17:20 “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, 21 that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, 23 I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me. 24 Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world. 25 O righteous Father, even though the world does not know you, I know you, and these know that you have sent me. 26 I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.”
– John 17:20-26
What does it mean to you and to me, that our Lord Jesus Christ prayed for us — for us, specifically? In our Gospel reading for today, Jesus is praying what is known as His “High Priestly Prayer” at the meal on Maundy Thursday. He is praying for the twelve disciples, gathered with Him in the Upper Room. He prayed that they might have His joy fulfilled in them, verse 13, in spite of what would come that night, in the garden of betrayal, and the next day, with His crucifixion and death. He prayed that they might not be taken out of the world, but that they might be kept from “the evil one,” verse 15. He prayed also that they might be sanctified in the truth—the truth of His Word, which is truth, verse 17.
Immediately after, in verse 20, the Lord says, “I do not ask/pray for these only, but also for those who will believe in me, through their word” — that is, through the testimony of the twelve disciples gathered that evening. And what the Lord prays for us, next, should bless us and trouble us — as He prayed “that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me” (21).
If there is to be one hallmark, one marker of the Body of Christ in the world after our Lord’s death, resurrection and ascension, it would be unity. We are to be one, as the Father and the Son are one, so that the world may believe! Jesus shared that glory which the Father had given Him, with His disciples then and now, so that we might become one. And that oneness, that unity was to manifest to the world that indeed, the Father sent the Son, and the Father loves each of us, even as the Father loved His Son, Jesus. Because the world has not known the Father and His love, the love of the Father for the Son is in us, even as the Son, Himself, is in us.
And as we are blessed with the love of the Father and the presence of the Son, are we not also troubled that so often we are not one, not united in God’s love? Within congregations, within our homes and families, in the Church at large, we are often more divided than we are united — and our division is what the world sees as our testimony. Division and disunity speak more loudly and clearly to the world than any unity intended by our Lord. And yet He prays for us! Still our Lord asks the Father, “make them one, as we are one, that the world may know…”
Prayer: Father, we pray, with Jesus, that we may be one — today, tomorrow and forever! Amen.
Devotion written by the Rev. Dr. David M. Wendel
Morning Psalms
Evening Psalms
This daily prayer and Bible reading guide, Devoted to Prayer (based on Acts 2:42), was conceived and prepared by the Rev. Andrew S. Ames Fuller, director of communications for the North American Lutheran Church (NALC). After a challenging year in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have been provided with a unique opportunity to revitalize the ancient practice of daily prayer and Scripture reading in our homes. While the Reading the Word of God three-year lectionary provided a much-needed and refreshing calendar for our congregations to engage in Scripture reading, this calendar includes a missing component of daily devotion: prayer. This guide is to provide the average layperson and pastor with the simple tools for sorting through the busyness of their lives and reclaiming an act of daily discipleship with their Lord. The daily readings follow the Lutheran Book of Worship two-year daily lectionary, which reflect the church calendar closely. The commemorations are adapted from Philip H. Pfatteicher’s New Book of Festivals and Commemorations, a proposed common calendar of the saints that builds from the Lutheran Book of Worship, but includes saints from many of those churches in ecumenical conversation with the NALC. The introductory portion is adapted from Christ Church (Plano)’s Pray Daily. Our hope is that this calendar and guide will provide new life for congregations learning and re-learning to pray in the midst of a difficult and changing world.