SARAH JEFFERSON | GUEST

“ … that they may be one even as we are one …” (John 17:22)

Beginning in November of 2019 and in the 18 months that followed, a tsunami of hard, unexpected events crashed into our lives. My husband and I lost a very close friend as well as both of our mothers. As I sifted through the ashes of our lives, my father reached out to reconcile after ten years of our relationship being broken and estranged. Overwhelmed by it all, I wanted to blow the whistle in the game of life and scream, “Time out on the field! Unsportsman like conduct, Lord!”

Wading through so much grief while trying to wrap my mind around the work of reconciliation felt like a hard “no.” But I never want to linger in resistance to God’s word and will. When suffering guts your life so deeply, to whom will you go? How will you respond when waves of hard threaten to steal your very breath? When obedience in the hard circumstances of life beckon, what will you do?

One with God

In John 17, Jesus holds the tension of grief and joy beautifully. His prayer provides a window into His heart for us, His covenant people. As the Great High Priest, He sympathizes with our weaknesses (Hebrews 4). He knows we are but dust (Psalm 103:14), created beings, marred by sin, struggling to persevere in the hard. A fallen people in need of the truth of God to overrule our lives in every area and His empowering Spirit for obedience to His word. Simply put, He knows we need oneness with the only truth in this life — God and His authoritative word. The same oneness He has with His Father. What a thought!

I often wonder where I am with His prayer to be one as they are one. Because obedience holds no stipulations, no exceptions. Though I will never be fully one this side of heaven, am I being sanctified, obedient to His will and used for His purposes now? Because, even in the midst of my grief, the call to obedience rings out. James 1:22 commands, “… be doers of the word, and not only hearers …” Yet I’m finding it’s easy at times to hear God’s word and refuse to operate under its authority, most especially in the hard circumstances of life. I am learning to go back to what I’ve known from childhood when the children’s catechism taught me that God made us and all things for His glory. And that we glorify God by loving Him and doing what He commands.

You see, I can use salvation like a weighted blanket, tucking myself in and resting passively under the name of grace. Yes, His grace calls me to rest, having been justified by faith alone in Christ alone; but I must also spring forth from that grace, empowered by His Spirit, to engage the hard commands of scripture. Declaring with the bold, determination of Isaiah, “for the Lord God will help me; therefore shall I not be confounded: therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed” (Is. 50:7 KJV).

A Calling to a Crucified Life

No, I don’t always love that hard, sanctifying work conforming me into His likeness. Yet, the prayer that we might be one is actually an invitation to live out the power of the gospel and push through to see the deeper beauty and purpose in suffering. Oneness is the calling to a crucified life—a call to love the unlovable, releasing my right to be angry or offended. To trust Jesus’ way by engaging reconciliation with humble hearts. Not because I always feel like it, but because we are all called to be imitators of Christ (Eph. 5:1-2), carrying out the ministry of reconciliation (2 Cor. 5:18-19). Contrary to what the world screams, I am learning that extending the gift of forgiveness is life-giving, even as it painfully reveals my own sinful areas of pride, self-preservation, and harsh judgements.

Sisters, bending our will is impossible without the beautiful dance of His grace and empowering Spirit! That’s why in Psalm 86:12 David’s passionately pleads, “teach me your way, O Lord, that I may walk in your truth …” And Paul, the self-proclaimed chief-of-sinners, prays in Ephesians 3:16, that we “may be strengthened with power through His Spirit in your inner being …” So that in those hard places we can respond like Simon Peter in John 6:68, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.”

If Jesus was called to surrender Himself to the glory of His Father, to be one with Him — sisters, we would be wise to follow in His steps. This is the place we find great purpose and joy in our suffering. Oneness with the Father also allows us to find oneness with one another. Let us “therefore … walk in a manner worth of the calling … with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Eph. 4:1-3).

Photo by Andrew Moca on Unsplash

About the Author:

Sarah Jefferson

Sarah is the married to Curtis Jefferson and the mother to Grey, Sanders and Collins. Before she was a mom, Sarah worked in public relations in the sports industry. Since having her children, Sarah has written web content for a variety of companies and ministries. She is an Atlanta native, but calls Franklin, Tennessee home. Sarah is a member of Cornerstone Presbyterian Church in Franklin, Tennessee. When she’s not writing or blogging, Sarah enjoys running and hiking the trails of middle Tennessee and spending time with her busy family. Readers can follow her on the following platforms: @sarahjeffersonwrites on Instagram and Facebook and sarahjeffersonwrites.com.