Jesus’ Plea For Unity Among His Disciples
JESUS' PLEA FOR UNITY AMONG HIS DISCIPLES (John 17:17-23)
Yeow Chin Kiong
In our Lord's final hour of freedom, just before He led His disciples into the garden of Gethsemane (John 18:1; Matthew 26:36) where He would be arrested, His thoughts turned to them, specifically how they would be perceived by the world to whom they were to be sent with God's plan of salvation.
We have the apostle John's record of Jesus' request to our Father for all His followers throughout the ages to come; it was for them to be united in His word, in effect God's revelation. As Jesus expressed it, "17 Sanctiry them by Your truth. Your word is truth. 18 As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. 19 And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they
also may be sanctified by the truth. 20 I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; 21 that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. 22 And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: 23 I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me."
They say that a man's last words are expressions of what matters most to him, particularly if he knows,- on good evidence,- that his death is just around the corner and unavoidable. John's record is clear; our Lord's final desire was for His disciples to be united,- doing things as one, in agreement with one another,- based only upon His word, and not their own thoughts and surmises. God would "sanctify" them (i.e. set them apart from the world to do what God desires) by His word,- NOT by man-made creeds nor decisions of human counsel,- which He has declared through His Son and Divinely-inspired men (Hebrews 1:1-2; John 14:25-26; 15:26; 16:12-15)
The source of truth for all that the disciples teach and do is of supreme importance. That which sanctifies the disciples,- that which sets them apart for God's work,- is the scriptures revealed and providentially preserved for man. Only that revelation can reveal God's will and only that revelation can interpret itself (1 Peter 1:10-12; 2 Peter 1:1-21). The inspired word of scripture,- properly handled (2 Timothy 2:15),- equips us thoroughly for every good work (2 Timothy 3:16-17) as well as saves those who teach it as well as those taught by it (2 Timothy 3:14-15; 1 Timothy 4:16).
Jesus' disciples today are called "Christians" (Acts 11:26). They are custodians of God's word and its interpretation of itself, the "whole counsel of God" drawn from it (Acts 20:27) needing to be communicated unadulterated throughout the generations (2 Timothy 2:2; Revelation 22:18-19). Failure to be thus faithful to that "form of doctrine ... (that sets them) free from sin" (Romans 6:17-18), the things "which are proper for sound doctrine" (Titus 2:1), results in disunity among believers and even Christians, the dividedness which the unbelieving world sees among the tens of thousands of denominations in the world today. To the unbelieving world, such disunity among those who claim to be "Christians" is proof positive that God did NOT send Jesus to our world. In the light of John 17:17-23, can we blame them?