In John chapter 17, Christ prays for Himself, His Disciples, and future believers.
In His prayer for Himself, His heart is for God to be known and us to have eternal life. John 17:2-3, “2as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him. 3And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.”(NKJV). I love how Christ in His humility speaks of Himself in the third person.
In His prayer for His disciples and future believers (the church), there is two common themes. Protection from the enemy and those in the world is one, but the other rings through these verses:
John 17:11, “Now I am no longer in the World, but these are in the world, and I come to You. Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given me, that they may be one as We are.(NKJV)
John 17:21-23, “21that they may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. 22”“And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: 23I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have love Me.”(NKJV)
In case you don’t see it it’s unity. Christ’s heart is for His church to be unified. This is not unity in that we like the same songs, eat the same foods, and hang out at the same places. This unity He wants for us is the unity that He, the Father, and the Spirit have. The unity that operates as one. If the church operates as a single body, as Jesus prays for us to, then the world will know Him and know He loves them.
Lord, I pray that we can let go of those things that are currently dividing Your church and we can operate as Your heart desires us too, as one. In Jesus name, Amen.
