Jesus Prays for His Disciples
The Prayer or Jesus • Sermon • Submitted
0 ratings
· 13 viewsNotes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
gives us the longest prayer of Jesus recorded in the Bible. It has been called the High Priestly Prayer. Jesus prays a short prayer for Himself , prays for His disciples, then He gives a prayer for all believers. Today as we look at the middle section of this prayer, we are reminded that even in such a prayer, Jesus is teaching us that God is revealed, God reigns, and God redeems, restores, and rectifies through sanctification.
What a beautiful presentation of these ideas in this passage! Listen carefully ore read along with me from .
“I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world. They were yours; you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word. Now they know that everything you have given me comes from you. For I gave them the words you gave me and they accepted them. They knew with certainty that I came from you, and they believed that you sent me. I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, for they are yours. All I have is yours, and all you have is mine. And glory has come to me through them. I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name—the name you gave me—so that they may be one as we are one. While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled.
“I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them. I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.
John 17:6-19
The first thing that I see Jesus teaching us through this section of His prayer is that God is revealed.
God is Revealed
God is Revealed
“I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world. They were yours; you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word.
John 17:
As Jesus prays for His disciples, we see here that Jesus says “He has revealed You to them.” Of course He is praying to God the Father. Here, a better translation is “I have revealed your name to them.” In the Old Testament the Jew knew the unpronouncable name YAHWEH that was translated to Jehovah, the great I AM. We see this in :
Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?”
God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ”
Much is revealed in one’s name. God has identified Himself as I AM.
Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.
Jesus takes the sacred name I AM and helped the disciples be able to understand better who He was. In we see Jesus saying to His disciples I am the Bread of Life.
He had revealed that God satisfies our basic needs.
Jesus teaches His disciples in that He is the Light of the world.
John
When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
He had revealed that God can show the way.
Jesus teaches in that He is gate for the sheep.
He had revealed that God has provided access to His holiness through Jesus.
Jesus teaches in that He is the Good Shepherd.
John 10:11He had revealed that God provides atonement and protection for His people who are His sheep.
“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.
He had revealed that God provides atonement and protection for His people who are His sheep.
He had revealed that God provides atonement and protection for His people who are His sheep.
Jesus teaches in that He is the resurrection and life.
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”
He had revealed that God was going to provide victory over death and give life everlasting.
Jesus teaches in that He is the way, the truth and the life.
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
He had revealed that God had provided a way to live.
Finally, Jesus taught His disciples that He was the true vine they could only bear fruit if they were attached to Him.
John 15:5
“I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.
He had revealed that true growth comes only when one is connected to the vine.
So when Jesus prays to His Father “I have revealed Your Name to them,” we can see it is a bit more than “Disciples meet my Father, Father meet my disciples.”
Jesus revealed the Name of the Lord to His disciples and He also revealed the Word of God.
For I gave them the words you gave me and they accepted them. They knew with certainty that I came from you, and they believed that you sent me.
“I have them the words you gave me.”
He who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me.
We are so fortunate to have the teachings of Jesus on our Bible. We can study passages like this and examine our lives as we strive to be more like Jesus teaches us to be. As we study more of the teachings of Jesus, we can practice the truth of that says:
Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?
The next teaching we can see in the prayer is that Jesus shows the fact that God reigns.
God Reigns
God Reigns
All I have is yours, and all you have is mine. And glory has come to me through them.
Jesus shows in His prayer that everything belongs to the Father. As a result of God’s reign and the fact that He owns everything, we are reminded of His great power. We see this proclaimed in the oldest book of the Bible:
“Dominion and awe belong to God;
he establishes order in the heights of heaven.
Job
In his great power God becomes like clothing to me;
he binds me like the neck of my garment.
Job 30
We recognize this in the Psalms.
God reigns over the nations;
God is seated on his holy throne.
Psalm
The Lord reigns, he is robed in majesty;
the Lord is robed in majesty
and is armed with strength.
The world is firmly established;
it cannot be moved.
Your throne was established long ago;
you are from all eternity.
Psalm
Psalm 146:
The Lord reigns forever,
your God, O Zion, for all generations.
Praise the Lord.
We learn in other Scripture that acknowledging God’s reign brings God glory.
Yet he saved them for his name’s sake,
to make his mighty power known.
Psalm 106
with a mighty hand and outstretched arm;
His love endures forever.
Jesus says that the disciples have brought glory to Jesus. What a remarkable and encouraging statement. The less than perfect disciples have brought glory to Christ! Wow, if they can, then I believe we can as well. We are able to do so when we trust Jesus as our Savior which acknowledges His work and honors what He has done. Glorifying Jesus like the disciples showed, is more than just trusting in Him. It is allowing Him to be manifested in our lives as our Bread of Life, our Light of the World, and our Good Shepherd. We are made in the image of God and we should be showing others just that!
Max Lucado writes in his book UNSHAKABLE HOPE,
Children have a tendency to say, “Look at me!” On the tricycle: “Look at me go!” On the trampoline: “Look at me bounce!” On the swing set: “Look at me swing!” Such behavior is acceptable for children.
Yet many adults spend their grown- up years saying the same. “Look at me drive this fancy car!” “Look at me make money!” “Look at me wear provocative clothes, use big words, or flex my muscles. Look at me!”
Isn’t it time we grew up? We were made to live a life that says, “Look at God!” People are to look at us and see not us but the image of our Maker.
This is God’s plan. This is God’s promise. And he will fulfill it! He will make us into his image.
Jesus in a way is praying for His disciples to grow up in their faith. As we allow God to make us in His image, we are redeemed, we are restored and we are rectified through a process called sanctification.
Yet many adults spend their grown- up years saying the same. “Look at me drive this fancy car!” “Look at me make money!” “Look at me wear provocative clothes, use big words, or flex my muscles. Look at me!”
God Redeems, Restores, and Rectifies Through Sanctification
God Redeems, Restores, and Rectifies Through Sanctification
Isn’t it time we grew up? We were made to live a life that says, “Look at God!” People are to look at us and see not us but the image of our Maker.
John 17:
Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.
This is God’s plan. This is God’s promise. And he will fulfill it! He will make us into his image.
Sanctification is the process of a person who is daily growing in the Word and as a result is separated more and more from the world and getting closer to the Father. Jesus prayed specifically that the Father would separate His disciples from worldliness and dedicate them as well as equip them for His service.
The disciples of Jesus were and still are equipped with the Word of God which is truth.
O Sovereign Lord, you are God! Your words are trustworthy, and you have promised these good things to your servant.
2 Samuel
Psalm 119:142
Your righteousness is everlasting
and your law is true.
And we also thank God continually because, when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as it actually is, the word of God, which is at work in you who believe.
God’s word is the main way in which we are sanctified.
This concept is very important to you and I. This prayer that Jesus gives for sanctification includes three requests.
First, Jesus is asking God to confirm the work of sanctification in them, strengthening them through and through. Secondly, as states, “that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” Carry on the good work and continue it! We are to become lights that shine more and more. Thirdly, we are to complete it. Jesus even prayed that He might be sanctified.
For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.
John
Jesus designates Himself to the work and office of Mediator. He gave His all. He became the priest and the altar, presenting Himself and the sacrifice.
He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption.
Because of Christ sanctifying Himself, He has cleansed His disciples from sin, separated them from the world, and has set them apart to be used as witnesses in the world. Guess what? In the next section of the prayer, we can see the Jesus did that for you and me also!
We don’t have to wait until next week to hear the rest of the story. Let’s ask some questions of ourselves right now.
Is there evidence in your life of being sanctified?
Are you living a life right now that shows Christ in you to the world?
If you cannot say yes to either of those questions, what do you need to do to change that right now?