My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 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. 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—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.

Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world.

Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them.
-John 17:20-26

The passage in John 17 is in many ways a blueprint, offering three characteristics of the Christian community when it was at its best: unity, diversity, and beauty.

Unity

If a community has nothing holding it together, it will fall apart. What is it that holds the church together?

"My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message..." vs 20 

The message of the Good News is what holds us together.

Division happens when people treat things as central that ought to be secondary. Real Christian unity is about converging upon the Good News, and if we make that central, we can make the church a safe place to wrestle with those secondary questions.

"I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one..." vs 22 

"Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world." vs 24

The glory that the Father gives the Son is the same as the love that He gave Him at the start of the world— the love at the heart of God (and the heart of reality). The other-focused love of the Good News.

Diversity

"Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me." vs 25

There is diversity in roles, but there is also diversity in persons. The reasons for unity in the church also support its diversity.  

Diversity isn’t easy, because there is always a chance of misunderstanding or hurt-- it is for that reason that we need to be intentional about loving one another. When there is unintentional hurt, we can look to the Bible for a model of what to do:

  • Go to them ("If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over." Matthew 18:15)
  • Receiver: take a breath, be empathetic, listen and seek understanding; distinguish between intent and impact; apologize and commit to change (learn more about the issue)
  • Seek a third party, if necessary ("But if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’" Matthew 18:16)

Being a diverse church isn’t easy, but it is richer. In a divided world, the church has the potential to bring diverse groups together and bring healing. It gives us a chance to reflect God's love focused on the other.

Beauty

"May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me." vs 21

"Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me." vs 23

It is by our unity and diversity, our love, that people will know that God sent Jesus. When people see our community, they are supposed to see Trinitarian love.

What do we do with Jesus’ prayer for our unity?

  • Build community through times together (like our new monthly Souper Sunday lunches!). Eating together means we’re sitting and staying, accepting one another a little more deeply and reflecting Christ
  • Do life together in small groups
    • "Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective." James 5:16
    • "But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness." Hebrews 3:13
    • "Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts." Colossians 3:16
    • "Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.Galatians" 6:25
    • "Rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep" Romans 12:15

Community is a basic need, and it’s how we can show the world that Jesus is with us.

Questions for Small Groups
  1. What do you think are some of the most diverse groups in Toronto? What is the identity of the group? And how do group members relate to one another (e.g., as co-workers, students, family, etc.).
  2. Reread John 17:20-26. According to the sermon, church identity is grounded in the message and (trinitarian) love of the good news. How does this identity relate to the church’s diversity?
  3. How can diversity in a church be difficult? What are some practical ways church members can love one another through this difficulty?

Missed this Sunday's sermon? Watch it here!

 

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