June 2 Jesus Prays for You

John 17:20-21 “I pray not only for them, but also for those who believe in me because of their message. 21 I pray that they may all be one.”
 
WOW! Do you want to know Jesus loves you? Then I sincerely hope you see John 17 as Jesus’ loving words to the Father for you. The apostle displays our Lord as one who deeply loves God the Father and all who are his disciples in this “High Priestly Prayer”.
   Prayer is certainly one of the cornerstones to the Christian life, isn’t it? How is that evident? As Jesus is our model for all aspects of faithfully following God, prayer was foundational to Jesus’ human life. Yes, Jesus, the Son of God, prayed regularly and deliberately. And so should we.
   What are some prayer benefits? Prayer gets our minds focused on God. Prayer gets our hearts in the right place to relate to God and to others. Prayer connects our mind to God’s knowledge. Prayer protects us from evil thoughts and Satan’s temptations.
   To pray also means we are willing to submit to God’s purpose for our lives. Taking time to pray means we are worshiping God. We honor his majesty and holiness as we praise, thank and petition the sovereign Lord. Prayer is putting a priority on your Creator, who has personally demonstrated his deep, personal love for you.
   You can see God’ love for you as Jesus’ prayer puts a priority on you – yes, you. He not only asked the Father to watch over his disciples with him that night, he petitions God to unite and protect all who believe through the ages. Jesus long ago prayed to the Father to care for and protect you today.
   And please note one other purpose of this prayer. He prayed that all believers may be one with each other! How sad it is in the Christian church to see how we focus on disunity. We allow very minor differences and personal preferences to separate us. Instead, we should center our minds on the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. As we are one with him, we will be one with others.
   Let’s consider this: The next time we are inclined to speak of how the church next door is different or how someone’s faith is not in line with ours, let’s stop and pray we all may be one under God’s authority, grace, mercy and forgiveness. This is Jesus’ prayer for you. And so it must be your prayer for his church.
    What a remarkable Savior Jesus is! He prays his church will be one church in Christ, joyfully living in his love.


Prayer: Thank you, Lord Jesus, for your amazing love for each one of us. Thank you for praying for us then, and for praying for us now. You have paid the price. You have atoned for our sins. May we love you and follow you as one church with a deep sense of awe, wonder and gratitude. Amen.