All Episodes

July 7, 2025 17 mins
This message by Pastor Lonnie unpacks the often-overlooked “other prayer” of Jesus—the one He prayed the night before His crucifixion, found in John 17. Unlike the familiar Lord’s Prayer, this one is deeply personal and revealing. Jesus isn’t asking for safety or success for His followers—He’s asking for unity. Real, sacrificial, love-driven unity. The message challenges us to see that unity isn’t about agreeing on everything, but about being united in Christ. It’s not something we build, but something we protect. And when we live that out, the world sees who Jesus really is. Through humor, relatable stories, and honest reflection, this message invites us to live out the kind of love that makes the gospel believable.
Mark as Played
Transcript

Episode Transcript

Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:02):
We all know the Lord's Prayer, our father who are
in heaven. We say it often.

Speaker 2 (00:12):
It's comforting, it's obviously familiar, but technically.

Speaker 1 (00:22):
It really is the prayer that Jesus taught us to pray.

Speaker 3 (00:32):
It's really more like the Disciples prayer.

Speaker 2 (00:36):
But there is that other prayer, and I would claim
it as really the real prayer of Jesus, one that
actually comes straight from his heart. And it's often known
as the high.

Speaker 1 (00:57):
Priestly prayer of Jesus.

Speaker 3 (01:02):
And this prayer, this prayer.

Speaker 2 (01:06):
Think of it as a backstage pass to Jesus's soul,
especially right before things get really dark in his life.

Speaker 1 (01:25):
Literally he offered this prayer. It was the night.

Speaker 2 (01:28):
Before his crucifixion. And I would submit that if you ever.

Speaker 1 (01:37):
Wanted to know.

Speaker 2 (01:39):
What really really mattered to Jesus in his darkest time,
what was on his heart most of all, this is it.

Speaker 1 (01:52):
In the verses of that prayer.

Speaker 2 (01:55):
So I would give you, I would encourage you and
give you a little assignment to do on this low
Today is the day to relax and reflect on scripture.
Open your Bibles when you're home this afternoon to John
the seventeenth chapter and read this prayer of Jesus. You'll
notice there's three movements in the prayer. The first five

(02:19):
verses Jesus prays for himself, and in remarkable poetic language,
he talks.

Speaker 1 (02:30):
To the Father.

Speaker 2 (02:32):
About their relationship, their shared glory, their divine connection. And
then verses six through nineteen, in a longer section, Jesus
he's praying for those folks he's been in ministry with

(02:56):
that inner core.

Speaker 1 (02:57):
He's praying for his disciples.

Speaker 2 (03:02):
But then note the last section, verses twenty through twenty six.

Speaker 1 (03:09):
Guess who he's praying for you.

Speaker 2 (03:15):
He's praying for you here, for me, for us, Yes,
you and me, all of us.

Speaker 3 (03:26):
And that's the section of the prayer.

Speaker 2 (03:30):
I would like to unpack this morning, Jesus's final prayer.

Speaker 1 (03:40):
I'd like for us to first pause and take this in.

Speaker 2 (03:47):
Let's put this in the context and the setting that
he prayed it in.

Speaker 1 (03:50):
It's the night before Jesus dies.

Speaker 2 (03:54):
He knows what's coming, he talked about it. He knows
there was going to be the.

Speaker 3 (03:59):
Betrayal, the trial, and the cross.

Speaker 2 (04:05):
And I don't know about you, but if it were me,
I'd be praying something like.

Speaker 4 (04:13):
God, help me keep it together. God, keep me from
freaking out. God, could we.

Speaker 1 (04:24):
Just pass on our skip this pain part.

Speaker 3 (04:31):
That's probably how most of us.

Speaker 2 (04:33):
Would pray, realizing knowing what tomorrow would bring.

Speaker 3 (04:38):
But I want to underscore.

Speaker 2 (04:41):
Jesus is not praying for comfort, not at all. He's
not even praying.

Speaker 1 (04:51):
For his followers success or safety. What is he praying
for unity?

Speaker 2 (05:03):
I think that's a significant insight on the way of Jesus.
Let me read it to you again, Jesus, my prayer
is not for them alone. I pray also for those
who will believe in me through their message, 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.

Speaker 1 (05:25):
Believe that you have sent me.

Speaker 2 (05:28):
Jesus is correlating the unity of the church to the
ability for the world to believe the gospel. Not great
orchestrated creeds, but he's talking.

Speaker 1 (05:42):
About a posture of his believers.

Speaker 2 (05:45):
Being in one, I in them and you and me,
so that they may be brought to complete unity.

Speaker 1 (05:51):
Then, Jesus said.

Speaker 2 (05:53):
The world will know that you sent me and have
loved them even as you have loved me.

Speaker 1 (05:59):
That's a pretty powerful prayer. Isn't it.

Speaker 2 (06:03):
Let that sink in Jesus's final prayer, final prayer for us?
Was it for more money, better marriages, easier lives, or
even for success in the ministries of the church or
how we do church?

Speaker 1 (06:23):
He prayed that his church would.

Speaker 2 (06:27):
Be one, that we'd be united, that we love each
other like he and the Father loved each other, that relationship.

Speaker 1 (06:39):
He had with his father. That was his will for
his church.

Speaker 2 (06:44):
That's intense, really intense. It's beautiful, and honestly, it's challenging.
It is probably one of the most challenging things that
we are living in today. So I have to pose

(07:06):
the question for something that is very challenging.

Speaker 1 (07:09):
To where we live. Why does unity matter so much? Why?

Speaker 3 (07:18):
Well, first, let's get real about one thing.

Speaker 2 (07:22):
Unity is not about agree on everything.

Speaker 1 (07:30):
Don't confuse them.

Speaker 2 (07:34):
Mercedes and I are not on the same page about
a number of things.

Speaker 3 (07:38):
She's not here, so I can say that.

Speaker 1 (07:42):
In fact, she often say, well.

Speaker 3 (07:43):
I'm saying this, but Lannie may say something different.

Speaker 1 (07:46):
So she gives the disclaimer.

Speaker 3 (07:51):
I like meat on pizza.

Speaker 2 (07:54):
She says, that's a crime against humanity, and.

Speaker 1 (07:58):
She opts for the festivals. Oh my goodness. But we're
still united.

Speaker 3 (08:08):
We still love each other, and that.

Speaker 2 (08:12):
Love speaks louder than our differences. For unity is not uniformity.
Sometimes we feel it's got to be uniformity to get
at this unity. So it makes it really kind of
crazy here as we read it. What Jesus never said this.

(08:35):
Jesus never said I want you to be identical.

Speaker 3 (08:40):
Look around, We're not identical, are we?

Speaker 1 (08:42):
We kind of look different. He did say.

Speaker 3 (08:48):
Be united, and get this.

Speaker 2 (08:51):
Jesus says that our unity, our unity, is.

Speaker 1 (08:55):
How the world will believe in him.

Speaker 2 (09:00):
What is the number one reason for people saying I
don't want to have anything to do with the Church.

Speaker 1 (09:04):
Of the faith. They see how Christians get along.

Speaker 3 (09:08):
Our unity is how the world will believe in him.

Speaker 2 (09:17):
It's in the Bible, not necessarily are well orchestrated theology,
or are compelling arguments on social media, and not even
how our style of worship, our style of music is.

Speaker 1 (09:35):
So how do we.

Speaker 3 (09:38):
Keep unity?

Speaker 1 (09:42):
Now?

Speaker 2 (09:42):
Notice I use the word keep unity. I didn't say
the word how do we create unity? Because quite frankly,
unity itself has already been created. He died to make
us one, That's what was creating that's what we are
unified on Christ, Jesus and him crucified. Our job in

(10:07):
the arena of unity is not to create it, but
to protect it, to protect the dynamics of what that
unity can means. It means that we start by checking
our own hearts, not pointing fingers, not demanding that everyone

(10:29):
else gets it together, but being honest.

Speaker 3 (10:34):
And asking ourselves questions like well, where do I need
to grow or where am I making things harder?

Speaker 2 (10:46):
Ask yourself that question as we prepare to come to
the altar and receive.

Speaker 1 (10:53):
Christ through the sacrament.

Speaker 3 (10:55):
Of Holy communion?

Speaker 1 (10:58):
Where do I need to grow?

Speaker 3 (11:01):
Where am I making things harder?

Speaker 1 (11:05):
It means we admit we're not perfect.

Speaker 2 (11:07):
It means we accept people's differences even if we don't
agree with them. It means we forgive.

Speaker 1 (11:16):
When we're hurt.

Speaker 2 (11:19):
It means we keep our eyes on who we believe in,
underscore the who, not just what we believe in.

Speaker 3 (11:31):
Because if you think about it, unity is a who.

Speaker 1 (11:36):
It's not a what. It's a who.

Speaker 2 (11:41):
It's not about lining up on every issue, It's about
lining up behind the same person. We work together, and
we can be one together for the sake of the
one the Christ.

Speaker 3 (12:03):
That's unity.

Speaker 1 (12:07):
So what's.

Speaker 3 (12:09):
The take away this morning?

Speaker 1 (12:13):
Jesus is dying prayer, his dying prayer.

Speaker 3 (12:18):
His dying prayer.

Speaker 2 (12:21):
Was that we would be united, not for show or
some kind of Kumbai yah moment, but so the world
may know.

Speaker 1 (12:35):
Who he is.

Speaker 2 (12:37):
Okay, very simple, and they see how they can get along.
People gonna say, that's that is That is a paradigm
that I'm not seeing anywhere else in our world. I'm
not seeing that paradigm anywhere else. But in this organization
of Christ followers and the local church, they've learned something

(13:01):
that is intriguing and inviting.

Speaker 3 (13:06):
So here's some suggestions on some ways to begin.

Speaker 1 (13:09):
Okay, some practical things.

Speaker 3 (13:11):
Well, first start with yourself. Okay, you always have to
start with yourself. Unit begins with you. Examine your heart.

Speaker 2 (13:23):
Before you start pointing the fingers, Ask am I contributing
to unity or division?

Speaker 1 (13:34):
And then.

Speaker 3 (13:37):
Value people over opinions. We've messed that up somehow.

Speaker 1 (13:46):
Don't confuse agreement with unity.

Speaker 2 (13:49):
You don't have to think the same to love well,
and you can argue the point, but there's a way
where you can also love at the same time and
in the midst of that you're gonna find you're gonna
be in a situation where it will be necessary to
practice forgiveness daily.

Speaker 1 (14:09):
Yeah, be quick to forgive.

Speaker 2 (14:13):
Even when it is hard or inconvenient, and stay focused
on Jesus. Keep your eyes upon Jesus. I love that
song our common ground. Is it a political stance, It's

(14:36):
not a denomination, it's not a worship style.

Speaker 1 (14:44):
It's Christ. And let's keep.

Speaker 2 (14:47):
Him at the center, and in doing so, therefore be
a bridge, not a barrier. Look for opportunity, please, to
bring people together.

Speaker 3 (15:03):
And to encourage to serve and to show up.

Speaker 1 (15:10):
Would you please stand for prayer.

Speaker 3 (15:13):
Let us pray.

Speaker 1 (15:17):
God. We thank you.

Speaker 3 (15:20):
For giving us.

Speaker 2 (15:21):
A glimpse into Jesus's heart, especially on that final night.

Speaker 1 (15:30):
We're humble that with the cross just.

Speaker 2 (15:33):
Ahead, he chose to pray for us, not for our
comfort or our success, but for our unity. Teach us
to love each other even when we disagree. Teach us

(15:55):
to forgive quickly, to speak kindly, to serve selflessly, and
remind us that unity isn't about having the same opinions,
It's about having the same Savior.

Speaker 3 (16:17):
So Lord, when we're attempted to draw lines.

Speaker 2 (16:21):
Or build walls. Nudge us back to grace. When pride
creeps in, remind us that, well, you loved us first,
even when we were a mess.

Speaker 3 (16:38):
And when the world looks at us, let them.

Speaker 2 (16:41):
See something very different, something real, something.

Speaker 1 (16:48):
That only you can create.

Speaker 2 (16:53):
Make us one Lord, not for our sake, but so
the world would know who Jesus is.

Speaker 1 (17:02):
In his name, we pray ah Man
Advertise With Us

Popular Podcasts

CrimeLess: Hillbilly Heist

CrimeLess: Hillbilly Heist

It’s 1996 in rural North Carolina, and an oddball crew makes history when they pull off America’s third largest cash heist. But it’s all downhill from there. Join host Johnny Knoxville as he unspools a wild and woolly tale about a group of regular ‘ol folks who risked it all for a chance at a better life. CrimeLess: Hillbilly Heist answers the question: what would you do with 17.3 million dollars? The answer includes diamond rings, mansions, velvet Elvis paintings, plus a run for the border, murder-for-hire-plots, and FBI busts.

Crime Junkie

Crime Junkie

Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.

Stuff You Should Know

Stuff You Should Know

If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.

Music, radio and podcasts, all free. Listen online or download the iHeart App.

Connect

© 2025 iHeartMedia, Inc.