-  This prayer, shortly prior to Jesus' death, has been called Jesus' High Priestly Prayer, because he intercedes with God in behalf of the disciples, present and future.  It has also been suggested that this, rather than the "Our Father," should be known as the Lord's Prayer, because this is the prayer in which Jesus pours out his heart.  The "Our Father" would be better called The Model Prayer or The Disciple's Prayer.  Others refer to the John 17 prayer as Jesus' Last Will and Testament, because it represents Jesus' provision for the disciples on the eve of his death. Soffregen

- Here, in the afterglow of EAster, just before Pentecost, let us meditate upon the peculiar glory of Jesus and the peculiar glory that he calls us to bear.  Willimon

-As Jesus prayed, he was teaching the disciples and us about the importance of Christian unity.

-And this time the Lectionary committee gets it just right in pairing this Gospel prayer of Jesus with the last fervent prayer petition of all of scripture: "Maranatha! Come, Lord Jesus!" These final words of Scripture from Revelation, in which Jesus assures us that he is coming soon,  are also addressed to a people of God who find themselves in moments of great tribulation at the hands of the Roman Empire.

- Al three scriptures have something to say about the dangerous world in which we live.

-Unity does not mean sameness. It means similarity of purpose, of intention, of allegiance and of behavior towards one another. It means accepting. For those who believe, it means gathering under the canopy of creation and being part of a great singleness of purpose  Rev. Anthony Jewiss

-Jesus Christ, who calls us to unity greater than the sum of our selves. It is a unity made both possible and perfect by the extravagant and abundant love of God.Rev. Anthony Jewiss

-"The unity that prevails when God, Christ, and believers abide each in the other has as its primary purpose the evangelization of the world" (Craddock, 270).

           We produce happiness but joy is a by-product of our relationship with God//Jesus

           We have deep feelings for people but agape is a by-product           "             "

           We  produce temporary peace but real peace       "          "                    "

           We produce religion but faith is a                   "              "               "

-Advocates of the ecumenical movement cite these verses to justify their work.

-"They Will Know We Are Christians"
   We are one in the Spirit, We are one in the Lord
   We are one in the Spirit, We are one in the Lord
   And we pray that unity may one day be restored, (to refrain)
              
   Refrain
       And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love,
       Yes they'll know we are Christians by our love.
 

- An understanding of "being one" is that we are all equal to one another.

-  There is no virtue in community or unity in or of itself.  Think of the herd mentality of people during war time.

-We recognize an old truth-the greatest differences in the world are never between people who believe different things, but between people who believe in the same things and differ in their interpretation.

-Relationships are both horizontal and vertical

-One of the qualities of love - true love  that is - the love of Christ - is that it is self-limiting

-  A part or apart?

- Unity is diversity. The part s may not look alike, perform alike but all work towards same end.

- The whole message of Christianity is about relationship

-"There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all" (Eph.4:3-6)

-  Invisible threads are the strongest ties

- Attitude towards self parallels all relationships.

-  Takes less energy to pigeon hole people than to know them in their own right

-Questions related to this are: "Are we to wait for God to perfect our unity?" or "Has our unity already been perfected by God and God is waiting for us to realize it?" What are the roles God plays in creating our unity? What are the roles we need to play in creating (or actualizing) that unity?