Jesus’ Prayer
Every Tuesday morning, the area pastors get together for a time of prayer. We have pastors from Baptist churches, Lutheran churches, Evangelical churches, Congregational churches, etc. If a particular denomination is represented in this town, itâs likely represented on Tuesday mornings. When I first came to Beulah, this fact astonished me.Â
Having just come out of Bible college, one of the things that still fascinates me is the differing doctrines between denominations. Iâve grown up in the Church of the Nazarene and have attended a Nazarene school in preparation for ministry. I have a pretty good grasp on the doctrine of the Church of the Nazarene. However, I canât say the same about the Baptist church or the Lutheran church. As I was finishing up school and as Iâve begun to meet with these other pastors, Iâve wondered, âWhatâs different between our beliefs? What separates us from them?â
Typically the differences between denominations are very small. Such as with the Lutherans, we owe much of our doctrine to their founder Martin Luther. In fact, we agree on most every doctrine except a few, entire sanctification and Communion being the two major differences. In regards to the Baptist church, while we subscribe to the teachings of Jacob Arminius regarding salvation and predestination, the Baptist church holds to the teachings of John Calvin. While we start at two very different points, we both come to the same mission and the same goal. We must seek out the lost that they might be saved through the blood of Jesus.
In many communities, collaboration between denominations simply doesnât happen. We get caught up in our doctrinal differences and instead of working together for the common mission, we argue and fight over trivial matters of how God saves the lost rather than focusing on the fact that it is only through the blood of Christ that the lost can be saved.
This quarreling isnât unique between denominations either. I grew up in the Nazarene church, but as a child I was never concerned with the inner workings of the church or the relationships between local churches. However, as I grew up and became involved in ministry, one thing I noticed happening more often than it should have been was Nazarene churches in close proximity arguing over people. This church had the desire to do something and didnât have the means, but other churches didnât want to work with this church because they feared they would steal their people. This church wanted to hold an event or outreach, but other churches refused to promote it or even tell their people about it because they didnât want the other church to steal their people.
This bickering and fighting between denominations and churches was not Jesusâ desire. In fact, his desire was completely the opposite. This is recorded in John 17. Leading up to Jesusâ arrest and crucifixion we have the opportunity to listen in on a prayer that he is praying. He begins in verses 1-5 praying for himself as heâs preparing to face the cross he knows is to come. From there he turns his focus to his disciples. As much as he knows the trials he is to face, he also knows their trials will be great as well, so he prays that God would give them strength to face the trials as they come. Finally, in verse 20, Jesus broadens his scope beyond himself and beyond his disciples to the church as a whole. He states, âMy prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message.â (John 17:20)
Roughly two-thousand years ago, Jesus was praying for the church to come. This wasnât exclusively the church that would be born in the book of Acts. This isnât even the Nazarene, Lutheran, or Baptist denominations. The subject of Jesusâ prayer is you. In this passage Jesus is praying for you and every other person that has or ever will come to believe in him through the message of the apostles. Thatâs humbling if you ask me, that Jesus would take time to pray for me millennia before I was even born. But letâs take a look at the whole scripture. What was Jesusâ prayer for us in John 17:20-26?
As we look at this first verse once again, itâs clear that Jesus is praying for the church to come, those who will believe, but what is his prayer for them⌠or us? He prays, âthat all of them may be one,â but what does that mean?
When we think of oneness and unity, many people like to point out the number of denominations within the church. It seems like you canât go a year without talk of one denomination or another discussing a potential split. People will often lament and cry for the need of one denomination to which all Christians should adhere. Verses such as this seem to indicate a similar sentiment. Jesus prayed that we would all be one. What better way to unify us than to bring us all together under one global organization.
However, Jesusâ plea for unity was far from a command to be unified under one organization or denomination. Itâs not an organization that heâs after. Instead, he desired a unity of heart. This is evidenced in John 17:21. He doesnât say, âMay they be one just like the Roman empire, one head that drives the rest of the body to do its bidding.â He doesnât say, âMay they be one like the zealots that have banded together with a common purpose to overthrow Rome.â His prayer is that those who come to believe in him would be one just as he and the Father are one, a unity founded in the love of the Father. This isnât an organizational unity, but a unity of love that crosses all denominational and ethnic lines. This is a unity that connects each believer to Christ and the Father and subsequently to each other.
But it doesnât stop there. Jesusâ prayer wasnât just that we might be united. His prayer was not that we might have a warm, fuzzy feeling so that we could all stand around holding hands and singing kumbaya. The unity that Christ prayed for was a unity with a purpose, and that purpose is found in John 17:23. The purpose for those who believe in Christ to be united is so that together we might reach this world for Jesus. Unfortunately, when we get caught up in whoâs right and whoâs wrong in regards to doctrinal and theological issues and we begin to argue about it in the public arena, we begin to lose all credibility. A friendly debate covering theology and doctrine is fine. I love a good conversation with somebody I disagree with. Itâs when our passion for the doctrine and theology overcomes our desire to love like Christ that it becomes a problem. Instead, we must be united in Christâs love.
Jesus has set forth the goal and the means through which to accomplish it, to let the world know that through his abundant love for us, the Father sent Jesus Christ to us that we might share in his love, and we do this by being united in him. Yet Jesus doesnât tell us, âHereâs your mission. Get to it.â He enables us to keep going. This love and unity that weâve been called to is not a love that we can muster on our own. This is a love that is beyond us, but itâs crucial for us to maintain this unity. Fortunately for us, weâre not in this alone. Itâs not up to us to love our neighbors of our own accord. As Christ says in John 17:26, it’s through the love of God that we can know him and be unified in him that we might share this love with the world.
Jesusâ prayer for you was not that you would have a good life. His prayer for you was one of unity in him, and not just unity for the sake of being together. The unity that Christ prayed for you was a unity for a purpose, to let the world know that God sent Jesus and has loved them. Jesusâ desire was that we might be with him where he is going, and he will help us achieve all of that by making the Father and His love known to us.