The Pulpit Commentary — John — Volume 2 — Section 359

<lnng<'r, <'SJ'<'C'inlly from lhe fire i so our l1losscd Lord, before he le~ the world left his disciples in good custo,ly and safe hands, those of the Father, praying him to t~ke care nf t,hem, especially to keep them from the evil. Before the great departure at ,TerusalPm, He insurrd all hie most valuable property in the office of his Father's eternal lo,e, of which he was the chief Agent; and insured it so not only as to have compen- SRtion in case of loss, but against any loss at all. "Holy Fnther, keep," eto. '].'he hou~e Wlls insured before, and was safe, and there was no need of n rush out of it ; but now he insures the tenants. The premium he had paid on the cross. This is the only p.afc insurance from evil. We wonder often how we have escaped from the evil in many a dark hour; bat the insurance was the eecret.-B, T. Vere. 20-23.-0hristian unity. Notice it- 1. IN rrs IMPORT AND sooPE. 1. Believers are to be in unity. Many and yet one, one and yet many. Many members, but one body; many bodies, but one Spirit; many believers, bat one spiritual community. They are to be one with each other, with Christ, and with the Father. 2. Their union is to be universal. "That they a.II may be one." There is to be no exception. It is not optional, but the universal rule of the ,moiety and law of its great Head. They are to be one: (1) In spite of time. Believers are separated by time. Some a.re of the present, some are of the past, and some of the future; but all are included in this great union. "Those who believe on me through," et.o. Not merely the fathers of the faith are to be in it, but their children to the last generation, and to the last one of that generation. (2) In spite of space. Believers are separated by place and distance. They inhabit different countries and climes. There a.re large multitudes on earth, larger multitudes still in heaven, but they are all in this union; its laws are binding and operative in spite of space and distance. (3) In spite of differences. Believers a.re separated by physical, mental, social, spiritual, and circumstantial differences; but these a.re not to prevent their union, but they are to be one in spite of them. 3. TM union is to be perfect. They are to be perfected into one. It is not a sham union, but a real one; and perfection is its goal, although gradually attained. Something like this is the import, scope, and ideal of this grand nnion, of which Christ is the Author, President, and Inspiration. IL IN rrs HIGH MODEL AND BASIS. 1. Its model is Divine. "As thou, Father, art," et.c. Its model is the union of the Father and the Son. What union was this? (1) Union of natv.re, essence, and life. Believers are partakers of the Divine nature, and the new nature and life a.re the same in all (2) Unity of mind. Believers are to strive for unity of fa.ith, and to mind the same things. (3) Unity of heart. Believers are to be one in heart, sympathies, and love-the bond of perfectness. (4) Unity of will and purpose. (5) Unity of charader. The Divine union is the model of the Christian., and it is high and perfect. And is not the past history of the Church a record of a great intellectual and spiritual straggle for this, and is she not pressing on still towards it? 2. Its basis is Divim. " That they may be in us, and one in us." (1) Christian unity is btised upon the J)ivine. The idea is Divine. It would be impossible for an inharmonious being, however powerful, to conceive the idea of an: harmonious society, much less to produce it. The Divine unity is the foundation and origin of the human. (2) Christian unity is the creation of the Divine, and is sup- ported 1,,y it. In oonnection with the Divine it is alone possible, and in this oonnection it is a glorious fact. "One in us." Apart from this there would be no unity at all-no unity of atoms, of worlds., of systems, in the material universe; and no unity of mind, epirit, and heart among intelligent beings. In the Divine unity all tho material worlds are united, and all the moral world is being and to be united. It is not only the model, but the basis and support of Christian union. Christian union is the outgrowth of the Divine. "One in us." (3) Christian unity is the ta;presaion of the Divine. Christ is the Expression of the Father, and believers are the expression of Christ, hence in a degree the expr8118ion and incarnation of the Divine unity. IIL br ITB PRACTICAL AND EFFICIEHT MEANS. How does the Divine go forth and effect the unity of the human? What are the means used? 1, TM union. of believers 111ith Ohrwt by faith, and hia union with them. 1''aith brings Christ to the soul, a.nil Christ brings that soul to the Father and to all in him. " I in them, and thou in me, that they IDAY," etc. 'fhese are the efficient means used and the order of their opera.- uH. xvn, 1-26.J 'l'llE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ST. JOHN. 371