As part of the wonderful prayer we read in John 17, Jesus prays about this crazy idea that we would all be one with Him, as He is one with the Father…
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.
So we are all to be one with Jesus, who is one with God.
Does that mean when I become a Christian I need to stop being me and start being someone else?
Does that mean we are to be uniform in our appearance, all look the same?
Does that mean we are all to be uniform in human personality, perhaps try to all have the personality of Jesus?
Simply, no. We are to hold the same values, be one with God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit…in spirit, but we certainly don’t need to all be the same people.
We need unity, not uniformity.
Unity is Divine, uniformity is human.
Acts of uniformity are acts of mankind; cutting trees to all look the same, giving a bunch of people the same haircut, etc.
However, unity is from God; trees, bushes, grass, flowers all living together for each other’s benefit, but being different.
Unity is a church of believers who are uniquely gifted, uniquely interested, and with unique haircuts, all gathering to worship God, thanking Him for a common salvation (common in that it is for all, not common because it was cheap, 1 Peter 1.17-19).
Yes, there are common traits we will all display when are saved, born again believers, but the unique part of you that makes you ‘you’ will always be there. We are fearfully and wonderfully made!
So, basically, we are to be unified in our core beliefs, same same, but unique in our gifts, service, personality, but different.
