11/2

Psalms 133:1-3

¹How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity! ²It is like precious oil poured on the head, running down on the beard, running down on Aaron's beard, down upon the collar of his robes. ³It is as if the dew of Hermon were falling on Mount Zion. For there the LORD bestows his blessing, even life forevermore.

That is the whole psalm. It is one of the most beautiful expressions of the blessing of unity in Scripture. Most of us have witnessed very little of this type of unity. We are such demanding individuals in the flesh, that while in our flesh, this type of unity is impossible. The only way to arrive at this wonderful blessing is to do as the Apostle Paul said, "Esteem others better than yourself" (Philippians 2:3). Only when a group of people come to real humility in Christ can they find this blessing. In many assemblies we find more division than unity.

I have witnessed unity in a couple of different settings. One was in a cult. All members gave up their individual beliefs and preferences to follow the leader and submit to his teaching. That is not the unity written about here. This unity in the psalm has the blessing of God, life forevermore. The other setting was amongst a group of pastors who focused on Jesus and His salvation, the need to win the lost, and to touch their town with His love. They differed on interpretation of Scripture, on style, and even on how best to get to the goal, but they were united in purpose. They humbled themselves to listen to one another in hopes of the LORD leading them to the victory they so longed for. They realized that if one of them was successful that they were all going to be blessed.

Verse two compares unity to the anointing of Aaron for the priesthood. The anointing oil, a picture of the Holy Spirit, ran down over his beard and dripped on his priestly robes. When we humble ourselves and experience unity, we will see an overflowing of the Holy Spirit, not just a drop. Then he compares it with dew on Zion. The heights of Mount Hermon would have dew when the rest of the nation was dry and dusty. Unity is attractive because it is so rare. The morning dew must have made the buildings on Zion glisten as if they were all made of silver. Those in unity look anointed, shining, because Jesus shines through.

Remember: Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God that He might exalt you in due season.