April 26

John 17

Jesus prays that the Father will make His disciples fruitful and give them future glory.

INSIGHT

The mark of a Christian should be love. In Matthew 22, we read that the two greatest commandments are love for God and love for our neighbor. In John 13:35, Jesus says, “By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” In John 17:21, Jesus says if Christians have unity (based on love), the world will believe that Christ was sent from God. When our badge is love, the world is convinced that we are genuine disciples of Jesus, rather than hypocrites.

PRAYER

In the words of this psalm, offer your praise to the Lord, who is patient with us when we doubt:
It is good to give thanks to the Lord,
And to sing praises to Your name, O Most High;
To declare Your lovingkindness in the morning,
And Your faithfulness every night…
For You, Lord, have made me glad through Your work;
I will triumph in the works of Your hands…
To declare that the Lord is upright;
He is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in Him (Psalm 92:1-2, 4, 15).

Pray this confession to the Lord as you seek to keep your life free from sin:
The Lord is merciful and gracious,
Slow to anger, and abounding in mercy…
As a father pities his children,
So the Lord pities those who fear Him.
For He knows our frame;
He remembers that we are dust (Psalm 103:8, 13-14).

Confess any sins that the Holy Spirit brings to your mind.

Now pause to pray this affirmation to the Lord:
I am the living bread which came down from heaven.
If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever;
and the bread that I shall give is My flesh,
which I shall give for the life of the world (John 6:51).

As you make your requests known to the Lord, pray for:

• Others to see Christ in you
• Laborers for the harvesting of souls
• Your activities for the day
• Whatever else is on your heart

Finally, offer this prayer to the Lord:
Blessing and glory and wisdom,
Thanksgiving and honor and power and might,
Be to our God forever and ever. Amen (Revelation 7:12).