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UNITY OF BELIEVERS - THE APPROACH, ACTION AND ACHIEVEMENT

By Rev. Paul Mathews Louis Mawaya
Sermon Date: 4^th October 2015
Scripture: John 17:20-26; Psalm 133:1-3.

INTRODUCTION

A united Church of God achieves much in the world it exists. The unity of Scottish missionaries in Malawi prevented the Southern part of Malawi from becoming part Mozambique before 1900s. The unity of Presbyterians birthed Church of Central Africa, Presbyterian (CCAP) in 1924. The unity of believers in Malawi birthed ecumenical institutions like Student Christian Organization of Malawi (SCOM), Chilema Ecumenical Lay Training Centre, Evangelical Association of Malawi (EAM), Malawi Council of Churches (MCC) and Association of Christian Educators in Malawi (ACEM) just to mention a few.

PROBLEM STATEMENT

The article of Erik Tryggestad posted in THE CHRISTIAN CHRONICLE and a Lesson in TEEM Lay Ministry Training Module 6 of Certificate in Basic Theology concludes that unity is a growing problem in the Malawi Churches because of the following factors:

1. Self-serving LEADERSHIP.
1. Causes irresponsible PASTORAL CARE.
2. Causes divisive and territorial EVANGELISM.
3. Causes Church financial MISUSE and CORRUPTION.
4. Causes FALSE teachings.
2. Spiritual EMPTINESS
1. Causes communicants and leaders to be involved in SINFUL LIVES.
2. Causes communicants and leaders to GOSSIP about each other.
3. Causes communicants and leaders to trust the power of OTHER SPIRITS instead of the power of the Holy Spirit.
4. Causes communicants and leaders to focus on the WRONG kind of love.

THEME

God unites believers in Christ. The questions for our reflection are as follows:

1. How does God unite believers in Christ?
2. What does God DO to unite believers in Christ?
3. What is the effect of unity of believers in Christ to the world?

APPROACH OF GOD TO UNITE BELIEVERS

1. Unity of believers is manifested in the CREED of God
1. John 17:20-21a indicates that God provided that the MESSAGE of the Disciples of Jesus would facilitate unity between the DISCIPLES of Jesus Christ and BELIEVERS of their message.
2. The analysis of Matthew 3:1-12; 4:17 and Acts 2:38 shows that the MESSAGE of united John the Baptist, Jesus Christ and Apostle Peter.
3. Therefore, the message of God that is proclaimed in the church, radio, television and in other different modes should show the attributes of a true teaching of God as done by Jesus Christ.
2. Unity of believers is modeled after the CONCORD of God
1. John 17:21, 23, indicates that the union of God the Father and Son provides the model after which the unity of believers should be patterned.
2. The reflection of Genesis 1:1-2 and John 1:1-3, 14 teaches that the triune God was involved in the creation and redemption of mankind.
3. Therefore, the balanced relationship among the persons in the Godhead provides the idealistic example after which all Christian relationships should emulate: Marriage, family, church organization etc.
3. Unity of believers is motivated by the CREDIT of God
1. John 17:22, 24 indicates that Jesus would give the glory of God to the elect (believers) who would intimately live with Him and see the glory because of God's love.
2. John encouraged people who were seeking Jesus and those who had believed in Jesus and would find this message encouraging to acquire stronger faith in Jesus as the Son of God who gives the real glory of God as unlike to the departed glory of the city of Jerusalem and the glory of the church that John had planted which was losing people in its ranks.
3. Therefore, believers who love God and love each other will ultimately see the glory of God in their lives which facilitates unity of believer.

ACTION OF GOD TO UNITE BELIEVERS IN CHRIST

1. God LOVES believers
1. John 17:23, 26, indicates that God loves mankind and the offer made in John 3:16 was made based on His love and compassion to save mankind from sin.
2. John 15 teaches that believers who have experienced the unmerited love of God will definitely become living and prolific branches of the vine (Jesus Christ) that love each other.
2. God LEADS believers
1. John 17:22, 24, indicates that God leads believers to a path where they will not only receive but also see His glory.
2. The disciples followed, received and witnessed the glory of Jesus at different circumstances.
3. Believers who follow Jesus will receive and witness the glory of God at different circumstances of their lives which will cause them to unite together for the glory of God.
3. God LIVES in believers
1. John 17:25-26 indicates that Jesus reveals the nature of God to believers.
2. For example, John 1:43-51 shows that Philip lead Nathaniel to see Jesus and know God the Father through seeing Jesus. In John 4, the meeting between the Samaritan woman and Jesus caused the Samaritan community to gain a deeper understanding of the nature of life of God.
3. Believers who meet and see Jesus are bound to gain a deeper understanding of the nature of life of God.

EFFECT OF UNITY OF BELIEVERS ON THE WORLD

1. The RUDENESS of the world towards triune God.
1. John 17:25 indicates that God the Father is righteous - meaning that He keeps the Covenant with His people by rightly administering it and rightly fulfilling it.
2. Although God is righteously administering events that shape the world, the world has impolitely behaved in the contrary; thus, the constitution of the nations in the first, second, third and fourth worlds has sought to oppose God and find Him unfair.
3. Non-believers who are controlled by the events of the world are on the path of destruction because their foundations are shaky grounds bound for eternal damnation. This is the cost of a divided Church that fails to proclaim Jesus Christ as The Lord of Lords.
2. The world RECOGNIZES Jesus
1. John 17:23 shows that complete unity of the Church and believers modeled by the triune God alone will make the world know that Jesus was God sent to bring the love of God into the arena of real tangible existence of mankind.
2. John 5:31-43 shows that the actions of God the Father, the deeds and writings of Moses, the proclamations of John the Baptist and the Jewish Scriptures recognized Jesus as the Son of God which challenged their world to know Jesus and recognize the existence of Kingdom of God.
3. The world RELIES on Jesus
1. John 17:21 shows that the intimate relations between the triune God and believers, is the basis of trust for the world.
2. In John 2:23, many people in Jerusalem believed Jesus because of signs and miracles He performed and the proclamations of God's Kingdom He made. The life of Jesus was in unity with the proclamations as well as the actions.

CONCLUSION

God unites believers. He unites them through an approach which involves the message, triune relationship and glory of God. God takes deliberate action on mankind by loving, leading and living in them in order to transform the rude world and recognize and rely of Jesus Christ.

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