Overview of: JohnToday's Reading:
John 17:1-26
"Jesus Prays for His Disciples"
Focus Verses: John 17:20-21
20 "My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21 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.
Insight:
While it would be confusing to most people, this chapter could be titled as "The Lord's Prayer." The model prayer Jesus gave his disciples when they asked him to teach them how to pray is profound and beautiful (Luke 11:1-4). The prayer of John 17 is very personal, deeply relational, missional, and hopeful.
Jesus asked his Father God to help him accomplish his mission in a way that would demonstrate divine love and glory. He asked God to protect, sustain, and guide his disciples. He asked God to help them know the truth and to live holy lives. He prayed for the unity of believers, not just those who were following him at that point, but for all believers who would eventually come to believe in him because of the testimony of his disciples.
Response and Action:
In this prayer of Jesus, I recognize his claim to divinity. He calls God his Father and claims to have been present with God in glory before the world began. I also recognize Jesus' call to his disciples to follow him in faith, to walk in holiness, to be witnesses of the truth, to share the gospel, and to live in unity with other believers.
O God, thank you for Jesus and his prayer for all who believe in him. Thank you, Jesus, for interceding for your people at God's right hand. By the power and grace of your Holy Spirit, help me to grow in my faith, to lead a righteous life, to be a light, to live in harmony and shared purpose with other believers, and to give glory to God. Amen.
Old Testament for Today: Psalm 133:1
1 How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity!
In Context: Psalm 133
Proverb for Today: Prov. 29:23
"A man's pride brings him low, but a man of lowly spirit gains honor."
Recommended Reading:
Love One Another: Becoming the Church Jesus Longs for
by Gerald L. Sittser
