Praying for the Unity of Christians.

[racer]

Christ prayed to the Father for unity also. Unity with the Body of Christ is going to be difficult. There are many opinions and only one truth, but who is right? How can we present the truth to each other? How can we open ourselves up to the truth?

I don't ever think the Body will be united until we've all passed away.

Thank goodness . . . I was afraid I was going to be the only realist (dark cloud, bubble buster, etc . . .)

 

[_beloved_]

O Merciful Lord Jesus, Our Savior, hear the prayers and petitions of Your unworthy sinful servants who humbly call upon You and make us all to be one in Your one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church. Flood our souls with Your unquenchable light. Put an end to religious disagreements, and grant that we Your disciples and Your beloved children may all worship You with a single heart and voice. Fulfill quickly, O grace-giving Lord, your promise that there shall be one flock and one Divine Shepherd of Your Church; and may we be made worthy to glorify Your Holy Name now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

-prayer for unity by Blessed Leonid Feodorov

Amen!

 

[Dannager]

Stop praying, start doing. Pray on your own. When you're here, display unity.

 

[Fireinfolding]

Stop praying, start doing. Pray on your own. When you're here, display unity.

Hows this Dannager?

What you doing in these parts?

<--- trying

Peace

Fireinfolding

 

[breakfastclub17]

For God there is nothing impossible.

Actually, he cannot sin, and he cannot go against his will.

Now I'm off to be anal somewhere else

 

[Leah]

I come into agreement with the OP and also speak the Colossians 1:9-12 prayer over my family in Christ.

I love you all.

 

[Leah]

Stop praying, start doing. Pray on your own. When you're here, display unity.

.

 

[Leah]

Stop praying, start doing. Pray on your own. When you're here, display unity.

.

 

[Leah]

Stop praying, start doing. Pray on your own. When you're here, display unity.

Whether we pray here or on our own, the fact of the matter is that biblical prayer is good and acceptable in the eyes of God.

Perhaps the best way to display unity here is to pray. Since there seems to be quit a bit of hostility up in here.

 

[Dannager]

Whether we pray here or on our own, the fact of the matter is that biblical prayer is good and acceptable in the eyes of God.

Perhaps the best way to display unity here is to pray. Since there seems to be quit a bit of hostility up in here.

And so work to end hostility. Prayer without action will not unite us.

 

[breakfastclub17]

In a sense, Christ's bride (the Church) is united. Not on the surface, but God knows who is saved and who is not.

And all of God's true Children and true decendents of Abraham will be saved and brought to our Lord Jesus Christ.

But John Macarthur is smarter than me. Here is what he has to say about this........kinda of.

(From John Macarthur in a Q&A)

"Ummmm.....First of all, let's make one thing clear. The body of Christ is intact; "spiritually". God knows those that are his, they are his flock, they are his body and it's intact. So from the spiritual side we are one. And therefore it behooves us to pursue a temporal expression of that unity;

So I wanna say that at the very begining that we must do everything we can to endevor , to maintain the unity of spirit and bond of peace, right? We want to do everything possible we can to maintain the unity of the Body of Christ. It is uhh, I believe that unity.........that is crucial to our testimony. Jesus said "by this will all men know that you are my diciples, because you have love, one for another". So let me say that no one is a greater advocate of the unity of the Body of Christ, the expressed unity of the Body of Christ, the Body is one. We've all been baptized into one Body right? 1st COR 12 We've all been made to drink of one spirit, so we are one in Christ. He that is joined to the Lord is one spirit, everybody who is joined to the Lord is one with the Lord, so everybody that is joined to Lord is one with each other.

That is the spiritual reality, and I believe by the way that in John 17 when Jesus prayed that they may be one, that prayer is answered. It is answered in the spiritual unity of the Church. I don't think his prayer was for the ecumenisity; I think his prayer was for the spiritual unity of the Body of Christ, and I think..........and I know that his prayer was answered. Now to the issue at stake. The Church has always stuggled with unity, the apostle Paul struggled with it, right? That's why he wrote about unity, and that's why he wrote Christians not to argue......and quarrel and ah, abuse each other. But to love one another and pursue unity on every front.

But as you have pointed out, unity is not true unity at expense of theology........true doctrine. Ah, and to be honest with you, I don't see any great movement in the Church today to bring together a visable unity around doctrine.......around the truth. I see an awful lot of effort to try and bring together a unity that doesn't want to talk about the truth.......because the truth divides. I mean how are we ever gonna get a real unity when we don't even want theology to be a issue? Not only can't we agree on doctrine, we can't even agree if doctrine is important!

Now on the other hand, I'm not sure that you........you could ever create some kind of ecumenical unity in this temporal life.
But I can certainly be one with a Brother or a Sister in the Body of Christ that has a different view, I can express my love to them. Ah, I want to build on what we agree on. And if I happen to be with, say someone who's convinced about the Gifts of the Spirit differently than I am; I can choose to not make that an issue of fellowship or of love or of ministry. And I would definitly choose not to make that an issue.

However if somebody is wrong about.......the gosple, I will make that an issue. Or if they are wrong about the deity of Christ, I would make that an issue. If they are wrong about, ah, issues of the atonment, I would make that an issue. I can't orchestrait that where there is no agreement on truth; But I'll tell you what, if the Lord continues to bless our Church and we keep sending out men to minister, and other men to peach and teach the word of God. We are effecting , by the lifes that we train and send out, the men and women we send out to serve and minister and be pastors and leaders in Churchs and missions around the World. We can find that kind of unity.

There is nothing to create, and the bond is built upon a common love for the truth, and it trancends this Church, but there is a common love of doctrine and a common commitment to the word of God that ties us with people beyond the people we have normal influence with. And I'm not really concerned with trying to orchastrat some other kind of unity, than that which is organic unity
built around the truth, and I don't really see that as happening in the current picture in the Church, cause the Church has downplayed the role of doctrine. To such a degree that if you bring it up, your considered to be ummm.......kinda anti-unity.

 

[£amb]

Though we may not be united on every detail, may our unity come in the strength to stand strong against the worldly ways.

Pray that christians bring encouragement to their brothers and sisters in Christ no matter what church they attend.

May we extend a hand to others in need of strength, encourgement and endurance.

And most of all, may our words that are shared between each other here in GT be seasoned with kindness for there are others that are watching/reading our every word.

 

[GorrionGris]

Prayer is the source of our action, our lifeline between us and God.

Let's keep praying, so we can act

 

[StTherese]

For Christian unity.

 

[GorrionGris]

Let's prayer be unceasing

 

[sunlover1]

Stop praying, start doing. Pray on your own. When you're here, display unity.

Amen on the DO IT part.
Disagree with the stop praying part lol.
Pray at all times!!

I come into agreement with the OP and also speak the Colossians 1:9-12 prayer over my family in Christ.

I love you all.

Praise you Father.
We know that your desire is that we
are one as you and He are one.

We pray for each poster here, that
you would touch their hearts with
your love, forgive them each their
sins, and fill them each with YOUR
spirit. Quicken us each in our spirit Lord.

Help each of us to desire the exchanged
life of abiding in Christ, help each of us
to learn to die to self and put on Christ.

We thank you ahead of time, knowing that
whatsoever we ask for in prayer believing,
we have what we have asked.

Praise you Father.

we pray in Jesus' name.
AMEN

 

[helenofbritain]

Until all are one.

 

[sunlover1]

Amen


Father, we pray that you, the God of our Lord Jesus Christ,
the Father of glory, may give unto us the spirit of wisdom and revelation
in the knowledge of you,

And the eyes of our understanding being enlightened;
that we may know what is the hope of your calling, and what the riches of the glory
of your inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness
of your power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of your mighty power.


We pray this in agreement,
in Jesus' name,
AMEN

 

[helenofbritain]

Still praying!

 

[GorrionGris]

Praying is doing, for that's the nature of true prayer.

We asked us to be one,so that the world would believe
but we sin

Jesus, son of God, have mercy of me, a sinner.