Church unity is only based on truth
The Third Station (1024x768) (Photo credit: jdwarrick ) John 17 “ Holy Father , keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one” ( v. 11b ). John 17 , which records the longest prayer in the New Testament , provides some of the most important teaching on the church. As we can see in this chapter, Jesus is concerned with the unity of His people, praying for His disciples and all those who come after them to be one in purpose and mission even as He and His Father are one ( vv. 11b , 22–23 ). It is therefore regrettable that the church of Jesus Christ in our day evidences little visible unity. There are hundreds of different Protestant denominations , including dozens of varieties each of Presbyterians , Baptists, Lutherans , and so on. Faced with this scandalous reality, there has been a tendency in the twentieth century and now, in the twenty-first century, to try and correct this problem. As a result of the ecumenical movement, many new