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First Presbyterian Church, Grand Junction, CO |
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Printable Version Audio Version Video Version
Great Prayers of the Bible: A Prayer For Unity John 17:20-26; Ephesians 4:1-6; John 15:1-5
Video (Part 1) This video is a two-part clip which powerfully demonstrates how we let so many things divide Christ’s Church. Whether it’s music, doctrine, structure or denomination, we have the tendency to be a broken Body instead of a Church that experiences the oneness Jesus prayed for. The various issues which divide were written on numerous tiles placed on a table. After all of the tiles were broken, the table was turned over and the pieces scattered on the ground.
There’s nothing quite like watching 180 Jr. Highers gather at a church camp on a Sunday afternoon. Some of them know each other, but many don’t. Some have been to camp before and others are arriving for the first time – don’t know where anything is. Some of the 8th graders are tall, mature, developed and proud of it – while others don’t look older than a 10 year old. There’s so much variety: the way they look, their faith in Christ or lack thereof, the sound and tone of their voices, the family situations they come from, their hopes for the week.
But as the week goes on, something happens. As they gather for worship, spend time on the high ropes course, play the all-camp games, spend quiet time with God every morning and cabin time together twice each day . . . . [as they do that and more] something happens! All the differences slowly fade and they begin to experience the kind of unity Jesus prayed for.
On Friday night, instead of listening to one more talk, we invited them to sing together for an extensive period of time while they trickled out on the patio to meet with some of the counselors and staff, to personally share what God had done in their life that week, and to be prayed for by these leaders. As I sang with them and looked around, signs of unity were everywhere: arms around each other, focused praise, people earnestly praying for others, freedom of emotion, joy, laughter. And I thought to myself, “This is what Jesus was praying for.” Unity.
Have you ever experienced a strong sense of unity in the body of Christ? Maybe it was a week a camp or the Great Escpae; maybe it was a weekend retreat like Koinonia or Cursillo; maybe it was on a mission trip like the one our team just got back from or a week of Vacation Bible School. It usually takes a bit of time to trust, bond, and grow closer together, but when it happens it is an amazing thing, isn’t it?
Some of you have been in churches where conflict was rampant. Some of you also grew up with a clear division between denominations. The Baptists and the Presbyterians had nothing in common. The Pentecostals and the Methodists looked down their noses at each other. And Catholics and Protestants . . . ? Well, most people didn’t even go there.
But a lot has changed. Denominational walls have come tumbling down, and seem to matter less and less. Church partnerships have emerged that were unthinkable a few decades back. People that disagree on doctrinal issues are willing to do mission and ministry together. This must be a glimpse of the unity Jesus prayed for.
Of course, the oneness Jesus prayed for isn’t always evident. Even though Jesus prayed for unity, and the Apostle Paul told us (SLIDE) “There is one body, and one Spirit . . . one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all” (Ephesians 4:4-6), the Church creates plenty of division. Too often, we just can’t get it together – both within and among our churches. Too often, the Church and its mission are diminished, weakened, and – sometimes – found worthless . . . because of disunity.
There’s a Peanuts cartoon in which Lucy demands that Linus change TV channels, threatening him with her fist if he doesn't. "What makes you think you can walk right in here and take over?" asks Linus. "These five fingers," says Lucy. "Individually they're nothing, but when I curl them together like this into a single unit, they form a weapon that is terrible to behold." To which Linus replies, "Which channel do you want?" Then, turning away, Linus looks at his fingers and says, "Why can't you guys get it together like that?" Why can’t the Church ‘get it together’ sometimes?
The most obvious answer is that churches are full of people. To slightly paraphrase the words of Jesus, ‘whenever two or three gather in His name, there’s bound to be a fight.’
We can fight over just about anything, can’t we? We can fight over music, Bible translations, social issues, finances. We can even fight about the color of the carpet. Here in John 17, Jesus is praying that His followers would have the same experience of love and oneness that He shares with the Father. He prays, (SLIDE) “As You, Father, are in me and I am in You, may they also be in us.” (John 17:21) Jesus desires that His Church would experience the same kind of unity that’s shared within the Godhead of Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Our trinitarian theology reminds us that – if we’re going to truly represent God to the world – unity is essential.
John Calvin made a strong case for church unity. The 16th century reformer once said: (SLIDE) “Among Christians there ought to be so great a dislike of schism, as that they may always avoid it so fast as lies in their power." He went on to say, "Nor need it be of any hindrance that some points of doctrine are not quite so pure, seeing that there is scarcely any church which has not retained some remnants of former ignorance.” (in Selected Books of John Calvin: Tracts and Letters) That was Calvin's way of saying, “Hey gang, let’s work really hard on unity.” Unfortunately, it was easier said than done. Calvin himself decided that some people ought to be burned at the stake for having a different view of baptism than he did. Unity is hard to actually put into practice.
I mentioned this recently, but it warrants repeating. Here at First Presbyterian Church we have a pamphlet titled: “The Basics of Presbyterians.” We use it in our ‘Discovering Church Membership’ class and have it in the Lobby. Besides giving a brief historical sketch of the Reformation and Presbyterian Church, it contains a section about the basic beliefs of the Reformed Faith. But before it gets to the theological perspectives and emphasis of our church's tradition, it states what we share with all Christians: a belief in the Trinity (that God is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) and the belief that Jesus was both 100% God and 100% human. It goes on to list what we have in common with all Protestants: that salvation is by grace alone, and that scripture is our sole guide for faith and practice. And then it notes what makes us unique.
And here’s how the brochure ends: (SLIDE) “Presbyterians have never considered themselves to be the ONLY form of Christianity, nor have we ever claimed to be the BEST form of the Christian faith. We are simply one part of the Body of Christ.”
One of the stated goals on “Our Roadmap” for ministry states that we will (SLIDE) “Continue partnering with other churches in ministry and growth opportunities.” And so we do Sports Camp with other churches; we serve lunch to Grand Junction HS students with another church; we do Sharefest with more than 30 churches; we’re working with other churches and ministries at Mesa State and through the Christ Center; and the list goes on. This kind of partnership has got to be some of what Jesus was getting at in His prayer for unity.Unity amongst churches doesn’t mean we have to agree on everything or be exactly alike. It doesn’t mean that we have to drop our denominational affiliation and be “plain vanilla.” It doesn’t mean that we can’t have strong convictions about theology and the practice of ministry. And it certainly doesn’t mean we have to do everything together. There is a difference between unity and unanimity.
The oneness that Christ prayed for, knowing full well how difficult unity is even among a small band of disciples, had to do with our witness to the world. Two different times in His prayer, Jesus emphasizes the effect of our oneness: (2 SLIDES) “So that the world may believe You have sent Me” (v.21) and “So that the world may know You have sent Me and have loved them even as You have loved Me.” (v.23)
If we can’t get it together as Christians, it’s going to be hard for people to know and believe that ‘God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son so that anyone who believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.’ (John 3:16)
There has been a lot of animosity between churches and denominations over the years, which has tended to obscure the love of God. Bible scholar and professor of theology J.I. Packer said years ago, (SLIDE) “It’s about time for Christians who recite the creed and mean it to come together for fellowship and witness regardless of denominational identity.” (J.I. Packer) And I think we see that happening more and more. Jesus' prayer for unity is happening, and I'm excited that FPC is playing a part in church unity here in the Grand Valley. It's helping people see and believe that God loves them.
During World War II, Hitler commanded all religious groups to unite so he could more closely control them. Among the Brethrens, half complied and half refused. Those who went along with the order had a much easier time. Those who did not, faced harsh persecution. In most families who resisted, someone died in a concentration camp.
When the war was over, feelings of bitterness ran deep between the groups. There was a lot of tension. Finally they decided that the situation had to be healed. Leaders from each group met at a quiet retreat. For several days, each person spent time in prayer, examining his own heart in the light of Christ's commands. Then they came together. And, according to one participant, "After that, we were just one. As we confessed our hostility and bitterness to God and yielded to His control, the Holy Spirit created a spirit of unity among us. Love filled our hearts and dissolved our hatred. (From Our Daily Bread) And in that moment, Jesus' prayer for unity was being answered.
May we join Jesus in both His prayer for unity and the living out of this oneness.
Video (Part Two) This second clip shows people putting back the broken pieces into a symbol of the Trinity with broken tiles that spelled out part of Ephesians 4:1-6: “one body, and one Spirit . . . one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all.”
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