Walla we value growing in faith together. But how can we be united as one when we are many in number and different? In my experience, as soon as you put two people in a room, you have two different points of view! Multiply that to 40 or 100 people and what chance is there of unity?! Sometimes in marriages, with just two people, we have conflict and stress. Our small family units with just say six people can get heated at times. In our congregation we have disagreements. Even the Lutheran Church in Australia seems divided at times. How are we united as one body so that we can grow in faith together? God speaks to this question in Psalm 133.
***
Psalm 133 is a song, subtitled: ‘A song of accents.’ It was sung by pilgrims travelling to a feast (perhaps to Jerusalem for Passover). Psalm 133:1 sets the scene for the song: ‘How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity!’ The picture here is a band of brothers traveling together, ascending to the temple in unity. [1] Can you imagine the scene? Picture yourself in the Middle East. It's hot, dry, and sandy. You're walking along a dirt road in a caravan. There's children running about laughing and squealing, trying to keep up. Young and old, men and women. Generations together in faith. Some are on donkeys, others on camels. Someone has a musical instrument and you're singing: ‘How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity!’
But how? How can we live in unity in our marriages, our families, our congregation? Unity is a gift from God. In our gospel reading we hear Jesus pray for us to receive this gift. “Father, I pray that all of them [may] be one, just as you are in me and I am in you. I want them also to be in us. Then the world will believe that you have sent me. … I want them to be brought together perfectly as one [or brought together in complete unity].” (John 17:21,23). St Paul says the same thing, ‘Put up with one another in love. The Holy Spirit makes you one in every way. So try your best to remain as one. Let peace keep you together.’ (Ephesians 4:2–3). Unity is a gift that comes from God, a gift from the Holy Spirit. Although a gift, unity still requires work — love!
When we think of our marriages, our family, our congregation, our church, it can seem like hard work to receive and maintain this gift of unity. So why bother? Well Psalm 133 hints at the blessings that come from living in unity by using three word pictures.
(1) Psalm 133:2 says the following: ‘It is like precious oil poured on the head that goes down upon the beard.’ This can be hard for us to understand. We use shampoo to get oil out of our hair, not pour it on our heads! This is a picture of a party or celebration. To make banquets special, to separate these events from the everyday earthy smells of farming and livestock, ancient people would use scented oil and perfume. Party goers were literally saturated with oil (head, face, hands, clothing). This would bring the celebration an enchanting festive aura, a feeling of well-being and happiness, something good and pleasant.
Likewise for us, living in unity means we are blessed to celebrate together. We gather on Sunday morning because that’s the time of the week Jesus rose from the tomb — we gather together to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus. So we can imagine being at a celebration, covered in perfumed oil, singing together. At this celebration, we sing the same song. Although it’s important to note that singing the same song doesn’t necessity mean singing exactly the same thing. Think about a choir — there are different parts sung at different times in harmony. Some musical pieces even have tension, with different groups or instruments playing off against the other.
Our marriages, our families, our congregations are God’s harmonious musical masterpiece. And what makes our singing harmonious, instead of a cacophony, is that we have a common confession of faith. There is a recurring theme that draws all the various voices and music together. As Christians, our most basic confession of faith is “Jesus is Lord.” (Romans 10:9). As Lutheran Christians, our role in the choir is to sing loudly that we are freely justified by faith alone, we are made right with God by trusting in what Jesus has done for us. Our other Christian brothers and sisters need to hear our part, and we need to hear theirs.
(2) Psalm 133:2 continues. ‘Upon the beard of Aaron that goes down upon the collar of his robe.’ The picture changes. The oil is now the oil used to anoint priests, flowing down upon the robe of the High Priest and onto his breastplate. Remember the breastplate of the High Priest represents and names the twelve tribes of Israel i.e. God's people (Exodus 28:5–21). Unity is like the anointing oil of God, flowing down Aaron’s beard, robes and breastplate, making the people holy.
In the same way, we live in unity because we are blessed and made holy. You are made holy in baptism — washed and anointed by water and the Holy Spirit. In baptism we are all united with Christ. St Paul says, ‘By being baptized, we have been joined with [Christ] in his death. [And] we will certainly also be joined with him in his resurrection.’ (Romans 6:5). And because we united with Christ, we are made holy.
(3) A new picture is introduced in Psalm 133:3. ‘It is as if the dew of Hermon goes down upon Mount Zion.’ Imagine the travellers singing this psalm walking through the parched wilderness. As they walk they look up to Mount Hermon towering over the landscape. The elevation of the mountain attracts precipitation — melting snow, dew and rain flows down upon the land below. The ‘dew of Hermon’ is a picture of new life and hope for the future. As they walk the group has a secure hope for the future.
Living in unity means we share the same hope. In the Apostle’s Creed we confess our faith saying, “I believe in the resurrection of the body and life everlasting.” We are united because we share the same hope — the sure promise of the resurrection of the body and life everlasting. This hope isn’t for when we’re on our death bed, but it helps us and revives us now as we walk toward our destination.
Jesus prays that we share this hope with others! “Father, I pray that all of them will be one. … Then the world will believe that you have sent me.” (John 17:21). God wants the world to believe that, through Jesus, we have the hope of resurrection now and forever. In this ‘Season of Prayer’ we will pray for exactly this. Today we pray for courage to invite friends, family, neighbours, and others to come and meet God here in this united community of faith. This begins by being aware of what God is doing in your life and in our community. Then you talk about what God is doing with others. Is there someone — a child, grandchild, neighbour, friend — that you can share what God is doing in your life? Invite them for a meal at your place, or visit them, and tell everyone what the Lord has done!
It can be hard to see how we are united. As we walk there may be squabbles, disagreements, fights, and schisms. It can seem like hard work to receive and maintain this gift of unity — to ‘put up with one another in love.’ Yet God promises that it is good and pleasant to be united and grow in faith together. It’s like scented oil poured on the whole body that reminds us why we celebrate together. We celebrate the risen Jesus. We sing the same song, though at times in different parts or harmonies. Living in unity is like pouring anointing oil upon the beard of Aaron that goes down upon his robes and breastplate, making holy all of God’s people. In baptism you all are made holy as you are washed and anointed with water and spirit. In baptism you are united with Christ in his death and resurrection. Lastly, you are united because you share the same secure hope — the resurrection of the body and eternal life through Christ Jesus. May we all live and grow together in unity, now and forever. Amen.
[1] The Hebrew text says ‘brothers’ but what's in view here is a family, or groups of families.
