Jesus’ Prayer for Believers
by T. L. Wiens
John 17:20-26 is a prayer said for all believers. A petition made by Jesus for those who would be His. It’s encouraging and humbling to see the heart of Jesus at a time when He must have had a few other things on His mind. Things like how He would die. But in this passage, Jesus is encouraging and the central theme of this prayer seems to be love.
Then I look at verse 20—“I do not pray for these alone.” Before this passage, Jesus starts with a prayer for his disciples—the men who followed Him during His time on earth. “…and the world has hated them because they are not of the world.” (VS 14) Hate is a strong word. Then in verse 15, He talks about not taking us out of the world, away from evil. The world will hate us but Jesus prays for us to continue in the world.
Are we a part of the world? Or has the Christ’s church separated itself from those who hate us?
In my own life, I pray that I will remember these words of Jesus. That the only way the world can see Him is through believers. If I’m hidden from view, so is Jesus. And so I pray that Jesus prayer continues to be a part of my life; that I may live my life in response to Jesus prayer for me.
