TO Sermon Index Members: Unity and Glory

John 17:22 “The glory which You have given Me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as We are one; 23 I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me, and loved them, even as You have loved Me.

I was dwelling on this verse recently as I studied the Scriptures. And I saw something I had never seen before, and thought I'd share it, especially with the stink that has arisen on these forums the last few days.

In this passage, Jesus links the glory of God to the unity of the body of Christ. Jesus says that the glory God has given Him, He has now in turn given to the saints. And this He does with a purpose. "That" they might be one, even as God the Father and God the Son are one. For when we as believers come to recognize the very glory of God in the life of another believer, it becomes increasingly difficult to criticize one another, and point out the faults with one another, and act hostile to one another. Why? Because there is a touch of God resting on that persons life.

And sometimes it will simply be a touch, as not all believers are where they ought to be. But even for the touch of God that might be in that saint's life, should we not be like Moses and turn aside to see why it is the bush burns and is not consumed? For unless we allow ourselves to be captivated by it, we might just miss it. For when you think about it, during the 40 years Moses spent in the wilderness, he probably saw many burning bushes. But there was something about this one bush that burned, that, had he not looked upon it longer, he might have not noticed that it was not being consumed, though it burned with fire. And when you see such a phenomenon, your perspective will never be the same.

For it is the "I in them" that should take hold of us. And once we see Him in them, our perspective of that individual ought never be the same. For Christ is in them! And since we would never speak harshly towards our Lord, we should now never speak harshly towards them. For even as Christ's identification is bound up with that of the Father, so their identification is bound up. And to touch the one is to touch the other.

And when we come to such a place of unity, where we can no longer wage war with our brothers and sisters in whom Christ dwells, then the world will know that Christ was sent into this world, and loved us. But this will not happen unless YOU turn aside to see the glory of God that rests upon the life of every saint.

Amen.

Amen brother.

For when we as believers come to recognize the very glory of God in the life of another believer, it becomes increasingly difficult to criticize one another, and point out the faults with one another, and act hostile to one another. Why? Because there is a touch of God resting on that persons life.

Beautiful post. It is right on. Thank you for sharing.

For it is the "I in them" that should take hold of us.

"To the extent you have done it unto the least of these my brothers, you have done it unto Me."

YOU turn aside to see the glory of God that rests upon the life of every saint.

Sometimes it is difficult to see the glory of God in another saint. However, I wonder if the difficulty in seeing does not most often rest with the observer than the one observed. Jesus said, in another context, to take the log out of our own eye first. I can say for myself that the Lord has shown me so many times, when I don't see what I expect to see, the problem is not where I thought it was. The problem is with me.

Unity and Glory!

Jimmy this is wonderful. Thank you for sharing this.

Blessings,
Jeremy Hulsey

I was further meditating on this subject while at work this morning, and I thought of the overall context of this prayer for glory and unity. And it occurred to me that this prayer all issues on the eve of the cross. And it is only the cross where this glory is to be found.

If you want a theology of glory, it can only be found in the theology of the cross. And indeed, we are to glory in nothing else but the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, for which we have been crucified to this world, and this world to us. A theology of glory that issues simply out of easy-going nice-guy-isms is no glory. Rather, the glory of the cross issues out of great suffering and death. A theology of glory that does not take into account suffering is a theology that is bankrupt.

For without the cross, the unity that we have is nothing more than southern hospitality. And for my international brethren who might not understand what that is: southern hospitality is the ability to invite your enemy over for corn-bread and an iced-cold glass of sweet-tea, but to make war with them afterwards. It's simply practicing "good manners" and "being neighborly." Southern hospitality, in a nutshell, is a lie. It's the putting on of a show.

But it is impossible to put on a show when you are hanging on a cross. There you are robbed of the ability to cover yourself at all. You hang naked, open and exposed for all to see. No, not so much as even a loin cloth to cover yourself as often depicted in paintings. And it is at this moment of shame and suffering that the glory of God is chiefly manifested.

Christ said in John 17 that it was now the hour for Him to be glorified, and that this glory that He received from the Father, He has now given to us. Far from receiving the royal treatment that is marked by the pomp that is treated as a glory, Christ received royal treatment of another kind: that of the cross. And to Christ, this was a glory. And this is the glory Christ has given us, namely, the cross. But will we receive it?

KingJimmy wrote:
I was further meditating on this subject while at work this morning, and I thought of the overall context of this prayer for glory and unity. And it occurred to me that this prayer all issues on the eve of the cross. And it is only the cross where this glory is to be found.

If you want a theology of glory, it can only be found in the theology of the cross. And indeed, we are to glory in nothing else but the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, for which we have been crucified to this world, and this world to us. [/quote

Thank you brother for your sharing.
Paul wrote these words to the Philippians:

...Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ....

...that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel...

...For unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake...

...If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowhip of the Spirit, if any bowels and mercies,

...Fulfill ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord,of one mind

...Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.

...Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.

...Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus.

...Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God

...But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant,and was made in the likeness of men

...And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.

Amen.