Have you ever pondered over your favorite or favorite(ish) chapter of the Bible? It's a question that often stirs my thoughts, and my answer evolves over time. Interestingly, my husband has remained steadfast in his choice, with Psalm 119 always holding a special place in his heart. As for me, in the early spring of 2024, I find myself drawn to the profound prayer of John 17. This chapter, rich with the words of Jesus, has been a source of inspiration and reflection for me. In our Church community, we have been delving into a series titled “How He Loves Us,” A topic that resonates deeply with the prayers of John 17. The series has been a transformative experience, with each session leaving me eager to capture the insights in my notes, and then I make bookmarks.
John 17, a chapter that resonates with the topic of our Church teachings, "How He Loves Us," is a testament to the power and passion in Jesus' words. It is a prayer, a plea to God, the Father, for the unity of all believers, from the disciples who walked with him to those who would come after, including us. The intensity of Jesus' desire for our unity, mirroring the unity between him and the Father, is palpable in his words, a testament to his profound love for us.
Here are some of Jesus’ words in John 17: While I was with them]in the world, I kept them in Your name. Those whom You gave Me I have kept, and none of them is lost except the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. 13 But now I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves. 14 I have given them Your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 15 I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.”
Jesus’ words in John 17, particularly his insights on the disciples' relationship with the world, hold a poignant relevance in our current times. They serve as a reminder of the urgency and importance of unity among believers, which should be at the forefront of our prayers, as they were for Jesus. In this context, let's draw inspiration from the Zebra family, a part of the horse family but with their unique characteristics that we can learn from.
First, Zebra’s travel in groupings. They are united in their direction. They are instinctively sensitive to the threats that lurk among them. Jesus reminds the Father of the reason for our need for unity. Having his Word. Living in obedience to his Word, he says, “The world has hated them because they are not of the world.” As we emulate his life, “I am not of the world” puts a target on our back, and the hatred that put Jesus on the cross, from the world, is the same hatred aimed toward those of us, not of the world. John 3:19 concisely describes why the world will hate us, “And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.” While we may not travel in “groupings” as zebras do, we unite on Sundays or other days; we come together to encourage and be encouraged; we must understand our need for one another. We are God’s grouping on earth doing His Kingdom work as united Citizens.
Second, the lead male zebra travels in the back of the group to fight off predators that may skulk in the tall grass, spying out the weak, sick, or youthfully ignorant. In the zebra groupings, there is one that watches their back. In the Church, this responsibility is not given to one person. The Scriptures call the Mature Galatians 6:1. Also, 1 Thessalonians 5:14 says, “Now we exhort you, warn them that are unruly, comfort the feebleminded, support the weak, be patient toward all men.” Paul tells the Church the importance of not leaving anyone behind. Some in the Body are in the lives of others struggling and have a responsibility to help hold them up. When sisters and brothers struggle in the faith, we cannot leave them to bear their burdens alone. We are our sisters and brother’s keepers. We cannot leave them in known sin and not come along with grace and truth to call them out from the darkness where the enemy prowls, seeking their destruction. James 5:14 puts a responsibility on the elders of the church. They are called to live in a way that they can be called to pray for the sick in the name of the Lord. These are important, back of the grouping roles. The unity of the Body offers clear roles that each is called to for the significance of holding God’s people together. This keeps us from being gobbled up by the world’s system that is out to destroy our testimonies, our unique stripes.
The third and final lesson is the significance of the Zebra’s stripes. It altogether causes me to worship God when I think of the unique striping of each zebra. How many zebras are there? They each have their own stripes. Is it possible that zebras of other groupings have the same stripes but none that travel together? I don’t know, but gosh, would that alone be a reason to see the glory of God if each zebra in history, ever-existing, had, never repeated with any other, stripe patterns? If this were evolution without purpose, what a fantastic feat that nothingness would have accomplished. Right? The zebra would appear to be one of the most vulnerable animals in their habitats, in the wild, mainly in Africa. Sadly, it could seem like they’ve been set up for defeat and given over as prey for every predator looking for a good meal. How could a ravenous lion, tiger, or bear, my nod to The Wizard of Oz, not wait for the passing zebra pack to stroll by and pounce at the ready? The answer is extraordinary. While the stripes make them vulnerable, striping is also their protection. Somebody say, “Amen!” Just take that in and worship with me.
The fact that the zebra stands out in the world around them is an analogy for our spiritual call to be in the world, making ourselves available for God while not being of the world. We stand out; our lives impact the world around us for the Kingdom. However, we are not to take the job of being world changers on our own. We are called to community, not just of a building where we attend on Sunday mornings, but of a Body, The Universal Church. We become vulnerable to the enemy when we live apart from the rest of the people of God. We need each other. This is why Jesus prayed for our unity. When we stand alone, our stripes are easily seen. We can become ready prey for the enemy. Covid has created, by our permission, separation in the Body. Folks have become comfortable with living room worship and island Christianity. That doesn’t mean gathering on Sunday is the only option, but we need time with other believers regularly. Sunday happens to be the main setup for today’s church. We need our stripes blended to create a distorted pattern the enemy cannot easily distinguish and pluck us out of the grouping. That’s the power of the zebra as a grouping; their stripes blend so that they become this nebulous picture in the eyes of any prey, and the distortion runs them off without a meal. We become a world-impacting community when we recognize that we are family, powerless on our own. We will not be destroyed as we stand together, each in our role among one another.
As Jesus’ prayer is being answered, each generation of disciples has been part of this answer. From the unity in the first Church in Acts and all the Epistles to the various churches, to the unity in the Body that will be here when He returns is an answer to his prayer. There are warnings throughout Scripture about keeping the unity of the faith in the Church. We must take those seriously. We are not islands; that goes for the introvert as well. We need each other. Anything different goes against being the answer to Jesus’ prayer. Remember How He Loves Us so much that he stops and prays for his disciples’ unity while preparing to die. He recognized the threats waiting to destroy us. He also understood the stubbornness of our individuality. The world is propping up that part of our instincts, individuality, for the one who thinks they are fine alone. Unfortunately, they find themselves as unruly, weak, and even caught in sin when they don’t need to be in that place of vulnerability.
Peter warns the grouping in his first epistle, “Be sober (self-disciplined), be alert and cautious at all times. The enemy of yours, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour,” 5:8-9. This is why, like zebras, we must understand the importance of staying united, with all the responsibilities that come with that. John 17 informs us we are bringing forth an answer to prayer when we see the significance of obedience in unity. We are living out the unique role of being able to be seen and standing out in the world while being striped together in a powerful way that keeps us from being devoured by the enemy in the world.
Ours is a blessed position with a great call to be seen worldwide. We also have the gift of dependency on one another. This allows us to be a community that is not of the world. This protects us from the world’s system, which desires to destroy us. Lastly, we are in the protected hands of our heavenly Father, who is answering Jesus' prayer in us. He is offering us a part of changing the world for His Kingdom as a grouping. We are reminded of How He Loves Us. While He uses us as individuals in the grouping, we cannot have an individual mindset that will make our stripes stand out and cause us to be devoured. The grouping is where the protection and power of the Kingdom are found. It is so similar to the Zebra. You gotta love it!
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