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{Prayers of the New Testament} ~3

A PRAYER OF JESUS - 

Praying for Christian unity_ 

 

[Group discussion starter] When were you tempted to neglect relationships and focus on something else? What are the kinds of things you find yourself focusing on to the detriment of the people around you? 

 

Jesus' prayer in John 17 for his disciples and for all the disciples who will follow after reminds us of the importance of relationships between believers – and invites us to make that a topic of prayer as well... 

 

[Read John 17:1-26] 

 

How do you think you would have felt as one of the disciples listening to Jesus' prayer? 

 

 
What two main concepts do verses 1-5 focus on? 

 
What do you learn about both of these concepts from Jesus’ words? 

 

 
In verse 3, what do you think Jesus means by the word know in his definition of eternal life? 

 

 
What two requests does Jesus pray for his disciples in verses 11, 15 and 17? 

 

Why do you think these are the two requests that Jesus makes? 

 

If you were to pick one of these prayers to pray for yourself, which one would it be and why? 

 

 
In verses 20-26, Jesus shifts his focus to those who will believe through the disciples’ message, which includes Christians throughout all time, including today.  
What is Jesus’ central concern in this part of his prayer? 

 
Why is that his central concern? 
 

 

In these verses, Jesus states directly what he wants. When you pray, is it easy or hard for you to state directly what you want from God? Why? 

 

 
How is oneness between Christians related to oneness between Jesus and his Father? 

 

 
According to verses 20-26, in what ways is Jesus essential if a person wants to know God the Father? 

 

 
If Christians, all over the world, prayed verses 20-26 regularly, what do you think might be the outcome? 

 

 
What are the situations in your family, bible study group, church community or country, for which you might pray for unity and love among Christians? 

 
How might God want to use you to help bring about that love and unity? 

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