Ever since I finished my final exams in school, I have been reading books back to back especially the ones that were given to me by my mentor and I have stacked up for times like this, so after reading "Power for Progress", I decided to pick this wonderful although ancient book which was written decades ago. It is a book with timeless depth, it is built upon the spiritual foundation of salvation, moving deeper into the mystery and power of true christian oneness. The author addressed superficial denominational unity which is the spiritual division within the body of Christ that crept into our midst due to self glorification, greed, ambition and departure from the headship of Christ.
That They May All Be One, Even As We Are One (Volume Two) was written by a great man called T. Austin-Sparks between January to February 1964 before he and his wife left for Manila. This book is a rare prophetic voice echoing a timeless truth, it is not merely a commentary on Christ’s high priestly prayer, however, it is a spiritual call to a thorough examination of the heart of the church and a challenge to every believer to pursue the unity that Christ prayed for.
This book was written as a letter with meetings from twenty-third meeting to forty-second meeting. The main reason for the meetings is to restore unity and oneness in the body of Christ, some of the discussions are "within Christianity there is a great mixture", "the Holyspirit creates in us a tremendous strong desire for everything God has", "not by might, not by an army nor by power but by the spirit saith the Lord of Host", are you risen ones with Christ?, is Christianity a legal system on the earth or is it a spiritual movement from heaven?, the great distinguishing mark between a legal system and a spiritual life is by direction revelation of Jesus Christ, the only true emancipation from all forms of legalism is to see Christ, the rule of Heaven will divide between the evil and the good between the leaven and the unleavened bread, the Holyspirit came especially for the purpose of creating a spiritual order of things, the matter which is of supreme importance is Christ fully formed in you, the presence of the Lord, the confirmation of the faith of believers in a difficult way, Jesus is the light that brings to light the works of the devil in order to destroy them, Life is the basis of everything, the cup of the Lord etc.
Unlike many modern books filled with trendy phrases or simple theology, this book comes from a place of deep burden. Every page in this Volume Two carries the weight of a man gripped by a divine vision of the unity of the Church as a spiritual orchestration not a religious organisation. This means that true spiritual oneness comes from abiding in the risen Christ not through human strategies or religious systems. In the world we are today, church growth is often measured by the numbers of members, buildings, and popularity rather than in the maturity, unity, and humility of the saints. It's very disheartening that denominations now war over doctrines, ministries operate more like corporate entities than living bodies, leaders now compete for members instead of cooperating for the kingdom. Apparently, Christ is not divided neither should His body be. Therefore any structure, idea or movement that replaces the headship of Christ or promotes self ambitions rather than the cross must be torn down. Although I haven't read volume one but I look forward to finding it if my mentor still has.
One of the things I have been able to pick while reading this book is when the writer says " We are living in the day when the kingdom is here. It was fulfilled on that day of Pentecost. We are not looking for the Kingdom to come. We are looking for the kingdom to be consummated but it is here now and that ought to mean something to us", this simply means that the kingdom of Christ is here already and we should live together as people who is under one kingdom not as though expectant of another because where there is unity Christ dwells.
The reason I love this book is because it teaches every serious believer who is a pastor, elder, or a young Christian to rise above denominational barriers, political entanglements and man-made systems. That we will dwell in unity and oneness just as the God the Father, the Holyspirit and the Son are one.
I will always recommend this book to everyone who wants to make a change in their local assembly or church.
Thank you so much for staying with me, I hope you enjoyed your read and I will also recommend this book for you too.
Have a wonderful week ahead 🤗