1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:03,117 Here is one street, in one small town. 2 00:00:03,520 --> 00:00:08,160 Five churches. Five names. Five buildings. 3 00:00:08,850 --> 00:00:10,920 Five ways of worshipping. 4 00:00:11,450 --> 00:00:13,980 And yet, on the night before He died, 5 00:00:14,070 --> 00:00:18,717 Jesus prayed that the church would be one, as He and the Father are one. 6 00:00:19,190 --> 00:00:22,520 These were His words: that all of them may be one, 7 00:00:22,610 --> 00:00:26,210 Father, just as You are in Me and I am in You. 8 00:00:26,300 --> 00:00:28,480 That is the goal. 9 00:00:29,290 --> 00:00:33,580 But how is this possible? How can the church be one? 10 00:00:33,870 --> 00:00:36,270 How can it be united? 11 00:00:36,960 --> 00:00:40,020 There are five levels of unity in the church. 12 00:00:40,130 --> 00:00:43,360 We will climb them one rung at a time. 13 00:00:43,570 --> 00:00:46,920 By the end, you will see what each level looks like, 14 00:00:47,010 --> 00:00:50,850 and how to recognize it in the churches around you. 15 00:00:51,300 --> 00:00:54,680 The first level of church unity is Cohesion. 16 00:00:55,013 --> 00:00:59,120 At this level, churches, ministries and believers can exist together, 17 00:00:59,210 --> 00:01:01,700 without conflict or fighting. 18 00:01:02,350 --> 00:01:06,720 A good example of cohesion is having kids riding in a car. 19 00:01:07,010 --> 00:01:10,400 Picture them in the back seat, staying quiet. 20 00:01:10,610 --> 00:01:12,480 They tolerate each other. 21 00:01:13,000 --> 00:01:17,730 They might not respect each other, but at least they can live together in peace. 22 00:01:18,380 --> 00:01:23,310 They’re not playing together. Not talking. But nobody’s attacking. 23 00:01:23,400 --> 00:01:27,780 No fists. No warmth. Just permission. 24 00:01:28,540 --> 00:01:32,720 That is cohesion, and it’s the lowest level of unity. 25 00:01:33,380 --> 00:01:36,520 The second level of church unity is Solidarity. 26 00:01:37,470 --> 00:01:41,440 Until now, the churches only stayed out of each other’s way. 27 00:01:42,110 --> 00:01:47,610 Solidarity is the first time one church’s trouble becomes every church’s business. 28 00:01:47,700 --> 00:01:52,900 It isn’t agreement. It’s standing beside a neighbor who is hurt. 29 00:01:53,310 --> 00:01:57,480 Here is an example. If one church gets vandalized, the others, 30 00:01:57,570 --> 00:02:02,250 different denominations, no shared programs, rush to its defense. 31 00:02:02,760 --> 00:02:06,890 They’re not united. But they won’t let harm land alone. 32 00:02:07,480 --> 00:02:09,360 That is solidarity. 33 00:02:09,800 --> 00:02:14,060 The third level of church unity is called, simply, Unity. 34 00:02:15,020 --> 00:02:17,700 Here the churches stop only reacting to harm, 35 00:02:17,790 --> 00:02:20,710 and start working toward something together. 36 00:02:21,080 --> 00:02:26,560 Churches working toward the same goal: reaching the lost, cleaning up the city. 37 00:02:26,710 --> 00:02:30,200 They may rarely meet, but they wish each other success, 38 00:02:30,290 --> 00:02:34,940 because when one church reaches someone, the whole town is better for it. 39 00:02:35,100 --> 00:02:39,820 Picture a shared cleanup day, where everyone shows up for the same street. 40 00:02:39,910 --> 00:02:44,210 Different churches, but one job, one unified goal. 41 00:02:44,300 --> 00:02:47,540 Then they go home to their own building. 42 00:02:47,960 --> 00:02:53,280 Unity does not erase their differences. It joins them in one purpose. 43 00:02:53,690 --> 00:02:55,530 That is unity. 44 00:02:55,900 --> 00:02:58,900 The fourth level of church unity is Harmony. 45 00:02:59,250 --> 00:03:03,660 At this level, the churches are not only aiming at the same goal. 46 00:03:04,330 --> 00:03:07,610 They are prepared and ready to move as one. 47 00:03:08,170 --> 00:03:14,000 Picture an orchestra where every musician is ready together. All on the same page. 48 00:03:14,090 --> 00:03:18,117 All in tune. A well-organized team. 49 00:03:18,590 --> 00:03:24,520 Or picture an elite company of soldiers. All trained up. All together. 50 00:03:24,610 --> 00:03:28,450 All dressed perfectly. Every one of them ready. 51 00:03:28,870 --> 00:03:30,560 That is harmony. 52 00:03:31,000 --> 00:03:36,980 The fifth level of church unity is Symphony. Harmony made the team ready. 53 00:03:37,350 --> 00:03:40,260 Symphony puts a leader in front of it. 54 00:03:40,660 --> 00:03:44,510 Symphony is when a master conductor enters the room. 55 00:03:44,600 --> 00:03:50,150 He can take a well-trained orchestra, places it could not have gone by itself. 56 00:03:50,680 --> 00:03:55,960 Or symphony is when a general takes charge of this elite company of soldiers. 57 00:03:56,043 --> 00:04:00,740 With a general, they can do operations they could not do on their own. 58 00:04:01,230 --> 00:04:03,610 The musicians are the same. 59 00:04:03,700 --> 00:04:05,710 The soldiers are the same. 60 00:04:05,800 --> 00:04:08,300 What changes is who leads them. 61 00:04:09,600 --> 00:04:12,960 For the church, that Master Conductor is Jesus Christ. 62 00:04:13,530 --> 00:04:15,940 He is the General of His armies. 63 00:04:16,290 --> 00:04:18,720 When a church that is ready follows Him, 64 00:04:18,810 --> 00:04:24,200 He takes her places she could not have gone by herself. New lands. 65 00:04:24,290 --> 00:04:26,010 New nations. 66 00:04:26,100 --> 00:04:28,460 New movements. New gifts. 67 00:04:29,950 --> 00:04:33,190 That is only possible at the level of Symphony. 68 00:04:33,860 --> 00:04:40,280 These are the five levels of unity in the church. Cohesion. Solidarity. 69 00:04:40,510 --> 00:04:44,690 Unity. Harmony. And Symphony. 70 00:04:45,310 --> 00:04:48,680 Step by step, Jesus is perfecting His church. 71 00:04:49,190 --> 00:04:52,630 Rung by rung, He is lifting her higher. 72 00:04:53,100 --> 00:04:58,120 Jesus will have a church, He will have a beautiful, spotless bride.