When Jesus Prayed For You

Introduction

Oftentimes, it is our job to take that which is spoken and done and the Bible, and apply to our lives in this modern age.

While the Bible is most definitely relevant, there are things different from the age of Christ to modern age that should be taken into consideration.

Very rarely, do we find many times that the Bible, or Christ, points us out specifically. We do here.

Consider how amazing it is that you and I are connected to this change of spiritual children, connecting all the way back to Christ, Himself.

So what does Christ say about us, specifically?

I want to look at three things.

Faith is Unremarkable

Foundation of Unity

Force from Unity

Faith is Unremarkable

Which shall believe on me through their word.

The Frankness in Christ’s phrasing

Beforehand, Christ is all about “The Word,” belonging to God.

But now, He says that it is through the word of the apostles, and the disciples that others are saved.

We are the product of someone telling us the Gospel.

We know that “faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” But it doesn’t have to be in the form of Scriptures.

People are saved by people testifying that God sent His Son, and he died on the cross and He rose from the grave. And it’s not KJV.

It is the Word of God, whether it be the Scriptures or the Word incarnate in Jesus Christ, that impacted the apostles and they saw it, beheld it, and in their own words and experience, they go forth and tell people of it, which brings forth salvation.

Why do I say all this? To stress that faith is unremarkable. There is nothing to our idea of faith.

When we say “I need more faith.” What do we mean?

We mean to say, “I need to believe more.”

But believing more or less does nothing.

We say we are different than any other religion, and why is that?

It is the object of our faith that makes all the difference.

Can a buddhist say “I need more faith,” and it do anything for them?

Should a Muslim cry out to Allah for more faith, and expect much difference?

So why should we expect to be different?

Again, it is the object of our faith.

The Faith in Christ makes the Difference

Which shall believe on me

The difference in our religion is that “it just so happens” that our faith is validated by our God. That’s it.

But then, that should make all the difference in our faith.

Examples to prove.

What good does looking at a brass serpent do? Nothing, but the fact that the Word of God came to Moses saying there was authority in the brazen serpent. The eye looking on the serpent did nothing, but the virtue that God appointed to that serpent did.

Although Christ, Himself, said “Thy faith hath made thee whole,” it was not the woman touching that healed and saved her, but it was the virtue that proceeded from Christ, that which He made note of, because he knew, that saved and healed her.

The problem of “faith.”

So to uphold this idea of “faith;” that “faith” makes a difference, I think hurts us more than it does good.

It keeps us in the mindset, still, that we can make a difference in our own salvation, that we can impact it. This ultimately keeps us relying on ourself.

It keeps us stuck, searching in our hearts.

If we continue to search within our hearts to figure out this faith, we might as well be akin to woman seeking the empty grave looking for Jesus. Then the same question could be posed to us. “Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here, for He is risen.”

So if it is Christ only that can save, then that alone invigorates our faith. Christ is what we hold on to. Christ is what we lay on for our support.

This is what gives us assurance.

If our assurance is in our faith, then we stand on shaky ground.

But if our assurance is in Christ, how can we fall?

We are saved if we believe on that which is told us of Christ. Whether it be us reading the Bible, or someone coming and telling us of Christ coming from God and dying for our sins. However it may be, it is faith in Christ alone that saves us.

This also means, though, that we have no excuse to not share if we are saved. What is the best excuse to come up with to not share. “I don’t know my Bible well enough.” The Roman Road is nice, but this Scripture shows that we don’t even have to know Scripture to share the Gospel. If you have a personal experience of Christ saving you, then you can use your own words to give the report to other people…which is sad that that may be scarier to some of us, than regurgitating Scripture to someone.

Our salvation is in Christ alone.

Foundation of Unity

That they may also be one in us.

Such a Strong Connection

If it is truly Christ alone, then that means our connection with Him should be that much stronger.

Looking to Christ and having fellowship with Him is what it’s all about.

To keep in context, fellowship with Christ is to be above fellowship with each other.

The direct Scripture is - read first part of verse 21.

If we don’t fellowship with Christ, there’s no point in fellowshipping with one another.

And if this be the case, then there’s not much point with church.

Because if we are to be one, then it is in Christ and God.

So fellowship with God through Christ is absolute priority, above all.

Then, fellowship with each other follows.

And fellowship is strengthened because of the source.

Our unity can only come from Christ. So what are we doing with anything else?

Fellowship ought to be founded upon nothing but Christ.

And anything but is a reflection upon our personal fellowship with Christ.

Important to note that He says they may all be one.

I know not what all this entails, but I know a few.

One mind, one vision/mission, one message. Sounds kinda like a Head. Holds the mind, the eyes, the mouth.

If there be any confusion in the church, it reflects the Head.

Our supposed Head is the picture of perfection. So can it be His fault? We’ve been running around headless.

For practicality’s sake, can we be one in all things?

No, we are different socially, politically, leisurely, ethnically, etc.

But we should be the exact same spiritually.

That means less of the other stuff, and more of the only One that can bring us supernaturally together. Christ.

Such a Strange Copy

As thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee.

Have you ever wondered at the difference of the Trinity?

When I pray, am I speaking to God or Jesus?

Did God create the world? Did Jesus?

Was it Christ performing the miracles? (John 14:10)

There’s a lot of confusion to the separation of the Trinity. Isn’t it amazing how that is a testament to the unity that the Father, Spirit and Son have one with another? It can’t be comprehended, and God knows that.

Yet, that’s the exact same unity that Jesus is comparing us to.

Wow. How far we are from what He’s talking about.

When Cornelius came and bowed to Peter, he confused Peter with being the one whom he should worship.

When Paul and Barnabas went to Lystra, they worshipped, thinking they were gods Jupiter and Mercury.

I’m not saying this should be our goal. Peter quickly corrected Cornelius, and Paul and Barnabas rent their clothes over the confusion. But what I am saying is that it is a testament to the unity they had with God.

When was the last time someone got us confused with God? Clarify.

We are to be carbon copies of one another.

I am to be an ambassador of Christ wherever I’m at, and I should say the same things, show the same love, and show the same power that you do in your area of witnessing.

We are to be carbon copies of our Lord.

To get back to it, fellowshipping and transforming into more like Christ is what it’s all about.

Understand, when Jesus went to have perfect communion with His loving Father one last time before He had to get up and face that dreaded cross, when He could have prayed for justifiably selfish prayers, He took time to pray for us specifically; and in that prayer He made two requests: that we may be one, and that we be with Him where He is (verse 24).

Christ’s desire for us, one of His only desires, is that we be joined together as one unit: with one Gospel, one Lord, one mind, one mission, one heart. One Christ whom we worship. It can only come from Christ, and when it does it is so unnatural that it can’t be denied.

Force from Unity

That the world may believe that thou hast sent me.

The Power of the Church

To further this point of unity and the abnormality of it, Christ is the only way we can be unified, but our unity is the only way that He can be seen in today’s world.

Christ is the power of the Church. All is vain in our church if Christ not be the tie that binds us.

We are a powerless church if we don’t allow for Christ to be the head.

But if He be the tie that binds us, if He truly is our head, then we are a church with power.

Matthew 28:18 - All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore...

The power is in Christ. And we have no business going therefore, if He’s not our bind, if He is not really our leader.

As stated in my last sermon, what’s the point of a company keep selling defective product when they’re just going to have to recall it later.

And if Christ isn’t our power, then there’s no point in being a church, and a church to shares Christ for that matter.

The Proof of Christ

But if we be one in God/Christ, then we are the only way people can see Christ.

I think Christ phrases this last phrase for a reason.

First, it could be synonomous with “believe on me.” But it also is different to show the unity of the Son and the Father. That they are one in the same and operate similarly and differently at the same time.

Next, I think it is to show the undeniability of Christ within the realms of reality.

When Jesus came to earth, most people could not deny He was sent from God.

Nicodemus received Christ later, but he spoke on behalf of the majority of the Pharisees knowledge that Christ was sent by God.

The fact that Nicodemus came in fear by night shows that people cannot deny that Jesus is sent from God and yet have the capabilities to still not believe on Him.

But the fact that Nicodemus could not deny that Christ was sent by God aroused his curiosity and he had to find out, which led him to trust on Christ later.

When Jesus provoked the apostles confession by asking whom people said Jesus was, every report showed that everyone knew He was sent by God, although they did not believe He was the Son of the Living God.

Just because we are the living proof that Christ was sent from God does not mean that everyone will believe and get saved.

But it will force them to deal with the matter at hand. No matter what they choose.

The best form of witnessing is seen in the church, and it’s not even audible. It comes from the supernatural unity given to us through our fellowshipping with Christ.

When Christ prayed His last expressed intimate prayer, he broke for a moment from the issue at hand and put it upon us. In that prayer, He in essence prayed that the Gospel work may continue in us. And that can only come through trusting in Christ and having a personal relationship with Him, and letting that relationship effect our relationship with each other, to the point that the outside world, whether they accept or reject Christ cannot deny that Christ was sent by God. And if we fail at our fellowship with Him or our fellowship with each other, we fail the Gospel ministry.