Love in Action: Make Us One
Monday, June 5, 2023
Living Free Every Day®
A ministry of LivingFree.org
Today's Scripture
"I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name, the name you gave me, so that they may be one as we are one." John 17:11 NIV
Thoughts for Today
In one of his final prayers before going to the cross, Jesus prayed that his followers would be one just as he and the Father are one.
As one as two entities can be, Jesus does, thinks, and feels everything the Father does. Electricity and light provide a picture of oneness. When you turn the electric switch on, the bulb is lit; when you turn the switch off, the light goes off. Let the electric switch represent the Father and the light in the bulb represent Jesus. These two entities work so closely together we can't tell where the electricity stops and the light begins. Lighting a room is possible because electricity and light act as one. Jesus prayed that we as believers would experience that kind of oneness.
Consider this …
We sometimes allow our preferences, likes, and dislikes to hinder oneness with other believers. Personality conflicts. Denominational differences. Racial prejudices. Cultural disparity. But Jesus wants us to put all that aside. To become one, putting him and his plan first in our lives. Allowing others to sense Jesus' love by viewing our love for one another.
As we view the world in conflict, the moral decline taking place, the growing intensity of natural disasters, we sense the stage being set for the last days. We need one another. To stand against adversity. To help one another through challenging times. And to reach out to a hurting world with the love of Jesus.
Are you willing to put personal differences aside as together we step out to do what God has called us to do? To be one as Jesus and the Father are one? To put love in action - together?
Prayer
Father, I know I sometimes get sidetracked by focusing on differences between me and some of my fellow believers instead of letting the barriers fall so we can become one in serving you. Please forgive me. Help me to remove every barrier that would hinder me from joining with others to become all you want us to be and doing what you have called us to do.
In Jesus' name . . .
These thoughts were drawn from … One Nation Under God: Toward Race Reconciliation by Donna Saunders, Ph.D. and Jean Leak, MS, RN. This study discusses barriers between people and shows how to make Christ visible through love in action. This guide also offers the way to strengthen and bond relationships. Note: This curriculum was written especially for small groups, and we encourage people to use it that way. However, it can also be used effectively as a personal study for individuals or couples.
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