“I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” — John 17:20-21
“I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, 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.” — Ephesians 4:1-3
What Kind of “One” Did Jesus Pray For?
John 17 is one of Scripture’s most profound prayers. On the eve of Gethsemane, Jesus prayed for his disciples — and for everyone who would believe through their word: “that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us.” (John 17:21)
What kind of “one” (Greek ἕν, hen) is this? Jesus gives the answer himself: it is the oneness between Father and Son. The Father and the Son are two distinct persons, with their own will, expression, and way of acting — yet completely one in essence, life, and purpose. This is not two persons forced to say the same things, nor two persons erasing their differences to merge into one — it is deep union of life while each retains their genuine existence.
If this is the “one” Jesus asked for, then the church’s oneness must be of the same nature: organic, living union — not administrative, enforced uniformity.
The Spirit’s Unity: Oneness Within Diversity
In Ephesians 4:3, Paul uses a key word: ἑνότης (henotes), meaning “the state of being one” — given by the Spirit, not manufactured by people. He says to keep the unity the Spirit has given — not “build” it or “enforce” it. This unity already exists; it is already the Spirit’s work. The believers’ task is to be “eager” (σπουδάζοντες, spoudazontes — diligently, with effort) to maintain it.
Ephesians 4:12-16 then describes how the body is one within diversity: gifts differ (apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastor-teachers), functions differ, maturity differs — yet through all of this the body remains one. (Ephesians 4:12-16)
1 Corinthians 12 unfolds the same picture: one body, many members; members “various,” functions “diverse,” yet all belonging to one Spirit. (1 Corinthians 12:4-12) “If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole were hearing, where would the smelling be?” (1 Corinthians 12:17) True unity requires difference — “unity” without difference is just monotony, not a body.
Biblical unity does not eliminate difference. It is a shared source of life within difference.
Romans 14: Holding Difference Together
Romans 14 is Scripture’s most direct chapter on difference within the church. Paul is addressing real divisions: one person eats everything, another eats only vegetables; one regards one day above another, another regards every day alike. (Romans 14:1-6)
These were not trivial matters — they touched worship practice, observance of feast days, dietary rules, all carrying spiritual weight in that culture. Yet Paul’s conclusion is not “you must agree.” It is:
- “Welcome him who is weak in faith” (Romans 14:1)
- “Who are you to pass judgment on the servant of another?” (Romans 14:4)
- “Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind” — that is, each person may follow their own conscience on secondary matters (Romans 14:5)
Paul’s only constraint: do not use secondary differences to cause another to “stumble” or “be destroyed” (Romans 14:13). He draws a clear line: the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit (Romans 14:17) — not behavioral uniformity.
The implication is deep: believers can hold genuine, ongoing difference on secondary matters and both be equally accepted by God (Romans 14:18).
When Unity Is Mistaken for Uniformity
Scripture offers a contrast to ἑνότης (unity): ὁμοιότης (homoiotes), meaning “similarity, sameness.” These two words represent two completely different kinds of “one”:
- ἑνότης (unity): comes from life, from the Spirit, from shared identity in Christ. It can hold difference, tension, and varied expression.
- ὁμοιότης (uniformity): comes from standardized behavior, unified opinion, consistent outward appearance. Its maintenance requires not the Spirit, but management.
When a community confuses the two — believing that maintaining “oneness” means requiring everyone to align on specifics: reading the same materials, singing the same arrangements, using the same vocabulary, experiencing the same spiritual feelings — it has already substituted administrative control for the Spirit’s work.
The Reformation tradition preserved an important concept: adiaphora (things indifferent, non-essential matters). The Reformers clearly distinguished what belongs to essential doctrine (Trinity, Christology, soteriology), where agreement is required, from secondary matters where legitimate difference is allowed. (Ligonier: Adiaphora in Worship) The purpose of that distinction was precisely to protect genuine unity from being dissolved by secondary uniformism.
Galatians 2:11-14 gives a concrete example: Paul opposed Peter to his face because Peter’s behavior was hypocritical and damaging to real unity. (Galatians 2:11-14) Paul’s conflict with Peter was not a split — it was genuine unity requiring honesty. A uniformity-based system cannot sustain this kind of confrontation, because it needs everyone to maintain surface harmony.
The Foundation of Unity: Christ, Not Conformity
The Jerusalem Council (Acts 15) is the early church’s model for handling major doctrinal difference. Must Gentile believers be circumcised to be saved? This was a real and serious theological dispute. The outcome was not to suppress one side, but through shared deliberation by apostles and elders, guided by the Spirit, to reach a conclusion: “It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us…” (Acts 15:28) (Acts 15:28)
The council defined the genuine center (salvation through Christ alone) and gave limited guidance on secondary matters — not a comprehensive rulebook controlling all behavior. This is the pattern of unity without uniformity: a clear center, spacious boundaries.
Philippians 2:2 — Paul asks believers to be “of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind” — but immediately in verses 3-4: “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.” (Philippians 2:2-4) The content of “same mind” is humility and care for one another — not identical opinions, not uniform outward expression.
The foundation of true unity is always Christ himself. The prayer of John 17 is explicit: this “one” has a purpose — “so that the world may believe that you sent me” (John 17:21). Not so the world sees a tidily uniform organization, but so it sees living union from God. That union needs no unified platform style to sustain it, no shared weekly reading to reinforce it. Its foundation is believers’ real union in Christ.
When we look for a church community, this is worth asking: Is the oneness here the Spirit’s oneness — love within difference, life within tension — or is it managed uniformity — requiring outward conformity to maintain surface harmony?
The first is what Jesus prayed for in John 17. The second is only a human project.