Who says we need Unity?
"Show me in the Bible," the pastor urged. "Show me where God says our different churches are supposed to be united."
It wasn't easy to restrain myself. I didn't want to overwhelm him with the hundreds of scriptures that call us, either directly or indirectly, to unify with other born-again Christians. I needed just the right text and the wisdom and gentleness of Christ.
Should I use the book of Romans, where the Apostle Paul provided a variety of ways to bring divided Jewish and Gentile Christians into unity (see Rom. 3:22-23; 3:29; 4:16-17;5:16-19;6:5; 12; 14; 16:17-18)?
Or should I reference First and Second Corinthians, where Paul rebukes Christians for their petty divisions (see 1 Cor. 1:10-13; 3:1-4, 21-23; 2Cor. 12:20-21), while also calling the church to diversity and harmony (1 Cor. 12-14)?
I decided to go to John 17, which not only talks about the unity of Christians, but also reveals the heart of Christ as He Himself pleads for unity. Here we discover how Jesus views people who are united as His followers but are divided by their own fears, ambitions and world views.
Jesus' disciples, of course, represented a wide disparity of doctrinal beliefs and social origins. Frequently, the twelve were subject to carnal ideas and hidden agendas.
Yet the Lord neither sanctioned their divisions nor pretended they didn't exist. He didn't lower His expectations to the level of their carnality. Instead, He prayed for their standards to be raises to oneness of Godhead!
Ultimately, the issues that divided believers are not really our conflicts; rather, they are part of larger conflict between satan and the Lord Jesus. The devil can't touch the Lord directly, but he can exploit our divisions to bring pain to Christ's heart. As much as we think we are defending the truth, to continue in our carnal divisions is actually to reinforce the deceptions of the devil himself.
That doesn't mean we should unite with every so-called Christian or church organization. There are many false Christians; satan still masquerades as an angel of light. Y
Yet, in my opinion, the question is not whether we be led astray and become false; the challenge today is whether we will repent of the unbiblical divisions among born-again Christians and finally become one in Jesus Christ.
The source of true unity. Upon what basis should we build unity? In John 17, Jesus gave us three fundamental truths which, He said, would lead His church into most profound state of unity-the unity enjoyed by the Father and the Son.
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We have oneness through his name. God calls us into unity with all those who, like us, have called upon the name of the Lord. This is a wide umbrella, and the unity here is not based on common interpretation of doctrinal positions, but on a common need for God's help and forgiveness.
The fact is that, we are already united under the redemptive power of Christ's name. This is not something to attain, but to acknowledge and accept; at the foot of His cross, we are one.
We have oneness through his word. The source of unity is not man's innate ability to organize himself around projects or ideals. Rather, Jesus says that it is "through their word that they all may be one" (vv.20-21,NKJV).
When Christ refers to "their word," He is actually speaking of the testimony of two things. The first proclaims what Jesus did, thus establishing the redemption mission in all who believe.
The second speaks of the continuation and explication of what Jesus said, creating oneness in the lives of those who now follow. This was the very heart of the Great Commission (see Matt. 28:19-20).
Christ's life, is as it is embodied in both His redemptive mission and his teaching, is the fundamental reality upon which all Christianity is constructed.
His sacrifice atones for our past; His word establishes and creates our future. It is here that true oneness and Christian discipleship emerge.
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We have oneness through His glory. The third stage of unity is the highest and most wonderful-for into hearts prepared by the Word; He descends in the living splendor of His presence: "I in them, and you in me; that they may be perfect in one" (in the Greek, "into a unit", John 17:23).
This is the height and goal of genuine Christianity: the revelation of Jesus Christ through His church. This is not something that will happen only in the sweet by and by, but something that is so explicitly here-and-now that "the world" may come to "believe" (see v.21).
Answering His prayer. The truth is we have the ability to be the answer to Jesus' prayer in John 17. Each time we choose to pray for others instead of criticizing, we are answering His prayer.
Every time we turn and forgive a brother who had hurt us, we are answering His longing. When we unite with other churches in love, in prayer, in good deeds, in humble and joyful service; we are increasing the pleasure of His heart.
Think of it. We know that Jesus is the answer to all our prayers. Now, as small and otherwise ordinary as we are, we can be the answer to His prayer: "Father make them one!"
By: Francis Frangipane