Did you know that Jesus prayed a prayer that hasn’t been answered yet? How can that be? Has Jesus given up hope of His prayer being answered? When the desires of our hearts are lined up with the will of God, our prayers will be answered. I believe Jesus was in the center of God’s will for Him, therefore the prayers He prayed WILL BE ANSWERED according to his desires.
But…Jesus is still waiting…patiently… for one very important prayer to be answered. In John 17:20-23 Jesus prays for you and me. It says,
I do not ask for these (11 disciples) only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word(all of us NOW), that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me.
Jesus prayed for you and me BEFORE He went to the cross, before He died for your sins and mine… It was His heart’s desire to have us to be united as one body of believers, showing the world HIS glory, so that the world would know that God sent Jesus and that God loves all of US as much as He loves His own Son. So, as long as we are still divided in our beliefs, religious activities and continue to hate other flavors of Christians, the enemy wins…Jesus has to keep waiting for his prayer to be answered. “Christians” (Christ followers) are standing in the way of Jesus’ prayers. That can’t be good. So Jesus waits on us.
The eternal fate of this world is on OUR shoulders. The world is our Battleground and the Word tells us it is ready to be harvested. I guess that is a mixed metaphor…the field is white with harvest, the battle is waiting to be WON. Jesus says to his disciples, this one from Matthew 9:37-38, “Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” Jesus was showing his disciples the plans the Father has for each one of us. Have you guessed what that plan is yet?
When sin entered the picture in the Garden of Eden there was one, singular NEED on this planet. We were separated from God by SIN and God put a plan in place to restore us to a right relationship with HIM. We were created for HIS GLORY, not our own. We do not have NEED for bigger, or better, or shinier. We have a NEED for a right relationship with God. (Ummm…did you notice that Eden and Need have the same letters? They are in the wrong order, much like our priorities…hmm)
In our reading Lisa says, “The current behavior of Christian cultures and communities has caused the inhabitants of the earth to question everything we stand for. Are we acting as though God sent his Son to save the lost world, or do we behave in a way that says it is all about us?” (p.56) Lisa challenges us to ACT like the answers to Jesus’ prayer. What better privilege can there be than to be considered an answered prayer for Jesus???? Are YOU the answer to Jesus’ Prayer??? I want to be. We are all gifts the Father gave to the Son. Jesus asked God for us and God granted him his deepest desire. Here are the same verses, but from the Message Bible: “Father, I want those You gave me to be with me, right where I am, So they can see my glory, the splendor You gave me, Having loved me long before there ever was a world.”
So Jesus ‘ heart’s desire was for the world to be united as one body, for one purpose, for eternity, by His side. How do we lay down the wrong thinking of tradition and religious behaviors and focus on the One who died for us? How do we show a godless world what a right relationship with Christ looks like? Since we found our mighty armor in the book of Ephesians, let’s look there for the purpose of our battle:
“In him we have redemption through his blood,
the forgiveness of our trespasses,
according to the riches of his grace,
which he lavished upon us,
in all wisdom and insight making known to us the mystery of his will,
according to his purposes,
which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time,
to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.” Eph. 1:7-10
Lisa asks us this question, “What might happen if we were one heart, one voice, one vision and purpose, one name, one kingdom, and one mandate to glorify Jesus? WE WOULD ONCE AGAIN WALK IN A WAY THAT OUR WEARY EARTH WOULD GLIMPSE HEAVEN.” (p. 57) I submit to you that we would become the answer to the prayer Jesus prayed at the Last Supper. We would be the fulfillment of his desire for the people of the world to become one under the Lordship of Jesus…and…dare I say it, “World Peace”. (Beauty pageant moment, sorry)
The Bible tells us in Matthew that “God blesses those who work for peace, for they will be called the children of God.” I want to be Blessed. I want to be His Child. Would you come and be my Sister??? Together we can show the world God’s plan for redemption. We can love one another no matter what Christian nametag we wear. We are in this battle together. The fields are white with harvest.
Let’s Pray:
Heavenly Father, I thank you for your perfect plan in Eden. I thank you for desiring a relationship with us to show us our Need. I thank you for providing the perfect plan of redemption so that we can be united with you for eternity. Father, I pray for each woman on this journey with us to continue to be united in faith and love, and show that love to others so that you might be glorified. We thank you for Peace. Peace that can only be found in you. Give us the strength and perseverance to harvest the fields, win the battles before us, and bring your peace to the world around us. We love you, Father. AMEN
Looking for my sisters,
Teresa
(The Harvester)
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About Teresa Bolme
A gift the Father gave to His Son!? The answer to Jesus’ prayer!? ME!? That is mind-boggling to me–and convicting. I pray that His Holy Spirit helps me to be exactly who He wants me to be, to bring oneness and peace. The exciting thing is that I’m not alone, I’m in this with each of you! May we be “the evidence of Christ in us” that the godless world is searching for. ONE in Christ, God’s plan for redemption! YES!
You…are an answer to Jesus prayer for this world. My what power and responsibility that brings. I am so glad to have met you on this path.
Wow!! Great blog today, Teresa! To think about being an answer to Jesus prayer, as Clella stated, is mind-boggling! But we must unite as ONE to make it happen. I pray the Holy Spirit does a mighty work in the hearts of all believers, to help us lay aside our selfishness and pride and unite under the Lordship of our Mighty Savior, Jesus Christ.
Me, too, friend. It is awesome to think that we are co-workers with Christ to see this prayer answered. You and I have a piece of the puzzle. We are a vital part of the body. Love you sis.
Teresa,
I love how you have expressed God’s love for us in your blog today! Your words have been a blessing to me!
Thank you, Ms. Tina. They were truly God’s words. I couldn’t remember them after I posted it. I couldn’t wait for it to come out to read what God said.
Is it crazy that these words bless my heart???? I truly received a revelation from the Holy Spirit concerning our place as a gift to Jesus from the Father. We are an answer to prayer if we unite with each other and stop fighting.
amen (so be it)! <3
What a tremendous answer to prayer you are, Coleen. Love you
by God’s grace! God and i love you, too, teresa! xo
Reminds me of the words in Esther: “whose to say we have not been brought into the Kingdom for such a time as this.” Do I ever want to be a co-worker with Jesus to see answered prayer. Great revelation you have there, Teresa, and very well said.
We are all placed in our own time to affect those lives around us for God’s glory. What we do now, in this time, will affect our children and their generation for years to come. We need to live it well.
“The eternal fate of this world is on OUR shoulders”… I love this, we need to take responsiblity and action. Great post!
Thanks for reading, T! We have an awesome responsibility. God chose us, Jesus wants us and we have a job to do.
You know that blog I shared with you the other night, when I was giving you excerpts of and telling what an awesome blog it was, and couldn’t wait for you to read it??? THIS IS IT!!!! (hehe)…. GREAT post Mama T!!! Truly Holy Spirit inspired!
Hmmm. Good stuff. The Holy Spirit totally speaks to my heart on this one.
Wow and amen!
Glad you stopped by Cher. You are a blessing.
yes, teresa, i am, and will be, your sister—made possible by God’s grace to us! Jesus’ great desire for unity is so simply expressed when He prayed, “that they may be one even as We are one, I in them and You in me, that they may become perfectly one….” there is NO DOUBT that God and His Son ARE one…so if we capture Jesus’ vision and desire and prayer, then we will BE one as They are. it is His Will…we need to get out of the way. <3
Amen.
I hope this gets through as I am sending it from my I phone. As I was reading this blog, I was asking myself how could this happen? It seems a daunting task for us as humans but we can’t do it on our own.The Lord has given us his sword,his spirit and as I looked at the picture most importantly we need to be connected and communicating with our LORD. We as Christians must be open to his leading so HE can orchestrate the oneness HE so desires for the purpose of SAVING the LOST!!! The LOST will be drawn by the oneness we have in CHRIST!
So true, Lorraine! Thanks for the reminder.
Absolutely! He draws us to Himself. We have to be willing to be used. We exist for his purposes.
Yes, you should feel the blessing from writing out of obedience, Teresa! These words are so powerful and so challenging. We need them more than ever in our lives. We need to pay attention and remember as noted above that the work has been done on the heavenly side. We have to use the tools/equipment He gave us to do the work on this side of heaven – to be one with our God and Savior and with each other. Thank you so much!
Yes, you should feel the blessing of writing out of obedience, Teresa! These are powerful and challenging words. As noted above the work has already been done on His side of heaven and it is up to us to use the tools/equipment He gave us to do the work on our side of heaven – to be one with our God and Savior and with each other. Knowing that Jesus was/is praying for us just gives me chills! That verse is definitely in my ‘favorites’ list now!!! Thank you!
Thank you for your words of wisdom and encouragement. <3
Sorry about the double post. I thought the first one didn’t load, but it bumped it up to early morning and mixed it in there! <3
Taking all your words and meditating on them…..very good word today. I have been encouraged by your words Teresa as well as each ladies comments. I needed this today! Thank you 🙂
You are such a blessing, Lannette. Thank you for your encouragement.
I was unable to comment when I first read this…very early in the morning and started my day with this thought…thank you: I have a HUGE NEVER ENDING NEED for a right, strong, loving relationship with God!! I need Him:) Thanks T for sharing:)