Unity Lost

Unity Lost

The great failure of the Christian Church is disunity.  In the seventeenth chapter of John’s gospel we read that our Lord, Jesus Christ, prayed to the Father for the unity of those whom Christ chose and appointed (see 15:16), and the Father gave to Him (see 17:9), as His disciples, saying:

I pray not only for these,

but also for those who believe in Me

through their message.

May they all be one,

as You, Father, are in Me and I am in You.

May they also be one in Us,

so the world may believe You sent Me.

I have given them the glory You have given Me.

May they be one as We are one.

I am in them and You are in Me.

May they be made completely one,

so the world may know You have sent Me

and have loved them as You have loved Me.

-John 17:20-23

Jesus prayed to the Father that all of His disciples, current and future, “May all be one.” Jesus prayed that our unity as the one, holy, catholic/universal, apostolic Church (not an institution but the PEOPLE of God) would be “as” (simile – the same) the unity of God!

Why? “So the world may know You have sent Me and have loved them as You have loved Me.”  The evidence of our faith in Christ and the power of our testimony as disciples of Christ resides in our unity.

Calling ourselves Christians doesn’t make it so; neither does putting a ‘fish’ on our cars, nor our “going” to church (rather than being the church), performing miracles, doing good deeds, etc, etc.

Instead, the title “Christian” is reserved for those who love one another with a transcendent supernatural service-oriented love, for those who are deeply invested partners in the gospel whether in life or death, for those who joyfully stand together in persecution and sufferings - not for persecution’s sake, but for the testimony of Christ, for those who “consider others more important than yourselves” (Phil 2:3), for those “branches” whose unity and perpetual abidance in Christ, our “vine,” allows us to produce much fruit for God’s eternal glory.

Has anyone been spurred on to accept Christ’s love because of your love for God and neighbor?

Have you invested in anyone to help them move from spiritual infant to mature disciple?

Has anyone forsaken the pattern of this world, autonomy, egotism, and sin because of your unity and fellowship in the gospel?

Does your life evidence the love of God and overflow with the glory He has poured out into you?

Do you find yourself utterly dependent upon Christ every moment of every day because you know that apart from Him you can do nothing?

Authentic followers of Jesus the King are unified by His love and the Holy Spirit’s abiding Presence. Christians are unashamed, unintimidated, fearless and bold in their living out the gospel.

Satan’s greatest strategy for maintaining Hell's population is Christian religion. Our Enemy deceives us into believing that because we participate in religious formalism (prayers, church services, projects, programs, trips, etc.) we have security and salvation. King Jesus did not want any of us to be deceived, therefore He gave us Himself, His Word (i.e. Scripture), His people (true disciples), and His mission (Matt 28:16-20)...

All to bring us into unity - as The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are in commUNITY, so that the world may know, believe, and enjoy eternal life with our Savior and Servant King - Jesus.

Blessings,

Kevin M. Kelley

#KMKelley1968

amostunlikelydisciple.com