When I Say, “Unity”…

What is your first thought?

If you’re a Christian, your first reaction may be guilt and shame when you read words like these from the lips of Jesus:

“I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me” (John 17:20-23).

One of the surest signs of how far the church today lives from the New Testament’s emphasis on unity is that most of us read these words as a challenge rather than a comfort.

It’s time to look at them again, as if for the first time and in context!

Imagine you’re one of the disciples living out the drama of that dark night in a room overlooking the dangerous streets of Jerusalem. Jesus begins to tell you things you don’t want to hear and can’t believe. He’s already told you again and again that this is His last trip to Jerusalem with you. He insists that His enemies will kill Him.

Now, as you sit around a table for what should be a Passover celebration, He tells you that some foreboding but familiar Old Testament prophecies concerning Messiah will be fulfilled that night (Mark 14:16-29):

• One of you will betray Him, just as Psalm 41:9 predicted.

• This is your last supper with Him.

• You will be scattered, forsaking Him and one another, fulfilling Zechariah 13:7.

This is the context of Jesus’ emphasis on unity and loving one another in the Upper Room Discourse in John 13-17…

This is why Jesus tells them to love one another.

This is why Jesus begs the Father to make them one.

Why? Because, they will need one another!

Jesus didn’t plead and pray for church unity to challenge and shame us but to bless us—to encourage and comfort us!

Unity is one of Jesus’ primary provisions for His followers in a world full of tribulation.

Your friends, loved ones, Christian disciples, and even you, will face dark days—you will receive bad news that will scare you beyond hope. Your heart will be grieved and life will hurt so bad it takes your breath away.

It’s at that precise time you and the others in your life will need the unity Jesus has been telling you to work on since the day you believed. And that should be one of your first thoughts when it comes to unity.

This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you (John 15:12).