We Need to Talk About Unity

Over the weekend, a number of evangelical pastors and worship leaders share a video, 'The UK Blessing', in which people representing more than 65 churches and movements sang a contemporary version of some ancient words from the Bible. With over 160,000 views on YouTube at the time of writing, there has been incredibly positive reaction on social media from almost all the evangelical spectrum. One common theme in the comments and  tweets has been the celebration of 'unity' that it represents.

At this time of increased disconnection, there is a temptation to reach for connection between followers of Jesus - yet to use the word 'unity' is to make a bold claim indeed.

We need to talk about unity.

In John 17, we read one of the prayers of Jesus. In verse 21 we read the spine-tingling words of Jesus as he prays for the unity of the church:

"that all of them may be one, Father, just as you 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."

If Jesus says something, we need to take it seriously.

If Jesus prays for something, something so specific and so marvellous, we need to take it very seriously.

We need to talk about unity.

One person who knows a thing or two about unity is Jonathan Lamb. He’s worked with cross-church mission organisations for years, and his latest book is on this theme. In Essentially One: Striving for the Unity God Loves, Jonathan unpacks this great prayer of Jesus and explores practically and biblically what unity actually looks like.

Essentially One publishes in June, and we can’t wait to tell you more about it.

Another bible teacher who embodies the unity of the church is Don Carson. In his contribution to Serving the Church,, Reaching the World: Essays in Honour of Don Carson, Jonathan Stevens, National Director of the FIEC, writes:

“Don Carson has been able to build bridges between different constituencies within UK conservative evangelicalism, all of whom hold him in the highest regard for his biblical fidelity. He has ministered at the Proclamation Trust, Gospel Partnerships, FIEC, Grace Baptists, Evangelical Movement of Wales, Word Alive and UCCF, to name but a few. Unity between Bible-centred evangelicals in the UK is stronger than it has ever been in my Christian lifetime, for which I and the FIEC rejoice.

However, the challenges facing evangelicals in the UK today are potentially greater than they were in 1966, and require us to have an even greater clarity about the gospel and even stronger commitment to gospel cooperation. In 1966 the primary challenge was liberal theology and the pressure of the ecumenical movement, which sought to unify churches structurally into a single denomination, without concern for confessional orthodoxy. Lloyd-Jones was therefore right to highlight that the key issue at stake was ‘What is a Christian?’ Today there are fewer overt liberals, and the challenge comes from those who profess to be evangelicals but who are rejecting historic evangelical beliefs about the Bible, the cross, judgment, sexuality and gender, to name but a few contemporary pressure points. In 1966 the challenge came from those who directly denied the truth of the Bible. Today the challenge comes from those who claim to honour its authority and yet interpret it in such a way that it means exactly the opposite of what evangelicals have always held it to mean. If old-style liberalism can be compared to the big bad wolf who wanted to blow the whole house down, then the self-proclaimed contemporary evangelicals who are reinterpreting core biblical beliefs are more like Lewis Carroll’s Humpty Dumpty, making words mean what they want them to mean.

The rejection-through-reinterpretation of historic evangelical beliefs, coupled with the sweeping secularization of society, which has left Christians a marginalized minority whose historic con-victions are viewed as little short of intolerant bigotry, will inevitably force evangelicals to take a stand. They will have to decide what they believe, who they can join with in gospel work, and who they can associate with as brothers and sisters in Christ. As denominations, churches and parachurch organizations determine their policies on, for example, same-sex marriages and homosexuality, evangelicals will have no option but to decide whether they will capitulate, com-promise, contend for the truth or come out from among them.

In such times it is essential that we seek to draw the boundaries of gospel cooperation biblically, and that we do so in advance of the specific challenges that we might face. It is always more difficult to determine boundaries reactively, especially when to do so might mean excluding and rejecting former friends and colleagues in ministry. Imposing boundaries reactively and responsively will always run the risk of looking harsh, uncompassionate and reactionary. Only if we have a clear centre, and have identified the necessary boundaries, can we make the judgements that will inevitably follow. This chapter will sketch the biblical grounds for gospel cooperation, and also the limits to such cooperation."

Unity is vital. Jesus prayed for it!

We need to be wise as serpents and innocent as doves in thinking through what that actually looks like. John’s chapter in Serving the Church, Reaching the World is a great place to start – and we are excited to share with you Essentially One next month.

Whether you enjoyed ‘The UK Blessing’, or were perturbed by what some might see as compromise, Jesus commands his people to seek unity, and prays for it himself. We hope that the resources highlighted below, and the forthcoming publication of Essentially One, we join with Jesus a we seek to pray the rest of John 17;

“Sanctify them by the truth: your word is truth… As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified. My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in my through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you 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”

The purpose of unity is that the world might hear and respond to the gospel. Two great resources for engaging in that work of the kingdom are Phil Knox’s Story Bearer and our new book Healthy Faith and the Coronavirus Crisis. You might also like Mark Meynell's recent blog post about John Stott's view of unity.