Guarding Our Hearts: Unity Against Division

Devotional

Day 1: A divided house cannot stand.

Jesus exposed the lie behind the Pharisees’ accusation by pointing to a simple truth: division destroys; whether in a kingdom, a city, a church, or a family, if we entertain the spirit of division the whole structure collapses, so shut the “front door” to anything—words, posts, alliances, habits—that seeds suspicion, bitterness, or factions, and call the virus by its right name so Christ’s Spirit can rule your heart and home. [50:45]

Matthew 12:22-28 (ESV)
Then a demon-oppressed man who was blind and mute was brought to him, and he healed him, so that the man spoke and saw. And all the people were amazed, and said, “Can this be the Son of David?” But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, “It is only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, that this man casts out demons.” Knowing their thoughts, he said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and no city or house divided against itself will stand. And if Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand? And if I cast out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges. But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.”

Reflection: Who is one person with whom you feel tension today? Before the day ends, send a humble message that owns your part, asks forgiveness, and invites a brief conversation to seek peace this week.

Day 2: Choose whom your house will serve.

Every home serves something; decide today that your “front door” admits only what aligns with worship—remove practices and media that normalize anger or fear, and actively invite God’s presence through prayer, Scripture, and unity so that your house is protected from chaos by a clear, covenantal allegiance to the Lord. [47:49]

Joshua 24:14-15 (ESV)
Now therefore fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness. Put away the gods that your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

Reflection: What one input at your “front door” (show, account, podcast, habit) is feeding unrest in your home? Remove or mute it today and replace it with 10 minutes of Scripture and prayer at your doorway with your household.

Day 3: Marriage is a God-joined covenant.

God joins husband and wife into one flesh, so guard the covenant fiercely: resist the enemy’s subtle tactics of distraction, division, and deception by building boundaries, praying with (not just for) one another, prioritizing time together, and treating the marriage bedroom’s privacy as a picture of how carefully you protect your unity. [56:30]

Mark 10:6-9 (ESV)
But from the beginning of creation, ‘God made them male and female.’ ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.”

Reflection: What is one deliberate action you will take today to cherish your spouse (specific note, device-free walk, favorite meal, or practical help), and when will you do it?

Day 4: Your spouse is not the enemy.

Your real battle is spiritual, not personal; refuse to fight each other and, instead, close the distance quickly after every offense—name the issue, reconcile fast, and stand shoulder-to-shoulder against the lies that say “you deserve better” or “they don’t care,” choosing unity habits that move you closer after each conflict. [59:28]

Ephesians 6:12 (ESV)
For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

Reflection: Create a simple “reconnect ritual” for the next disagreement (for example: pause, say “we’re on the same team,” hold hands, each share one feeling and one need, then hug); will you practice this the very next time tension arises today?

Day 5: Pursue peace to protect Christ’s body.

Church family is precious and imperfect, so when offenses come, refuse gossip, take initiative to reconcile, reach for the isolated, and make new friends—the world looks for reasons to divide, but the Spirit leads you to do “whatever depends on you” to live at peace so the house of God remains a refuge. [54:32]

Romans 12:18 (ESV)
If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.

Reflection: Identify one person at church you’ve avoided or someone new you don’t know; send them an encouraging text (or note) today and set a time this week to grab coffee so you can listen to their story.

Sermon Summary

We celebrated what God is doing among us—from serving our community through the pumpkin patch to honoring our team—and we stopped to pray for families walking through the valley, including Sam’s. I invited us to open the altars during worship because burdens don’t need to wait until the end of service. Then we turned to the house God has entrusted to each of us—our hearts, our marriages, our kids, and our church—and I asked a simple question: what are we letting in through the front door? Cameras and alarms won’t catch the most dangerous intruder. Division walks in quietly, sits on the couch, and splits the house from the inside.

Jesus said a house divided against itself cannot stand. Too often we attack symptoms—race, politics, masks, vaccines—while the real virus is the spirit of division. The enemy has run this same play since the garden, to separate what God has joined. But the good news is Jesus crossed the divide we could not, reconciling us to the Father and empowering us to shut the front door on division in our own homes.

I called us to protect our marriages—because marriage is a covenant, not just a relationship. The enemy rarely shows up with horns; he shows up as distraction, disconnection, and quiet resentments that grow into walls. Pray with each other, build healthy boundaries, honor each other publicly and privately, and be quick to reconnect after conflict. Fight together, not with each other.

I called us to fight for our kids’ hearts. Their bedroom door is a privilege, not a right. Monitor influences. Lead by example. If we want kids who pray, read, and love the church, they need to catch us doing those things.

And I challenged us to protect our church and our pastors. With a church family this size, you won’t like everyone, and not everyone will like you. As much as it depends on you, live at peace. Refuse gossip. Make new friends like we ask our children to do. I am not your Republican or Democrat pastor. I belong to Jesus, and so does this house. We will stand for truth with grace, and we will not let the world’s divisions infect what God is doing at this altar.

I opened the altar for two groups: those who need reconciliation with God, and those who need the blood of Jesus reapplied to the doorposts of their heart—over marriages, kids, church family, and even enemies. Repaint the door. Keep repainting the door. The blood still works.

Key Takeaways

1. Name the real intruder. We keep rebuking symptoms—racism, politics, cultural battles—while the root is a spirit of division. When you call the wrong name, the thing hides in the shadows and stays powerful. Repentance begins where precision begins: discern, name, and shut the door on division. [54:32] - The cross closes every gap we cannot. Sin separated us from God, but Jesus crossed the chasm and carried us home; that’s our pattern for every relationship. In moments of fracture, we don’t wait for the other to move—we move first, because He moved first. Reconciliation isn’t naivety; it’s cruciform courage.
- Marriage is a covenant to protect, not just a feeling to preserve. The enemy rarely attacks with scandal; he erodes with distraction, delay, and little resentments that calcify into walls. Pray with each other, set boundaries against unhealthy inputs, and be quick to reconnect after conflict—fight together, not each other.
- Parents, contend for your children’s formation before the world does. The battle arrives early and hides in playlists, private screens, and isolated rooms; that bedroom door is a privilege, not a right. Model what you want multiplied—let them catch you praying, reading Scripture, prioritizing the church. Formation is caught before it’s taught.
- Guard the unity of the church and refuse borrowed identities. Live at peace as far as it depends on you—no gossip, quick reconciliation, and proactive friendship-making. We are not a red church or a blue church; our banner is Jesus, and His kingdom refuses to be co-opted by partisan tribes. [54:32]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[02:42] - Church updates and pumpkin patch mission
[27:02] - Honoring Keaton’s calling and faithfulness
[31:38] - Next gen leads; open altars for heavy hearts
[42:54] - Prayer to prepare our hearts for the Word
[44:47] - God-ordained timing and Full House focus
[47:49] - Protect the house: shut the front door
[49:04] - Naming the intruder: the spirit of division
[50:45] - A kingdom and house divided cannot stand
[56:30] - Guarding marriage as a covenant of one flesh
[67:03] - Reconnect fast: conflict and closeness illustration
[68:59] - Fight for your kids: influences, example, and access
[73:02] - Guard the church: live at peace and reject gossip
[85:59] - Not red or blue—Jesus alone defines our house
[89:44] - Two altar invitations: reconciliation and repentance

Sermon Clips

Look.The church, and when I say the church, I don't necessarily, I don't mean forward. I mean churches in general. The Christian, the army of God is the only army that will shoot its wounded.Somebody falls into a trap. Somebody falls into a sin. And the church will be very quick to point out everything that's wrong with it. And attack it. Where everybody else is judged but our own advocate.And I want to point out what he's trying to let you know. Listen. You are part of the body of Christ. If you've accepted Christ, you're a part of the body of Christ. You can't be attacking one another. That doesn't make sense. [00:52:00] (40 seconds) #ChurchHealsNotShoots

All of this stuff that I listed, we're calling out symptoms and not the virus.This is why we have pastors calling out a spirit of racism or a spirit of politics or a spirit of blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, and nothing changes. It's because it's the spirit of division. Call it by its right name. When Jesus...Jesus knew that the demons were legion, he was able to address it because he knew its name. We're calling out the wrong name and so it can still hide in the shadows.It's division that the enemy has tried to push it and let's not forget that he succeeded. [00:54:40] (42 seconds) #NameTheSpiritOfDivision

But the devil doesn't show up with his red horns and his pitchfork. I've seen the movies. I get it.You know, all that stuff. Ah, I'm the devil. Oh, that was my impression. Sorry.He doesn't show up like that.He shows up as distraction. Like you're too busy to reconnect and connect with each other. He shows up like division. Small arguments that will grow into walls of bitterness. He shows up like deceptions with lies in your head. Like, you know what? You deserve better than this. Or, you know what? I don't even think they care about you.Satan's first attack on humanity was divide Adam and Eve from each other. [00:58:15] (42 seconds) #EnemyDisguisesAsDistraction

There are certain things that happen in the marriage bedroom that you would lock the door on to ensure you're not disrupted, distracted, or disengaged.We understand that. And yet, we will allow our marriage wide open so the enemy can disrupt, distract, or disengage us from our spouse.How is it that we will understand the physical side of that, but not the spiritual and emotional side of that? You should be protecting. The way you protect your bedroom should be how you're protecting your spouse.We allow division into the marriage, and then wonder why we can't get on the same page. [01:00:13] (45 seconds) #GuardBedroomProtectMarriage

Protect your marriage. Go out of your way to protect your wife, gentlemen.Find their love language and speak it. Fight for her and not with her. Be tough for her, but be tender to her.Make her feel cherished and loved. Make her feel like she's the most important person in your world.Go above and beyond to protect your husband's wives.Encourage him and tell him you're proud of him.Fight for him and not with him. Do not undercut him. Don't publicly mock him. You should be his biggest cheerleader. Make him a priority.You wouldn't leave your front door wide open at night to allow the enemy to come in.But we leave the door open in our marriage all the time for the enemy to come in and get in between us. Fight together and not with each other. [01:04:45] (54 seconds) #FightForEachOtherNotAgainst

Parents, we live in a world where the enemy's not even hiding anymore. He's out in public and he's celebrating. He's openly attacking our children. Media, culture, peer pressure, lies disguised as truth. We have a whole generation that's growing up thinking it's okay to have their own version of truth.If everybody has a version of truth, then there is no truth. We shouldn't have to teach people this.Satan is seeking to steal their innocence, kill their identity, and destroy their destiny. Recognize the reality of this attack. The enemy doesn't wait until our kids are grown. He comes after them early. [01:08:32] (41 seconds) #ProtectChildrenFromCulturalAssault

Lead by example. If your goal is to drop your kids off to Pastor Dawson and Pastor Keaton or Pastor Julie or whomever is teaching that week, and you expect them to teach them everything, you are failing. We're failing our kids. They're going to learn way more from you than they ever will from us.And they're going to learn by example, not by your words. They will learn by, if you want your kids to pray, then they need to see you pray. If you want your kids to read the word, they need to see you reading the word. If you want your kids to value church, then you need to make church a priority. [01:12:10] (36 seconds) #LeadFaithByExample

Protect your church. This is your community. These are your people.Don't let the enemy drive division between you and the body of Christ.There's over 400 people in our church. We're getting closer to 500 every day.If somebody offends you, go and work it out.Go and talk it out. Don't run people down. Don't gossip. Oh, I need to go talk to people and get advice. No, you don't. The Bible already gave it to you. Just man up and say you won't read the Bible for advice. [01:12:56] (36 seconds) #ProtectChurchUnity

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