The True Purpose of Unity

John 17:20-26

John 17:20–26 KJV 1900

20 Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; 21 That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. 22 And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: 23 I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me. 24 Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world. 25 O righteous Father, the world hath not known thee: but I have known thee, and these have known that thou hast sent me. 26 And I have declared unto them thy name, and will declare it: that the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them.

In a world that is filled with chaos and disorder, unity shows that there is a greater power in the world that can bring chaos into order. That power is the love of God.

It was this love for His creation that sent Jesus to the earth to teach and live a sinless life to show us how to live. It was this love for His creation that sent Jesus to the cross to die for a world who enjoyed living in chaos. It was that love for His creation that Jesus prayed this prayer for all of you here today.

I want you to read verse 20 with me again and insert your name where it says for them. Now this just got personal for you!

There are a couple of points that need to be made about unity that we need to clear up.

I. There must be unity with God-

Look at the language used in vs 21:

that they may be one in us- the perfect bond, perfect union of father and son.

The closeness and the relationship that Jesus had with his father was one of obedience.

obedience to God is what He expects to maintain unity-

First of all you must be saved

Sin disrupts this unity

Look at verse 22 and 23: the words glory and made perfect is what we need to focus on

In Christ our position is perfect; we are made new creatures; the old man is gone the new remains. The glory that he speaks of is the perfect and sinless humanity. God seen, known, heard, and touched in the person of the Lord Jesus.

However, our state is one that is being perfected. Through the work of the Holy Spirit, God is perfecting us. One day we will be made perfect!

1 Corinthians 15:51–52 KJV 1900

51 Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

1 John 3:2 KJV 1900

2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

God desires unity with us. The ultimate goal is for His people to be brought into perfect oneness with Him.

There must be a character transformation.

When this happens it will have an effect on your spiritual life and your physical life

II. There must be unity with each other

Vs 21 That they all may be one; Vs 22 that they may be one just as We are one

unity! one group working together in harmony

Unity in the church

Here are a few names to what destroys the unity of the church:

disharmony, dissension, division, malice, mistrust, preference, cliques, gossip, partiality, attitudes, unwillingness to love, selfishness

All these things are exactly the opposite of what Jesus is praying for here in this passage of scripture

Unfortunately this is exactly what visitors and unbelievers see or notice when they come in to worship for the first time.

If members of the same church cant work together or can’t get along and there is no unity, then that goes back to a heart problem and needs to be addressed!

We are to be as one just as he was one with His father. We should strive to have a close relationship with each other like the one Jesus had with God.

Illustration: Dewey and Me…we found a way to become united and that was our love for Candi. Just like we as church members need to find unity because we have the same love…the love of Christ!

Unity outside the church- we need to learn to love our neighbor.

there is a reason for all this...

III. The outcome of unity-

Vs 21 and 23 sum it up To show the world that God sent Jesus and loves us as much as he loved his son!

So how do we do it?

By the way we live

By the way we act

By the way we speak

By the way we love- the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.

Why do we do it? to show the world Jesus Christ.

Conclusion- Unity is a must in Christianity. It is a must in the Christian walk and in the spiritual growth and formation of every believer. Nonbelievers have enough proof and ammunition when they watch the majority of so called Christians to continue in their world of non-belief. It’s time we unite and show them the love of God that was prayed for by Jesus. It’s time our words be more than words, it’s time for us to put them into action