“Sanctified for a Mission” (John 17:13–19)

Series: “John: Life in Christ’s Name” #93Text: John 17:13–19

By: Shaun Marksbury Date: November 17, 2024

Venue: Living Water Baptist ChurchOccasion: AM Service

Introduction

Now that we are past the presidential election, much of the news is concerned with presidential appointments. Imagine if you were appointed as an ambassador to a foreign nation. You might have some places in mind, but as a good representative, you would remember not to get too comfortable. This is because you don’t represent yourself or the interests of that people — you speak and act on behalf of this country. Your mission is not to assimilate into that culture, but to faithfully represent the interests of this one.

As Christians, Scripture describes us as ambassadors for Christ (2 Cor. 5:20). Though we live in this world, the Lord’s transforming gospel means that we are not of it. Our sanctification sets us apart — not to isolate us, but to equip us for the mission of representing Christ’s truth. This doesn’t just refer to foreign mission fields, but the one right here. We represent a better country, and we must remember that this is ultimately not our home.

Sanctification is a foundational truth of the Christian life. In John 17, we see Christ praying for His disciples; in the verses we just read, His prayer reveals that His disciples are sanctified. This means they are set apart for God’s purposes.

In this passage, we learn how this sanctification equips us for the work Christ has entrusted to us. As such, we’ll note three aspects to Christ’s prayer. We are sanctified by the word for Christ’s mission (vv. 13–14). We are sanctified from the world for Christ’s mission (vv. 15–16). We are sanctified by the truth for Christ’s mission (vv. 17–19). Let’s consider the first of these.

First, We Are Sanctified by the Word for Christ’s Mission (vv. 13–14)

But now I come to You; and these things I speak in the world so that they may have My joy made full in themselves. I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.

In the previous verse, Jesus said, “While I was with them, I was keeping them in Your name which You have given Me; and I guarded them and not one of them perished but the son of perdition, so that the Scripture would be fulfilled.” He kept His disciples safe. Yet, in v. 13, Jesus says He’s returning to the Father.

It’s here that Jesus says he is speaking to the world. That is, as one study notes, “Jesus prayed aloud (v. 1) so that His words would comfort the apostles when they remembered that Jesus gave them into His Father’s keeping.” He is not praying privately here; He is praying for the sake of His disciples.

So, He references His joy. Christ’s joy is a defining mark of this sanctification for our mission. Remember that joy isn’t fleeting or circumstantial but is rooted in the victory Christ has over the world and the assurance of eternal life. The true source for joy is in Jesus Christ, for He has joy He experienced even at this hour of betrayal.

This is the joy He supernaturally shares with His disciples. We can translate this that He wants this joy “fulfilled in themselves.” To be clear, this joy can change everything about ourselves, including how we handle personal conflict. For instance, consider how Paul uses this terminology in Philippians 2:1–4

Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose. Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.

Just as Jesus willingly sacrificed Himself for us, we can consider the interests of others as higher than ourselves, thus making the joy of the Lord full in our hearts.

Speaking of that, in verse 14 here, we read of the cost of this sanctification. Jesus says, “I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.” Jesus taught them the words of the Father. By receiving God’s Word, the disciples have been called out of the world and transformed.

Jesus says that this results in the world’s hatred. He had said in John 15:19, “If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you.” The world only loves its own.

This is an important point for us. Jesus says twice — here and in v. 16 — that we are not of this world. Sometimes, we think that we are. This comes out when we enjoy everything unbelievers enjoy and fail to hate what God hates. We think and talk like people of the world do, rather than how Scripture directs us.

As one study notes, “As believers share Jesus Christ, ‘Everything in the world — the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes, and the boasting of what he has and does’ (1 John 2:16) loses its attractiveness. A believer’s commitment shows the world’s values to be trash or dung (cf. Phil. 3:8). Therefore the world hates the exposure of its sham values (cf. John 3:20).” We are to be separate from the world in this way.

This separation should not lead us to despair. Yet, we sometimes would rather see ourselves taken from this world so we don’t have to navigate all its tensions and temptations. This is what Jesus addresses next.

Second, We Are Sanctified from the World for Christ’s Mission (vv. 15–16)

I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.

This prayer challenges two extremes in the Christian life: isolation and assimilation. We might be tempted to retreat into some monastic seclusion, or to even wish for death before our time. We also might want to conform to worldly patterns rather than biblical ones.

Daniel and his friends faced this (Dan. 1–2; 4–6). They were taken from their homes and had to dwell in pagan Babylon. Yet, they did not simply conform to everything there. Instead, they remained faithful witnesses to the God of Israel. Similarly, our Lord calls us to be in the world but not of it, even in the midst of opposition.

This is where Jesus’s prayer for us is so important. He prays for our protection and even deliverance out of the power of the evil one. This follows the Lord’s prayer to “deliver us from evil;” we are protected from Satan by the sanctification of the Lord. As another study notes, the devil “seeks to destroy believers (1 Pet. 5:8), as with Job and Peter (Luke 22:31, 32), and in general (Eph. 6:12), but God is their strong protector (12:31; 16:11; cf. Ps. 27:1–3; 2 Cor. 4:4; Jude 24, 25).” The evil one rules this world, but Jesus has delivered us from the power of this world.

Jesus emphasizes our calling in verse 16. He says, “They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.” The NET Bible renders the second half of this verse as “just as I do not belong to the world.” The Father set His Son apart, and like Christ, we have been set apart. This, again, is sanctification or consecration — being set apart for a purpose.

Again, our sanctification is not for personal piety alone. Rather, it is for the advancement of God's mission. We see that clearly in our final point today.

Third, We Are Sanctified by the Truth for Christ’s Mission (vv. 17–19)

Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth. As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. For their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they themselves also may be sanctified in truth.

When we talk about sanctification, we are usually speaking of both positional and progressive categories. Positional sanctification occurs when God sets us apart for Himself at the moment of salvation (cf. 1 Cor. 1:2). Progressive sanctification is the ongoing work of the Spirit, conforming us to the image of Christ through His Word (Eph. 5:26–27). This sanctification happens through the truth of God’s Word.

Yet, neither of these terms are exactly in view here! Jesus said in John 15:3, “You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.” So, this isn’t talking about their positional cleansing.

This is a passage more about mission. That is yet another sense in which the Lord sanctifies or sets us apart. We should be holy or removed from the world’s hold. We shouldn’t employ worldly methods or thoughts while we are on mission. A church, for example, should not look to the success of McDonalds to see how to grow its numbers (as one church growth book suggested). Christians should not adopt worldly philosophies and methodologies for their mission. They must be as biblical as possible.

This is not to say there is nothing the world has to offer us. We use electricity and gas from this world. We have a building here. We might see some helpful truths around us that God has revealed as part of general His revelation to mankind. However, Christians are to see Scripture as the real source of truth. That way, we can be sure that we are doing God’s will, not Satan’s.

In verse 18, Jesus ties this sanctification directly to mission. He says, “Just as You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.” This is the verbal form of the word “apostle,” and just as Jesus’s mission was to bring salvation, He now sends His disciples to proclaim that message.

This is something we see later. In John 20:21, Jesus says, “Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” Jesus was the apostle of God the Father, and He sent out His apostles in turn, which includes all His disciples to varying extents.

This gives us a basis for Christian missions. We must look to Christ and how He conducted Himself first and foremost. While Jesus came working miracles, it was to affirm His message — a message we must echo. In Mark 1:14–15, we read, “Now after John had been taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’ ” If we are not proclaiming repentance from sins and belief in Christ for salvation, then we are not going properly.

In fact, consider just how much this is settled on Christ. In verse 19, Jesus declares, “For their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they themselves also may be sanctified in truth.” Here again, we see Christ engaging for a particular group (elect believers), referring to His consecration as both priest and a sacrifice. A priest would present the sacrifice of the people before the Lord to atone for their sins, but Jesus will fulfill both roles. His work on the cross secures our sanctification and empowers us to live out our mission.

As a result, Christians can say they are sanctified “in truth.” Not in “the truth,” but “in truth.” In this case, this means “truly” or “really.”

It is based on Christ’s work. This means that our mission may not always be pleasant — it may be painful at times. Just within the work, though we should take care of our families, we may not spend as much time with them as we desire. We may have to give up personal free time to go talk to someone about the Lord. We may have to move. We will have to sacrifice our pride and desires for the good of the mission, which is not always an easy decision to make.

Conclusion

We are ambassadors of Christ. The sanctification of Christ’s disciples is a powerful testimony of God’s work in the world. We are set apart by the Word, from the world, and by the truth for a mission that reflects Christ Himself.

What are some ways that we can apply this? First, embrace the joy of sanctification. Jesus prayed for His joy to be made full in us (v. 13). So, meditate on the truth that our sanctification brings us into deeper communion with Christ and fills us with the joy of His victory.

Second, stand firm against the world. The world’s hatred is not a reason for fear but evidence of our calling. We should, however, consider how we might be thinking like the world and get rid of it. We should look to Scripture so we can replace worldly thinking with biblical thinking’ as Paul reminds us, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Rom. 12:2).

Third, commit to the mission. Sanctification is not merely for personal holiness. It is for the sake of the gospel. Ask yourself: How can I actively participate in the mission Christ has given me?

Let us live lives that reflect this calling, filled with joy, grounded in truth, and devoted to proclaiming the gospel to a world in need.

“These verses (14 to 19) picture the Master’s ideal for believers and go far towards explaining the failure of Christians in winning the world to Christ. Too often the world fails to see the difference or the gain by the change.”

“As He always did, Jesus prayed consistently with the will of the Father. He asked the Father to do what He had predetermined in eternity past to do—to pour out His love, grace, mercy, and power on those whom He had chosen and given to Jesus. It is on that basis that Christ appealed to the Father to protect and secure the disciples. Guarded by the Father, interceded for by Christ, and indwelt by the Holy Spirit, these men, along with the apostle Paul (1 Cor. 15:8), would provide the solid foundation upon which all believers in the ages to come would rest (Eph. 2:20).”