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Several oxen saw vicious wolves coming for their baby calves, so they formed a circle to guard them. But a single ox broke rank and the rest of the oxen scattered and fled. This left the baby calves unprotected, and the wolves came in and ate them all up. This true story illustrates a principle Jesus left us. In John’s Gospel, chapter 17, he records Jesus’ high priestly prayer for his disciples. Jesus begins by making it clear that the way to have eternal life is by knowing the Father and knowing Him who came from the Father. Jesus then prayed for His disciples and us. He prayed that the Father would protect us from the evil one; that God would sanctify us by setting us apart from the evil values of the world; He prayed that we would one day see the glory He shared with His Father; and significantly, He prayed that we here would unite in unity and love. God will ultimately answer Jesus’ prayer. Yet due to our failure to show love and unity today, some people reject the Christian message. Some turn to atheism, other religions, and human philosophies. Jesus calls us to genuine love and unity among ourselves. This includes love and unity that embraces other racial and ethnic groups. As we do this, our gospel message will be more convincing to unbelievers.
