ONE OF MY favourite TV shows when I was growing up was Pinky and the Brain. The premise of the show was ridiculous, simple, and brilliant. It followed two genetically altered mice; one was a genius (the Brain), and the other was a complete buffoon (Pinky). This odd couple broke free from their cage in Acme Labs every night with a singular goal: Try to take over the world! If you have never seen the show and want to be highly entertained for one minute, look up their theme song on YouTube. You won’t be disappointed.

World domination was not just all the rage in 1990s cartoons; it was quite the hot topic during the life and ministry of Christ as well. You could even say the Roman empire had perfected the art of conquest. They controlled the vast majority of the known and civilized world, and no nation or group posed any serious threat to their authority. Rome clung to power through military might, rigid bureaucracy, and good old-fashioned fear. But Jesus was subversive; he taught differently on what true power looked like.

Instead of power to conquer and dominate, Christ spoke and modelled power to submit and serve. In the book of Revelation, we see that the conquering Lion is indeed the Lamb that was slain. Jesus transformed what it looked like to change the world.

As followers of Christ, the cross redefines—not only what true power looks like—but how we relate to the world around us as well. Instead of factions warring for supremacy, we are to live together with the world. The gospel of John in particular captures a flow of thought from the teaching of Jesus as to how we are to live out this togetherness.

FOR GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD

When John uses the term “world” in his gospel, it is usually in the negative sense. He contrasts the kingdom of God to the kingdom of the world. The kingdom of God is supernatural, perfect, and composed of the people of God. The world, on the other hand, is natural, flawed, and composed of those not of God.

It would be simple and easy to read this contrast in John and assume that God’s attitude toward the world would be one of righteous anger and condemnation. For this exact reason, we must be reminded of one of the most well-known verses in the Bible, John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

This is a verse that many of us memorize early in life in Sunday school. You can also catch a glimpse of fans holding up this sign behind home plate during a World Series game. It is a vital message for everyone to understand properly. The world may be opposed to the kingdom of God, but God looks upon the world with love in return.

If you are like me, you may find it easy to misread this verse we know so well. If I am not careful, I read it individually: “For God so loved [Andrew] …” If I am feeling more charitable, I will think of the people of God: “For God so loved [the church] …” It makes perfect human sense that God would love those who obey, so perhaps I will paraphrase: “For God so loved [the righteous] …” But none of those ways of reading John 3:16 are correct.

Jesus declares that “God so loved the world.” Yes, the same world that is often in opposition to God. The broken, the marginalized, the proud, the self-sufficient, the hypocrites, the liars, the openly hostile to God—God so loved them all.

This point is driven home as we continue to read verse 17: “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” God looks upon the world with compassion, not condemnation. As his people, we must do the same. Whenever we talk about our relationship with the world and those around us, we must begin on the foundation that Jesus sees every single person as someone worth dying for. Love, not condemnation.

IN THE WORLD, BUT NOT OF THE WORLD

Even though as disciples of Jesus we are called to love and not condemn the world (following the example of Christ), that does not mean we are to participate fully in the world. The opposition remains, and the things of the world are often in conflict with the things of God. Once we have been saved by Christ, we must live differently. In his commentary on John, D. A. Carson says, “Christians are not to love the world with the selfish love of participation; God loves the world with the self-less, costly love of redemption.” It is a love that does not allow others to continue to live in ways harmful and detrimental to their relationship with God.

One implication for all believers in Christ is that this world (and all it has to offer) is not our home. In John 17:14, Jesus speaks about his disciples and points out that they do not belong in the world. “I have given [my disciples] your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world.”

When you choose to follow Jesus, you become a citizen of the kingdom of God, and you no longer belong to the world. Citizenship portrays where your home is, but it also declares where your allegiance lies. I spent six years as a Canadian living in Texas, and it was a great experience. While I enjoyed living there, I also knew it wasn’t where I truly belonged. At school we were required to stand up and recite the pledge of allegiance to the U.S. flag every morning, and I didn’t know how to respond properly to this. Should I stand, or stay seated? Say the pledge, or stay silent? In the end, I decided to stand out of respect for my classmates, but stay silent during the recitation. My reason was simple; my allegiance was never to the U.S. flag.

Taking this a step further, our allegiance isn’t to any flag or earthly country. We belong to Jesus, and he has made us citizens of heaven. That is where our true allegiance lies, and it will take us out of the world as a result.

However, we need to seek balance. Does our allegiance in Christ allow us to escape the world? Absolutely not! While we are called to leave behind our participation in worldly things, we are not given the option of pulling away completely. Jesus continues his prayer in John 17:15–18 and shows us a different way. “My prayer is not that you take [my disciples] out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world.”

There is no mistaking the call on the lives of those who follow Jesus. We are called out of the world so that we can be sent back into the world.

Just as Jesus stepped down from glory for a specific mission and purpose, his people are missionaries to a world they no longer truly belong to. This means we do not have the luxury of removing ourselves from every non-Christian situation or person. No “holy huddles” allowed! It means we must be intentional about how we live out our lives, interact with those around us, and follow Jesus.

TOGETHERNESS AS EVANGELISM

If we are looking for ways to be more intentional about sharing the truth of Jesus as those sent into the world, the most effective method is also given to us in John 17. Let us continue from verse 20, following the flow of thought in Jesus’ prayer. “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.”

This is the culmination of what we learned together at the EMC Young Adult Retreat. We are together with God (be “in” the Father, Son and Spirit), who brings us together with one another (may all be one), so that the world will know that the Father sent the Son to save them and not condemn them. We do not receive our relationship with God or unity as a church to keep it to ourselves. We receive these things for the benefit of the world around us, so that they also may believe in Jesus. Our relationship with God and others is not just beneficial, it is missional.

Of course, how we live this out is of the utmost importance. Jesus clearly teaches here that our unity as believers speaks volumes to the watching world. Looking to D. A. Carson once more, he says, “As the display of genuine love amongst the believers attest that they are Jesus’ disciples, so this display of unity is so compelling, so un-worldly, that their witness as to who Jesus is becomes explainable only if Jesus truly is the revealer whom the Father has sent.”

We are called to love one another in an un-worldly way. But does our love for each other stand out to the world? Far too often, it does not. Just as our love for one another has the power to bring people closer to Jesus, our lack of togetherness is powerful to push people away.

So how will you act next time conflict arises in the church? What type of posture will you take when others around the table disagree with you in a committee meeting? How will you respond when a piece of juicy gossip hits your ears? What if the style of music and preaching isn’t to your personal taste? In each of these instances (and so many more), we need to be committed to lovingly protecting the togetherness of the church. Because the world is watching, and it needs to see Jesus.

Together with the world