His Prayer Includes Us

John 17:20–26

​20 “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21 that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— 23 I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. 24 “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. 25 “Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. 26 I have made you[a] known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them.”

Imagine someone praying for you, not because you asked, not because you are in trouble, but because they believe in the good that could come into your life. That’s what we find in John 17. On the night before His death, Jesus lifts a deeply personal and powerful prayer, not just for His disciples, but for everyone who would ever believe through them.
 
In Jesus' own words: “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message...” (v. 20.) That includes you. Even if you’re just starting to explore faith, Jesus had you in mind.
 
“...that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you.” Jesus doesn’t start with rules or religion; He starts with a relationship. His dream is a community so connected, so full of love and trust, that it reflects the very relationship between Him and God the Father.
 
When John Wesley began preaching in the open fields of England in the 18th century, people were drawn not by polished sermons but by the fire of love and community. Coal miners, poor farmers, and laborers came to hear a message that said: You matter to God. God hasn’t forgotten you. And they didn’t just hear it, they felt it in the way Methodists lived together: sharing food, teaching children, praying in small groups.
 
That kind of unity Jesus prayed for is not organizational, it’s relational. It's not about sameness; it's about belonging.
 
“Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me,” Jesus says that the way we love one another can help the world know God’s love. That means church isn't just about beliefs, it’s about how those beliefs shape our lives together.
 
Remember the woman at the well? She was isolated, ashamed, and avoided by others. But Jesus sat with her, listened, and offered her living water, a new beginning. He didn’t demand that she clean up her life first. He gave her dignity and hope. And that transformed her, so much so that she ran to tell others.
 
That’s what Jesus does, He meets us where we are and shows us that we are already loved. And when we realize we’re loved, we begin to love others differently, too.
  
“Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory…” “Glory” in the Bible isn’t just brightness or majesty, it’s the beauty of God's love and truth fully expressed. Jesus wants to share that glory with us. He wants us not only to believe but to belong and be transformed.
 
Charles Wesley, John’s brother, wrote over 6,000 hymns, many of them trying to express the beauty of God's love. In one of his most famous lines, he wrote: “Amazing love! How can it be that Thou, my God, shouldst die for me?”
 
This wasn’t just poetry; it was a testimony. People were singing their way into faith, into joy, into a sense that life had meaning again. That’s what Jesus is offering here: not a religion of fear, but a relationship rooted in love, unity, and joy.
 
Maybe today you're just curious. Or maybe you're tired of division, loneliness, or a life without clarity. This prayer from Jesus is your invitation. He says:

​•           You are loved as He is loved.
•           You are welcome in His community.
•           You are part of His vision for a better world.
 
The Free Methodist Church was born as a movement for freedom, freedom in Christ, freedom from slavery (yes, they were among the first abolitionists), and freedom for the poor to be included in the life of the Church. That same spirit is alive today, because Jesus is still praying this prayer over us: “That they may be one... and that the love you have for me may be in them.” (v. 26)
 
If you’ve ever wondered whether God notices you, this passage says yes. If you’ve doubted whether there’s a place where you belong, Jesus is building it, even now. Would you consider being part of that kind of community? We’re not perfect. But we’re trying to live this prayer of Jesus, one day at a time. And you’re welcome to join us on the journey.