"My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message..."
John 17:20 (NIV)
I am one of "them". Are you one of "them"? We have believed the message of the apostles. We haven't seen the Lord, or experienced His miracles. We haven't sat at His feet or listened to the sound of His voice. Rather, we have heard the gospel, the word of truth as written down by the apostles, and we imitate their lives of faith. Our belief is not in them, but in the Lord that they worshiped.
The Lord Jesus is praying for us. He is asking the Father to make us all into one, just as the Father and His Son are One! He tells God that He has given us the same glory that was given to Him. By this, He must mean the Holy Spirit, for He goes on to say, "I in them, and you in me." Now, He has already told the Father that He has given us the Word. So we can see very simply that the Lord has given us His Word and His Spirit and that He is asking God to protect us, sanctify us, unite us and then bring us to His side in heaven.
Friend, we have everything we need for protection, for sanctification and for unity. We have the Word and the Spirit, and we have the effective prayer of our Lord. Let us cooperate, no - better yet - let us surrender to the Word and the Spirit and we will see the Lord's prayer answered in our lives and in our church.
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