Pursuing Unity

The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, take a stick of wood and write on it, ‘Belonging to Judah and the Israelites associated with him.’ Then take another stick of wood, and write on it, ‘Belonging to Joseph (that is, to Ephraim) and all the Israelites associated with him.’ Join them together into one stick so that they will become one in your hand. (Ezekiel 37:15-17) 
 
If you read the text that precedes today’s key passage, you can easily see that so much has happened that has torn this family apart. One thing after the other has caused them to be at odds, and in some instances at war, with one another. In a lot of ways, their tension and lack of unity back then emulate a lot of what our nation is going through today. 
 
There is so much division in our country right now. You don’t have to look very far to find a headline, a tweet, or a shared Facebook post that creates division. We are so quick to blame those who don’t agree with us. But as children of God, we can’t let this lack of unity tear us apart. Instead, we must be reminded of what we have in common—our faith in Jesus Christ—and allow that to bring us together. 
 
God was trying to show Ezekiel and the rest of the Israelites that it’s time to push beyond their grievances and hurts, to rise above divisions and disagreement, and build a community of unity and peace. And He’s telling us the same thing today.  
 
God is not a God of division. Simply put, "A house divided against itself cannot stand.” When holding the two sticks up beside each other, the prophet is trying to make the point that these two branches of the family, which came from a common source, are one and need to unify, for where there is unity there is strength. Just like this principle was true for them, it’s true for us as well. We can accomplish more as one unit than we'd ever be able to accomplish separately. So let’s choose to fight for unity, rather than fighting against each other.