John 17:20-26

While the prayer that Jesus taught in the Sermon on the Mount (Mt. 6:9-13) is usually called “The Lord’s Prayer,” the prayer of Jesus in John 17 could be more properly given that title. On the eve of his crucifixion, facing the agony of separation from the Father as He bore the curse and punishment of our sin, Jesus’ prayer reveals that He had far more on His heart and mind than the pain and death He would suffer: He was thinking of and praying for us. And this is a prayer that continues to this day. The God of mercy who saved us also allows us to actually fulfill the prayer of Jesus.

I. Exercise a Consistent Faith (20-21a)

The scope of Jesus’ prayer and concern extended far beyond His disciples who had followed Him throughout His earthly ministry. His prayer reached through future millennia and around the globe to all who would believe in Jesus through the Apostles’ testimony. His prayer was not that they would be uniform, but that they might be united. The desire of His heart was not that they be in conformity with one another, but that they might be in communion with the Father and the Son.

The answer to Jesus’ prayer for unity lies within our power, but only to the degree that we each submit ourselves to His will. Just as Jesus and the Father are one in purpose and will, so must we be submitted to that will and purpose. Not only does this accomplish our oneness with God, but also with God’s people. We cannot have this unity by living out our individual interpretations and ideas of Christianity, but by exercising the integrity and consistency of a life submitted to Christ, just as Christ submitted to the Father.

II. Exhibit a Constant Witness (21b)

Christians are never given a right to judge the world. In our shock at its lewdness, crass antics, and godlessness, we often forget that the people around us are acting like what they are: fallen humanity.

Paul reminds us in 1 Corinthians 5:12-13 that we have no business judging the world. God is fully capable of doing that Himself.

On the other hand, the world does have the right to judge Christians! When Jesus told the disciples that the world would mark them as His disciples by their love for each other, He was telling them that the world is watching. Again, here in His great prayer, He reminds us that the world has the right to judge us by our unity.

Our unity with one another provides a powerful presentation of the effects of the gospel. Unity is not unison, everyone singing the same note, but harmony. Unity is not uniformity, which comes from pressure within, but rather light from within. Unity is not union; pulling all the corpses together in the graveyard won’t start a resurrection.