One: Praying With Jesus That the World May BelieveSample

We worship and serve a giving God.

This is cause for rejoicing!

James, the brother of Jesus, tells us that every good and perfect gift comes from above.

John, the beloved disciple of Jesus, taught us that God sent his only Son as a gift through whom his followers across all generations would continue to receive the benefits of his giving nature.

Jesus becomes the conduit between heaven and earth; God the Father passes his glory through God the Son. We would not know the glory of God apart from the work of Jesus Christ on our behalf.

The work of Jesus on the cross makes way for our adoption into the family of God, allowing us to share in the inheritance of Christ: we get to share in the resurrection glory!

Followers of Christ in the YMCA and every community are united in this glory. The work of Jesus and the gift of glory should humble our hearts in gratitude.

From this position of gratitude and humility, believers in the church and the YMCA can be united under the glory of God.

Division is often cultivated on the grounds of pride, but Jesus’ prayer is for unity, that His glory would bring us together and that our pride would not get between us.

This is not a surface-level unity; it goes much deeper than getting along on Sunday mornings or praying together in a Y.

Jesus prays for a unity of believers that imitates the perfect relationship between the Father and the Son.

It is a high call for believers to respond to Jesus’ prayer and make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.

We have seen the fruit of these verses in our Christian community that gathers in a YMCA on Sunday mornings. We began by hosting a large outdoor worship event featuring diverse Christian worship leaders from across the city. Many different Christians gathered to pray with us and give glory to God.

Many things in the world can separate us, but there is One who brings us all together.

Pray with me:

“Holy Spirit, keep our eyes fixed on the glory of God, displayed in Jesus Christ. We pray that as we behold your glory, the divisive things of this world would fade.”

[by Pastor Nathan DeVaux at Jorgensen Family YMCA]