John 17 unity

John 17:20-26 (NRSVA)
20 ‘I ask not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word, 21 that they may all be one. As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also 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 them, so that they may be one, as we are one, 23 I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. 24 Father, I desire that those also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory, which you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world.
25 ‘Righteous Father, the world does not know you, but I know you; and these know that you have sent me. 26 I made your name known to them, and I will make it known, so that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.’

There was once a ship captain who saw a column of smoke rising from an island in the distance. Immediately he pulled out the binoculars and upon closer inspection he saw a man beside a huge fire waving palm branches. The captain took some sailors in a boat and traveled to the island. He and his crew got out of the boat and met the ragged man who was overjoyed to see them.

"I can't believe someone has finally come to rescue me. I've been trapped here on this island all by myself for 10 years! Thank God you've come!"

"Ten years!" the captain said "how have you survived out here for ten years all by yourself?"

"Come with me and I'll show you around."

The lone-islander showed the captain around the island and showed him how he managed to survive all this time. He finished the tour with his house which he built with bamboo and palm branches, and then he showed the captain his church built out of similar materials.

"And that's pretty much it" the man said. But, the captain saw another building off in the distance. Curious, he asked "And what is that building over there?"

"Oh that," he replied with a bit of disdain, "that's the church I used to go to".

The joke is funny because leaving a church to go to another is pretty common. There are lots of reasons to change churches that are quite valid, but sometimes it is because of a fight and the unwillingness to work through forgiveness and reconciliation. The joke wonders if we are even able to disagree with ourselves.

Our reading calls us to unity- within our churches, our denomination- and across denominations. 

We may have disagreements with people. We might think our church is completely wrong on major issues. But I have been reminded that the prophets of Israel were never called to start a separate and opposing new Israel. They stayed, even when they felt they were all alone, because these are God's people. 

The unity we are called to is for a purpose- 

"so that the world may believe that you have sent me." (17:21)

and

"so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me." (17:23)

 How many have doubted the validity of the way of Christ because of the disunity among Christians? 

The passage itself from John 17 is a tapestry. It poetically weaves phrases together. The repeated use of the words "one" and "in" in Greek are pronounced "hen" and "en". So the reading (out loud) is sort of mesmerizing with repeated sounds, words, and phrases. Creating a oneness even in the poetry of the passage that speaks about the oneness of mutual indwelling of God, Son, and the church.    

We are called to a unity with each other, as the Body of Christ, sharing that same Spirit, that is equated with the unity shared between the Father and Son. 

May God grant that unity to the church- and may we be willing to put in the effort to get there.