That We All May Be One
Today there are many religions and many variations of these. Yet, in the religious world, many embrace differing doctrines and claim to be one. Perhaps their claim to be one is based on their proclamation that they ‘believe on Christ’. However, to assert to believe on Christ, or to have belief in Christ in common, while espousing and holding to various views as to what the Bible teaches is not oneness. To have the essence of oneness, a group must agree. The Words of the Spirit given to the herdsman prophet of Israel should have settled this long ago. Amos 3:3 reads, “Can two walk together, except they be agreed?” Sadly, even among God’s people of the Old Testament, there were some according to 2Kings 17:14-17 who, while claiming to “belong to the Lord”, would not hear, hardened their necks, did not believe in the Lord their God, rejected His statutes, left all the Commandments of the Lord, and even served Baal.
The concept of two individuals being one was not new. As the creation of all things was being concluded in Gen 2:20-24 we see this idea being introduced. On the sixth day, God created man, and on that same day when Adam had named all the animals, “there was not found an help meet for him”. Therefore, God caused Adam to take a deep sleep and performed the first surgery as He took a rib from Adam. With it He made a female and gave her to the man. Adam called her “bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh” and he called her “Woman, because she was taken out of Man”. God also performed the first marriage and the inspired plan of God for matrimony was set as we see in verse 24, “Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.”
In John 17:14-21 after saying many things to His apostles, Christ prayed before He went over the brook Cedron to the garden where He was betrayed. In that prayer, the Lord told His heavenly Father that He had given the apostles God’s Word. He also asked God to “sanctify them through thy truth” because God’s Word is truth. In verses 20-21, He prayed to God on behalf of the apostles, as well as those who would believe on Him through the Word. The crux of the prayer was “That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.” It was a unity prayer of the highest degree. The desire of Christ was that His apostles remain “one”, and God’s Will be done.
After this, Christ was betrayed, arrested, questioned by the high priest, was denied, was arraigned and tried before Pilate, was the subject of a mock trial, was scourged, and finally was crucified. He died on that cross, and in doing so, shed His blood and His body was broken. He was buried in the borrowed tomb, and as prophesied arose again in three days to die no more (John chapters 18-20:10) After His resurrection, Christ appeared to many, beginning with Mary Maddelene, then He appeared to His closest disciples (the apostles), and did many signs in their presence which were not recorded in this gospel account. All of these things were done so all might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that in believing, all “might” have life through His name. (John 20:11-31).
As we move into the book of Acts, we find that these apostles were indeed “one” as they “were all with one accord in one place”. (Acts 2:1). Upon receiving the baptism of the Holy Spirit, the apostles were given inspired Words to proclaim before the crowd of Jews gathered at Pentecost. Peter’s sermon was recorded. At the conclusion of the sermon, many of those gathered there were “pricked in their heart” and asked what they needed to do. In Acts 2:38 they were told what to do and in verse 29 we find the perpetuity of this Salvation Command. In verse 41, those that “gladly received his Word were baptized” and three thousand souls became one in Christ. We then see the unity these folks shared in verse 44, “And all that believed were together, and had all things common;”.
That was then, but what about now? Now, there are a plethora of various religions and differing doctrines. This began shortly after the church began, and according to 2Pet 2:1-2, there were those who taught falsehoods, bringing in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord. Sadly, many would (and still today do) follow false teachers, and because of this, “the way of truth” (the gospel of Christ) was then, and is now, “evil spoken of”. Sadly, this makes it much more difficult for some to see the “oneness” and the unity that should be possessed by all who profess to believe on Christ.
What does God’s New Testament Word have to say about this? As we know, all the epistles were written by inspiration to individuals who were members of the Lord’s church or congregations of the church for which Christ died. In Rom 12:16, the apostle Paul was directed by the Spirit to tell the Lord’s church in Rome, “Be of the same mind”. In 1Cor 1:10 this inspired mandate was much more succinct. The Spirit had Paul write, “Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.” When this can be done in full accordance with the rightly divided (properly handled) N.T. Word of God, this is pleasing to God and is unity and oneness in action.
But unity or oneness is not instantaneous or automatic. All who are baptized into Christ have become part of the body of Christ and are to be united. They are all to be one “in Christ”. But this unity also must be maintained. Therein lies the problem. Many fail to become part of the One Body (the church for which Jesus died & over which He is head – Eph 1:22-23); embrace the One Spirit (Who revealed the Scriptures). These also fail to hold to the One Hope in Christ (the reward of heaven) in accordance with N.T. teaching by refusal to submit to the authority of the One Lord (Jesus Christ). So, they do not follow the One Faith (the once-delivered gospel system - Jude 3) and refuse to participate in the One Baptism (immersion in water for the remission of past sins – Acts 2:38; Rom 6:3-4) and become “spiritual” children of the One God and Father of all. (All these “ONES” are found in Eph 4:4-6)
Why not forsake man’s doctrine and religion and the vast differences contained in them? Endeavor to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. (Eph 4:3). Christ died so you too can be “one with Christ” and prepare for eternity with God.
Dennis Strickland – Mooresville church of Christ
