Partnership - 3

                    Partnership - 3

Subject – God Uses People - Unity

By Rick Welborne

2 Corinthians 8:1-5 (NLT2) ¹  Now I want you to know, dear brothers and sisters, what God in his kindness has done through the churches in Macedonia.
²  They are being tested by many troubles, and they are very poor. But they are also filled with abundant joy, which has overflowed in rich generosity.
³  For I can testify that they gave not only what they could afford, but far more. And they did it of their own free will.
⁴  They begged us again and again for the privilege of sharing in the gift for the believers in Jerusalem.
⁵  They even did more than we had hoped, for their first action was to give themselves to the Lord and to us, just as God wanted them to do. 

--It sounds like the churches in Macedonia had made a commitment to be in unity to bless and help the believers in Jerusalem who were going through persecution and difficulty.

--Unity can be such a powerful thing and it can enable congregations, churches, and ministries to accomplish so much more together than when there is division.

--The devil also understands the power of unity and that is why he works overtime to keep believers from partnering together because of the damage we can inflict on his kingdom.

--I like doing research so I checked out how many Christian denominations there are in the world.

--According to the Center for the Study of Global Christianity at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, there are approximately 41,000 denominations and organizations in the world today.

--Just in North America there are about 1500 different Christian faith groups. That includes all the different religions including Pentecostals.

--Since this is about unity, I found it very interesting in the research about Pentecostal churches that many of the smaller Pentecostal ones chose not to associate with the other groups. True of others. Disunity.

--It is not difficult to get in an argument with others who believe differently than we do. So we fight, we don’t fellowship together, and the devil loves the division. God understands unity.

Genesis 11:1-9 (NLT2)
¹  At one time all the people of the world spoke the same language and used the same words.
²  As the people migrated to the east, they found a plain in the land of Babylonia and settled there.
³  They began saying to each other, “Let’s make bricks and harden them with fire.” (In this region bricks were used instead of stone, and tar was used for mortar.)
⁴  Then they said, “Come, let’s build a great city for ourselves with a tower that reaches into the sky. This will make us famous and keep us from being scattered all over the world.”
⁵  But the LORD came down to look at the city and the tower the people were building.
⁶  “Look!” he said. “The people are united, and they all speak the same language. After this, nothing they set out to do will be impossible for them!
⁷  Come, let’s go down and confuse the people with different languages. Then they won’t be able to understand each other.”
⁸  In that way, the LORD scattered them all over the world, and they stopped building the city.
⁹  That is why the city was called Babel, because that is where the LORD confused the people with different languages. In this way he scattered them all over the world. 

--“The people are united, and they all speak the same language. After this, nothing they set out to do will be impossible for them! True of the unrighteous.

--If that is true of the unrighteous, how much more can it be true of the righteous? We have God’s blessing and the power of Holy Spirit. Unity would cause a spiritual explosion.

--Some of you believe the only reason we want 100% participation with faith promises is so we can get more money, but remember what God said, “Nothing they set out to do will be impossible for them.”

--I don’t want to sound political but one of the reasons one party has given the church fits for so many years is because, no matter how crazy their beliefs or policies, they stick together.

--On the other hand, the other party usually struggles because the politicians can’t agree but, more importantly, the church either disagrees or doesn’t show up. Lack of unity and partnership.

1. When We Partner with God, Unity is a Must.

Psalm 133:1-3 (NKJV) ¹  Behold, how good and how pleasant it is For brethren to dwell together in unity!
²  It is like the precious oil upon the head, Running down on the beard, The beard of Aaron, Running down on the edge of his garments.
³  It is like the dew of Hermon, Descending upon the mountains of Zion; For there the LORD commanded the blessing-- Life forevermore. 

--If God says that partnering with Him and each other is good and pleasant, isn’t it something we should make a great priority in our lives.

--Think about this, every time you choose to get angry or to not forgive someone in God’s family or church, you are working in direct opposition to Him and His Word. People choose sides.

--God wants so much for the atmosphere of the church to be one of goodness and of being pleasant or wonderful. It’s an atmosphere where Holy Spirit is poured out.

--It is like the precious oil upon the head, running down on the beard, the beard of Aaron, running down on the edge of his garments. Unity brings an outpouring of Holy Spirit.

--For results, just look at the Day of Pentecost, when the 120 were in unity, Holy Spirit was poured out and thousands came to Christ and were baptized.

--Just imagine if Life Church Members and regular attenders were in total agreement about FPs and about the election of a successor, what would God do?

--I would not want to be on the other side of the issue of unity. God says in verse 3 that where there is unity, God commands the blessing, Life evermore. Living in Freedom Every Day!

--Hopefully, this helps you understand why, for 34 plus years, I have pushed for and prayed for unity. I want God’s blessings on you and your families and on our Church! Paul:

Ephesians 4:1-3 &11-13 (NKJV)
¹  I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called,
²  with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love,
³  endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
¹¹  And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers,
¹²  for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ,
¹³  till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 

--Two “no” votes in 34 years, I guess I should be happy. The first, a teenager who just wanted to be different about re-naming our church. He left our church soon after and hasn’t returned.

--The second no vote was voting on Pastor Mark and Christie Anne to be our lead pastors in 2026. One “no” vote. How sad and heartbreaking. Send me a note with no name changing your vote. Unity.

--God says He will command the blessing! What blessing? The blessing for unity!

2. When We Partner with God and Each Other, God’s House is Shaken.

--Everyone say…Adversity. If you live in this world you will have adversity (tribulation) and you can be shaken to your core. It’s just called life. 

--Unlike us, the disciples and followers of Christ were facing adversity for preaching the gospel. Like believers in the Congo and Sudan. So much persecution. We are soft believers.

--The number of believers had grown to 5000 and the high priest and leaders were ticked. After questions about the man at the gate Beautiful, they gave this command:

Acts 4:18 (NKJV) ¹⁸  And they called them and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus.

--So what happened? The believers decided again to partner with God. How? To come together in unity, to pray, and to be filled with Holy Spirit power.

Acts 4:24 (NKJV) ²⁴ So when they heard that, they raised their voice to God with one accord…

--They came together, first seeking God and then, raising their voices in partnership, what happened?

Acts 4:31 (NKJV) ³¹ And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness. 

--Partnership with God and with each other does not mean we will not have adversity or problems but, what it does mean is that when adversity comes and unity is present…Wow!

Hebrews 12:26-29 (NIV)
²⁶  At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, "Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens."
²⁷  The words "once more" indicate the removing of what can be shaken--that is, created things--so that what cannot be shaken may remain.
²⁸  Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe,
²⁹  for our "God is a consuming fire." 

3. When We Partner with God and His Church (Believers)…Discipleship.

2 Corinthians 8:1&5 (NLT2) ¹  Now I want you to know, dear brothers and sisters, what God in his kindness has done through the churches in Macedonia.
⁵  They even did more than we had hoped, for their first action was to give themselves to the Lord and to us, just as God wanted them to do. 

--The churches came together (unity) and people started doing what? Their first action was to give themselves to the Lord and to us, just as God wanted them to do. Can I say, “Stop!”

--Stop critizing other denominations, other churches, other pastors, other believers. By this shall all men know that you are my disciples (partners), that you love one another. People need Jesus.