The 17:23 Initiative is a call to prayer, pure and simple. It is a call to take on the Father's heart for a united church, a call to join our Lord in His prayer for the unity of all believers. The single focus of The 17:23 Initiative is this: asking our heavenly Father to answer Jesus' passionate prayer for reconciliation and unity within the body of Christ.

The church has attempted for centuries to win the world to Jesus, just as it has tried in many times and places to come together in Christian unity. But only God can give us this unity of the Spirit in our midst that will convince the world that God sent the Lord Jesus and that He loves them. When that unity takes place, the Great Commission to preach the gospel of the Kingdom to all the nations will soon be accomplished, and then the Lord will return.⁽²⁾

This prayer is the only recorded prayer of Jesus for the whole church through the ages, for "those also who believe"⁽³⁾ because of the preaching of the gospel. In this short prayer that was offered up for us, Jesus has asked the Father three times for one thing - our unity. Because souls are His passion, our unity is His passion. He said He would so build His church that it could batter down the very gates of hell to set the captives free.⁽⁴⁾ He prays for us even now.⁽⁵⁾ Shall we not join Him in asking the Father for our unity here on earth? ⁽⁶⁾

The 17:23 Initiative is a growing fellowship of Christians who believe that God not only wants to answer Jesus' prayer, but that He will answer it - because it is according to His will and His heart's desire.⁽⁷⁾

Footnotes:

2. Matthew 24:14, Matthew 28:18-20
3. John 17:20
4. Matthew 16:18-19
5. Romans 8:34, Romans 11:2, Hebrews 7:25-26
6. Matthew 6:9-19
7. 2 Peter 3:9, 1 John 5:14-15