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The Power of One

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“I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one:  I in them and you in me.”  John 17:22-23a

Feeling stirs my heart as I ponder the words of our opening Scripture today. They flowed from the mouth of Jesus on the night of His arrest. You just read some of the last recorded utterances of the Word made flesh before His body dangled for you from a bloody cross.

We observe an intimate moment between God the Son and God the Father, the heart of God laid bare before us in His perfect Word. Did you know Jesus’ final prayers were for you?

Jesus had just finished praying for Himself and the disciples He would leave behind. Then in verse 20 He adds, “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message.” That’s you and me.

What did He pray for, dear one?

 “… that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.”  John 17:21

Witness the Father’s revealed will spoken through the voice of His Son. His highest priority? Unity within the body of believers. Jesus prayed that believers would be one with each other in the same way that He is one with the Father. The resulting unity would cause the world to believe that Jesus did indeed come from God.

How is that possible?

Jesus and His Father are completely one in every way. Jesus declared it in John 10:30, “I and the Father are one.” They share the same thoughts and desires; their actions flow from the same perfect will. So how can men and women with very different preferences and desires, longings, and needs truly share one mind . . . one heart . . . one will?

They can’t, at least not within the realm of the natural. But those who believe in Jesus and have received the seal of His Spirit within them aren’t limited to the natural. They possess the very glory of God.

Look at Jesus’ words in our opening verse. “I have given them the glory that you gave me.” According to Jesus, that glory will enable us to become one.

John 17:23 reveals His purpose in uniting us:

 “May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.”

Unity within Christ’s church will reveal two things to the world.

  1. Jesus did indeed come from God
  2. God loves them

I have to ask you to consider something, dear one. Is our generation giving Christ what He asked for? Are we allowing His Spirit within us to crucify the desires of our flesh and unite us with His glorious will so that we can become one with our brothers and sisters? Or do we hold tightly to our own desires and allow our differences to separate us?

Beloved, our unity in Christ will release the glory of God.

Let’s visit a prayer meeting that took place in the early church after Peter and John had been arrested for preaching about Jesus. Upon their release, a group of believers united together in fervent prayer with spectacular results.

Here’s how they began.

“Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. Stretch out your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.”Acts 4:29-30

Do you notice anything significant about their prayer? Is that how you have prayed?

Let your thoughts settle on the words you speak when you approach God in prayer. When I did, the Spirit revealed one obvious difference about their request. Instead of asking God to rescue them, they asked God to reveal His glory.

Amazing. They didn’t ask God to take away the danger, stop the persecution, or even to protect them from the threats coming against them. Instead, they asked Him to empower them to boldly stand for Him in the midst of it. They asked for strength to speak His word with boldness in spite of the threats. They asked Him to reveal the power that comes through the name of Jesus.

These believers had one, single-minded purpose. They desired to see God reveal His glory through them. In spite of the danger, in spite of their fear, they cast aside their own desires to exalt His. And how did God respond to His humble, unified servants?

After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.  Acts 4:31

Oh, that we would once again become a body so united in heart and purpose that our prayers shake our meeting halls! Notice that God granted their request. He filled each of them with His Spirit to empower them and equipped all of them to speak His Word boldly. Not one of them was exempt from the gift.

Dear one, when you submit your heart to the Father’s will instead of your own, neither are you.

The Will of the People

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Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ. Galatians 1:10

My life took a little detour this week. I was summoned to jury duty. As I write, I sit with at least 100 other prospective jurors amid rows of less than generously cushioned gray chairs in the jury selection room.

The King’s Speech plays on a screen in the front of the room, an attempt to entertain our thoughts away from the wearying reality that we’re still waiting. Most of us have yet to serve. It’s now day three.

Our first morning, however, a different film graced the screen. An educational video designed to enlighten us to the inner workings of our court system encouraged us to enthusiastically embrace the great privilege of serving as jurors. We were told our presence here is a great honor. I’m not sure how many bought it. I don’t think “enthusiastic” aptly describes most of the people joining me in this room.

Enthusiasm aside, their video did offer some compelling thoughts. One particular statement captured my attention and prompted me to write today.

The court serves at the will of the people.

This isn’t news to me. I doubt it’s news to you. From early childhood we’re taught to be grateful for the wonderful principles of democracy on which our great nation was founded: Government by the people, for the people, of the people.

The people hold the power.

And so we fight to see that our desires and goals receive the merit they deserve. We push to ensure that our own will becomes the one the governent serves. We are, after all, “right” about what we believe. So we war with one another, even within the body of Christ.

That’s a troubling observation, considering Jesus words in John 17:22-23.

“I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.”

Jesus prayed for complete unity within His body, that we would be one in the same way that He and the Father are one—same thoughts, same heart, same desires. That unity will be evident to the world, and the world will understand it as an expression of God’s love.

That’s a pretty tall order. It seems impossible to conceive that every believer could unite completely, sharing common desires and serving to establish one common purpose.

But it will happen. One day. Jesus always prays within the Father’s will, so He always gets what He prays for. The question is, will you and I be a part of that glorious day, or will it wait for another generation?

What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? You want something but don’t get it . . .  James 4:1-2

Our quarrels find their root in our own selfish desires. We allow our flesh to govern our wills, often without even realizing it. We feel our convictions so strongly, we just assume they come from God. The problem is, we will always believe that we are right, even when we’re wrong.

Every man’s way is right in his own eyes . . . Proverbs 21:2 (NKJV)

Before a life-changing encounter with Christ on the road to Damascus, a Pharisee named Saul murdered Christians. He knew God’s Word. He was a devout defender of his faith. He believed with everything in him that God wanted him to stop people from moving away from religion as he knew it to follow the teachings of Jesus.

He was wrong.

And once he withdrew to allow God to reveal His truth to his seeking heart, he emerged the Apostle Paul. Still a fervent defender of his faith, but now serving in line with God’s true desires. Paul lived Jesus teachings from Luke 9:23. He denied himself, took up the cross of his Christ, and carried the true Gospel message throughout the known world.

Oh, what God can do with one yielded heart! Imagine what He could do with thousands. Beloved, will you offer him yours?