MARK 1:1-13
A PRAYER FOR ALL BELIEVERS
“ ‘My prayer is not for
them [the disciples] alone. I pray for
those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be
one.’ “ -- John 17:20-21a [NIV]
Jesus addressed this prayer
to the Father just after He had prayed for His disciples and shortly before He
was arrested on the eve of His crucifixion.
He expected them to carry the message of the gospel, and the prayer is
for those who would believe as a result.
Further, the prayer is for others through the centuries who would
believe as the gospel continued to be spread.
Thus it is even for you and me as 21st century
Christians.
The gospel has been spread by
the work of the Holy Spirit, of course, using human instruments. Parents have conveyed the message to their
children from one generation to the next.
And the church has taken the message to the world. The gospel is not to be confined within the
walls of the church but is to go out into the world as believers take the
message to others. This work is known as
“evangelism,” not necessarily in “tent meetings” but often in various other
ways as “repentance and forgiveness of sins [are] preached in [Christ’s] name
to all nations.” [Luke 24:47]
The prayer is also for the
unity of all believers, an ideal which has been difficult to attain in the
history of the church. Still, we are to
strive to “live in harmony with one another.” [I Peter 3:8]
Father, as the message of the gospel has been given to
us, help us to carry the message to others.
In Christ’s name, Amen.
~Louis Newton
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