DAY 72 of #100daysofJesus
Jesus was ironically accused of casting out devils by the power of the devil.
This led to His famous teaching that a "house divided against itself shall not stand."
Abraham Lincoln, a very religious man himself, is often credited with a similar quote, which he obviously found in the New Testament. Credit goes to Jesus!
Unity is an important and powerful concept. And, unfortunately, it's opposite (division) is equally powerful and also destructive.
We have seen great divisions in society lately based on race, sexual orientation, gender, wealth, and political preferences. The media exacerbates our differences and profits from the human preference for confirmation bias. There are many that seek to divide us.
Tolerance for each other's differences is waning.
The United States is becoming more and more divided. Even within religious institutions and political parties, where once unity dominated, there are increasing levels of division.
Diversity of preference, experience, and opinion are important, but does it require the sacrifice of love and harmony? I don't believe so.
Unity is a common thread throughout Jesus' teachings. Jesus is a unifier and seeks to unite all of us!
Jesus prayed that we "all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me...that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one."
Through the prophet Joseph Smith, Jesus also declared, "I say unto you, be one; and if ye are not one ye are not mine."
Unity is not just a dream - it's a commandment and a requirement of Christian discipleship.
President Russell M Nelson said a couple months ago:
"God does not love one race more than another. His doctrine on this matter is clear. He invites all to come unto Him, 'black and white, bond and free, male and female'... Today I call upon our members everywhere to lead out in abandoning attitudes and actions of prejudice. I plead with you to promote respect for all of God’s children. "
Our success as a nation, as a community, as a church, as a family, and so forth depends to a large degree upon our unity.
The people of Enoch were perhaps the most successful of any at unity in the history of mankind. They were described as being "of one heart and one mind, and dwelt in righteousness; and there was no poor among them."
Let unity be our goal. Let us appreciate and respect our differences while building on our sameness.
When one considers our shared human condition, or even our DNA, we are much more similar than we are different. And we are all children of the same loving Father in Heaven. We need to act like it.
May we each trust Jesus and be united in Him!
(Matthew 12:22-30, John 17:20-23, Moses 7:18, D&C 38:27, http://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/.../2020/10/46nelson)
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