Easter 7C

Text: John 17:20–26

I. A Prayer That Includes You Jesus said, “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word…” (v. 20)

I often warn you about putting yourself into Scripture. The Bible is not about you. It is for you. For example, for many people, the account of David and Goliath is about the idea that, like David, you can overcome giants if you just have faith. But it is not about you. Jesus is the True David, who came in humility, took on your spiritual enemies, and defeated them. You and I do not get to stick ourselves into Scripture or just grab verses and claim them for ourselves. Scripture is not about you; it is for you.

Except today. Forget about that today. Today, Jesus is talking about you.

He is praying for you. Not just in a vague sense, like we pray for our nation, for example. He is praying for you. By name. Your name—not scribbled on a list, not just one among many—your name is carried in the heart of Christ as He prays. Think of a parent whispering their child’s name in prayer before the child even knows the danger or the gift. That is how personally Jesus intercedes.

And this is not just a random moment along the way. On the most important night of His life— on the most important night in history!— in that upper room, as Jesus prepares to go to the cross, His prayer stretches forward through the generations to embrace you. Our Lord is praying for you. This is not abstract intercession; it is deeply personal. You are on His mind and in His heart.

And what is He praying for? He prays for your unity—not only with Him, but with one another. That unity is not rooted in your preferences, personalities, or plans. It is rooted in Him.

II. A Unity That Reflects the Trinity Jesus prayed, “…that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you…” (v. 21)

The unity Christ desires for His Church is patterned after the unity of the Father and the Son: not just alignment, but indwelling; not just agreement, but shared life.

Unity is something that we all gravitate toward. But not all unity is created equal. 

The world has made it very clear how it defines unity. The world chases unity through sameness. They are ‘unified’ by a shared ideology, shared culture, shared tribe. But that kind of unity fractures the moment someone disagrees. In fact, any disagreement is an attack. When I define myself by something and then you disagree with me about the thing, we are not just disagreeing, you are attacking me.

The world will do what it is going to do, but there are counterfeit forms of unity within the church, as well. What is it that unifies you? Is it just your family legacy? Is it just your long history here and the relationships with one another that go back decades? 

Let me be real for a moment. It’s not uncommon to hear complaints about people who join the church because their children are in our school. The perception is that they join just for the lower tuition. Then we never see them. 

Again, let me be real for a moment. Let me ask you: Have you ever really welcomed them in? Do they have a place here if they’re not related to someone? Have you introduced yourself? Have you gotten to know them? I suspect that, on more than one occasion, the first time a new member had someone talk to them was when they were asked to serve on a committee. What is it that unifies you? What Jesus was praying for was more than just a shared family legacy or even relationships that go back decades.

Unity in Christ is more than just being good friends. Unity in Christ is not like boards nailed together—close, but still separate. It is like branches grafted into a living vine. They do not merely touch; they share life.

Unity in Christ is more than just ‘doing things the way we have always done them’. That is, at best a facade. 

If what your are cultivating in your children is loyalty to a congregation— if that is what you are connected to— then you are settling for a counterfeit unity. We are here to draw closer to Christ. Not just to a congregation. 

If the primary bond you feel toward one another is anything other than your common baptism, your shared confession, and your mutual hope in Christ, then this prayer must confront us. You are seeking a counterfeit unity. 

But it also invites you into something far greater. Into something far more enduring. Christ gives the unity we cannot make. He calls you into the shared life of the Triune God.

The same Christ who carries your name in prayer also carries the names of your brothers and sisters in this congregation. He is not praying for a collection of isolated individuals—but for a communion, a body. To be united to Him is also to be united to them.

III. A Love That Unites and Indwells Jesus prayed, asking the Father, “…that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.” (v. 26)

Christ's prayer goes even deeper: not only that you may be one, but that the Father's eternal love for the Son may be in you. And that Christ Himself may dwell in you.

That is not a metaphor. It is baptismal reality.

The one who speaks this prayer does not merely wish you well. He doesn’t just want to be your good friend. He gives Himself for you. The name that He whispers before the Father is spoken even as He walks toward the cross in your place.

This is the love that led Jesus to the cross. The Son who prayed this prayer was, just hours later, crowned with thorns, lifted up, and forsaken. The One who said, “I in them” gave Himself over to death so that He might dwell in you.

He bore the wrath you deserved. He died the death that should have been yours. And in rising again, He now gives you His name, His Spirit, and His love.

That love is the ground of your unity. Not your effort. Not your preference. Not your similarity. His love alone.

You are not just members of a club here in this congregation. You are members of the body of Christ. 

IV. A Unity That Is Meant to Be Seen And Jesus did not end there. He prayed for those things, “…so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” (v. 21)

Christ intends that His Church be a visible sign of His presence and truth.

Not only in our true doctrine, but in our life together:

At the altar, where we kneel side by side, united in one confession.

In our daily lives, where we carry one another's burdens.

And in moments like this morning, where we rejoice together.

Today we give thanks to God for our graduates—those completing 8th grade, high school, and college. These milestones are not private victories. They are occasions for the whole Body to rejoice. When one member is honored, all rejoice together. Our joy is not competitive or isolated. It is shared.

And that same unity leads us to weep with those who weep, to forgive those who have sinned against us, to seek out the brother or sister we have wronged, and to be reconciled.

How can you kneel beside someone Christ prays for and still carry bitterness in your heart? How can you withhold forgiveness from one whose name is carried in the same heart that carries yours?

That is one of the reasons why Scripture teaches us to examine ourselves before coming to the Lord’s Table— not just to confess our sins, but to ask: Am I holding a grudge? Am I walking in bitterness? Have I withdrawn from the Body that Christ died to make one?

In fact, to kneel at this altar while refusing to be reconciled with your brother or sister is to sin against the body and blood of Christ by treating lightly what Christ died to give you: **unity in His Body and Blood. ** That is what Paul was talking about when he wrote to the church in Corinth, **27 **Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord" (1 Corinthians 11:27).

To kneel at this altar is to seek that unity. To eat and drink together at this communion rail is to grow in faith toward Christ and in love toward one another. Jesus’ prayer begins to be answered by what He does at this font and at this communion rail week after week, month after month, year after year.

At this font, Jesus gives you something deeper than a shared family line or relationships that go back decades. You are adopted as sons and daughters of God and are made brothers and sisters in Christ. You are united with Him and with your fellow believers— even those you do not know. You now bear His name.

V. A Unity That Will Be Fulfilled in Glory Jesus concludes His prayer, asking, “Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am…” (v. 24)

Your unity in Christ will never be perfect. Even among brothers and sisters in Christ, there will be disagreements that divide and sins that separate. Living in that unity and love will require effort, conscious choice, and a great deal of God’s grace. At least for now. But the unity Christ gives now will one day be completed.

When we see Him face to face.

When all sin is put away.

When all who are in Him will be gathered as one before His throne.

And even now, we are taught to speak to God as “Our Father.” Not just because we are many speaking together—but because Christ is speaking with us. He invites you to join Him in praying those words. He is the eternal Son, still praying with you, for you, and in you. You never pray alone. 

Even in glory, the risen Lord does not forget your name. He intercedes still. He prepares a place not for a faceless crowd, but for those He has called by name.

Until that day, we walk together, pray together, suffer together, and rejoice together. Because the love with which the Father loved the Son is in you. And Christ Himself is in you.

Amen.

Benediction

Now may the God of peace—who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great Shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant—equip you with everything good that you may do His will, working in you that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. (Hebrews 13:20–21)