“Becoming One”
John 17:16-23
OPEN
In a Peanuts cartoon Lucy demanded that Linus change TV channels, threatening him with her fist if he didn't. Linus asks, “What makes you think you can walk right in here and take over?”
Lucy replies, “These five fingers. Individually they're nothing but when I curl them together like this into a single unit, they form a weapon that is terrible to behold.”
Linus asks, “Which channel do you want?” Turning away, he looks at his fingers and says, “Why can't you guys get organized like that?”
From its earliest days, the church has faced difficulty with quarrels and strife. Satan has sought to conquer the kingdom of Christ by one key tactic: divide and conquer. Although he attacks from the outside as well, the devil’s favorite tactic is to get the members of a local congregation to fight among themselves. He knows that if he can get us inwardly focused instead of outwardly focused on our mission, he can derail the work that Christ has called us to do.
On the night before he went to the cross, Jesus went to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray. The Gospel of John gives us some insight into what he prayed about. A goodly portion of what John records from that prayer session deals with Christ’s prayer that the church should remain united – focused on the task ahead instead of the trivialities of disagreement.
Jn. 17:16-23 – “Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. 18 As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. 19 For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified. 20 My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21 that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— 23 I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.”
God doesn’t like division within the ranks of his people. Prov. 6:16-19 – There are six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to him: 17 haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, 18 a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, 19 a false witness who pours out lies and a person who stirs up conflict in the community.
So Paul advises us to avoid it. 1 Cor. 1:10 – I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another in what you say and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly united in mind and thought.
The core principle is that as Christ’s followers, we should be united as one the same way God is united as one. For observant Jews, there is one verse of scripture that they use every morning to start their day and end their day – when they wake up and go to bed. It’s also the verse that gets spoken by them at every synagogue service. There is even evidence that many of them would speak it as they were led to their deaths in the Nazi concentration camps during WW II. It’s Deut. 6:4 – “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.”
Jesus’ desire is that we would share in the oneness that he had with the Father. He prayed in Jn. 17:21 – “that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us…” God is Father, Son and Holy Spirit yet they are not divided but united as one. So should the church of Christ be, as well.
Paul would write to the church at Ephesus in Eph. 4:2-5 – Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.
There are some things that hinder unity. I’m only mentioning a short list but these three things seem to cover the core problems.
The first thing that hinders unity is pride. Sometimes we get to thinking too much about ourselves. We put our contributions to the local congregation above everyone else’s. We think that because of what we’ve done at some point in time should give our opinions and desires more esteem and weight in matters of church activities.
We need to be very careful here. While every person’s contributions are appreciated, no one’s contributions to the work of Christ are more important than any others persons. Jesus dealt with this problem among his first followers because they wanted to argue over who was the greatest. He reminded them that while he was truly the greatest, he came to serve and so should they. Prov. 29:23 – Pride brings a person low, but the lowly in spirit gain honor.
The second thing that hinders unity is selfishness. For some reason people view the church with what is termed a “consumer mentality.” They look at their membership in a local congregation as a means of satisfying what they want. Therefore, everything is focused on the things they like: musical styles, the order of the worship, the length of the sermon, and the activities in each program.
The apostle Paul warns in Phil 2:3-4 – Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, 4 not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.
The third thing that hinders unity in the local congregation is the cult of personality. This basically boils down to having a favorite among the staff or leadership of the congregation. “I like so-and-so so much better than the other guy.” “I’d much rather deal with one over the other. What this tends to do is to pit ministry staff and other leaders against each other.
1 Cor. 1:11-12 – My brothers and sisters, some from Chloe’s household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. 12 What I mean is this: One of you says, “I follow Paul”; another, “I follow Apollos”; another, “I follow Cephas”; still another, “I follow Christ.”
There some things that promote unity. They build up the body of Christ rather than tear it down.
The first thing is love. Love is our highest priority. We are called to love God with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength and to love our neighbor as ourselves. We become most like Christ when we love unconditionally and actively.
Jesus said in Jn. 13:34-35 – “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
The second thing that promotes unity is prayer. We’re told in 1 Thess. 5:17 – Pray continually. Most people seem to think that verse means to pray for the things they want and for the things that concern them. But James 5:16 says that we should pray for one another as well. It’s difficult to fight and squabble with someone whom you consistently lift up in prayer – praying for their families, their jobs, and their spiritual well-being.
The third thing that promotes unity in the church is forgiveness. Col. 3:13 – Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.
We are called to forgive each other in the body of Christ instead of holding grudges and animosity. We’re called to forgive one another just as God has forgiven us. We’ve all done some pretty selfish and rebellious things.. God has forgiven those through Christ and so should we forgive one another.
As Jesus prays in John 17, he gives us some things around which we can unite. The first thing is one person: Jesus.
He is the way, the truth, and the life. There is no other name under heaven by which we can be saved. He is God incarnate and the one who gave his life to pay for our sins. If we can’t unite around Jesus, we can’t unite around anyone or anything else.
Col. 1:15-17 – The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. 17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.
The second thing around which we can unite is one plan: the Bible. The Bible is God’s communication to us in written form. Through it, he guides and directs our paths. Without it we simply have human opinions.
2 Tim. 3:16-17 – All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
The third thing around which we’re to unite is one purpose: making disciples. Mt. 28:18-20 – “Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Wm. Barclay: “The gospel cannot truly be preached in any congregation which is not one united band of brothers.”
The fourth thing around which we’re to unite is one plea: In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; but in all things, love. Let’s look at each one of those points of our plea.
The first is unity. Psalms 133:1-5 – How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity! 2 It is like precious oil poured on the head, running down on the beard, running down on Aaron’s beard, down on the collar of his robe.3 It is as if the dew of Hermon were falling on Mount Zion. For there the Lord bestows his blessing, even life forevermore. Vesta Kelly: “Snowflakes are one of nature's most fragile things, but just look at what they can do when they stick together.”
The next is liberty. This point of the plea deals with things that are not specifically spelled out or demonstrated in Scripture. The basic rule is that if we do not have a “thus sayeth the Lord” or apostolic precedence, it falls into a matter of opinion and freedom to do as one sees fit.
One huge example of this problem demonstrated itself in the history of our restoration movement. There were (and still are) folks within our movement that believe that our congregational worship should only be done with human voices with no instrumental accompaniment. In 1906, our movement divided over this issue.
We are starting to move beyond that division is many ways because now there are people on both sides of the issue who see this issue as a matter of opinion and preference as opposed to divisive doctrine. There are more and more folks from both the non-instrumental congregations and those who use instruments in worship who are not only worshiping together but working together for the cause of Christ.
Rom. 14:1 – Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters. Rom. 14:19 – Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.
The third point of our plea is love. Our demonstration of love to each other confirms our relationship with Christ. If we don’t demonstrate love for each other, it shows that we’re not walking with Christ.
1 Jn. 4:7-8 – Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.
The strife that’s caused when God’s people fight and quarrel with each and treat one another with disdain and animosity comes from Satan. In John 10, Jesus refers to himself as the Good Shepherd. He describes the work of the shepherd as providing for and protecting the sheep. The devil, on the other hand, comes to steal sheep. In Jn. 10:10, Jesus says, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”
It all boils down to this. Disunity leads to dysfunction. Dysfunction uncorrected leads to destruction. Jesus said in Mk. 3:24-25 – “If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25 If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.”
Here is a summary of what we’ve learned today. This is the takeaway idea of this message.
When we are unified, Christ is glorified. When Christ is glorified, the Gospel is amplified. When the Gospel is amplified, the lost are rectified. Rectify means to correct, to put right, to change for the better, to convert from one thing to another.
A number of years ago in Canada, a little two-year-old girl wandered away from her neighborhood. It was a cold, winter day. Her parents alerted the neighbors and they saw some tracks in the snow, but there were a lot of other tracks, so for several hours the searchers went in all different directions calling her name. They didn’t find her.
A little before sunset one of the men said, “Instead of all working separately, let’s join hands and form a long line and walk through the field together. That way we cannot miss a square foot.”
That’s what they did. They joined hands and together walked as one long line calling that little girl’s name. Tragically, they found her frozen body curled up. One of the men said with great anguish, “Oh, if we had only joined hands sooner.”
