the precious reality of christian unity
John 17:20-23 ~ terry Phillips
July 1, 2018
We are continuing our study this morning in the Lord's prayer to the Father in John chapter 17. It isn't hard to understand the extent to which someone will delight in something they have invested themselves in fully. Every once in a while, I haven’t been very often, but we have found ourselves during the summer months at parking lot, at some of these malls or whatever, where people gathered to show off their cars they restored. Every once in a while, if you talk to somebody who's there, and they've obviously poured years and lots of money into a particular car they restored. They’re pretty proud of that thing. They just delight in showing it off. They love to tell everybody everything they can about it. this is true for a lot of things. Just one example that came to my mind.
But, as I was thinking about this, this thought came to my mind as I was thinking about these passages we’re considering again this morning. The son of Almighty God has invested Himself to the ultimate extent in sinners like you and I. Those whom the Father gave to Him to give eternal life to are very precious to Christ. Jesus literally gave Himself for us. Could there be any greater expenditure than that? Surely it is more than reasonable to expect that our Lord should be intensely concerned with the outcome of so great an investment. He gave Himself up for us all. We been bought with a price of inestimable worth. We know that we need to be reminded of it. The price for our eternal salvation has been paid in full. It's been bestowed upon us as a free gift. Could anything be more precious to us in God's indescribable gift to us in Christ? Surely you and I ought to be also interested in the implications of so great a salvation. That has come at so great a cost. I want to begin by reading through the 17th chapter, the first 23 verses again this morning. As we refresh in our minds the context of what our Lord is saying as He prays to the father in the presence of His disciples.
“These things Jesus spoke; and lifting up His eyes to heaven, He said, Father, the hour has come; glorify Thy Son, that the Son may glorify Thee, even as Thou gavest Him authority over all mankind, that to all whom Thou hast given Him, He may give eternal life. And this is eternal life, that they may know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent. I glorified Thee on the earth, having accomplished the work which Thou hast given Me to do. And now, glorify Thou Me together with Thyself, Father, with the glory which I had with Thee before the world was. I manifested Thy name to the men whom Thou gavest Me out of the world; Thine They were, and Thou gavest them to Me, and they have Thy Word. Now they have come to know that everything Thou hast given Me is from Thee; for the words which Thou gavest Me I have given to them; and they receive them, and truly understood that I came forth from Thee, and they believed that Thou didst send Me. I asked on their behalf; I do not ask on behalf of the world, but of those whom Thou hast given Me, for they are Thine; and all things that are Mine are Thine and Thine are Mine; and I have been glorified in them. And I am no more in the world; and yet they themselves are in the world, and I come to Thee. Holy Father, keep them in Thy name, the name which thou hast given Me, that they may be one, even as We are. While I was with them, I was keeping them in Thy name, which Thou hast given Me; and I guarded them, and not one of them perished but the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. But now I come to Thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy made full in themselves. I have given them Thy word; and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I do not ask Thee to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; Thy word is truth. As Thou didst send Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they themselves also may be sanctified in truth. I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word; that they may all be one; even as Thou, Father, art in Me and I in Thee, that they also may be in Us; that the world may believe that Thou didst send Me. And the glory which Thou hast given Me I have given to them; that they may be one, just as We are one; I in them, and Thou in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, that the world may know that thou did send Me and didst love them, even as Thou didst love Me.”
In this prayer of our Lord to the Father, Jesus clearly identifies some specific implications of His inconceivable sacrifice. They are things that Jesus in a very special way is looking forward to. As a result of what He's about to accomplish on the cross. He is anticipating the remarkable reality of imparting eternal life to sinners,
“Thou hast given Him.”
Jesus says in verse two;
“He may give eternal life.”
He is imparting His word to His followers, and He anticipates the implications of their responsiveness to the word, and their relationship to his word. He anticipates His followers’ estrangement from the world. He knows the world is going to have hatred and going to demonstrate a hatred for those who follow Him. He anticipates our being set apart to Him in our love of the truth. The Lord is looking forward in some very specific ways in which we will be distinctly different from the world around us. You see this in this prayer of our Lord, to the Father. Jesus is anticipating this reality. In the passage that we are beginning to consider this morning, or I guess we did begin a little bit last time, Jesus is anticipating the distinction of His followers in regard to their being one. Their unit being unified. Jesus speaks of this fact. In verse 21,
“that they may all be one;”
verse 23:
“I in them, and Thou in Me, that they may be perfected in unity.”
This is the Lord's prayer. This is His joy. This is what Jesus is anticipating. This is a unity of oneness that is in distinct contrast with an unbelieving world around us. As we've already seen the believer's relationship to the truth is diametrically opposed to the world's relationship to the truth. the same radical contrast can be seen in this matter of unity. The world itself is painfully aware of its total dysfunction in this matter of unity. It would require a deliberate and absurd blindness to deny the obvious and the severe divisions among the people in this world. There is good reason for people to reach that point of being utterly appalled at the serious and never ending conflict that permeates every corner of this planet. Why does it have to be this way? There is of course that isolated aberration of an apparent harmony among the few individuals every once in a while in different situations, but it always gives way to the overwhelming reality of divisive hatred, that is impossible to fully and finally resolve. We try to educate ourselves out of it. We try to talk our way out of it. Nothing works. This is the uninterrupted history of mankind, beginning with Cain and Abel continuing to the present and the innumerable conflicts of this world. But, Jesus in this prayer to the Father anticipates something utterly unique in the realm of human relationships.
“that they may all be one”
It’s quite a statement isn’t it. Think of what the Lord is saying. It’s something to contemplate. There's no doubt that there have been instances of isolated groups of people in particular regions of this world who have experienced a significant degree of unity for a limited period of time. There's no doubt that that is true and can be seen, but it is very limited. In scope and in time. Jesus is speaking here of a broad unity, an inclusive unity reaching to the very ends of this earth. He's not just speaking of a unity amongst a certain sect of the Jews. A certain part of Jewish culture, or even just the Jews themselves. Jesus is speaking of unity that grows much further than that. Jesus had joyfully anticipated the building and the establishing of his church. He spoke of that early on in His ministry. One of the things that Jesus especially delighted in was the genuine unity that indeed would be a noticeable feature among His followers. I remind you of what Jesus said in John chapter 10, when He was likening Himself to the good Shepherd. A passage very familiar to us. He speaks of Himself as the good Shepherd and then He says in verse 16:
“And I have other sheep, which are not of this fold;”
Here Jesus is speaking of those beyond the realm of Israel.
“I must bring them also, and they shall hear My voice; and they shall become one flock with one shepherd.”
This oneness, Jesus anticipates; He's looking forward to this. John chapter 12 verse 32, the Lord said this:
“And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself”
Not just men from the land of Israel, or even from the regions around Israel but men, all men. Men from every tribe and tongue and nation and people. The Lord delighted in this reality, and the Lord delights in it in His prayer to the Father. And really you notice that Jesus emphasizes this quite a bit, in this brief prayer. We've already seen His reference to this in the 11th verse:
“And I am no more in the world; and yet they themselves are in the world, and I come to Thee. Holy Father, keep them in Thy name, the name which Thou hast given Me, that they may be one,”
This, it seems to me is something we need to very clearly understand. This matter of Christian unity. What is this really about? What does it look like? What should our relationship be to this? How do we function in relation to such a truth? It’s one of the points at which the adversary has mounted some of his greatest offensives against the church of the living God. That is in this matter of unity. In distorting it, in perverting it, and obscuring it. The unity of Christ’s followers, according to the Lord Himself, is a matter of crucial significance. Notice how Jesus ties this matter into the impact, the influence that so great a salvation will have on the world at large. You notice this in verse 21 at the end of the verse:
“that the world may believe that Thou didst send Me.”
This unity has a part to play in confirming the reality of who Christ is, where He came from, and who sent Him. Notice the very end of verse 23:
“that the world may know that Thou didst send Me, and didst love them even as Thou didst love Me.”
“That the world may know” notice those words. The unity of Christ’s followers is a matter that is very near and dear to the heart of the Lord Jesus, and it is to have a great impact a great influence on the world around us. The unbelieving world. Jesus has already mentioned this, actually very early on in, His upper room discourse to the disciples regarding this matter of our love for one another. You recall in chapter 13 verse 34:
“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another.”
We noted when went through that passage that Jesus is speaking of this love as a new commandment in the sense that there is a new opportunity within the church. Within this unit. This unity that God Himself would create. A new example that is in Christ Himself.
“As I have loved you”
And notice Jesus says:
“By this all men will know you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
A new enablement through His Spirit. Jesus then elaborates on this from a little different perspective not just from the perspective of love, but from the perspective of our closeness; our being unified, our being together, and our being a one another people. Of one mind, of one soul, of one heart. You see these phrases often throughout the New Testament. It's not just here that were told about this matter. It's scattered throughout the Acts of the apostles and throughout the epistles as well. This is a reality that is near and dear to the heart of our Savior. And we should expect that this is a matter about which there is going to be much distortion and confusion. Our Lord's words in this passage provide us with some very important instruction regarding this precious reality and I would like to begin to look at this this morning.
First thing that I'd like you to notice regarding this unity as we really begin to focus our attention on this. What is it that the Lord Himself is speaking about? what does Jesus have to say about this? We have heard a lot about what the world has to say about unity, and we've even heard a lot about what Christendom in general has to say about unity. And there are many thoughts maybe you and I have about this matter. And surely it's one of the deepest desires in men's hearts. What does God have to say? What does the Lord Himself have to say about it?
The first thing that I want you to notice concerning this unity is that it is a unity that comes directly from God Himself. Notice that this is something Jesus is asking the Father for, this is not something He's instructing His disciples to cultivate. This is an important matter. There has always been, but clearly there are intensifying and very deliberate attempts to bring about Christian unity by our own means. That's always been the case to some extent or another. But, in the present time, the attempts to do so have intensified, and have intensified greatly. Jesus is speaking here of something that can only come from God. It's a part of His prayer to the Father. I do not ask in behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word. Jesus is asking the Father to make this known. To cause this to occur. This reality to be seen and seen to such an extent that the world will know, that it will confirm the ministry in the finished work in the words of the Lord Jesus. There are many ways that we even as God's people have been tempted to try and come up with this on our own. Something that I have noticed much over the years in a number of different ways. There are some ways that I suppose we can be very familiar with that have been with us for a long time. There's always a tendency toward a cultural conformity. Certain cultural practices that can very easily come to be seen as a means or even a mark, symbol, if you will, of unity. The way people do things, the way we conduct ourselves when come together. There are all kinds of things would fit into this. I think you can see that very easily. That really, in the end, are cultural matters. And yet oftentimes these have been substituted for real unity. Well, we all look a certain way or we all do things a certain way and that proves that were unified. When in fact, it's just a cultural conformity, or conformity that we have come up with within the confines of certain areas of Christianity, if you will.
They’re also of course the continuing evident efforts to create an organizational unity. You think about this in regards to all the many different denominations, all the different causes, and all the different attempts to organize something that would finally bring us together as God's people. In the course of my lifetime I've seen numerous of these attempts. We’re going to do something, we’re going to organize something, we’re going to get everybody to finally come together. Finally, the world will see that we’re one. But we try to do this by means of our own efforts, our own creative ideas, our own thinking, our own ways of trying to inspire one another to be more unified. This is not what Jesus is speaking here of.
There's also the yearning for universal acceptance, camaraderie. A shared significance together that many times we can feel and sense as God's people, but I would say that this is not what Jesus is speaking of here. There can be no doubt there's a camaraderie in serving the Lord and worshiping the Lord together. There's this desire for us to be together. A part of something that is significant. That's true, that's good, but it's not the unity that Jesus is speaking of here. And there's also the ploy of emotionalism that is the cultivating of emotional ecstasy and striving to bring people together within the sphere of Christianity.
I noticed this week in the reporting of some news that some group of people touring throughout the country have declare the fact that they are now part of a third great awakening, they are supposedly creating through these concerts that they're giving. I looked online at a couple of videos of them and it became very obvious. This is another effort of emotionalism. An ecstasy that's created on stage, and in this case, through music and through emotional antics of those who are involved. This is not the way to be unified. This is not what Jesus is speaking of here. If that were the case, then we all need to get on board and get ourselves worked up emotionally and make this thing happen. If that in fact is what this unity is about. If what the Lord is speaking about is something that you and I can create then we need to get busy doing it. If in fact that's what the Lord is talking about.
One of the most seductive of human efforts has come in the guise of evangelistic zeal in this matter of unity. This has even been given its own special label, ecumenicism. The term has actually been around now for a long time. Well over half a century now. And this is the idea that if we could all just set aside some of our doctrinal differences we could come together and do the one thing that we all agree upon. That is, proclaim the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, and see people come to the Lord. Once again, this is a matter of human effort in the end. This is not the unity that Jesus was speaking of in His prayer to the Father. The unity that Jesus is speaking of here is not something that He instructs His disciples to bring about amongst His people. This is something Jesus asks the Father to provide. This is not something that can be created, inspired, instigated or produced by human means of any kind. Jesus recognizes that this can only be implemented by Almighty God. That's the first thing that I noticed about this unity. This is something that is a unique thing. This is something that transcends all the efforts that mankind has ever been able or ever will be able to pour into this matter. It transcends even the most zealous efforts of God's children. Who may at times be very sincere in those efforts, but this is something greater than that. This is something that goes much farther than that, it runs much deeper.
The second thing that I want you to notice about this unity that we notice from the passage and this in many respects, I would think would be very obvious but we want to be sure that we mention it. This unity is only possible through the cross. The whole context of this prayer is the context of the cross. Is it not? The whole context of what Jesus is praying is within the context of His anticipating the glory of the cross. As Jesus prays for this unity, it cannot be far from our minds and our thinking that this unity is only made possible; the only way Jesus can pray for this unity, is because of what He is about to accomplish in His work on the cross. This of course is the divinely inspired argument that is set forth in that second chapter of Ephesians. I might ask you to turn there with me if you would want to read a number of verses in this passage Ephesians chapter 2 beginning with verse 11.
“Therefore remember, that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh, who are called “Uncircumcision” by the so-called “Circumcision,” which is performed in the flesh by human hands- remember that you were at that time separate from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who made both groups into one, and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall, by abolishing in His flesh the enmity, which is the law of commandments contained in ordinances, that in Himself He might make the two into one new man, thus establishing peace, and might reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross, by it having put to death the enmity. And He came and preached peace to you who were far away, and peace to those who were near; for through Him we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father.”
The unity that Jesus is speaking of, and is praying for to the Father can only be possible through the cross. Notice that 16th verse,
“and might reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross, by it having put to death the enmity.”
Here's the answer to enmity. To that never ending conflict and divisiveness within humanity. It's the enmity of the law of sin. And Christ, only could put that to death. Through His suffering, through His atoning work on our behalf. This is one of the great messages of the gospel, is it not? Galatians chapter 3 verse 28 says this:
“There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”
This is what Jesus is talking about. He's talking about a oneness, a unity, that can only be realized in Himself. That can only be realized in the crucified Christ. Some people try to derive a particular unity from the things that Jesus taught, the way that He lived, apart from the cross. That doesn't work. Only through His cross. Romans chapter 12 verse five says this:
“So we, who are many, are one body in Christ.”
That's the second thing I notice about this unity. First of all, it can only come from God. Secondly, it is only possible through the cross.
The third thing that I want you to notice about this unity and that is this unity is produced ultimately, if you will, or practically speaking personally, for each of us through the Spirit of God. You and I have absolutely no capacity whatsoever for bringing about so wonderous a reality. In our understanding of and are coming by faith to Christ, recognizing who He is and what He's accomplished for us, that in and of itself doesn't create this unity. Paul refers to this unity in that same epistle in Ephesians, later on in the fourth chapter and in the third verse. Notice how Paul refers to this he says:
“with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing forbearance to one another in love,”
This is Ephesians 4:2 and the third verse says this:
“being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”
Our unity, the unity that the Lord Himself prayed for to the Father is a unity that is produced by the work of the Spirit of God. It’s completely out of the realm of our best abilities and our most fervent zeal. This is a special work of the Spirit of God. The unity of the Spirit. Notice the verse that we read there in chapter 2, a few moments ago from Ephesians.
“for through Him we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father.”
This is how we, together, have our access to the Father. In a unified way. It’s in the spirit through the work of the Holy Spirit of God. first Corinthians chapter 12; we see this emphasized again in the 12th chapter of first Corinthians in the 13th verse, Paul says:
“For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.”
The unity that Jesus is praying for here is a unity that is produced by the spirit of God within us. This is a work that definitely comes directly from God. It's a special work, if you will. You recall, also in the passage there in Ephesians chapter 2 a little later on, Paul goes on and says, verse 19:
“So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God's household, having been built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together is growing into a holy temple in the Lord. in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit.”
A fourth thing that I want to look at this morning regarding this unity. Not only is this something we know comes directly from God, that is only possible through the cross, and that is produced by the spirit of God, but this is a unity that is grounded in the truth. A unity that is grounded in the truth. The whole context in this passage in the Lord's prayer is most instructive in this regard.
“They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; Thy Word is truth.”
Here in this context, Jesus is looking forward to our being set apart to Him from the world through this means of the truth. There's no other way that we can be brought together to this extent apart from the truth. Remember how we looked at the truth and how this infiltrates and permeates everything about us? Our perspective of life, our overview of life itself. Our understanding of what's wrong with humanity, our realization of the only remedy for what's wrong, what's really wrong with humanity. All of these things are most important and basic and fundamental things are part of what we have come to know when came to the knowledge of the truth of the gospel. This is the means by which the Spirit of God draws us together. It seems to me that this is one of those areas that we need to be very careful with. One of the things that became very popular, and I think it was back in the 60s, as this whole movement, which is now referred to as ecumenicism really began to take hold and began to really permeate the thinking of many Christians in this country. One of the statements that used to be made that became very popular back then was the simple one: doctrine divides. Did you ever hear that? I don't hear it as much anymore but that became very popular. Doctrine device. we need to set aside all these particulars and all of our differences and we need to get together. We have been called to be one, to be perfected in unity. Why are we messing around with all these things? so we have some disagreements, we need to get together, we need to be one. This is what Jesus has called us to do. And so, the theory was, if we would just not emphasize the truth so much we could come together, we could we could experience this unity. Stop and think. where would that kind of reasoning come from? Would that come from the Lord Himself, or would that come from the evil one? The truth doesn't divide us. The truth is what brings us together. It is what unifies us. As the Holy Spirit produces unity within us, He does so by drawing us ever nearer, ever closer to the truth. I remind you again of something we've taken notice of before three times in this upper room discourse, Jesus has referred to the Holy Spirit in a specific way. As the spirit of what? Of truth. John chapter 14 verse 17, and the preceding verse:
“And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; that is the Spirit of truth.”
Chapter 15 verse 26:
“When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the father,”
Chapter 16 verse 13:
“But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. He shall glorify Me for He shall take of mine, and shall disclose it to you.”
This is the truth that unites God's people. You and I have been called to be set apart. The Lord anticipates this, that would be set apart in the truth. The truth of God's Word. That truth being brought to our minds and our attention, our understanding through the special ministry of His Spirit. I would remind you also again back in the epistle of the apostle Paul to the saints at Ephesus. In Ephesians chapter 4, A passage I just referred to a few moments ago when He spoke about preserving the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace, He goes on to say then in verse 11:
“And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ. As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves, and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him, who is the head, even Christ.”
This unity that the Lord Jesus is speaking of is a unity that's grounded in the truth. It cannot be realized, it cannot be appreciated, it cannot be preserved, as Paul admonishes the believers at Ephesus to do, apart from a devotion to the truth. A responsiveness to the truth. It's so clear in this passage in Ephesians 4, we are to be diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. And then we’re told how that happens, how that works itself out. God's gift of those who will teach and proclaim the truth for the building up of the body until we all attain to the unity of the faith. This is the means by which God draws us increasingly closer together. Now as you think about this for a moment, you might think to yourself, yeah will it doesn't seem to me that it always works that way. And that's true from our perspective. It doesn't always seem to work that way does it? let me ask you this. Have you ever given any thought to how this feat work itself out as the church began? When the church began, the record that we have of the church as it began to progress throughout the Acts of the apostles, is the evidence there that these people never ever experienced any disagreements? Ever thought about that? There were some disagreements, were there not in the early church? There problems that arose. We’re not given a detailed account of everyone, most certainly sure of that. But for example, a very practical issue that arose there in the sixth chapter of the Acts of the apostles. It was a difficulty, a disagreement, a concern that arose, and it had to do with that of the whole matter of serving those who were in need. recall chapter 6 verse one:
“Now at this time while the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint arose on the part of the Hellenistic Jews against the native Hebrews, because their widows were being overlooked in the daily serving of food.”
This doesn't sound very unified does it? This unity is going to be threatened. It’s going to be challenged. It’s the way we respond to those challenges that's important. The disciples, the leaders of the church at that time, dealt with this issue very decisively. They came together and they said this is got to be taken care of. And this is how we are going to do it. They appointed men who would be in charge of this. They carefully appointed men who they knew would be faithful. What about the disagreement that we find in Acts chapter 15? That's a major disagreement, is it not? What we refer to often as the Council of Jerusalem happened because of a massive disagreement and fracture, very early on within Christianity, within the church. You had those Jews who were saying: these people, you're going out and proclaiming the gospel, but you're not telling these people, you’re not instructing them to follow the Mosaic law. They can't be saved if you don't do that. That was the discrepancy, recall. And so we’re told that this had to be dealt with. Verse one of Acts 15:
“And some men came down from Judea and began teaching the brethren, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.” And when Paul and Barnabas had great dissension and debate with them, the brethren determined that Paul and Barnabas and certain others of them should go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and elders concerning this issue.”
The point I’m trying to make is this: that this unity is going to be threatened. This unity is going to be attacked. The evil one can't stand this. Why? For the very reason Jesus spoke in His prayer to the Father. This would bear testimony to the world in a unique way. It would confirm the truthfulness of the Lord's words and His calling. The mission that the Father had sent Him to accomplish. This unity would be one of the things that would confirm that. But this unity is absolutely crucial in regards to the purity of the gospel. And these men understood this right away. And if that meant there had to be dissension than there was going to be dissension. There was going to be argument. But you notice as you read through (we don't have time this morning), you read through what took place there in Jerusalem. They came to an agreement, a wonderful agreement. There is much discussion and debate we’re told in this chapter, but I love what happened when Peter gets up and he says in verse eight:
“And God, who knows the heart, bore witness to them, giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He also did to us; and He made no distinction between us and them, cleansing their hearts by faith. Now therefore why do you put God to the test by placing upon the neck of the disciples a yoke which neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? But we believe that we are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, in the same way as they also are.”
That puts an end to the discussion. They came to agreement, they recognize. Peter stands up, and he logically explains to them, this is the work of salvation that God has done. And He's done that work in the hearts of Gentiles who have not been circumcised, who have not submitted and set themselves to the Mosaic law. The matter is settled, they send out a letter. That doesn't mean there's never going to be dissension again in the church. We know from Galatians chapter 2, Paul confronted Peter of all people to his face for his hypocrisy, concerning this very same basic issue again in the relationship between Jews and Gentiles. And Paul stands on the firm footing of the gospel. This is the truth. There can be no unity between those people, between brothers and even brothers in Christ who are disagreeing about the truth of the gospel. They got to come together on this thing.
One other thing that I trust greatly grieves each and every one of us, is this fact that we don't do this, most of the time. I won’t say it never happens, but it rarely happens. Where we have disagreements and some of them fairly significant, because they really do involve the gospel. Rather than coming together and praying, and searching the Scriptures, and working it out together so that we might come to an agreement about the truth so that this unity that the Lord Himself prayed for would be evidenced in us, instead we go our separate ways. We agree to disagree, and that's the end of that. I'm not suggesting that there won't be divisions, there's going to be, obviously. And it takes two parties to go through that kind of process. Rarely have I seen it happen, but I have seen it happen. Usually most of us don't want to work through that kind of thing. Well, we agree to disagree, and there's plenty of other places to go, so we'll just go our own separate ways. This must be a grievous thing before the Lord, when you think about it. I mentioned this last time, there is this cry that you see in the world sometimes. Why can't we all just get along? I’ve heard that very same cry from God's people. Why do we have to be like this? Why do we have to argue? why can't we get along? It's a good question. It's a legitimate question, especially in the light of what Jesus says in this passage. The way we get along is not simply to say the truth doesn't matter.
That's one extreme, but there's also another extreme and that is to get insanely picky about truths that are not that important. They don't really have anything to do with the truth of the gospel. It’s a disappointing thing to see the things that God's people will divide themselves over on issues regarding: when the Lord is going to return, on issues regarding sometimes doctrinal details even in the matter of how God saves us, that we can't possibly know. I've heard people talk about things that divide them and very proudly they take a stand on an issue, and at times, I’ve thought to myself, why? for what reason? This isn’t even that important. You can't even explain it yourself. And this is what we often do. We need to be careful, we need a deep desire to be united in the truth together as God's people. If that's what the Lord is called us to do then that’s what we ought to want to do isn’t it? I acknowledge that it's not always easy, and it's a lot of work. There have been times when there have been those who have maybe opened the door for me to do that, and I just didn't do it because I realized it was going to take a lot of effort on my part. But I was also thinking about this, I was reminded of someone who left this body a number of years ago now. This was someone that we love dearly and still do, though I don't have much contact with this individual. I remember him saying to me, I've come to this conclusion in the Scriptures that is different than yours and it's enough different that it's going to be hard for us to fellowship together. And so, he wasn't saying this out of animosity in any way, shape, or form. And I agree it was a significant issue. But the one thing that disturbed me the most was he said, one thing I want to ask of you is I don't want to talk about this with you. I will refuse to sit down with you and go over Scripture. This is the conclusion I've come to, let's agree to disagree, and that’s it. And it greatly grieved me. As I thought, will so we don't even have a chance to come together on this? And I'm not in any way, I hope, being overly critical of this individual because I think all of us have tended to do that at times, have we not? I can maybe see that in somebody else, but have I done that as well? Am I not really willing to go there?
Now I realize there is going to be a point in time at which those efforts are made and we can't come to an agreement. I understand that if it's on something that regards the gospel we have to take our stand and be faithful. But the Lord has called us to all be one. He's called us as many members who are altogether part of one body, right? We are. That's what the Lord Himself says. I can remember many times in many years gone by, where I would hear people say that and I would just cringe, because I knew what they meant. What they meant was, you set aside what you believe to be the gospel, and let's all get together and we can agree a more streamlined version of what the gospel is. Let's quit this arguing. That's wrong, very dangerously wrong. The gospel is being compromised, and this is happened time and time and time again. It continues to happen in the name of unity. That's not the unity Jesus is speaking of here. This is a unity that is produced by the Spirit of God, and is grounded in the truth because the Holy Spirit of God is the Spirit of Truth, and if it's the unity of the Spirit, it’s going to be a unity that is grounded in truth. It's that simple, and that should be our desire. I would also say to that it should be our delight that we can enjoy that kind of unity. I know many of you have experienced this, and are continuing to experience this. We have brothers and sisters all over this world, and within the area in which we live here, who know, and love the Lord deeply. Whom we have good and deep fellowship with, because of this oneness. Are you thankful for that? Don't you praise the Lord for that? We have this tendency to be very competitive sometimes, all the different churches. I’ve heard people from the world ask me why are there so many churches? What's wrong with you people? Why can't you get along? People have asked me that question. Obviously, it’s not an easy question to answer with one or two words. And when you start to answer the question as I have on several occasions, I was shut down pretty fast. Well, I didn't want to hear the answer to that, is what they are really saying. But the truth is, sometimes the question ought to grieve us, in the sense, if we display or demonstrate an attitude towards other believers, that is wrong. Those who are in Christ, whoever they are, wherever they are, they’re members of one body in Christ. We’re together. We have been and are being perfected in unity. Now that should be something we treasure greatly. It was so important to the Lord, and it means to that we need to be careful how we disagree with one another. There is a time to stand up. There is a time to do what the apostle Paul did and that was call Peter out to his face in public. There's a time for that. Unfortunately, that isn’t done like it should be done either, for the most part. There’s also time to draw brothers side, like Aquila and Priscilla did with Apollos, and instruct him more carefully, more fully in the truth that he was teaching, which he received gladly. May the Lord help us to have the right attitude towards one another, in the light of His truth. In the light of the Lord's desire for us to be unified. Let's bow together in prayer.
