John 17: The Lord's Prayer

No, not that Lord's Prayer!

Jesus' prayer for His followers (including us) takes up the entirety of chapter 17.  Some of the aspects of this prayer that I really enjoy include:

• Jesus' emphasis on His relationship with the Father prior to Creation.  This is stated in 17:5 and 17:24.  (It reminds me of the C.S. Lewis chapter "Deeper Magic From Before the Dawn of Time" in "The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe.")  We are once again reminded of Jesus' divine nature.
• How the relationship between Jesus and the Father will extend into the lives of the disciples themselves, bringing us all together as one.  This unity is prayed about in 17:21, 17:23 and 17:26.
• The definition of eternal life given in 17:3 - "Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent."  Beautiful!
• Jesus' desire that we be one.  He is concerned that His followers exhibit a spiritual unity that reflects the unity of the Trinity.  All of this is for the sake of our Christian witness: "May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me."

What speaks to you in this chapter?