On Sunday I launched our new Autumn Term series called ‘Belonging to the Family of God’ (you can catch up here).
I spoke from John 17 about Jesus’ great adventure as he is stood on the brink of bitter betrayal by his closest friends, his brutalisation by the world experts in human torture and then finally, his death on a cross alongside unnamed ordinary criminals. Yet, that’s not the end of this great adventure (and if we’re honest, that would appear to not be a great adventure at all but rather, a spectacular failure!). You see, as the Prince of Peace and the great reconciler, Jesus would not allow a world, where brokenness, separation and sin has the last word. Instead, he came to unify the un-unifiable – a sin-stained humanity with a Holy God. And he did this by exchanging places with you and me. He took what was rightfully our punishment and in exchange gave us what we did not deserve and could never earn and will never be able to repay – a restored relationship with God. Death (the great divider), could not contain the One who was and is, the way, the truth and the life.
Then just three days later, it was death that tasted its own bitter death as the One who is the resurrection and the life, rose victorious, carving out a gate, a door and a road whereby men and women from every tribe, nation, culture and creed can come in and find life everlasting, friendship with God, and a restored relationship with him that will never end! On the eve of all of this great adventure, Jesus turns his heart towards his Father in heaven and he prays these words:
“I pray not only for these, but also for those who believe in me through their word. 21 May they all be one, as you, Father, are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us, so that the world may believe you sent me. 22 I have given them the glory you have given me, so that they may be one as we are one. 23 I am in them and you are in me, so that they may be made completely one, that the world may know you have sent me and have loved them as you have loved me.” (John 17:20-23, CSB)
If you’ve read or heard these words before, don’t allow their familiarity rob you of the amazing truth that they contain!
Firstly, of all the things that could have been preoccupying Jesus as he prepared for his great rescue mission, it was unity that was forefront in his mind! Why is that? Because his work on the cross was all about undoing and repairing the disintegration that took place in the garden of Eden when Adam & Eve chose to break relationship with God!
Notice also – and I can hardly mention this without being completely overwhelmed – here in these verses we have Jesus’ actual words of prayer for you… and for me! Listen to what he says: “I pray not only for these (that’s the disciples around him at the time), but also for those who believe in me through their Word”. If you love Jesus and follow him, you now know what Jesus’ prayer was, and continues to be for your life – that you would live in a community that makes much of him by living and breathing unity as second nature.
Finally, notice how this unity that Jesus is praying about is supernatural. Jesus is not praying for lowest common denominator unity, oh no! Jesus’ prayer is for a kind of unity that is on an altogether different level. He looks at the Trinity (the three persons of the one Godhead) and in particular his relationship with God the Father, and says, let the unity that is to exist between all those who will follow after me be like this! Friends, no amount of conflict resolution training will ever be able to produce that type of unity! Even if we were to get the best United Nations negotiators to be permanently based here at Kingsgate they will never be able to produce that kind of unity!
Jesus is lifting our eyes and showing us that the type of unity he wants to display amongst his people and for them to experience is supernatural, that is to say, something that cannot be experienced or created on a human level. It can only be born of God. Jesus’ prayerful expectation for this church community (right here in Great Yarmouth), is that we would live together in a type of unity that does not have its roots in our own effort, ideas or ideals, but rather, is rooted in the power and unifying work of God. As a result, every Christian church, every small group community, every team and every informal relationship within a church is meant to be a supernatural ‘thing’ (a miracle) because the unity Jesus has prayed for is impossible apart from the unifying power of God!
I think the appropriate response to all of this is “wow!” How about you?
Adam Bradley