Thank you for your patience and graciousness. All right, the reading of God's word, verse 27. Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or I'm absent, I may hear that you are standing firm in one spirit with one mind, striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, and not frightened in anything by your opponents. This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation and that from God. For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ, you should not only believe in him, but also suffer for his sake, engaged in the same conflict that you saw I had and now hear that I still have. Chapter two, verse one. So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy. by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others, having this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus. This is the word of God. You may be seated. So I promise one of these days I'll have an introduction that doesn't involve a movie line, but today is not that day. There is a famous scary movie. I say famous, even though I myself have not actually seen it. It's a little before my time. And to be quite honest, that's not my favorite genre of movies. But that just goes to show how famous this line is, that I would know it without even seeing it. There was a movie, which don't raise your hand admitting that you've seen it. I don't know if it's bad or not. There is a movie, either in the 80s or maybe late 70s, called When a Stranger Calls. And the premise of this movie, there's a babysitter in charge of caring for kids in a house. And there is somehow some threat of some sort of murderous person looking to do harm. And this babysitter is on the phone with 911. taking precautions to try to protect herself, to protect those within the house, making sure that none of the danger can come in and get them. And the famous line from this movie comes from the operator on the other end. They were able to trace the call. And it is the terrible news that the call is coming from inside. Here she thought the danger was outside, but really the greatest threat was from within the own house. The reason why I feel that that is appropriate and comes to mind is there are dangers that face the church. There are many dangers from the outside, but there are also dangers from within. One of the greatest dangers that any church faces, in fact, all churches face, both in the past and presently, is the danger of division amongst believers. This is such a problem, and it's been a problem from the beginning, because you know what? The church is full of sinners. Yes, redeemed by Christ, but still in our flesh, sinful. And oftentimes, because of sin, division enters into the church, causing much strife. This is a potential problem for every church. Such a danger that it's addressed in almost every single one of Paul's epistles. May not be the focus of every single one, but it does indeed make mention of, beware of division amongst you, blood-bought believers. And here we have warnings even within Philippians. When if you read Philippians all the way through, you can't help but see that of all the churches that Paul wrote to, Philippians could easily be esteemed as one of the healthiest. one of the most mature that they share in Paul's joy, but even the Philippian church experienced division. We'll get to this later in our study, but we see a specific example in chapter four of two women who are divided amongst one another and thus threatened division within the entire church. And Paul writes to them. I'll read for you very quickly, Philippians chapter four, verses two and three. I entreat Judea and I entreat Syntyche to agree in the Lord. Yes, I ask you also, true companion, help these women who have labored side by side with me in the gospel together with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers whose names are in the book of life. Division can happen even amongst born again Christians. even amongst those who have labored in the gospel together, those whose names are in the book of life. It is a real and serious threat, and it comes in a variety of ways. One commentator, I'll quote, says this, church strife does not always involve such flagrant sins as adultery, stealing, lying, or defamation. It is often generated by such lesser sins as holding grudges over minor issues, unjust criticism, bitterness, dissatisfaction, and distrust. Sometimes disharmony arises that cannot even be clearly identified or attributed to any individual incident or issue. Isn't that true? We can be divided and not even remember why. And the danger in this is that it hinders our gospel witness as a church. that as outsiders looking in, when they see discord, when they see division, they see no reason to enter in to this covenant of life with Christ. Our gospel witness is either helped or hampered by the unity in our churches. And so, let us consider this issue as we look at these verses in Philippians. There's a number of things that could be said that could be the focal point of our message given these verses, but one thing that stood out to me very clearly was the unity that Paul wanted to see in the Philippian church. And the unity that Christ wants to see in his church, this church. And so our points today are really just going to be working through these verses and looking at how we can find unity with one another as we seek to serve the Lord together. And so my first point can be seen in the first few verses of this section. Look with me again at verse 27. Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or I'm absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit. with one mind, striving side by side for the faith of the gospel. My first point this morning is that unity is maintained by striving side by side. There are a number of famous verses, striking verses within Philippians. This idea of living a life, letting our manner be worthy of the gospel of Christ. Much could be said on this. What does this mean? I think it definitely entails an idea of obeying God, acknowledging His holiness, living holy lives, praising Him, living with thankfulness. But also too, To be worthy of the gospel, to live in a manner worthy of the gospel, is to be united and unified with other believers. Christ died for sinners. Not just you, a sinner, but for sinners. To make a people for himself, that we would be one in him. And to live in that oneness is to live in a manner worthy of the gospel. This is the purpose for which Christ came and died. So how do we live this out? Well, Paul uses some imagery here of battle. Some soldier and military images, this idea of striving side by side, where to imagine those working for a common purpose or goal. To strive side by side, to stand firm in one spirit. It's to hold our ground, to be willing to lay down our life, to fend off whatever opponents or threat may be coming, just as a row of soldiers would stand firm against a barrage of attacks, putting their own life on the line. This is the image that Paul is using here. Holding one's ground, regardless of the danger or opposition, soldiers defending their position, even willing to give up their life. This is the attitude that you and I are to have. Striving together, fighting together. Let me just say, it's a lot easier to fight together than it is to fight alone. Would you not agree? That together we could fend off far greater an attack or a threat or an opposition than if we would seek to do that all on our own. But yet so often we have this individualized mindset with regards to our relationship with Christ. That it's just me and Jesus, which praise God, you do enjoy personal fellowship with God through Jesus Christ. but it is not a fellowship that is exclusive to you. It is for all those who believe in him, and so let us enjoy it together. This is part of what it is to be mature in Christ. 1 Corinthians, Paul also writes, chapter 16, verse 13, he says, be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong, and we are stronger when we are together. This idea of striving side by side, it's a battle image. Think about Paul's day. He's in Rome, he's in prison, he's surrounded by soldiers, and he's familiar with Roman warfare. You yourselves, knowing world history, know that Rome was able to conquer the world, the known world at that time, because they were able to stand and strive side by side for something. Think of that image of that Roman battalion, locking shields in perfect unison with one another, able to take on a foe or a horde of enemies far greater than themselves because of their unity, because of their striving together, they achieve victory. So this is meant to conjure up this idea of Roman soldiers walking in lockstep for the advancement of the empire. But you and I, we do not walk lockstep with one another for the advancement of any empire. But we do so for the advancement of the faith of the gospel. Look at the end of verse 27. The way we strive side by side, the purpose for it is for the faith of the gospel. we are fighting and striving and working with one another for the Lord. And if we have that singular purpose, we can put aside many differences in order to fight for what really matters. Sadly, we find ourselves not fighting alongside one another, but with one another. Don't get me wrong, there are things to fight over that are worthy of fighting over. Doctrine, orthodoxy, false teaching, sin, creeping into the church, corruption. There are matters in which you and I must contend and must confront one another. But if we're honest, much of our fighting is not about those things. And so let us keep first things first. Let us strive for the faith of the gospel. This is what's worth fighting for. This is what we can lay aside our differences, our preferences, our styles, our personalities, even our wrongs for. You know, there have been times where there have been great unity in our country. May not seem like it these days. But in difficult times, when there's an enemy that threatens us, think of World War I, World War II, even events after 9-11, that the country, although divided with some of the same issues that we may find ourselves divided by today, was able to lay aside some of those differences for a purpose, for a time. We are not engaged in these things with regards to the church. We are not fighting for our country, but we are fighting for the kingdom of God against enemies far more powerful against principalities, against demonic forces, against sin itself. We're battling for the kingdom of God. And so let us strive side by side with one another. Let us find purpose in that together. Because the more we can be on mission, the more we can be unified. And what is the mission of the church? To make disciples, to preach good news to the lost. And so as you consider, Fellowship with us here at Harvest, I hope that we would be a church that has this attitude of standing firm with one another, striving side by side with one another for the purposes of God. We have a mission statement which comes from scripture, to harvest, equip, and send. We want to reach people with the good news of the gospel. We want to build one another up in the faith, and we want to send out more people that God may multiply his outreach through us. And so I ask you to partner with us, to find unity with us in that mission, which is the mission of God, the gospel, faith in the gospel. So moving quickly, we have a number of points to make. Unity is also maintained by not being frightened by our opponents. Oftentimes disunity, division can come because of the attacks from the outside, that we are divided amongst one another because of the threats that we face. Verse 28, Paul says, do not be frightened in anything by your opponents. This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation in that from God. For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ, you should not only believe in him, but also suffer for his sake. This word here of do not be frightened, it was actually, again, using militaristic language, a term used of a war horse, of what could happen, right? These giant, powerful animals that would lead soldiers into war, but yet if the horse became startled, what would happen? it would rear and the soldier would fall off. And that horse that was meant to do battle with you, to give you an advantage, became a disadvantage, became a threat. In the same way, when we become frightened by our opponents, we become a threat to ourselves and to the unity of the church. We need to have the attitude that God has graced us shown mercy to us, given us the ability to believe in him for salvation, but also to suffer for his sake. You know, that term in verse 29, for it has been granted to you could also be translated for it has been graced to you. It has been given to you by the mercies and grace of God to believe in Jesus, but also to suffer for his sake. That too is a grace and a gift of the Lord. Because see, we've talked about this much in our previous message, what the enemy intends to use to divide you, to destroy you, to hinder the gospel, God uses to spread his gospel, to have a greater impact, that it's through our suffering that our victory is won. If you have any doubts, look at the suffering of Christ. It is in his suffering that our victory is won, and we get to share in that grace as well. This was the attitude of those who suffered for the gospel at the very beginning, in early Acts, when the apostles, for the first time, had preached the good news and seen people responded. They were met with persecution. And what was their attitude towards that persecution? Acts 5, 41. They said, they left the presence of the council rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name. You see, as Christians, suffering is expected, not just expected, guaranteed. That when you live for Christ, you will experience suffering in this world. This isn't me saying it, this is the word of God saying it. 1 Timothy 3, chapter 12, it says, indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. And so what will be the ends of that persecution? Will it be to break you and break the unity in the church, or will you, by the grace of God, be used by God in your suffering to build greater unity, even in the midst of opposition? Because there's always a purpose in our suffering as we've talked about many times before. God uses it to further his kingdom and to grow you in Christlikeness. I'll share with you Romans chapter 3, 3 through 5. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, endurance produces character, character produces hope, and hope does not put to shame because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. This is why suffering can be a grace to you and I. It produces in us godliness. not just you individually, but also when we suffer as a people for Christ, we become godly together. There is a brotherhood of arms of sorts. We've seen this with combat veterans coming back from the throes of danger, that there is a deep bond in suffering together, that those who have been through traumatic things together have a lifelong bond with one another. that is deeper sometimes than the other closest bonds we may have. It's different, different than the bond of family, than the bond of a spouse. To suffer alongside one another is to be united with one another. Like I said, we've seen that in probably most powerfully in the life of veterans. But you yourself have gone through difficult times. I know I have. And as I've walked through difficult times with people, I've been united with those people in a greater way. I've enjoyed many years of happy and wonderful marriage to my wife, but there have been years that have been difficult. And it's through those difficult years that our bond has been strengthened, not weakened. And that is a grace of God. And the same is true in the church. that we are young as a church, a month old harvest Liberty Lake. Lord willing, we'll be graced with many more years to come, but we must know and understand that not all those years are going to be easy. Many of them will be hard. Some of it's hard already. Yet what is God doing? I pray every day that he builds more unity, that we may be more effective in sharing the good news, more effective in equipping one another to grow in our walk with Christ, more effective in preparing people to be sent out. These things are difficult, they are expected, and there is a purpose. And so I ask you to, quite honestly, count the cost. Love for you to remain here in Harvest, to get to know you, to bond with you, to have unity with you in Christ. But I recognize that there may be easier roads to choose. We're building the plane much as it flies at this moment. ever aware that what's ahead of us probably includes attacks from the enemy, spiritual warfare. But I pray and I hope and I trust that even through the difficult times, God is going to build a united church for his glory and his purpose. Thirdly, Unity is maintained by being of one mind and one love. We now enter into chapter two and you see yet again the repeated phrase, one, one, one. Verse one says, so if there's any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Unity can only be maintained by looking to Christ and being of one mind and one love. That opening verse in chapter one, all these if statements, is a rhetorical phrase for Paul. For us to better get the understanding of what he means here, we could almost translate it as because statements rather than if statements. Because there is encouragement in Christ, because there is comfort from love, because there is participation in the Spirit, and because there is affection and sympathy, we are able to complete this joy that Paul has of being of one mind and one love. As a blood block believer, we have shared experiences. Although we may come from different parts of life, we may be different ages, different ethnicities, different jobs, different personalities, so many differences, but yet we do have a number of shared experiences and those experiences are shared here. That we share in the experience of salvation through Christ. That we share in the experience and comfort of his love. We share in the fellowship that we have with him through his spirit and the affection and sympathy of his mercy and grace in us. This ought to be a five-fold yes of gospel truths. And these shared experiences, they're no small thing. These are the most important things. These are the things that ought to define our life most chiefly, not what you do, not where you come from, Not what your likes and dislikes are. What should define you most of all is your participation with Christ. Your experience of his salvation, your experience of his love, your fellowship in his experience, or in his spirit. These are the most important things. And so it would be right for us to be united in these things. And the result is that these things make us of the same mind. Same mind. Does this mean we have to agree on everything? No. I know we all have different opinions and thoughts on a variety of matters. However, being of the same mind is being of the same purpose, have the same goal. That we're not to be quarrelsome. This is such an important thing to see within a church. And even more importantly, to see within the leadership as a church, as we build this body here in Liberty Lake, we are going to be establishing leaders, leaders of ministry, Lord willing, one day leaders of the church, deacons, elders. And we want to have this attitude. being of the same mind, united in the experience that we have through Christ. That this is a requirement of leadership and a sign of godliness. 2 Timothy 2, verses 23 through 24, talks about some of the qualifications of leaders in the church, but no leader is asked to do anything that an everyday Christian is not supposed to do as well, that we should all strive for these things. So let me read this, verse 23, have nothing to do with foolish talk, with ignorant, or sorry, have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies, You know that they breed quarrels, and the Lord's servants must not be quarrelsome, but kind to everyone, able to teach patiently enduring evil." To be of the same mind is to have the same goal and to work towards those goals and be able to recognize what is worth fighting over. Is this just being quarrelsome? Or can I, in grace and humility, Find unity with you in this. Can we look to God's word and see what God's word has to say about this? Am I willing to endure evil, wrongs done to me? Maybe someone's saying a harsh word in response to something that I'm passionate about. We need to be of the same mind, keeping the main thing, the main thing. There are levels of agreement with regards to living in the church. Hopefully you're aware of this. Maybe you've experienced some of these things out of order and have gone through some difficult trying divisions, even within the body of Christ. There are things of first importance. matters of salvation, of orthodox, of whether or not someone would be found to be a Christian or not. We need to have agreement on those things at all times. There are things of second order, differing doctrinal positions, that create enough of a divide that it would make sense to not have fellowship, but aren't matters of salvation. I could give you examples, maybe your view of baptism. Is it believer's baptism, infant baptism? These things can lead to separate fellowships of separate churches. But then there's matters of third importance. To not say that they're, I'm not saying that they're not important, they are worthy of discussion, maybe even passionate discussion. But to know when not to break fellowship over them is important. These could be doctrinal disputes, Maybe take an example here, frequency of communion, once a week, once a month, important matters to consider. Should we divide over these things? Should we experience division and controversy over these things? Probably not. And then matters of fourth importance, styles of music, meeting times. I've seen many churches get things out of order and experience division and heartache And it comes from not being of the same mind. Losing that singular purpose. And this takes wisdom. It is messy. It is not always clear. But it is important. So not only were we to be of the same mind, we're to be of the same love we see in this passage. Verse two, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord of one mind. Same love. Partiality is a problem in church. To show favorites can be a tendency of ours. To be closed off towards those who are different than you. You and I are called to have the same love towards one another. Almost the idea of having equal love towards one another. It's hard to do, but not impossible. You may be familiar, there are different words for love in Greek, in the New Testament. There's love of friendship, romantic love, physical attraction, but then there's also this idea of agape love, unconditional love, that is more a matter of your will than it is of your emotions. And when we are called to love one another, we are called to love one another in that unconditional sort of love, the same love that Christ has showed you. It wasn't earned, this love you received from Christ, but it was given to you by Him freely. And so you and I are to walk with that same mindset, giving love to one another freely, not because they've earned it, not because you get along with them, but because they're a believer, they're a brother and sister in Christ. It's based on an intentional, conscious choice to seek the welfare of another. And this love ought to mark every believer. John 13, 34 through 35, Jesus commands us to love one another in this way. A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this, all men will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another. This is a love that's foreign to the world. Non-believers, those lost in their sin, they love because of how it makes them feel. They love because they make you earn it. We love because Christ has first loved us. And we're called to love one another with that same love. Can read from the Gospel of John again, John 17, verses 21 through 22. May all be one, even as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you send me. The glory which you have given me, I have given to them, that they may be one just as we are one. The shared love of the Trinity, Father, Son, Holy Spirit, is to be displayed here in this church as we love one another, that we are to be one. But it takes an act of our will, right? We think love is all about emotions. It's a way you feel, but often it's a choice you make. Those married and those with kids know that love is more a matter of the will than it is emotion at times. If I only loved my wife when I felt like it, then our marriage would not last long. Even shorter, if she only loved me when she felt like it, because I'm far less deserving. But yet, when we choose to love one another daily, that is when our love grows. It's when we're asked to do things that make no sense, to suffer alongside one another, to serve one another without any benefit to yourself, to go through hard times, But that is when love often grows the most. See, oftentimes it starts with a willful action, and the emotions will follow later. But man, are those emotions so much deeper and meaningful after that agape, unconditional, willful act to love somebody. What communicates love more? a romantic candlelight dinner, or caring for a really sick spouse, cleaning up after them because they're that sick. I like candlelight dinners. But I've also been loved through that messy, sacrificial love. And that communicates far more love, because it's an act of will. putting another person before yourself. It's loving like Christ has loved us. And so just as a person exercises their will to love a spouse as an act of love, so also we as Christians must exercise our will to love other members of the church. It's not going to come natural sometimes, but it's what leads to greater unity. to greater godliness and to greater glory for Christ, because people will see that love and know that it is not of this world. And so let our greatest commonality always be in Christ. Let us choose to love those who are different from us, different in age, wealth, status, personality, whatever it may be. And let us love like Christ has loved us, sacrificially. Let others see our love for one another and wonder where it could come from and tell them it comes from Jesus. I have one more point to make. Unity is also maintained by remaining humble. by remaining humble. Verses three and four do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourself. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Humility. This idea of doing things from selfish ambition and conceit communicates this idea, if you look in the original languages, of vain glory, purposeless, that we at times try to glorify ourselves by keeping our own interests first and foremost. And we may obtain glory for a time by being prideful, by looking for praise, by looking out for number one, by putting us first. But how long does that glory last? At best, until our death, but oftentimes far shorter. This is vain. Our glory is not meant for ourselves, but we are meant to glorify another. And the way we do that is by remaining humble. remaining humble. Matthew 6.1 says, beware of practicing your righteousness before people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. If you are living for this world, for glorying yourself in this world, then you may have that for a time, but you will not have that in eternity. But if you live for the Lord, if you live a life humble, then there is great rewards to be had in heaven. And that glory is not in vain because it glorifies your Father and you get to experience that reward forever. the Lord has strong words for the proud all throughout scripture. I'll take a quick sweep from a number of passages. James 4 6 he says, but he gives more grace therefore it says God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. When you are not humble, when you are proud, when you seek your own glory, you are opposed to the Lord. James 4.10 goes on to say, humble yourselves before the Lord and he will exalt you. We try so hard to exalt ourselves in our pride, but instead the Lord brings us low, but in our humility before the Lord is actually how we are exalted. Luke 4, 14, 11, for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted. And so, pride is an issue. It divides us in our relationship with the Lord. He is opposed to us. He is set against us. The more prideful we are, if your life is characterized by pride, if you haven't humbled yourself to come to the Lord in salvation, then God is indeed opposed to you. Pride also makes you oppose to one another, that you are out for yourself. And if you are in a church with the attitude of only ever being out for yourself, do not be surprised when division is quick to follow. This is why we are called and instructed by Paul in these verses, in verse four, to count others more significant and look to the interests of others. It's just another way of saying the greatest commandment. You may know the greatest commandment from Matthew 22, to love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself. To put the interest of others above yourself. that in these two commandments, all of the law of the prophets can be summarized. That we are to love others first. Love others as yourself. Love others as Christ has loved you. It's true within the church. It's how we maintain unity. And it's true even in a marriage relationship, how a husband and wife maintain unity. Husbands, we are instructed in Ephesians 5 to love your wife as your own body. When you do not do that, you experience strife, division, separation, quarrels. The same is true in the church, which is the bride of Christ. And so let humility mark us. Humility is the mark of great men of faith and women. We look at the examples in scriptures. Moses in Numbers 12.3 was described as very humble, more than any man before him on the earth. David speaks of humility. He says the humble will inherit the earth. Jesus himself is described as gentle in heart. gentle and lowly, or gentle and humble in heart. As Christians were instructed in the Beatitudes, Matthew 5, 5, blessed are the meek. In other words, blessed are the humble, for they shall inherit the earth. And again, as a quality of leadership, we ought to have humble leaders. He must not be a recent convert according to 1 Timothy 3.6, or he may be puffed up with conceit and fall into condemnation of the devil. Sad thing is humility is often seen as a negative trait in the world today. It was in ancient times that to be humble was to be weak. To be humble was to be ineffective. To be humble was not to be a leader. This may be the view of some of us in our worldly way of thinking, but this is not the way that Christ has organized his kingdom. That is the humble who are exalted. So let us correct our understanding of humility. Oftentimes, people think humility is thinking less of yourself. There's an old saying, it's not thinking less of yourself, but thinking about yourself less. Think of others first. Count others more important. So I ask you, how could this be in practice here in the church and in your home? Are you willing to give up preferences for the sake of humility and unity and love and sacrifice? Are you willing to serve, even when it's inconvenient, those in your home and those who are here with us this morning? Are you willing to give of your time, of your energy, of your talents, or whatever it may be, things that you are tempted to hold onto for yourself for selfish reasons, for your own personal gain, for your own glory? Or will you let those go to allow God to humble your heart and unite his church? simple statement to summarize that we will spend much of our time next week looking at is verse five. Have this mind among yourselves which is yours in Christ Jesus. Everything that we've talked about in terms of how to maintain unity, striving side by side, not being frightened by opponents, being of one mind and one love and remaining humble, is first demonstrated in the life of Jesus. That as we seek to have unity in the church, we seek to have the mind of Christ, what he has gone before us and demonstrated for us first. I'll end with this picture. If you've been in church for a while, you know that there are a number of images that the New Testament uses to describe His church. One of those is the body of Christ. That we are one body and He is the head. So let us be united in Christ as the one body. And let us keep Jesus as the head to set the direction, to set the goal, to set the attitude, we may walk in him and be a unified church for his glory and for his purposes. Let me pray. Heavenly Father, to be a united people is impossible. It's impossible on our own because of our sin. Sin divides It separates. It separates us from you and it separates us from one another. We need only look at the Garden of Eden and see Adam divided against Eve. Lord, we need your divine grace, your protection, your mind to keep a united church. Lord, would you protect us from any division, any cracks that may take place within this young fellowship. Lord, knowing that these things are bound to happen, but we pray that you would equip us to handle them with love, with grace, with mercy, with the mind of Christ, counting others more significant than ourselves. Would you guide us in this truth? We pray in Jesus' name, amen.