that they may be one as We are

This morning’s verse is from Jesus’ high priestly prayer, the prayer He prayed knowing He would soon  be going to the Father. And what we are seeing here, is His heart for  true believers, for those the Father had given Him  (John 17:11).  The importance of His prayer is further emphasized in verse 21,  where He speaks about us being one in “Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.”  Just to emphasize what this is saying, it seems that the Lord is giving the World the right to judge whether God sent His Son, by our unity. And I am saying these things this morning, not to condemn, for there is no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1), but rather so we might examine our hearts together this morning,  and confess anything that needs to be confessed and  receive forgiveness and cleansing (1 John 1:9) and motivation to do our best to cooperate.

 And if we are to be one as they are One, it might be worth thinking about how they are One.  First and foremost what comes to me, is the love that is shared in the Trinity. In particular the Father tells Jesus “You are my beloved Son in You I am well pleased” (Mark 1:11).  Now Jesus commands us “As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love,”  and “love one another as I have loved you” (John 15:9, 12). Indeed we cannot love as He has loved us without abiding in, immersing ourselves in His love, staying vitally connected with Him in intimacy and fellowship. Our love then is to be unconditional, and we must do all in our power to live at peace with each other, not just individually, but across denominational lines (Romans 12:18).  In particular we must deal with the t pride that so often  comes with feeling that we are right and they are wrong. Pride divides!

So love, but also dignity and respect. I get this from the picture we are given in the parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32). In particular, the father in the story neither seeks to control or manipulate his sons. With the prodigal, in spite of the insults,  he lets him go. In doing so he frees him to make the mistakes that will eventually lead him back to the father.  I am the only person I can change. With the offended older son,  he reasons with him, but still leaves the decision up to him.  One of the things theologians say of the Trinity is that they are co-equal.  So to be one as they are One,  we must  not think more highly of ourselves than we aught, but in humility regard others as better than ourselves (Romans 12:3; Philippians 2:3). It’s not that members of the Trinity do this, but rather that our tendency is to do the exact opposite (especially across denominational lines),  and we need to counter this with the opposite spirit.

Father, help us to take seriously this business of being one as You are One. You showed me last night at the prayer meeting,  that my attitude to a church that had hurt me was not pleasing to You. It is so easy to think we have forgiven but still hold judgement and or disrespect in our hearts. Lord we cannot be one as You are One unless we stay vitally connected to You. Search our hearts this morning Lord and bring us to humility and unity,  in Jesus Name Amen