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A Prayer For Unity
Jn 17:11
11 And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.
Jn 17:20-23
20 Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;
21 That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.
22 And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:
23 I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.
In a little while, we are going to pray for unity; first, however, I want to establish a biblical basis for unity.
We have a common birth and share a common faith, for by one Spirit we are all baptized into one body.
§ We are brethren, and the man Christ Jesus is our elder brother.
§ We, being many, are one bread, and one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread.
§ We are bone of his bone and flesh of his flesh.
§ We are called with one hope of our calling.
Among other things, the scripture of truth describes us as
· One new man
· The bride of Christ
· Branches of the one true vine
· Sheep of one sheepfold
We are exhorted to let the mind be in us which was also in Christ Jesus.
We are enjoined to be led by his Spirit.
We are commanded to pursue peace with all men, but we must, in conjunction with that, follow after holiness.
The unity for which Christ prayer and for which we must pray does not allow for schism in the body of believers, a breach in the wall of salvation or a break in the gates of righteousness. Neither does it tolerate a divisive spirit.
I remind you that no human institution, organization or association can either create or safeguard true unity amongst the brethren.
No ministry, practice or dogma can enforce this unity.
Like our righteousness, it is found first, primarily and exclusively in Christ.
· He is the basis of our unity. He slew all enmity by virtue of the blood of his cross.
· Therefore, he is our reconciler, when our differences seem irreconcilable. He is the one who can unite us when it seems as though we will never see eye to eye.
· He is able to bring us together in the matter of issues that would otherwise cause disunity, discord and disharmony, but we must first set aside our own selfish agendas and gather ourselves unto him.
The Bible cautions us to endeavor to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
I believe that if we will collectively seek to join ourselves to him by uniting our hearts to fear his name and by allowing our human spirits to be infused with his holy Spirit, he will make us one.
Jesus prayed, saying: “That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; [Notice that statement again] that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one;
Ps 122 tells us, Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee. Peace be within thy walls, and prosperity within thy palaces. For my brethren and companions’ sakes, I will now say, Peace be within thee.
Let us lift our voices with our hands and our hearts and pray. It is our duty to pray for the church: its peace; its unity; its increase; its influence on our country and on the world at large. Let us pray that the church be not divided by schism or heresy and that there will be no debates or quarrellings among us. Let us petition the God of peace to give us a high respect and fervent love one for another.
