Church Is Not About You!

A series on the “one another’s”

Part 4 – Live in harmony with one another

Romans 15:5

I.                 Introduction

-Satan’s primary strategy involves destroying unity among Christians.  Think about it.  Have you ever been involved in or known anyone who has been involved in a church split.  I was involved in one in Long Beach and I can tell you that it’s not pretty.  The church had hired a pastor who, as it turns out, had lied about his qualifications and education, just to name a few things.  As the attempts were made to remove him because of the dishonesty the leadership became split on whether or not that was really necessary.  The pastor was anything but humble about the whole situation and proceeded to call out the names of the leadership who were opposed to him from the pulpit one Sunday morning. I know that personally, after that Sunday morning (which we have since deemed Black Sunday) in particular, I felt like throwing in the towel on this whole Christianity thing and heading back to the bars where everyone gets along with one another! There were visitors in attendance that day; people who were not saved and were seeking God and His will for their lives.  They left that day with a very unfortunate taste of what church is all about and I would be surprised if they have been to a church since!  Now, I know that God is more powerful than situations and I am a living testament to that.  Because I didn’t head to the bars and give up on church I am where I am today.  You see, it is because of that situation that I started teaching a weekly Bible study.  The associate pastor was heading up the college ministry that I was involved in and once the senior pastor was removed it was the associate pastor who stepped up and took over the responsibilities.  The college ministry had a vacancy then and I stepped up and took that position.  That was the start of this journey that has led me here!  So, it is also very possible that those visitors are saved and actively involved in a church.  Nevertheless, it was a terrible first impression!

II.            The Example of Jesus:

Joh 17:1-26  When Jesus had spoken these words, he lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, "Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you,  (2)  since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him.  (3)  And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.  (4)  I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do.  (5)  And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed.  (6)  "I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world. Yours they were, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word.  (7)  Now they know that everything that you have given me is from you.  (8)  For I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me.  (9)  I am praying for them. I am not praying for the world but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours.  (10)  All mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them.  (11)  And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one.  (12)  While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled.  (13)  But now I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves.  (14)  I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.  (15)  I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one.  (16)  They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.  (17)  Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.  (18)  As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world.  (19)  And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth.  (20)  "I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word,  (21)  that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.  (22)  The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one,  (23)  I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me.  (24)  Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world.  (25)  O righteous Father, even though the world does not know you, I know you, and these know that you have sent me.  (26)  I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them."

-Did you notice a recurring theme in this beautiful and profound prayer?  Look at vv. 11, 21, 22, 23.  UNITY!  Jesus’ high priestly prayer was focused on the unity of the disciples (vs. 11) and for believers throughout the ages (vv. 21-23).  Those verses, (11, 21-23) are the ones that directly say we should be one, but the whole prayer gives that implication with all the statements made about Jesus in us and Him in the Father.  Those all imply unity. 

-We must realize that these are Jesus’ parting words, if you will.  This is the last prayer before heading to the cross.  This was His last request of the Father.  This should indicate to us that Jesus took the unity of His church pretty seriously!

-Sort of as an aside, I want to point something out to you.  I have had the privilege of studying the prayers of different people in the Bible and this one is one of my favorites.  I’m sure at some point during my time with you we will have the opportunity to take a look at all those prayers and glean some great insights into prayer.  But, for now I want you to point something out to you.  Notice how much of the prayer is for Jesus Himself, how much is for the disciples (or, in essence, those doing the work of the Lord), and how much is for all believers.  This is a good indication to us of how our prayers should be patterned and perhaps by patterning them this way it will promote the unity that Jesus so desperately desires!

-When Christ was on earth he worked miracles to convince people that He was God.  When he went back to heaven, He left His church to communicate that truth. And the ingredient in the church that convinces non-Christians that Jesus was God is not miracles, but unity, which, by the way, IS actually a miracle because men everywhere tend toward disunity. 

III.       The Example of the Early Church:

-Immediately after Jesus’ ascension to heaven the early church became a direct and profound answer to Jesus’ prayer.

Act 2:40-47  And with many other words he bore witness and continued to exhort them, saying, "Save yourselves from this crooked generation."  (41)  So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls.  (42)  And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.  (43)  And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles.  (44)  And all who believed were together (or with one mind) and had all things in common.  (45)  And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need.  (46)  And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts,  (47)  praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.

-And again in chapter 4

Act 4:32  Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common.

-This does not mean that there weren’t problems among them.  Certainly there were.  In Acts 6, Luke tells us that there arose some discontentedness amongst some widows who were being neglected.  This created a problem.  But it was a problem that was faced head on and quickly solved and unity was restored. 

-What is even more profound than the unity that is displayed among the early church is the result of that unity.  The result seems to be a direct correlation to the request that Jesus made in John 17:21.  Joh 17:21  that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.

So let’s look at the results.  Look at the end of Acts 2.  Act 2:47  praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved. 

-The result of the early believers having everything in common was that the Lord added to their number daily!

-Look at the end of Acts 4.  Act 4:33  And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all.

-The result of them being of one mind and soul was that their testimonies were given with great power!  Effectual power!

-And finally, at the end of Chapter 6 after they had solved their problem of the neglected widows and restored unity the Bible tells us Act 6:7  And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith.

-Can you see the effective power of unity?!?!  It is so important that we grasp this.  This is the most effective evangelism tool.  Being of one mind and soul and living in harmony with one another!

IV.           The Example of Paul:

-This seems to have been one of Paul’s primary concerns.  He addresses unity of the believers in many of his epistles.  But why?  I have maintained to you throughout our study today that it is because it is the best way to evangelize.  That is true, but it’s not all.  Check out what Romans 15:5-6 (our text) says, Rom 15:5-6  May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus,  (6)  that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

-Paul is saying that we not only have the opportunity to evangelize, as we have seen previously, but also that we have the unique opportunity to glorify God through our unity!  But why?  Why unity?  Why does that most glorify God?  I would argue that it most glorifies God because it properly represents the relationship among the Trinity.  That’s unity!  That’s why it glorifies God!

-Paul gives a similar charge to the Philippians when he says, Php 1:27  Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel

-Notice a couple of unique things here.  Paul says that he expects to hear about their unity even if he is unable to come to visit them.  Unity speaks loudly!  This is the manner of life which Paul is talking about, the manner that is worthy of the gospel of Christ.  So, the negative way of saying what Paul is trying to get across is that if you’re not living in unity then you’re not worthy to be claiming salvation.  Is that the way that you want to be described?  I trust not.  This is why we need to strive for unity.

-Now that I pointed out the volume of unity I want you to notice the power of unity.  Imagine a situation where all believers everywhere are striving with one mind, contending side by side, striving together for the faith of the Gospel.  What power!  That’s one of the things that I love about the pastors of Simi Valley.  We really do strive together for the gospel.  There is very little competitiveness or jealousy amongst the pastors of the evangelical churches here in this city.  As most of you know we gather together every Wednesday and pray together.  We help each other out with resources, prayer, advice, and manpower.  There is a genuine spirit of love amongst the 25 or so pastors that gather together. 

-However, the spirit of unity that Paul is proclaiming as loud and powerful must come from all believers.  We cannot expect to be unified with other churches if we are not even be unified amongst ourselves!  If you have a spirit of disunity please confess it today!  You’re turning down the volume and the horsepower that is available for the spreading of the gospel with that sort of attitude!

-Unity is powerful!  And by implication, disunity is volatile!  It has the ability to destroy and tear down the gospel.

V.                Practical steps for developing unity

-First, we must realize that unity is possible.  There is a positional unity that binds us all together in Christ.  But the unity that Jesus and Paul prayed for is a concrete, visible, and practical unity that can exist among all believers who are in a particular geographical location (i.e. the local church). 

-Second, we must realize that unity amongst believers in a local church is not automatic.  Paul exhorted the Ephesians to “make every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit” (Eph. 4:3).  It takes work.  Imagine what would have happened to the unity and life of the early church if the apostles had not worked at solving the problem of the neglected widows that we looked at earlier.  Surely it would have resulted in the first church split in history!

-Third, we must realize that our efforts to maintain unity are two-dimensional.   Jesus prayed and is praying for us.  He is there to help us battle Satan, who is trying to destroy our unity.  So, while on one hand we are making every effort, Jesus is striving with us as well.  And if God is for us, who can be against us?

-Fourth, we must realize that any effort to maintain unity must start with us. Us as in the person wearing your shirt!  Us as in you.  Us as in me.  One of my fears through this whole series is that there is a danger of each of us having someone else in mind when discussing these issues.  We’re so focused on how much we think someone else needs to hear the message that we miss what God is trying to say to us personally.  There is a story told of a man called brother you told ‘em.  Brother you told ‘em was a faithful attendee of a church. Every Sunday as he was leaving he would compliment the preacher on the message and say, “you told ‘em!”  It was obvious to the preacher that this man was not applying the messages to his own life and he began to pray for that man.  One Sunday there was a terrible blizzard.  The pastor lived next door to the church so he decided to go and open up just in case someone decided to come.  The only person that showed up was Brother you told ‘em.  The pastor thought to himself that this was the perfect situation!  He got up and preached a doosie of a sermon aimed right at brother you told ‘em.  When he was done, he went to talk to brother you told ‘em who said, “that was a great sermon pastor, too bad they weren’t here to hear it!”  We need to be careful not to be like that!