“I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; 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. And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me” (Jn. 17:20-23).
The prayer of Christ for unity among believers cannot be taken lightly. It is essentially a command to men; as a servant may say to his master, “Your wish is my command.” How is this unity achieved?
Truth is the only way to have real unity among believers. John wrote, “But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another…” (1 Jn. 1:7). To walk in the light is to walk in the truth (cf. Jn. 3:19-21; 2 Cor. 4:3-6). Therefore, those who walk together in truth honor Jesus’ prayer for unity.
Steven F. Deaton
