Read: John 17:20-26
Key verse: “that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.” (John 17:21, NKJV)
It is the night before Jesus is arrested. He prays for his disciples, and for everyone who will believe in him through their word (verse 20). That includes us. What does he ask for us? That we be one, as the Father and the Son are one.
That is not a request for an organization, or for agreeing about everything. Jesus speaks of sharing in the life of the Father and the Son: “in Us.” And he says why: so that the world may believe the Father sent him. Earlier in the same prayer he also asks that his followers be sanctified in the truth (verse 17). Unity without truth is not what he means.
Reflect: What would someone who does not believe think of Jesus, seeing how we treat each other?
Prayer: Father, You hear what Jesus prayed for us. Make it true, and let us be part of it. Amen.