Unity: As Jesus prayed for the twelve, so He also prays for all believers for all time. He prays for our unity, but not merely the unity of harmonious interpersonal relationships (Eph. 4:2-3) or of our mission (Phil. 1:27), but the unity of our character. We are to be one even as the Father and the Son mutually share their divine character. We are to share in the communicable attributes of God in Christ. Indeed, as Christ is in us (Gal. 2:20), God dwells in us (17:23) and the glory of the triune God is manifested in us (17:22; 2 Cor. 3:18).[1]

Salvation of the world: The heart of God has always been to redeem sinners and shower His blessings upon them. This purpose of God goes back to Abraham when He promised that all the nations of the earth[2] would be blessed through his seed, the Messiah (Gen. 22:18). Out of this heart of God[3] Jesus called sinners to faith, repentance, and reconciliation with God, so that they might know the salvation blessing and the joy of God (John 15:11; 17:13). It is toward this end that Jesus prays for the godly testimony of His people. He prays for the character of God to shine through us, so that through our likeness to the Lord the world would come to true conversion.[4] As the apostle Paul won souls through his godly conduct (and proclamation!), so we are to reach souls and make disciples in the same way.[5] The God-ordained means of reaching the lost are His sanctified and useful people (2 Tim. 2:21).

[1] Even as 2 Cor. 3:18 shows, all of this is mediated by the Spirit of God (John 14:16-17, 20; Rom. 8:9-10).

[2] Jesus’ prayer for the world is for God’s elect in the world. Cf. Matt. 22:14; John 6:37, 44, 65; 15:16; Acts 13:48; Rom. 8:28-30; 9:16; Eph. 1:4; 2 Thess. 2:13; 2 Tim. 1:9; 1 Pet. 1:1-2.

[3] Cf. Matt. 9:37-38; Luke 5:32; 15:7, 10; 19:10; John 10:14-16.

[4] To believe and to know that the Father sent the Son (17:21) refers to the saving faith of the apostles. It echoes 17:8, “truly understood [lit. knew] that I came forth from You and they believed that You sent Me.”

[5] Cf. 1 Cor. 4:16; 11:1; Phil. 3:17; 1 Thess. 2:10; 2 Tim. 2:10, 21; 3:16-17; 1 Pet. 2:5, 9, 12.