“I have given them the glory that you gave Me, that they may be one as We are one—I in them and You in Me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that You sent Me and have loved them even as You have loved Me.” John 17:22-23
DEVOTION – by Brad Avery:
This week our prayer focus is shifting to the church, and not only our desire to remain unified internally and regionally, but also internationally. How encouraging it is to know that Jesus faithfully and sacrificially intercedes for His Bride, The Church. We are the body for which He gave His Body. As the Apostle Paul proclaims in Galatians 3:26-29:
“So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.”
Jesus’ desire for His Church, both locally and globally, is for complete unity. He assures us that the fruit of a unified global church is this: the world will know that Jesus is who He says He is—God’s only begotten Son—sent by The Father, to prove The Father’s love for the world. John 13:35 says:
“By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
Followers of Jesus Christ + Truly loving one another as One Glorified Body = The World knows that God So Loves The World!!!
Jesus has given His Bride the glory that God gave Him, so that we will not be many, but ONE… just as He and The Father are ONE.
Psalms 133:1-3 (The Message):
“How wonderful, how beautiful, when brothers and sisters get along! It’s like costly anointing oil flowing down head and beard, flowing down Aaron’s beard, flowing down the collar of his priestly robes. It’s like the dew on Mount Hermon flowing down the slopes of Zion.”
As we celebrate Pentecost (50 Days after Jesus’ Resurrection), may we be so very grateful that we do not have to manufacture unity in the struggle of our own strength and will (Acts 1:4,8). It comes as we remain in step with His Spirit.
Acts 2:4-11
“All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their own language being spoken. Utterly amazed, they asked: “Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans? Then how is it that each of us hears them in our native language? Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!”
Jesus promised those of us who are reborn ”will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you” (Acts 1:8).
Our individual bodies and The Body (His Church) are the Temple of God’s Holy Spirit. Our prayer as a local church body is to remain united. We also pray in agreement with Jesus that all of His followers, His Bride, will remain as one, unified with Christ, as He and The Father are one. As we reflect this week on God’s loving occupancy, His residency in us individually and corporately, may we sense His Spirit calling us deeper into unity for the sake of His Glorious Renown and that the world may know that they are “so loved!”
PRAYER:
Matthew 6:5-13 teaches us how to pray. One of the ways we teach children to remember this passage is through the A.C.T.S. acronym.
Adoration
Father, there is none like You. You are Holy in all Your ways. You are worthy of all glory and honor. May You and You alone receive all of our worship and praise, which is so rightfully Yours.
Confession
Jesus, we have failed you. In our weakness, our own strength, we have not loved You well by loving each other well.
Thanksgiving
We thank you that we have been empowered with Your Holy Spirit, Your manifest Glory, that we also may be one.
Supplication
LORD, our desire is to honor You by remaining connected and unified, so that the world will know Your love.
Our staff is praying for our Faith Family as we enter a season of prayer and fasting. If we can come alongside you, please reach out to us individually or through the prayer team at prayer@sanctuaryinhim.org.
Invitation:
We invite you to join us in person at any of our weekly prayer gatherings this month:
- Sunday Mornings at 8:30am in Room 104
- Monday Mornings at 7:00am in the Auditorium
- Tuesday Mornings at 10:00am in the Green Room (Room 125)
