What Would Jesus Pray for You? | The Gospels | John 17:20-26
August 18, 2026
AI Summary
5 min readIn the hours before his crucifixion, Jesus prayed for future believers—people he would never meet on earth. The content of that prayer is surprising: he did not ask for their safety, comfort, or success. Instead, he prayed that they would experience unity with one another in the same way he experienced unity with the Father.
Tania Wilmouth, host of Ten Minute Bible Talks, opens the episode by contrasting her own natural prayers for her children—health, friends, wisdom, safety—with what Jesus actually prayed for those who would follow him. The difference, she argues, reveals something essential about the Christian life that is easy to miss when worry rather than vision shapes our requests.
What Jesus actually prayed
The passage is John 17:20–26. Jesus prays for "those who will believe in me through their message"—meaning everyone who would come to faith through the apostles’ testimony. The core of his request is that "they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you." He repeats the idea several times: "May they also be in us, so that the world may believe you sent me." And again: "I in them and you in me, that they may be made completely one."
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What you'll learn
- 1 (00:05) **Opening: The Problem with Our Prayers** - Tania introduces the episode and contrasts typical worry-driven prayers with what Jesus actually prays for believers.
- 2 (01:51) **The Passage: John 17:20-26** - Tania reads the key verses where Jesus prays for future believers to experience divine unity.
- 3 (02:41) **Point 1: Unity Is Empowered by the Father and Son** - The first lesson: Christian unity is a gift from God, not a human achievement.
- 4 (03:06) **Point 2: Unity Is Impossible Without Jesus** - The vertical relationship with Christ is necessary for true earthly unity.
- 5 (03:38) **Point 3: Unity Draws Others to God** - Experiencing Christian community reveals Jesus’ heart to the world.
- 6 (04:02) **Point 4: Unity Is Not Perfect All the Time** - Jesus prayed for unity because he knew believers would struggle with selfishness and distance from God.
- 7 (04:37) **Application: The Real Relationship to Fix** - The most important relationship to address is your vertical one with God, not just your horizontal ones.
+ Full timestamped outline available in the app
Show Notes
What did Jesus pray for his followers? Why is Christian unity so important? How can God's love change the way we relate to others? In today's episode, Tanya unpacks John 17:20-26 and explains why unity isn't something we manufacture, but something that flows from knowing we're already deeply loved by God.
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Passage: John 17:20-26
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