That They May Be One

or, How to get along and keep the main thing the main thing.
 
Continuing with the prayer of Jesus, John 17:20-23 in which the Lord presents His petition to the Father for unity of believers with one another, with Himself, and with the Father

• Christian unity is based on our shared life in Jesus Christ.
• Christian unity is based on our shared life through faith in Christ through the apostolic witness to Him.
• Christian unity is important because it is a major factor in our witness to the world.
• Christian unity is expressed by believers' common love and common mission.

 With 40,000 denominations and innumerable non- and inter- denominational bodies it is critical that Christians act in unity to promote the gospel message.

• God did not get a prize when he took me.  He didn't get one when he took you, either.

We must pray for one another and pray, as Jesus did, for the bond of unity in Christ.

We must not compromise the essential elements of the gospel.  They are belief in

• the triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
•  the total divinity and the total humanity of Jesus Christ
• the crucifixion and the resurrection of Jesus
• the Second Coming of Christ
• salvation only by God's grace through faith.

These define the Christian, his membership in the body of Christ.  We should act in unity with all who believe and teach these principles.  Other differences are unimportant.

Man has done his best to thwart Christ's prayer.  The Christian must pray as He did, follow in his footsteps.

• We should be praying for unity in the Body of Christ.
• Pray for individuals and organizations who are stepping out and doing what God commanded in terms of unity without compromising essential biblical truth.
•  Pray for other believers in your world who are living for Christ in their world. 
• Finally, ask God to use you as a vessel in your local church, in your family, and in your world to be a person who builds unity rather than dissension.  

We tend to be blind, and to be blind to our blindness.

Think others have quills? You have quills, too.

Guest speaker Rob Cochrane

Sunday morning