Jesus' Prayers for Us

🎯 Purpose

To get a new sense of Jesus’ vision for unity and mission, and to prepare their hearts for the Ephesians series by showing how Paul builds on Jesus’ prayer.

📖 Scripture Focus

Matthew 6:9–10 — Jesus teaches us to pray for God’s will to be done on earth as it is in heaven.

John 17:20–23 — Jesus prays for the unity of all believers, so the world may believe.

🔍 Visual Flow: “Your Kingdom Come…”

Matthew 6:9–10

John 17:20–23

So about 4 weeks ago we finished a short series on the idea of glory from scripture. And we read heavily from John 17, where John recorded a prayer from Jesus...before he went to the cross. Jesus’ heart for his disciples...for us...for His mission. It was about Love and glory. Today we’re going to look at that again but from a different angle. ....and for this reason.

If Jesus prayed for an outcome for us...it’s probably pretty important that we know what that is. And not only know it, but pursue it.

We can know this much, if He prayed for it, it’s important to Him. And we would honor Him, if we do our best to follow Him on His mission.

So its interesting that at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, there’s a prayer that he gives to us. We find this in the sermon on the mount, seems to be Jesus’ first very public, large, teaching about what He’s all about. Repent for the Kingdom is near...not far off, near. In these passages, Matthew (end of 4) but then 5-7, we find a section that your Bible might title the Lord’s prayer or something similar.

It’s a prayer He gives us. And it really isn’t a prayer to just recite...but its a prayer for our good, for our purposes as followers. So this is at the beginning....

John records a prayer of Jesus, one that takes a whole chapter in his book/gospel...John 17. These two prayers seem to me...to bookend Jesus’ mission. Which, if its His mission, its probably pretty important that we take a good hard look at it...at the words He uses.

Ephesians Series

The Prayer — Jesus teaches us to ask for heaven on earth

The Intercession — Jesus prays for unity as the strategy

The Blueprint — Paul shows how to live it out in community

🪜 Message Flow

1. Opening: What Are We Really Praying For? What are we really asked to pray for?

Matthew 6:9–13 CSB

“Therefore, you should pray like this: Our Father in heaven, your name be honored as holy. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do not bring us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.

“When we pray, ‘Your kingdom come, Your will be done,’ do we realize what we’re asking?

We’re asking for heaven’s reality to invade earth’s brokenness...darkness.

I think this could be said both...your kingdom in my life...and in the world....your kingdom come to me and to others.

For God’s priorities to shape our lives, our relationships, our church family. His Will....instead of....

That’s what we’re asking for.

...and that just makes sense doesn’t it? If we’re followers....if He has come and said “follow me,” we heard the call and answered...then it just makes sense that we should follow His will and not ours...for the purpose of His Kingdom....not ours....to come into this world.

We often recite the Lord’s Prayer without fully grasping its implications. It’s not just a spiritual mantra—it’s a radical invitation to participate in God’s mission. When Jesus taught us to pray for God’s will to be done on earth as it is in heaven, He was calling us to live as agents of transformation.

Illustration: A child writing a letter to Santa asking for world peace and a pony—cute, but not realistic. Sometimes our prayers are like that—well-meaning but disconnected from God’s actual mission.

Dad Joke: "Why did the prayer cross the road? To get to the other side of God’s will!"

Emphasize: “Jesus didn’t teach us to escape earth—He taught us to transform it.” ...in the here and now....and that’s what’s exciting. We are called to experience transformation and help others experience it too. Dying to ourselves to let Him, His will, His will to lead our lives.

So this prayer is not passive—it’s a commissioning. It’s a call to embody heaven’s values in our daily lives...and receive the blessings of Jesus grace in our daily lives...now...not sitting around waiting.

Illustration of a video that Micah sent to me the other day. Heaven here on earth...bring it. Come on bring it....through me. There was a girl who was in her car, recording herself...pretty animated. She started out by talking about the church...and how she was tired of some things. Everyone talks about waiting on heaven, can’t wait to get to heaven....and she seemed to struggle with that. She asked....”what about now?” I’d like some Heaven now. When I read in the Bible I read about transformation and help and miracles...now....like Kingdom come now...kinda stuff. Like let’s not wait around for Heaven...let’s let heaven come to earth now.

It’s interesting. Jesus prays this at the beginning of his ministry. The sermon on the mount. The sermon on the mount is so crucial to the start of His ministry. What he’s doing is this...explaining what a follower of Him, a disciple of Jesus, will look like, talk like, think like, sound like. ....

.....What a disciple will pray for ...

And when He says these things, they are less commands from a commander, they’re words of wisdom that lead to greater life...even here on earth...in brokeness and darkness...to push away the brokenness and darkness.

Jesus says...you can live like this now....with joy and peace and love and hope. Pray to bring the Kingdom now....through me. Use me. That’s a prayer right?

Do we pray like that? Expecting that God will use us in mysterious, incredible, joyful, ways. Sometimes battling through sometimes walking and laughing...

So that’s from Matthew...a shorter version is also found in Luke.

So then John writes a lengthy prayer that Jesus prays before His walk to the cross.

2. John 17: Jesus’ Prayer for Us

John 17:20–23 CSB

“I pray not only for these, but also for those who believe in me through their word. May they all be one, as you, Father, are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us, so that the world may believe you sent me. I have given them the glory you have given me, so that they may be one as we are one. I am in them and you are in me, so that they may be made completely one, that the world may know you have sent me and have loved them as you have loved me.

In John 17, Jesus prays for His disciples and for all who will believe in Him. This includes us.

His prayer centers on unity—not just agreement, but a deep, spiritual oneness rooted in the relationship between Father, Son, and Spirit.

Illustrations in the discipleship conversations I’m having....the church is being referenced....so it’s not just me...you, some of you are having influence in other peoples lives and I’m hearing 2nd person from friends...who are part of other church families...that you’re influence, through Jesus, is influential. You’re shining. God’s glory through you. Kinda what Jesus was praying for.

Jesus prays for unity—not just agreement, but oneness rooted in the Trinity.

Why? “So that the world may believe…” — unity is the witness.

Unity is not optional—it’s essential. It’s the strategy Jesus chose for reaching the world. When believers are united in love, purpose, and truth, the world sees a reflection of heaven. Heaven here....the Kingdom come.

Illustration: A symphony orchestra—many instruments, one song. When the church is unified, the world hears the music of heaven.

Dad Joke: The story is told of two men riding a tandem bicycle up a steep hill. After much effort, they  finally made it to the top of the hill. The front rider said, “That was a tough ride.” To which the second rider replied, “Sure was, and if I hadn’t kept the brake on we might have slipped backwards.”

Highlight: Jesus’ prayer is missional and relational. We need to be unified in our message and our purpose...and the best way to do that...is to give up our agendas and focus on Christ’s.

Jesus’ prayer reveals His heart for the church family...his followers....his disciples who are being reborn recreated transformed into His image. He longs for us to be one, just as He and the Father are one. One in hope and one in mission. One with the goal of the Father...

This unity is not uniformity—it’s harmony. It’s a diverse body working together for a common purpose. His will be done...through us...through me.

3. The Church as the Answer

Ask: “What if we are meant to be the answer to Jesus’ prayer?”

This question reframes our understanding of church. We are not just recipients of grace—we are participants in God’s mission.

Unity isn’t just a nice idea—it’s the strategy for reaching the world. Jesus prays that we can be “one” ...So THAT.… There’s a mission to us following Him… bending to His will… There’s a plan he wants us in....

Challenge: Are we living in a way that reflects heaven’s values? Are we embodying the will of God here and now?

The church is called to be a living testimony of God’s love and power (remember the girl /video illustration). When we are fractured, we distort the image of Christ. When we are united, we become a beacon of hope.

Illustration: A mirror that’s cracked can’t reflect clearly. When the church is fractured, the world sees a distorted image of Jesus.

Unity requires effort. It demands humility, forgiveness, and intentionality. It means reaching across divides and choosing love. Unity also requires boundaries...prayer that Satan and his ways and influence won’t cross over those boundaries. Determination that we won’t cross boundaries in relationships...with God and others....… go back into our will verses His will.

4. Lead-In to Ephesians

Next week we’ll be looking at....Labor Day....We’ll be looking at work and rest. I’m just going to say this...some of you might really need to hear this next week. Not that I have it all together....but I’ve learned...am learning...still about these things.

“In two weeks, we’ll begin walking through the book of Ephesians—a letter written to a church in a city not unlike ours. A place of spiritual confusion, cultural pressure, and relational fragmentation.”

Ephesians is Paul’s blueprint for becoming the kind of church Jesus prayed for.

It’s about identity, unity, maturity, and mission.

Paul begins by reminding the church of who they are in Christ—chosen, redeemed, and sealed by the Spirit. He then calls them to live in unity, to grow in maturity, and to engage in mission.

Invite the congregation to prepare by reading John 17 and Ephesians 1 this week.

Challenge: Let’s hear what Paul wrote many years ago...and see it for ourselves...for us our church family.

This series will challenge us to align our lives with God’s vision for the church. It will invite us to move from passive attendance to active participation in the family of God.

Church isn’t a piece of the pie. And I’ve actually had people outside the church kind of see us like that...they might respond to an invite with, well I’m so busy I can’t fit anything else in.

You know what...they might see the church acting like busy bodies...like that’s what church is all about...more calendar stuff, longer evenings, more meetings. That is not what Jesus calls us to. Jesus calls us to a rebirth. A new life. Now, might that change our calendar, our checkbooks, our agendas? Yeah...but for the good.

🧱 Closing Challenge

Pray: “Lord, make us one. Let Your will be done in us, as it is in heaven.”

Encourage reflection: “Are we becoming the kind of church that answers Jesus’ prayer?”

Challenge: This week, reach out to someone in the church you don’t know well. Invite them for coffee, lunch, or a walk. Practice unity.

Unity begins with relationship. It starts when we choose to see one another as family. It grows when we invest in each other’s lives.

Let’s be intentional. Let’s be prayerful. Let’s be the answer to Jesus’ prayer.

Pray for harvesters because the workers are few:.....

Matthew 9:35–38 CSB

Jesus continued going around to all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness. When he saw the crowds, he felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is abundant, but the workers are few. Therefore, pray to the Lord of the harvest to send out workers into his harvest.”

Let’s do this....AMEN!?