29 Jan Unity is Godly, Division is Demonic
John 17:20-23 – “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me.”
Unity is godly because it follows the example of God. Christians of all types agree that there is one God in three persons, the Trinity of Father, Son, and Spirit. In this, His longest prayer, Jesus says they are “one” and have “loved” one another since before time. Today, there remains nothing but unity within God and within the angelic host that serve at the will of God.
Division is demonic because it follows the example of Satan. Division started in heaven when one angel decided he should be in charge, receive the glory, and a third of the angels sided with him in a coup attempt for the Kingdom of God.
The division in heaven culminated in a war that God and the angels won. Satan and the demons were cast down to the earth. Today, demonic powers continue to war against God by promoting division between God and Christians and between fellow Christians. At this point in the Gospel of John, Satan has already picked off one of Jesus disciples, a man named Judas Iscariot who Satan entered (John 13:27). Down to eleven disciples and praying for them, Jesus emphasizes the vital importance of unity within God’s family.
There is great supernatural power in unity. When people come together for evil, Satan and the demons help them. In Genesis 11:6 we read, “the Lord said, ‘Behold, they are one people, and they have all one language, and this is only the beginning of what they will do. And nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them.’” God’s point at the Tower of Babel was that evil people unified are virtually unstoppable because of the power of unity.
Conversely, when people come together for good, God and the angels help them. This is why Satan works so hard to keep Christians divided, unloving, bitter, judgmental, and attacking one another. This is also why Jesus prays for relational unity among Christians so that together the work of God’s Kingdom can move forward in power as we all pull together for the cause of Christ.
Is there any Christian you need to forgive, or even reconcile with, so that Jesus’ prayer for unity can be fulfilled in your life?
