Unified in Christ

As a Christian, how am I supposed to look at and think of my fellow believers?

Am I supposed to treat or think of them in a special way, or does our mutual faith have any impact on how I relate to them?

To answer these questions we will turn our attention to the only place in Jesus’s ministry on earth where He prayed specifically for all believers who would come after His death and resurrection.

John 17:20-23

This is toward the tail end of Jesus’s high priestly prayer that He prayed the night before His crucifixion.

Before entering into the final stages of His life, Jesus thought it was crucial to pray these things, thus we ought to pay close attention to what He had to say.

V. 20- “I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word;

Up until this point Jesus had been praying for Himself, then the Disciples, and here now He turns His attention to all Christians who were to follow.

Notice the common feature Jesus describes for all Christians.

It is the Word (Gospel) of God that causes Man to believe and follow Christ.

We will speak on unity today, which is absolutely necessary to the success of the gospel, but we have to remember one crucial thing.

True unity has to be built on truth. There are certain differences that are allowable when it comes to working and worshipping God with someone. However, if and when we get the main things wrong, unity cannot be built on a lie.

So Christians are people who first and foremost believe the Word of God.

So what specifically does Jesus pray for?

V.21a- that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us

Jesus’s prayer that He offered up for all Christians led off with that we would be unified. Unified in what way?

First unified in doctrine as previously stated.

English Standard Version Chapter 15

3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 6 Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep.

Second, in true Christian unity, there is a deep sense of care and affection for one another.

One of my main concerns in my Christian walk is for the brothers and sisters around me.

If I have no love for my brothers, the truth is not in me.

This speaks to the crucial role of a church. True Christians not only need a church family, but they long for it.

The church was designed by God to provide what the Christian needs, thus we cannot live a faithful and fruitful life while avoiding it.

And Jesus solidifies this point with the second part of the verse, when He compares the unity of believers to the Unity in the Trinity.

So the next question needs to be, why does this unity matter? What does Jesus say is the reason why unity and love for one another matter?

V.21b- so that the world may believe that You sent Me.

Christian love is one of the greatest witnesses to a world full of self-righteousness and self-centeredness.

Everything around you is telling you to care more about yourself than the people around you.

Christianity, is completely counter to this notion as it built upon a foundation of sacrifice.

Listen to this description of Jesus from Paul Phil 2:6-8

Philippians 2:6–8 LSB

who, although existing in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, by taking the form of a slave, by being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

This is the humility and love of God shown by Jesus, and it is the model that you and I as Christians are told to follow.

Christian love is the church’s greatest witness to its validity, and it is the greatest sign that you truly belong to God.

When we as Christians put things over the church, and caring for one another, our witness grows weak.

So going on to how is the unity possible, with a bunch of self-centered sinners?

V.22- “The glory which You have given Me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as We are one;

Jesus speaks of giving us His glory. Now we can’t jump to the conclusion and say that we are just like Jesus or that we can work miracles just like Him, but there is a spiritual component here.

Jesus earlier in the book of John speaks of a helper He will provide to the church when we leaves.

This helper, the Holy Spirit, is who works on us. He changes our hearts, makes us more like Jesus, and in extension is the one who unifies us.

We are being built and knitted together as a unified people of God.

This is why people who really know and follow Jesus understand this deeper level of friendship that exists between Christians.

True friendship doesn’t lead you to sin, it leads you to Christ, and this only happens between people who are united together by a common faith in God.

The Christians closest and most necessary friends are the people in His life with the same beliefs and convictions as they have.

So bringing this to a close, Jesus adds just one more thing as to why unity is so crucial.

V. 23- I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me, and loved them, even as You have loved Me

Our love and unity show the world how loving our God is.

Fellowship between Christians shows that we are truly known and loved by God, and it calls out to those who don’t know God.

Legacy Standard Bible (CHAPTER 3)

16 “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.

17 “For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.

So the questions for you to contemplate:

Have I experienced the transformation and love of God?

Do I prioritize caring for and building up my Christian friends?

Am I truly showing love to my church family and to the world around me?