Jesus Prayed

John 17:20 – 26 “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21 that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— 23 I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. 24 “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. 25 “Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. 26 I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them.”

Did you know you have an advocate in heaven praying for you? Did you know he didn’t just start praying for you? Did you know he doesn’t just pray for you when you need something, he prays for you all the time? Did you know he prayed for you before you were even a thought?

We all need prayer for something, we all need healing for something, there is something each and every one of us is dealing with, whether it be physical, mental, psychological or emotional. In John 14:13 – 14 Jesus said, You can ask for anything in my name, and I will do it, so that the Son can bring glory to the Father. Yes, ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it! We can ask Jesus for anything, not for selfish reasons though, we ask so that the Father can be glorified. Our lives and everything we do should bring glory to God. When we can live our lives bringing glory to God, even in the down times, our lives can be so much better.

How much easier is it to go through something with someone else than alone? That’s one of the first things they tell you when you set out on a weight loss or fitness journey is get a partner, someone that’s going to hold you accountable and push you when you don’t feel like going; encourage when you when you want to give up and give you a kick when you’re just being lazy.

But even with all of the prayers we pray today, there was a prayer that was put on our account long, long ago, by God himself in the person of Jesus Christ. How many of you have ever put anything on account?

Let’s look at a bank account. To properly manage a bank account you first have to have money to open the account. You have to have something to start with. Once you open the account, they will issue you an ATM or debit card to access the account, and sometimes you’ll order checks to draw money from the account. Now here’s the tricky part and where a lot of people get into trouble with checking accounts. You can only draw out what you put in. If you open the account and make a $100.00 deposit, then that’s how much you have to draw out, but you have to be careful, some accounts come with fees,

- There may be monthly service fees

- There may be a minimum balance required or there will be a service fee, there may even be a penalty for going below a certain balance

- If you ordered checks, they withdrew money from your account to pay for those checks

- If you use an ATM that is not your bank’s, you may have to pay a fee for using another bank’s ATM and another fee from your bank for not using their ATM

You see how things can add up quickly and all of a sudden, you find yourself in an overdraft situation where you have spent more money than you had in your account. It can be a slippery slope and once you engage that slope it’s a hard one to not only navigate, it’s hard to get off, because when you overdraw your account, there are fees for that too. Whew!

But did you know you have an account in heaven? It’s a prayer account, and Jesus opened it for you before he left earth to return to the Father. It’s here in verse 20 when he said my prayer is not for them alone. Now the, “them” he’s referring is the disciples. You see when this chapter begins, Jesus is praying for the disciples who were walking with him, because he knew what was about to happen. He knew his time was drawing near to leave them and they were going to face the challenges of their lives and most would give their lives for the cause of Christ, and I mean die.

See when we give our lives to Christ today, it’s for us to live a life that’s pleasing to God, but back then, professing Christ could very well be signing your own death warrant and if not death, persecution. We don’t face that pressure today, so many people don’t feel the need to make that stand. Because we have soldiers that go to war and die to give us the right to choose whatever religion we want, to include none at all, many don’t feel a need to believe. But that couldn’t be further from the truth, now is exactly the time we need to be taking a stand.

Jesus prayed for the disciples,

- he said he taught them everything God had given him to teach them,

- he prayed for their protection from the evil one, that enemy who comes like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour; the one who only comes to kill, steal and destroy.

- he prayed for their full measure of joy, he prayed for their sanctification

- And now he’s sending them out into the world. But he didn’t stop there.

He didn’t just pray for them alone, he prayed for those who will believe in him through their message. Through the Word of God, through the Bible, this book inspired by God, penned by over 40 authors, this book that spans over 1,600 years, with it’s 66 books, yet and still fits perfectly together. This is the message that allows us to learn, and experience, and build our faith, and teach and do and believe and the list goes on. This message that makes us who we are today, the message that makes the promises of God available to us, today.

You see this message is a right now message, it’s not just one of history, it’s one for how to live today. How could something so old and written so long ago be relevant today you ask? Because we serve a God who transcends time and place to know exactly what we’d need, when we’d need it and how we’d need it. So Jesus put a prayer on our account.

And in that prayer he started with, that all of them may be one. You see we have to come together on one accord. How can we lead the world if we’re not united ourselves. How many of you will follow a leader who is disorganized and doesn’t appear to know where they’re going? Not many, from the youngest to the oldest we want leaders with organizational and leadership skills.

Leaders who have a plan of action and not fighting amongst themselves, whether it be for power, position or over a plan. Jesus prayed that we’d be one and He set the example, as He and the Father are one, the Father being in the Son and the Son being in the Father and he continued with we may be in them; John 15:5 –“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” If we are to be fruitful in this walk, we have to stay connected to the source, there are no solo performances. When we stay connected to the source, we can be on one accord, because God does not change. He’s not going to tell you something and tell me something that is in conflict with what he just told you.

Have you seen people go into a new church with something they say “God” told them to do, but it in no way, shape or form goes with anything that is going on in that branch of Zion? Then they get upset when the Pastor won’t let them set that plan or program in place. If it’s truly something God given, pray on it, wait on it, pray some more and if God gave it to you, He will show the Pastor. The question is, are you willing to wait on God to work it out?

One accord, it’s important to all be on the same sheet of music, not just singing the right notes, but the right words. This is how we get the world to follow us, when we’re all saying the same thing, when we’re all saying what thus saith the Lord. Not just with our words, but with our very lives. Amen?

We can’t just be believers, we have to be believable. If we’re not believable, how can we change a world. The goal is that the world will know that God sent Jesus to save them from their sins, and to teach them that he loved the world just like He loved Jesus. And how much was that. Well, God loved us so much that He sent His only begotten Son to die for our sins and Jesus loved us so much he

- took off glory and put on humanity,

- that he gave up his seat next to the Father to come through 40 and 2 generations and be born of a virgin

- that he suffered hunger, and cold and pain and abuse and doubt

- that he hung, bled and died on a cross

- Just so we could have the opportunity to choose life over death

- Just so we could be sitting here today listening to this message

- Just so we could have salvation and freedom and joy and love and peace and life and healing and deliverance and breakthrough and reconciliation and prosperity and abundance and hope and you fill in the blank.

What is it you need, what is it you want, God’s got it, my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus. What is you want, does it glorify God, or is it for your flesh? Come on you can ask, but ask wisely, James told us, “You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. 3 When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.”

How many times do we hear of people being killed over a pair of shoes or a coat or clothes or a phone? People taking a life over some inconsequential, meaningless, material thing that will be out of date in a year or less. Ask God for what you want, in Jesus name, but make sure it’s for the glory of the Lord and not your own pleasures.

This is not to say we can’t ask for things, God knows we need clothes, food and shelter and it’s ok to ask for nice ones, but what’s the motive? Jesus had a motive for the prayer he left on our account, it’s in verse 24 he said “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world.

Jesus wants us to be with him and what better place to be. To be with Jesus, the one who has prepared a mansion for us, see we can have nice things here, he’s got a mansion waiting for us in heaven and we don’t have to wait to get to heaven to experience all the good stuff, we can be blessed right here on earth. How many want to be blessed here. I do. And that’s ok God wants us to be blessed, in Psalm 23 David said, he makes me to lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside the still water, he restores my soul, he goes on to say my cup runneth over, it does that so we can bless others. It’s kind of hard to bless someone else when you don’t have anything to give and giving is not always about money. You can give of your time, your talent, your prayers, your service.

Just like God loved Jesus before the creation of the world, he loved you, before you were formed in your mother’s womb; God also knew and loved you before the creation of the world. Jesus knew we’d fall, he knew we’d fail and he knew we’d need a Savior. Jesus coming was not the backup plan; he was then and is now the only plan. In his own words Jesus said, I am the way the truth and the life, no man comes to the Father but by me.Sounds pretty sure to me. How about you?

Jesus continues in his prayer saying though the world does not know you, I know you and they know that you have sent me. The believers know, we who proclaim Jesus as the Lord and Savior of our life, those who have professed him as King, we know that God sent him and it’s up to us to let the world know. There are people in the world who still believe in the big bang theory or that the earth was created from some energy source. We have a job to do educating them that it was God who was there from before the beginning of time, who not only created this world and every living thing in it, but is still active in it and cares about what’s going on. He didn’t just make a world and leave us to our own devices, he is intimately involved in the happenings.

And the last thing Jesus says in this prayer that he’s left on our account is that He made God known to us. In other words, he showed us God when he came in the flesh and he will continue to make him known so that not only the love of God will be in us, but so that Jesus will be in us. So how is that possible? Through the Holy Spirit.

Before Jesus left, he told us he would send us a Comforter, And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Forever is a mighty long time. Jesus prayed a prayer for us that would last forever.

Oh I appreciate every prayer that has gone up and will continue to go up on my behalf, but knowing Jesus prayed for me takes it to a whole other level of gratitude.

- Do I have any grateful saints in the house this morning?

- Do I have any saints grateful for a Savior that knows what you need before you need it and has made provision for it?

- Do I have any saints that are grateful for a God who sits high and looks low

- Do I have any saints who are grateful for a God that is not a respecter of persons – he’ll bless you just like he blessed your brother or sister

- Do I have any saints who are grateful that he will perfect that which concerns you

- Do I have any saints who are grateful that his grace his sufficient

- Do I have any saints who are grateful for the activity of their limbs – you see when we’re at our lowest point not knowing how we’re going to make to tomorrow, we can look back and know that Jesus has already prayed us through this situation and be grateful.

- Are there any grateful saints in the house?

- Do I have any saints who are grateful that when we deserved justice, we got grace and mercy instead

- Do I have any saints who are grateful you weren’t an afterthought, that you were in the plan from the beginning

- Do I have any saints who are grateful that God has the master plan for your life?

- Do I have any saints who are grateful that God said he would never leave you nor forsake you?

- Do I have any saints who are grateful that his promises are yea and amen?

- Do I have any saints who are grateful that he’ll make the rough places smooth and the crooked places straight

- Do I have any saints who are grateful that he’ll prop you up on every leaning side

- Do I have any saints who are grateful that when you’re too tired to walk he’ll carry you in his arms -– better yet he’ll give wings like eagles to soar above your storm

- Do I have any saints who are grateful for a savior who would take your place on the cross

o A Savior who would pay the penalty for your sins – sins that meant sure death

o Sure damnation forever in the fiery pit of hell

- Are there any grateful saints in the house?

Jesus paid it all and all to him we owe. It’s a debt we can never repay because you can’t beat God giving, the more you give the more he gives to you. Just keep on living because it’s really true, you can’t beat God giving, no matter how you try.

Do you really understand what Jesus did for you?

Do you really understand the beating he took for you?

Do you really understand when he prayed this prayer for you, he knew what was about to happen and he still had the presence of mind to pray for you. To put something on your account, an account that could never be overdrawn. To fill up a well that would never run dry.

Do you really understand the horrible death he faced, but he did it for love. The next time someone says they love you, think about Christ and what he did on the cross for you and use that to measure if that person really and truly loves you. 1 Cor 13 tells you the dos and don’ts of love. We use that word love so freely, I love my car, my house, chocolate, but real love; Jesus showed us what real love looks like and that’s what we are to demonstrate to each other each and every day, they will know you are mine by the love you have one for another. Jesus showed us what real love looks like and that’s what we are to demonstrate for the glory of God.

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. Jesus not only told us, he showed us what love looks like. Love is an action. Can you say I love you without opening your mouth? Think about it, if you couldn’t use words how would your wife, husband, children, grandchildren know you love them? Those are easy, what about your neighbor? The stranger in thy gate, the person you see at the store or the homeless person on the street?

One way to show love is to feed those who are hungry. We are starting a food pantry on Aug 2. We can get 1,000 pounds of food for just $80 and distribute it to others for free. If you would like to partner with us to feed as many families in need as we can, right here in our community, go to our website at lovechristianctr.org, on our giving page and set your gift. $5.00 or $500, we appreciate it all and may God richly bless you for anything you may give.

Perhaps you’d like to volunteer your time to package and/or distribute the food, please go to our website on the “What’s Happening Page and sign up. The hours we need volunteers are on the page.

Jesus showed his love for you by giving all he had, his very life, now won’t you show your love for him.

If you’ve never made that public profession of faith, today is a good day. Tell Jesus you love him by giving your life to him, right now, the doors of the church are open.

If you’ve never accepted Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior I invite you to do so right now. Tomorrow is not promised, neither is today.

Christian Experience

Rededication