That All of Them May Be One

In one paragraph

Pastor Joseph Kamau Kabui, from Tigone Baptist Church in Limuru, Kenya, preached from John 17:20-26, the prayer Jesus prayed for all future believers on the night before the crucifixion. He focused on one thread running through that passage: Jesus' desire that his people would be one, just as the Father and the Son are one. Pastor Kamau began by placing the passage in context. In John chapters 13...

Read together

1. John 17:20-26 read aloud and preached on as the main text about Christ's desire for believers' unity
2. Acts 4 cited to illustrate that Peter and John, though unschooled, had been with Jesus and the glory of God was evident among them

Talk about it

1. Pastor Kamau mentioned an African saying, 'I am because we are.' What does that idea bring to mind from your own experience of community, and where do you see it reflected or missing in church life?
2. Pastor Kamau pointed to Acts chapter 4, where the religious leaders noticed that Peter and John had been with Jesus even though they were not schooled. What does it look like in daily life for people around us to see that kind of mark on us?
3. Pastor Kamau said that unity among believers is itself a form of evangelism, that people can come to know Jesus by watching how we live together. Where have you seen that be true, and where have you seen disunity do the opposite?
4. Pastor Kamau made the point that if you are a Christian and your brother or sister in Christ is a Christian, you are headed to the same heaven whether you get along or not, so you had better learn to love each other now. How does that eternal reality change the way you think about a difficult relationship inside the church?
5. Pastor Joseph closed by referring to what he called the indicative imperative: be what you already are in Christ. If unity with other believers is already true in Christ, what is one practical step you could take this week to live that out rather than just believe it?