Brotherly Love (Psalm 133)
The psalm was written by David during an occasion when he had enjoyed the harmony and peace of the family of God. Such occasions must have been oases in the desert for him, especially when he was being opposed by false friends and others. Its location within the psalms of ascent indicates that it was used to express the joy the pilgrims had as a result of the fellowship they had experienced during the feasts. Obviously, the feasts in Israel were opportunities for fellowship, not only because they were occasions when people could meet one another, but also because they reminded the Israelites of the divine actions God had done on their behalf and they stressed the various blessings that each of them shared.
Since the psalm begins with a strong call to behold this unity, it stresses that unity is admirable. The call also indicates that we should consider this kind of activity in order to imitate it. The psalm points to the privilege of being allowed access into such fellowship, the pleasantness of enjoying such fellowship, and the purpose of God that such fellowship should mark his people. Of course, when believers fall out, it is not a nice spectacle, as was evidenced in the incident between Paul and Barnabas. It seems that they never worked together again although both of them continued to work for the Lord. Perhaps that was the reason Paul was so concerned about the disagreement Euodia and Syntyche had in the church in Philippi; he remembered the pain of his own disagreement with Barnabas and the separation it had caused in their work for the Master.
The relationship
The relationship that David has in mind is that of brotherhood. In his case, it was experienced through being a member of the nation of Israel, although in our case it is known through being a member of the New Testament church. In David’s case, he had been instrumental in uniting the twelve tribes under his kingship (prior to his becoming king, the nation had been divided into followers of the previous king, Saul, and the followers of David). Both in Israel and in the church, each member had known a dark past, had been given a high privilege, anticipated a magnificent future, and were expected to practically work out this relationship day by day.
The dark past that Israel had known was slavery in Egypt, from which they had been rescued by the mighty power of God, exercised through the provision of a slain lamb, which was celebrated annually afterwards in the Passover feast. In a far deeper sense, the members of the church had been in slavery to sin, from which they had been rescued by the power of God exercised through the provision of a slain Lamb, his own Son, Jesus Christ.
The high privilege that the pilgrims had was to know God as their Father. While it is the case that this doctrine was not as fully understood in the Old Testament as in the New, it is there in the Old Testament because several times God is addressed as Father. For example, Isaiah 63:16 says: ‘For you are our Father, though Abraham does not know us, and Israel does not acknowledge us; you, O LORD, are our Father, our Redeemer from of old is your name; or Isaiah 64:8 says: ‘But now, O LORD, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand.’
As far as the New Testament is concerned, adoption is the greatest privilege that a believer can have. Theoretically, a sinner could be justified (forgiven), sanctified (made holy) and glorified (new body indwelt by the Spirit) without being adopted. In addition to these blessings, and above their benefits, is the status of adoption. Although the fullness of adoption will not be realised until the world of glory in the new heavens and new earth – Paul writes in Romans 8:23 that believers are waiting for their adoption and in verse 19 he says that the whole creation is waiting with anticipation for the permanent public display of their status – there are many blessings connected to this high privilege today: access in prayer, protection from the enemy, chastisement when we sin, etc. One of the best things to do when feeling down in a spiritual sense is to read the various New Testament verses that describe various aspects of the fatherhood of God.
The magnificent purpose that God had for Israel was for them to be his people who would share his inheritance in Canaan. As far as the church is concerned, they too have a great future because they are joint heirs with Christ of his God-given inheritance. Jesus is the heir of all things, which means that they too are to inherit the new heavens and new earth. The day will come when the church of the firstborn will inherit the double portion from the heavenly Father (the elder brother in a family in Israel had by right twice as much as the other members of the family). The significance of the church being called the church of the firstborn in Hebrews 12:23 is twofold. First, unlike Israelite families, the younger members of God’s family share the fullness of their Elder Brother’s inheritance; second, they also share the resurrection life of their Elder Brother who is the firstborn from the dead (Rev. 1:5).
But this relationship of brothers is to be worked out in daily practice, in the expressions of love that they show to one another. This practical outworking is a test of the reality of our religion, as the apostle John writes in 1 John 3:16-17: ‘By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him?’ Paul indicates that concern for our brothers should have priority over genuine care of those who are not in the family of God: ‘So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith’ (Gal. 6:10). Not only is such an attitude a test of our religion, it will also be the standard of the Day of Judgement, as Jesus makes clear in Matthew 25:40: ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’ Mutual care and loving interaction is the hallmark of Christians.
‘There is much that is beautiful and lovely in their unity and harmony. They are redeemed by the same Saviour; they serve the same Master; they cherish the same hope; they are looking forward to the same heaven; they are subject to the same trials, temptations, and sorrows; they have the same precious consolations. There is, therefore, the beauty, the “goodness”, the “pleasantness” of obvious fitness and propriety in their dwelling together in unity’ (Albert Barnes).
The illustrations of the relationship
The psalmist likens this relationship to the oil with which the high priest was anointed and to the dew that descended on the mountains of Israel. The people had read the accounts of the anointing of their priest and had perhaps experienced the refreshing dew as they had made their way up to the annual feasts.
It is the case that both the oil and the dew are symbols of the presence of the Holy Spirit with his people. There are several other symbols of the Holy Spirit found in the Bible. In John 3, Jesus likened the Spirit to the wind; in John 7, he likened the Spirit to water. John the Baptist likened the work of the Spirit to fire. We know from other biblical passages that the work of the Spirit is essential for the reality of sonship to be known (e.g. Rom. 8: 14-17).
The illustration of the oil indicates that the presence of the Spirit was connected to the intercession of the high priest. When the high priest was anointed with oil, the oil flowed on to his shoulders and down his clothes. I suspect there is an allusion here to the names of the children of Israel being written on the shoulders and the breastplate of the high priest. Jesus is our high priest and we know that on his inauguration, after he ascended to heaven, he was anointed with the Spirit above his companions and for his companions. On the Day of Pentecost, the oil flowed down to the church in Jerusalem and it has been flowing from Jesus to his people ever since.
This reception of the Spirit had been promised to Jesus by the Father in the eternal covenant. The terms were that he should live and die on behalf of his people. Because he has done this, when he ascended on high he was anointed with the oil of joy above his companions. Given to the exalted Saviour by the heavenly Father, the Spirit comes into the experience of Christ’s people.
The intercession of our great high priest in relation to the unity of his people continues throughout the history of the church on earth. This is one of the priorities of his heart, as is evident from his prayer in John 17. In order to achieve this momentous and magnificent goal, he intercedes for us to have the Comforter working in our souls. Of course, Jesus in John 17 is not praying primarily for the unity of a local congregation; rather he is praying for final expression of the ultimate union when all the people of God will be together in heaven.
The illustration of dew on Mount Hermon and Mount Zion perhaps points to the great reality that all God’s people, the big and the small, possess this copious Spirit. Hermon was a large mountain whereas Zion was a small hill, yet both enjoyed the presence of the dew. No Christian can say that he does not possess the Holy Spirit. Whatever his spiritual gifts, experiences, and attainments, he has the Spirit of unity.
The results of brotherly love
This Holy Spirit-given brotherly love has many benefits. Like the oil, it is refreshing, and like the oil it spreads. Further, like the dew’s effect on vegetation, brotherly love through the Spirit’s blessing becomes a means of daily growth so that all the flowers that should be in the garden of our hearts will appear; these flowers are described in Galatians 5:22-23: ‘But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.’ In what ways will there be refreshing growth? There are several features of such growth that could be mentioned, but let me mention five.
The first feature of a united group of Christians is forgiveness. This is such an important outlook for Christians that Jesus teaches, in the Lord’s Prayer, that God withholds a sense of forgiveness from us if we refuse to forgive others. A Christian church is the community of the forgiven. Of course, each believer forgives because God has previously forgiven him and her.
A second feature of a united group of Christians is faithfulness or loyalty to one another. This loyalty is displayed in a number of ways, such as committed prayer for one another or resolving to help one another over the long haul. It is easy to begin a process, but only faithfulness will continue it.
A third feature of a united group is fellowship or sharing together. This can happen in practical ways, but there is more than that to Christian fellowship. We should share with one another what Jesus means to us, what discoveries we have made of him; we can share encouraging promises that we have discovered in the Bible. Our aim is to be like those described in Malachi 3:16: ‘Then they that feared the LORD spake often one to another: and the LORD hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the LORD, and that thought upon his name.’
A fourth benefit of a united group is stronger faith or strengthened assurance. Sharing together in the things of Christ stimulates one another. Paul tells the Ephesian Christians that even their words should minister grace to one another (Ephesians 4:29: ‘Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear’). A united church possesses a great basis for mutual upbuilding.
The fifth feature of a united group of believers is that their togetherness is a foretaste of heaven. One of the joys of heaven is the reunion that will occur, of the meeting together of all God’s people down the ages. When a group of diverse ethnic, economic and age backgrounds meet together now in the church, it enjoys the blessing of God in an increased manner because these blessings are foretastes of the heavenly experience.
The display of it
Unity of believers, as this psalm depicts, is a very desirable thing. There are many ways by which unity can be presented. It is the case that the Lord’s people should be one doctrinally, should be one practically, and should be one internally from the heart. They should be one in public worship and in their attendance upon the means of grace, including prayer meetings and other occasions of fellowship.
The two sacraments that Jesus gave to his church are designed to express its unity. When a person is baptised, he joins the visible church; therefore, baptism is an expression of unity. The Lord’s Supper, too, is an expression of unity, for it shows to others that all the participants are one family. For a believer to stay away from the Lord’s table is the same as saying that he or she does not believe in church unity. The Lord’s Supper is a visible sign whereby the world can see that Christians are one, are united, are equally dependant on Christ and on the Holy Spirit.
The pilgrims who travelled to the Old Testament feasts found brotherly love a tonic for their souls. Psalm 120, which details the feelings of the pilgrims as they lived among those who did not share their spirituality, laments the lack of brotherly love found in sinful society (it does have organisations and interest groups, but they are inferior, as far as spiritual benefit is concerned, to the fellowship that believers in Jesus should have with one another). These pilgrims could now return to their communities, some in Israel and some elsewhere in the world, strengthened by the brotherly love they had experienced.
These Old Testament pilgrims lived in an age in which spiritual blessings were not as full as ours. Our potential for fellowship is enhanced because the Spirit has come in his fullness and can lead us into the riches of fellowship that are found in having communion with the risen Saviour and his brothers under the loving eye of the heavenly Father. May our fellowship together stimulate us to want more of it and also strengthen us to live in a society that does not even remotely understand the meaning of true fellowship.