John 17:20-23 – That the World Would Know
A book that has changed my life is What’s So Amazing About Grace? In it the author, Philip Yancey quotes Mark Twain. Apparently Twain used to say he put a dog and a cat in a cage together as an experiment, to see if they could get along. They did, so he put in a bird, pig and goat. They, too, got along fine after a few adjustments. Then he put in a Baptist, Presbyterian, and Catholic; soon there was not a living thing left.
In this area it might be Baptist, Pentecostal and Catholic. But you know, it’s hard enough sometimes for a Wesleyan, a Wesleyan and a Wesleyan to get along. There’s something about people having a hard time getting along with each other, having a hard time being with each other. And that something is usually sin. The Bible says in Eph.4:3: “Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.” If we have to make efforts to get along with others, obviously it isn’t always easy. And you know that anyway. Even as Christians, we don’t always see eye to eye. I wish we did. But sometimes we just can’t seem to do it.
Which is a major reason lots of people stay away from church, and ultimately from Christ. Even people who claim to know Him stay away from church, often times because they have some problem with the people or the preacher. (As if preachers aren’t people.)
As I have been working thru this summer series on the why’s of our worship – why we do what we do on Sunday mornings – I come to this issue of togetherness. Why do we actually come to church? I mean, we can pray at home. We can worship in our cars. We can give to other good Christian causes. We can read our Bibles on our front porches. We can serve and minister in other areas. So why do we have church? Why do we get together, especially when it’s so hard sometimes? Why does the Bible tell us in Hebrews 10:25: “Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another--and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”
Well, there’s a whole host of reasons. We could talk all day on why people should come to church – the power of corporate worship, the multitude of serving opportunities, the words of Jesus that says He hears our prayers when 2 or 3 are gathered together, the tradition of hearing the word from someone else explain it, and so on. We could talk of fires staying hotter when the coals are together, than when the coals are scattered around. We could talk of the massive power failure this week, all started by one power plant shutting down and putting too much of a strain on all the others and they shut down too – meaning that when one Christian backs away, we all suffer.
But today I want to look at the words of Jesus in John 17. This was His final lengthy prayer heard by other people. Jesus wanted us to know what was on His mind in His last few hours. Let’s look at v20-23 for two thoughts about why we are to be united as Christians. Why should we come to church? Why should we be together? V20-23.
In this section of the prayer, Jesus is praying for us in particular (v20). He prayed that we might be one. That is, that we might be unified. Now, He had more in mind than all of us just coming to church and sitting there and sulking and pouting and being hostile towards one another. Someone once said: “There can be union without unity: tie two cats together by their tails and throw them over a clothesline.”
But obviously Jesus wants more for His church than to be barely hanging on and barely tolerating each other. He prayed that we would be one. Why? So that the world would know. Know what? 2 things that Jesus wants the world to know. If Jesus wants the world to know these 2 things, obviously it’s our job to be one with each other so that the world would know. What are these 2 things?
1) We need to be one so that the world would know God’s harmony. Harmony? What am I talking about? V21 – just as Jesus and the Father are one. V22 – we are one, I in them and you (that is, the Father) in me (that is, the Son). V23 – the Father sent Jesus and the Father loved Jesus. The members of the Godhead – the Trinity – get along with each other. The Godhead represents the perfect picture of unity with diversity.
Let me explain. We believe that God is made up of 3 persons, 3 personalities, 3 parts. They are one God, but each is different. God the Father is the will, the planner, the organizer, the boss. He gives the orders. He conceives the ideas. His will is the best.
Now Jesus, God the Son and the Son of God, is the sacrifice. He was God on earth. He became the sacrifice for our sins. He died so that we wouldn’t have to. He became our path to God. He prays for us even today in heaven. And the Holy Spirit is God on earth today. He, not “it”, lives inside believers. He prays for us too. He works in people’s hearts to show them their need of God. He is the presence we are supposed to feel when we worship. He enlightens our hearts. The Holy Spirit is the continued presence of God on the earth and in our lives today. The 3 are one God, but each with distinct purposes and jobs.
Let me ask you a question. Could the Father say, “I don’t need you” to Jesus? Theologically, no. But practically, could He say that Jesus’ job is unimportant? Of course not. Jesus’ job was to redeem us and buy us back. Could the Son say to the Spirit, “I don’t need you”? No. Jesus said that He had to go away, but the Spirit would come. You see, God has harmony within Himself. One God, 3 persons, 3 different tasks and purposes.
So when the world looks at the church and says: “One God, x number of persons, and only a few of them are working with each other”, what do think they see? They see disharmony. They see unrest. They see a bunch of people who can’t get their acts together to accomplish something. We are stronger when we are together. We accomplish more when we are together. We reflect God better when we work together in harmony with each other. Vesta Kelly said these words: “Snowflakes are one of nature’s most fragile things, but just look at what they can do when they stick together.”
When you say, “But I don’t care if I get along with that person,” or “I won’t make an effort to make things better,” or “Well, never mind them, then,” you are saying, “I don’t need you.” But 1 Corinthians tells us that the eye really does need the hand, and the hand really does need the foot.
In fact, when you say that you really don’t need someone, you are saying that you are better than God. Each person in the Trinity is important. But we are saying, “I don’t need other people to encourage me – I can do it myself” or “I don’t need the preacher to preach to me – I’m smart enough as is”. People, Christians, who avoid church are making themselves better than God, and are suffering from the same sin that kicked Satan out of heaven – pride. And we wonder why the church doesn’t grow. It’s because we don’t think highly enough of others, and we give a poor reflection of the harmony within the Godhead.
The second reason we need to be one is that so that the world would know God’s heart. V23 – “May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me AND have loved them even as you have loved me.” The first reason we need to be one is to show God’s harmony – the unity within diversity. The second is so that the world would know God’s heart, God’s love.
Let’s be brutally honest here. No-one wants to go to a church with fighting. Every church I know at all has had fighting at some point. Every church I know at all has driven out a pastor at some time. Every church I know has had people leave because of turmoil. This church is no different from any other church. Congratulations. We are an average church.
But I think of Jesus’ words in John 13:35: “By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." Love goes a long ways in showing who God really is. Does that mean that everybody’s going to be one big happy family? Does that mean that everyone will get along? Does that mean we should all just hold hands and sing Kum-By-Ah and pretend that we have no problems? No. Jesus despises fakery as much as disunity.
But love is intensely practical. It’s not just a feeling – it’s an action. 1 Peter 4:8: “Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.” We may still sin and mess up and hurt each other, but loving others takes the sting out of it. That’s why we are to love each other deeply. Ephesians 4:15 tells us how to mature as Christians in a church family: “Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ.” Speaking the truth in love goes a long way. We can still say what we feel, but if people know that you’re speaking in love and not in anger or hatred, it goes a lot further.
So how are you reflecting God’s qualities? Do your relationships with other Christians show God accurately? Do your relationships with other Christians show God’s harmony and God’s heart? Can people see that you get along with others and that you love others? Are you a reflection of the One who is unity with diversity, the One who is love?
The German philosopher Schopenhauer compared the human race to a bunch of porcupines huddling together on a cold winter’s night. He said, “The colder it gets outside, the more we huddle together for warmth; but the closer we get to one another, the more we hurt one another with our sharp quills. And in the lonely night of earth’s winter eventually we begin to drift apart and wander out on our own and freeze to death in our loneliness.” Pastor Wayne Brouwer adds this: “Christ has given us an alternative—to forgive each other for the pokes we receive. That allows us to stay together and stay warm.”
Let me leave you with the blessing that Paul gave to the church in Rome, Romans 15:5-6: “May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” With one voice the crowd asked for the death of Jesus. With one voice we can praise God. Let’s be unified to show the love of God to a world that needs to know Him. It was one of Jesus’ last desires.
