During the past few months we have been looking at God's will for Parkwood. We have considered such themes as "having joy," being holy," "being faithful witnesses". This month, the beginning of a new year, I want us to consider a further intercession by Jesus for His disciples, for us, and that is that we might be "as one;" that we might have a unity among us. Jesus prays to the Father and says in verse 20 of St. John's Gospel chapter 17, "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."

When one considers the unity of the Christian Church, the truth which surfaces is that the Church is very much fragmented. There are churches and denominations of all sorts, often without dialogue with each other. This is true even in local congregations. And yet we hear Christ praying for unity of the church, of all who are God's children.

Now what kind of unity does Christ want us to have? Is it a great organizational unity, one worldwide church under one head? Is it unity by conformity, that is, an approach to the church which would make everyone alike, worshipping, behaving all in the same way? Surely not. The answer is that Christ wants us to have a unity, in the way that He was one with His Father. Jesus speaks of it in these terms: "that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you.". "That all of them may be one". This means that the Church or believers are to have a spiritual unity of oneness. Our oneness comes from the fact that we have a common Lord. We have all been saved by God's marvelous grace.

And here we are helped by the various pictures or images used of the church throughout the New Testament. One of the most valuable images is that of the family. Christians belong to the family of God. We are spiritually brothers and sisters in Christ. There is a love bond between us.

Salvation is explained in the verses that use the term "family", as God having spiritual children, who are therefore made members of His spiritual family through His choice and not through their own. As John in his gospel writes: "They did not become God's childrne by natural means, that is, by being born as the children of a human father; God Himself was the Father." There is a tendency in the world to talk about all men and women as brothers and sisters, and while this is true in a certain sociological sense, it is nevertheless not what the Bible is speaking of, when it refers to Christian brotherhood. This is something that God has intervened to establish among those whom He has brought to Himself.

Becase God has chosen us, and is our Father, there are several consequences. If the family to which we belong has been established by God, then we have no choice as to who will be in it or whether or not we will be his or her sister or brother. On the contrary, the relationship simply exists, and we must accept other believers, because they are God's children, and therefore they and we are brothers and sisters in Christ. We do not choose them. We accept them, and we treat them as brothers and sisters as they are, in the Lord. On the congregational level, as in Parkwood, this means that we are to celebrate the gift of others that God has given to us. We are not to make distinctions of class, or race, or position, talent, or wealth. Rather, we are to accept them as gifts given to us by God, and surround them with our love, care, encouragement and practical help.

The second important image or picture uised to illustrate the unity of believers is "fellowship", which the New Testament normally indicates by the greek word "koinonia". In its original meaning "koinonia" had to do with sharing something or having something in common. In spiritual terms, "koinonia" or "fellowshio", is had by those who share a common Christian experience of the love of God in Jesus Christ. But fellowship is not only defined in terms of what we "share in together". it also involves when "share out together".And this means that it must involve a community in which Christians actually share their thoughts and lives with each other. This can be done in many ways, as we paint a room together, as we sing as a choir, as we mee in prayer together, as we join in small groups to the study the Word of God. As we join in fellowship, we become the living, vibrant, exciting, joyfull Church of Christ, which we we called to be. This is the unity of which Christ spoke.

In Christ's love,
Floyd McPhee