John 17:23. “I in them, and Thou in Me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that Thou hast sent Me, and hast loved them, as Thou hast loved Me.
Please go back and read v. 22 again, since 23 is really a continuation of Jesus’ thoughts and words in that verse. I’m going to take this one apart pronoun by pronoun. It is important that we understand to whom all those pronouns belong.
–I- This personal pronoun refers to Jesus Himself.
-in them- the disciples and all believers to come down through the centuries.
–Thou- the Father, God, Jehovah.
-in Me–Jesus
-that they may be made. . . .all believers
–perfect- this is not a pronoun, of course, but needs clarification. It means mature, complete.
-in one–“Jesus again referred to the living, organic unity He prayed would exist among His people. This isn’t the totalitarian unity of coercion or fear, and it isn’t the unity of compromise. Jesus prayed for a unity of love and common identity in Him.”
Guzik, Blue Letter Bible
-And that the world may know that Thou (the Father) hath sent Me (the Son) –the unity of believers, the love they show toward one another, would be such that unbelievers would see it as proof that Jesus was indeed sent by God.
-and hast loved them–unbelievers, loved by the Father and redeemed by the Son when they repent and believe.
-As Thou (the Father) hast loved Me (the Son)–this final line teaches us that God loves sinners just as He loves the Son He sent to save sinners.
Think on that.
Linda's Bible Study 