Unity in Glory - John 17:22-24

1:00Welcome back to John chapter 17, Jesus' prayer. He has been praying for his disciples, and now he's praying for his disciples in conjunction with all of the believers that will believe in Christ through their word. The means to be connected to the Christ of Scripture is through the words of Scripture, specifically those words that the apostle have written down for our sakes. And Jesus envisioned that there would be a people like us here today, no matter where. You are gathered around these words of the apostles, uniting our hearts in one relationship to each other and to the Christ revealed in scripture through the apostles' words. Well, we're in that section where he has made it very clear, he's not just praying for his 11 disciples, he's praying for all of those, including us that would believe in him through their word. Last time, the message was entitled Glory in Unity. Glory in unity. And we looked at the first couple of verses, verses 20 and 21, because there is something glorious about being unified in the truth. And so we spent some time speaking about the glory that exists in being unified in the truth. Well, today I want to flip that around, and I want us to look at the unity in glory. There is a unity that comes out of sharing Christ's glory. These verses reveal a glory that unifies all of those who behold Christ's glory.

2:50So, the question comes about as we think about, as we start thinking about this, the disciples needed. To be unified. That's for sure, even a casual reading of the gospel narratives. At this point, they've still been talking about who is the greatest. Jesus, in chapter 13, has washed their feet, giving them an example of what true greatness looks like. Greatness is about loving other people, and what loving other people by necessity involves is you putting down your interest for the well-being of somebody else. That is, in essence, what love is about.

3:32There's a lot of things that bring about unity among people. If we just think about it for just a moment, there's the unity that comes about by having a common father or mother, right? A family unity. There's political interests that may bring a couple people, bring people together. There may be some common convictions, or maybe some common interests. Maybe you love bird watching, and maybe somebody else loves bird watching, and then all of a sudden, wow, you have something in common, or maybe it's a common trial, common trial like battling cancer or some kind of trial will bring people together, or a common experience. I am amazed at the camaraderie that there is among war veterans, or it's a common Ethnicity. Maybe it's come from the same country, or maybe it can even be a common enemy that unites people. There's all kinds of ties that bind people together. And some of the strongest relationships are those who have many of these ties together. I think about a first-generation immigrant family to the United States. They're unified by a common family, a common country, common new setting, common hope, common lots of things. And yet, we can, we all know that these ties only have certain limitations, don't they? In fact, just because you come from the same family or you have the same mother and father doesn't mean that you're one, right? In fact, we are all too aware of some of the most bitter feuds happen among family clans and happened among brother against brother or sister against sister. And so there is a limitation to which these earthly ties can bind people together. If you think for a moment about Israel's history, remember Abraham, he fathered Ishmael and Isaac, right? Really, when you read it, it's a sad story among brothers, isn't it? And then Isaac, well, he fathered. Fathered Esau and Jacob. Another sad story among brothers, right? And then Jacob fathered the 12 tribes, and even a casual reading will reveal that this was a very dysfunctional family, to use our modern terms, right? They were not one. There was a lot of rivalry. There was a lot of bickering. There was a lot of disunity.

6:28And even Israel's subsequent history, they went into Egyptian captivity, right? And they were enslaved, and that slavery welded them together as a people. But even that weld, and it really welded them together, right? But even that was not making them one, but they had to be together. And as their subsequent history reveals, it was a struggle for unity, a struggle with unity with God and with each other. That was really a story about Israel's history. And a question arises: if God cannot even unify his own people, is he really God?

7:19Should he really be taken seriously? I mean, how can Israel be exalted as the head of the nation? Nations, if they can't even get along with each other. Then you fast forward and you think about the ties among the disciples. Now, some of these disciples, I mean, they were family members, right? They came from a common clan, many of them. They had a common leader, common ethnicity. They had a common hope, right? Wanted to see the Messiah come. They had common convictions about what was right and what was wrong.

8:04Above all that, they had experienced life with Christ Himself for several years. If any band of people should have been unified, it should have been these disciples. For not only were they tied together by common earthly ties, they had walked with Christ Himself. They had walked with God in the flesh. And yet it's clear they were not of one heart. They were not of one mind, still a lot of competition and rivalry among them. That desire to be the greatest desire, or I mean, the desire to be the greatest disciple filled their minds and their hearts.

8:56Is this not a picture of the fallen? Disposition. When Adam and Eve chose to go their own way, relational ruin entered into the stream of humanity. And those there are ties, earthly ties, no matter how strong, ultimately fail to truly unify people. If you look at these disciples, they should have, we would expect, be truly unified at this point, yet they were not. They needed to be unified. If they were going to be the kind of people that Christ wanted them to be, and if they were going to be able to complete the task that Christ was giving them, they had to become one.

10:00And if this core group of disciples could not be of one mind and one heart, then do they really have a message to proclaim? Do they really have something worth listening to? Then let's bring it to us today. Do we have a message worth listening to? What does it take for us, Emmanuel Baptist Church? What does it take? For us to truly be one, a lot of people might think that a show of unity is unity. It is not, not necessarily.

10:46Just because you look like you're one doesn't mean you are one. As you can look at this band of disciples from the outside, they look like they were one, they should have been one, but they were not. They had some growing up to do. You think about the relational ruin that has entered into society, that has entered into those who congregate here at Emmanuel Baptist Church and abroad and locally. Listen, if we can't, if God cannot unify husband and wife, or children to parents, and parents to children, or if there's a professional jealousy or a rivalry among the church, we have to ask ourselves: do we have a message that's worth listening to? If God can't even unify us, is he really worth listening to?

11:53And don't get me wrong, I love the unique key up here. This church has been extremely good to my family. This church, I see, a beautiful unity, and what a joy it has been being part of this body all these years. And so, when I say this, I'm looking at the standard here and recognizing that, yes, we've come a long way by God's grace. But I'd still like to set before you, we have a ways to go.

12:32And that's why Jesus makes this prayer here. We need to be more unified. And you think about the church, you think about us. We're not all from the same family clan. In fact, very few of us, we're a collection of families, maybe, and individuals. We're not all from the same ethnic group. We're not even all citizens of the United States. We're from all different walks of life. So, how in the world can we be one? I'm glad you asked. That was a good question, because that's why I want to talk to you about how can we truly be one?

13:14And the answer is very simple: by beholding the glory of Christ. As we behold the glory of Christ, we will be made one. We will mature in oneness. Listen. All believers will ultimately mature in unity because we have something in common, something that has been given to us, and what has been given to us. It's something so wonderful that it dwarfs all other human ties and it's able to make us truly one. What is that? Christ's glory.

13:53Jesus prayed for unity, and he provided the means to bring it about. And that unity, he prays that they be sanctified in the truth, and then he gives his disciples his glory. There is unity that is brought about by beholding Christ's glory. And that's what I want you to see this morning: this unity that believers have that comes out of beholding Christ's glory. A unity in glory. Well, Christ made two provisions that would unify his people.

14:35First provision: believers have been given Christ's glory. Believers have been given Christ's glory. Look at verse 22. The glory which you have given me, I have given to them. And the them is again a reference back, won't. Draw it out, but it's a reference to the 11 disciples, plus all those who will believe through their word. The glory which you have given me, in a perfect sense, verbs is very significant: the glory which you have given to me, I have given to them. Not I will give them, I have given them.

15:23It's important to note what Jesus does with his glory here. The Father had given him glory. And what does Jesus do? Does he hold on to the monopoly? No, he has given it to his believers, to all believers. Now, think about that for a moment. I mean, this is what this text says: the glory which you have given me, I have given to them. And think for a moment: can there be anything more valuable that Christ could give to you or me or any of his people?

16:04No, he gives his glory. Let's pause and get our minds around this. This is an incredible statement. Not I will give, I have given the same glory, Father, which you have given to me, I have given to them. Makes you want to understand what this glory is, right? What? What? That's what it is. Says how well it helps us if we get our minds around what he means by glory. And here there is a wide range of opinions among disciples. What is he talking about here? What has he given?

16:46And some commentators think that we cannot know what Jesus meant with any kind of certainty. Okay, we just go on. This is one of the most remarkable statements you read in this whole prayer, and then many of you say, well, we just can't know. No, I think we can understand what's going on in his mind. I think we can understand it with a significant degree of certainty. But it will help if we start by looking at a few key phrases and understanding what this does not involve, what glory, what the kind of glory that Jesus is talking about is not involved here. Look at the words, look at the phrase, which you have given me. It shows up in verse 22. It shows up again in verse 24.

17:43The glory which you have given me. The glory which you have given me. It shows up in both places. So we're speaking about a glory. It's the same there, same in 22, as the same in 24. A glory which you have given me. So it is a glory. Glory that has been given from the Father to Jesus. It's not a glory that he eternally possessed as God. It's a glory that had to be given. Now, Jesus, as the Son of God, eternally existent, eternally possessing the qualities of deity because he is God.

18:29So, what this rules out, the glory which he has given to Jesus, this rules out his divine attributes because they weren't given to him, he eternally possessed them, such as his intrinsic power, his omnipotence, his omniscience, his eternal being. All these he intrinsically possessed by virtue of being God. These are things that he emptied himself of as he took upon flesh. The glory that God, that the Father gave him, has deals more with his incarnation, not his divine attributes, the glory in the incarnation. What does he give away? He doesn't give away his godness, if you use that word, divination.

19:31He doesn't give away his godness. He hasn't given that away. So then, what does he give away? He gives away the privilege of manifesting godness. That's what the incarnation is all about: Christ manifesting God. And that was his glory. And this will become a little more evident in a moment. But think about this. Let me take your minds back to the days of the Old Testament, the days right after the Israelites come out of Egypt and they experience God's glory. And the Hebrew word is the word kavod, and it speaks of something that's impressive or weighty, something that can be impressive in appearance, something that is a mark of honor or something that distinguishes something.

20:32It also can mean splendor or magnificence, like cedars of Lebanon. That word kavod was translated into Greek as doxa. And doxa, we often think of like we just sang doxology. We didn't sing that, did we? But we sang something closer. To God be the glory. We can, yes. But the whole idea, and really, kind of one of the overpowering images that comes to mind when you think of this word is brightness or radiance or splendor. And in a second, but in a secondary sense, it does carry this idea of honor, prestige, distinction.

21:21And so when you're thinking about this Exodus group, they come to the mountain in Exodus 24:15. Then Moses went up to the mountain, and the cloud covered the mountain. This is what it says in verse 16. The glory, the kavod of the Lord rested on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it for six days. And on the seventh day, he called to Moses. So it was this impressive appearance, this weightiness, this magnificence, this beauty, but in an awe, inspiring, powerful, weighty manner.

22:15And then, get to the end of Exodus, in Exodus 40, 34, this glory, then the cloud in verse 34, then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory, that kavod. Of the Lord filled the tabernacle. This weightiness, this presence, this awesome appearance, this distinguishing mark filled the tabernacle and settled on it. And the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. We get the word for Skine, there for tabernacle. You get the word, you've probably heard the word Shekinah glory.

23:08It is that impressive appearance of great magnitude where God descended and came and filled that little tent. And that's what made that tabernacle something special: the presence of God. In fact, if you've ever been to a model of the tabernacle, the Exodus, that tabernacle that led them through the wilderness, you'll be struck very quickly that it's not all that awe-inspiring. It's, in fact, a very humble in size. It's very humble in its look when compared to the Temples of the pagan temples scattered all around the world at the time, certainly in Egypt. And here's this little, what looks amount to a portable tent, animal skins, humble in appearance.

24:21Yet its glory was not of an earthly dimension at all. Its glory was about the one who occupied it. That's what distinguished this tabernacle, was the manifest presence of God. Now think about the glory that was given to Jesus. The glory that was given to Jesus deals with his ability to visibly manifest God. Jesus was the invisible, I mean, was the visible manifestation of the invisible God. In fact, John chapter 1, verse 14 says this very clearly. And the word became flesh and dwelt among us. He tabernacled among us, same word, and we saw his glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. You see, it was not Jesus' physical stature that was his glory.

25:31It was that he manifested the presence of Father God. That's what distinguished Jesus. No one can do these things unless God is with you. There was something about his presence that was weighty, that was awesome, but it didn't have to do with his physical. It was that God was with him, that he was with God, and that was clear. So when Jesus says he has given his glory to his people, he is saying that he has given them that same distinct privilege of manifesting God. That was Christ's glory, to manifest, to make visible the invisible God. And that's the glory that he gives his people, that privilege, that glorious privilege, an ability.

26:43And that's why he did what he did, by redeeming them, by putting his spirit in them, and by shepherding them, he has given them the distinct glory of manifesting God. You see, the church's glory is not that in our godness, right? Or our divinity, we're not, but we're able to manifest God. We manifest him by being in submission to him, by following his ways. So, our glory is in our unique ability to manifest God, and there is no other people group that have been given that unique privilege. No other people group, and there's no other glory revealed in nature that rivals this. The heavenlies can declare something about his power, the creatures something about his wisdom and power and beauty, but they cannot reveal his personality, not like those who bear his image.

28:04And there's great grace in giving us this glory. You know, we can think about fallen man as an empty tent, a dirty, sinful, lifeless, earthly tent, completely dead. We are very much like the vacated ruins of a glorious civilization that had a glorious beginning, but vacant. Such are those who do not know Christ. You are but an empty tent. Do you know Jesus? You can today. But Jesus' work changed all of that. He redeemed, he cleansed the stain, he imparted his spirit, and he remains present to shepherd. So, what is our obligation in all this? That's what he did. Our obligation is to behold his glory, to follow him, do what he does, what he leads, what honors him, what pleases him. That's what Jesus did.

29:44He didn't do anything on his own accord, and neither should we. He watched what his father was doing, and he did only that and acted accordingly. And so we should be excited in our obedience, like he was excited. Excited in his obedience to do his father's will, we should be excited in our obedience to follow Christ, to know him through the words of his apostles. You remember, okay, so Jesus has given his glory, okay? He's given his glory to his people. That's very straightforward and evident.

30:27And our obligation is to behold it. Our obligation is also to walk in such glory. You remember when Joshua was told to go into the land? You remember what God said? Look, I have given you this land. Now you need to walk through it. And he says in Joshua 1:3, every place on which the sole of your feet treads, I have given it to you, just as I have spoken to Moses. So just because the land was given didn't mean they didn't need to walk through the land. And the same is true with this, by analogy. We are to walk in such glory, much like Joshua had to walk through the land. He has given us his glory. Let us walk in that glory.

31:15What a privilege to use your days. And it's not about, I mean, we're humble people. You look at our tents are pretty unimpressive, you know, and some are more impressive than others. But not really. We're all tents are folding up, but it's not about the tent, it's about the one who occupies the tent. And it's not about the size of what you can do, but God has put you in your place, in your time, so that you may manifest him. And that is Christ's glory, manifesting your heavenly Father.

32:03And that was Christ. So we've talked a little bit about what Jesus did with his glory. He gave it and what it means to follow, or what exactly Jesus meant by his glory. Now the question is: why does he give believers such glory? Why does he want his believers? Why did he give his glory to believers? Well, there are three reasons. And that comes beginning in verse 22. The first is that they would be one. You can see that you just circle the word that through all of it, through this verse and next, and you'll see what his thinking. The glory, verse 22, the glory which you have given me, I have given to them that they may be one, just as we are one. And he makes that same comparison that he made earlier: oneness.

33:00Just as you and I are one, Heavenly Father, I have given them my glory, so that they may be one. I in them and you in me. That's the dynamic. He makes the comparison. It's just like the heaven, just like father and son oneness. But then he makes this dynamic. How does this oneness work? Well, he says, I in them and you in me. Hasn't that the story of Jesus's life? Heavenly Father, you in me. That was his glory. Heavenly Father was in Christ. Christ was manifesting his Father, and that was his glory. So now he's saying, you in me and I in them. This is how the dynamic works.

33:53Now Jesus is in his people, that they would manifest Christ, just as Christ was in his father and manifested his father. So we are in Christ and the Father is in Christ. And so in a real way, when we manifest Christ's likeness, we are manifesting our Father's likeness. And so, first reason. He gives believers his glories that they be one. Second reason is that they may mature in unity. Look back at verse 23. I in them and you in me, that they may be perfected in unity.

34:47So, I want them to be one, and I want them to be perfected in unity. And the idea for that word for perfection there is that they be completed, that they be brought to a conclusion, that they be finished, that they be matured. His word, I have given them my glory, so that they can be finished, completed, matured in unity. If each is competing for their own glory, it's not going to be a unity. It's always going to be a competition, and this is what the disciples were dealing with.

35:28But he's given them his glory. There can be no higher glory to complete them in unity, to perfect them in unity. You see, there is unity among those who walk in Christ's glory. But there can be no unity where people are not sanctified in truth and are sinking their own glory. Well, that's the disciples. They need to mature in unity with one another, and so do we. So, why does Jesus give his glory to his believers? Number one, that they may be one. Number two, that they may mature in unity. And number three, that they may teach the world three gospel truths, so that they may teach the world three essential gospel truths. Look back at verse 23. I and them, and you and me, that they may be perfected in unity, so that, circle that, the world may know that you sent me and love them, even as you have loved me. Incredible words.

36:47The disciples' unity is going to teach the world three things. First, it's going to teach that God sent Jesus, reiterating what he just said in verse 21. We looked at that last time. Second, essential gospel, I mean, that's an essential gospel truth. You've got to know. You must know. If you're going to have any hope of eternal life, you must know whom he sent, and that is Jesus. Second important truth is that God loves believers in Jesus. Not only did God send Jesus, but God loves believers in Jesus. Look back, so that the world may know that you sent me. And loved them. Notice he doesn't say and loved me, and loved them, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them.

37:44The world needs to know that God loves believers in Jesus. The next essential gospel truth, third essential gospel truth that the world needs to know is that God loves them as much as he loves Jesus. God loves believers as much as he loves Jesus. Look back, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them, even as you have loved me. Friends, that's good news. Even as you have favored me, even as you have cherished me, even as you have esteemed me, all this is bound up in this idea of love. Even as you have loved me, the world needs to know that I love those followers of me to the same degree, that you love me, and that you, Heavenly Father, love them as much as you have loved me. Now, could you imagine being loved by your heavenly Father to the same degree that he loved Jesus of Nazareth?

39:03It's too good to be true. Yet you have to make him a liar if you don't believe it. So we go with it, right? We have to. He loves his people. He loves believers in Christ, those who believe through the apostolic word. He believes, he loves them to the same degree as he loves Christ. And this glory, this good news, this truth unifies people. When you have really beheld his glory and you really see yourself connected to him, sanctified in that truth, it unifies.

40:04It unifies beyond all other levels. You see, the new community in Christ is a living testimony that the relational ruin of humanity is over. Wars will cease because. God has made the nations one who believe in his Son. One of the interesting things that through all this COVID-19 issues that we're dealing with, and I think you've all gotten the message loud and clear, that the world does not see the church as an essential entity, right? But Christ does.

41:07In fact, he sees it as so essential that no one can know the Father without the church, without the unity in the church. Because though we are very different from very different walks, we share a bond that is not some superficial surface weld, but is truly makes us one. And it has nothing to do with earthly ties, but everything to do with we have beheld Christ's glory. And that is what makes the church one. And as we continue to behold his glory, we are transformed. Transformed into his image.

42:04And we mature in unity. So there's unity and glory. The two provisions that Christ has made, one that deals with this life right now. Believers have been given Christ's glory, and we can begin to mature in true oneness because he has given us his glory. We are to behold it, and we are to walk in it. But there is a second provision that Christ has given as he petitioned the Father. And this deals with the future. Believers will behold Christ's glory. Not only have we been given Christ's glory, one day we will behold Christ's glory in all of its full splendor. And that cements us oneness, makes us one for all eternity. Look back at verse 24 and look at Jesus' expressed desire here. Father, I desire that they also whom you have given me be with me where I am. Notice what he wants: he wants to be with his disciples, the ones that the Father has given him, he has been where they are, and now he is saying, I want them to be where I am.

43:30That's literally what he's saying. Where I am being, I want them where I am. Where I am being, wherever I am being, that is where I want them. Why? Look back, verse 24, so that they may see my glory which you have given me. So Jesus wants them to see his glory. He wants his people to see his glory. And yet, it's not for their sake alone that he wants believers to see his glory, but for their sakes.

44:05And notice what he says in verse 24: that they may see my glory, which you have given me. That's the same glory which he has given them in verse 22, right? I have given them my glory. The glory which you have given me, I have given to them. And now he's praying, I want them to see, I want them to be where I am, so that they may see the glory which you have given me. Incredible thought here.

44:36How do we see the glory that is given to us? Do we go look in the mirror and go, now there's a swell guy? No. You look in the mirror too long. You'll really get depressed. At least I will. But it's the way we see. The glory given to us is by seeing Christ in his full glory. At some time, some future time, we will all behold Christ's glory in its full splendor. And then and only then will we finally or fully realize the glory that he has given to us.

45:25But we can never see our glory by looking at ourselves. We see it by beholding him. And this is a wonderful thought. The way we see the glory given to us is by beholding him. And so that rules out the possibility of growing proud or prideful because of it, right? Because we, though we may fully display that glory, yet we are able to remain humble because it was given to us by a very gracious giver. And when we see his glory and his willingness to give that glory away, we're awe by the giver. And so a means to give us glory, glorify us, and yet keep us humble. The only way you can ever know your glory is to see his glory and know that he has given it. So there is no self-reflection. There is no looking upon self, but looking to him.

46:45Now, why? Why did the Father give such glory to Jesus? Last phrase, verse 24. Why did he give this glory to Jesus? For you loved me before the foundation of the world. Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, be with me where I am, so that they may see my glory, which you have given me, for you loved me before the foundation of this world. The Father had a preexisting relationship with Jesus, didn't he? That's what Jesus said, you loved me. It was a relationship of love. You know, I saw the Taj Mahal, you know, that crown of the palaces, so to speak, in India. If you ever looked at that, well, you know how it came about, right? The emperor wanted to build a building for the wife he loved. So there it is. So the Taj Mahal itself is a testament to a love relationship, a prior love relationship. So you can think about the same all of creation, this world, this cosmos. You loved me before the foundation. Of the world. It's as though the whole world, the whole cosmos itself, is a testament of a pre-existing love relationship between the Father and Jesus, the Christ.

48:16You see, the Father loves to reveal himself, and he loves that accurate manifestation of himself. Jesus Himself is that perfect revelation of him. Now, pay attention to a couple of gifts here, just at the last part of this. Notice two things that God has given Christ for His glory. First of all, He has given Him people, right? Second, He has given Him glory. We've already said, on the one hand, Christ's glory is seen in the way He manifests His Father.

48:56On the other hand, Christ's glory is also seen in the swelling number of people that will bear His image. And consequently, the Father's image as well, right? Okay, get this thought. Think for a moment in your mind's eye about the most glorious tree you can imagine. Just think for a second. The most glorious tree. Let that picture come to your mind. Now, let me ask you about the picture that came to you. Your mind. Did you imagine the tree without its branches?

49:38The tree had branches, right? Just as you do not think of a beautiful tree without its branches, guess what? God did not think about Christ without his people. So, as Christ was loved before the foundation of the world, he being the vine, we being the branches, we are one with him. In fact, the glory which Jesus gives to believers is that they have become one plant with him. And so, that love which the Father, the Father never imagined Christ without his people.

50:24The very nature of Christ involves rulership. And so, he loved the Son before the He loved Christ. He loved Jesus before the foundation of the world. And just as we cannot conceive of a beautiful tree without its branches, so God does not think about Christ without his people. Well, I wanted you to see this morning two provisions that Christ gave his father. Followers that would promote unity among them. That would truly make them one. We have been given Christ's glory. That sets us on a maturing path in this world. We will behold Christ's glory in the future, permanently making us one.

51:34I want to talk to you about an obstacle. One obstacle. One obstacle that will hinder oneness and truth. And really, it's a lesson from a real shiny man. A lesson from a real shiny man. I'll just read it to you. You don't have to turn there. Acts chapter 12, his name was Herod Agrippa. Herod Agrippa, verse 21 of chapter 12, on an appointed day, Herod, having put on his royal apparel, Josephus speaks of it like almost like a chainmail, silver that was just radiant in the sunshine. And he, this real shiny, royal apparel, he took his seat on the rostrum and began delivering an address to them. The people kept crying out, the voice of a God and not a man. Immediately, an angel of the Lord struck him down because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and died. That was a man at the height of his glory. But that is an obstacle. When we want to be the shiny man, when we want to exalt ourselves, exalt our way, that is an obstacle.

52:56But the good news is, and that's what the disciples were dealing with. But the good news is Christ was sufficient for them, his redemption was sufficient, his spirit was sufficient, and the little band did become one. They did become one. And their voice shook the world. Let me just read to you a statement. We've read it the last time in verse chapter 4 of Acts, verse 32. And the congregation of those who believed were of one heart and one soul, and not one of them claimed that anything belonging to him was his own, but all things were common property to them all.

53:50Now, I don't know what's going to take place in the months ahead, but I can say I do not want to go back to the way we were. I look forward to press on to what God is doing in this congregation and in this country and in the church, understanding that He has given us His glory. We will behold His glory and it is His purpose to make us mature in oneness. And I pray that the circumstances that we are going through now will promote that as I know they will.

54:33Regardless, let us start walking in Christ. You have been given Christ glory. Let us behold it and walk in it. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, thank you. Thank you for your kindness and for your goodness. Thank you, Lord, that you have given us something so wonderful that we can't even get our minds around it. Father, thank you that you are unselfishly of such a disposition to give us that which is most precious, to give us that which you delighted in most, revealing your heavenly Father. Lord Jesus, come truly by your Spirit, make us such, convict, convict us of ways, big and small, where we We have sought to be the shiny man and shiny woman and set ourselves first. Father, let us know what true love is about. Let us know what truly walking in your glory looks like. So, now, Father, as we continue in a spirit of prayer at home and everyone listening, that you would just drive these truths home and that you would accomplish in us by your spirit what you want to do.