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    Oct 01, 2017

    May We All Be One

    Passage: John 17:20-23

    Speaker: Rev. Vivian McCarthy, Pastor

    Category: Unity

    Many cultures. Many colors. Many expressions. Many foods. One Lord. One Table.

    The setting was intimate – like a family meal. More than that, a family prayer time. And as most parents desire deep, deep down, Jesus’ deepest desire was for the disciples to be one. We know they squabbled. We know they shoved each other aside, wanting to sit in the seats of honor. We know the disciples were like pretty much every family – sometimes fiercely loyal and loving and other times fighting like cats and dogs.

    So Jesus prayed. God, make them one as you and I are one.

    He didn’t ask that they always agree. He didn’t ask that they always do things the same way. He didn’t ask that they be perfect. He asked God to make them one.

    Sounds good – right? But, well, what does that mean, exactly?

    To me it means that the most important thing to us corporately and individually as members of the Body of Christ is Jesus. To me, this is at the very heart of Wesleyan faith.

    UMC.com says it this way in talking about our doctrinal heritage:

    The pioneers in the traditions that flowed together into The United Methodist Church understood themselves as standing in the central stream of Christian spirituality and doctrine, loyal heirs of the authentic Christian tradition. In John Wesley's words, theirs was "the old religion, the religion of the Bible, the religion... of the whole church in the purest ages." Their gospel was grounded in the biblical message of God's self-giving love revealed in Jesus Christ.

    Wesley's portrayal of the spiritual pilgrimage in terms of "the scripture way of salvation" provided their model for experiential Christianity. They assumed and insisted upon the integrity of basic Christian truth and emphasized its practical application in the lives of believers.

    This perspective is apparent in the Wesleyan understanding of "catholic spirit." While it is true that United Methodists are fixed upon certain religious affirmations, grounded in the gospel and confirmed in their experience, they also recognize the right of Christians to disagree on matters such as forms of worship, structures of church government, modes of Baptism, or theological explorations. They believe such differences do not break the bond of fellowship that ties Christians together in Jesus Christ. Wesley's familiar dictum was, "As to all opinions which do not strike at the root of Christianity, we think and let think."

    But, even as they were fully committed to the principles of religious toleration and theological diversity, they were equally confident that there is a "marrow" of Christian truth that can be identified and that must be conserved. This living core, as they believed, stands revealed in Scripture, illumined by tradition, vivified in personal and corporate experience, and confirmed by reason….

    They were also prepared, as a matter of course, to reaffirm the ancient creeds and confessions as valid summaries of Christian truth. But they were careful not to set them apart as absolute standards for doctrinal truth and error.

    Beyond the essentials of vital religion, United Methodists respect the diversity of opinions held by conscientious persons of faith. Wesley followed a time-tested approach: "In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; and in all things, charity."

    At this, our family table, we come with joy to be with our Lord and to be in communion with the Body. We lay aside those things that separate us. We may not always agree. We may even argue over how we interpret scripture. We may not always understand each other. We may not always enjoy each other’s favorite menu items.

    But we can always rely on Paul’s words to the church at Ephesus to be true and encouraging and to hold us together:
    Conduct yourselves with all humility, gentleness, and patience. Accept each other with love, 3 and make an effort to preserve the unity of the Spirit with the peace that ties you together. 4 You are one body and one spirit, just as God also called you in one hope. 5 There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 and one God and Father of all, who is over all, through all, and in all.