Why Jesus Prayed For His Disciples
Notes
Transcript
Handout
for quite some time now we have been working our way through John 13-17 in our gatherings around the Lord’s Table
of the 4 Gospel writers John alone records in great detail the heart of our Lord toward His bewildered disciples
knowing that He was about be restored to His former glory through His death and resurrection Jesus was deeply concerned for His dearly loved friends
although His suffering was inevitable and His victory certain Jesus knew His disciples were very unstable, frightened, worried, anxious, and likely to fail
listen to Jesus’ warning to His disciples,
“Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.”
Because Jesus passionately loved His disciples, He prayed for them.
this was very appropriate because among other things,
Prayer is an expression of love.
in Jesus’ prayer we find Him voicing His inmost thoughts and feelings about the 11
knowing their weakness and sin it is a marvellous confirmation of His profound love for them!
over and over again Jesus expresses how dear they are to Him
remember that the Father knew Jesus’ heart so Jesus wasn’t telling Him what He didn’t already know
Jesus knew He loved them, the Father knew that Jesus loved them, but the disciples were struggling to understand how Jesus could leave them
in light of this Jesus spoke this prayer in their hearing for their comfort and encouragement
they needed to know how much He loved them and He wanted them to know it!
There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.
vv. 6-10 gives the reason for Jesus’ prayer
Jesus prays for His disciples because they had been given to Him by the Father
vv. 11-19 we find Jesus’ requests for His disciples
I Have Manifested Your Name
I Have Manifested Your Name
in Jesus’ prayer to the Father for His own glorification He declared the knowledge of God to be eternal life
And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.
this knowledge is obviously more than mental assent but a deep, intimate relationship rooted in love and expressing itself in worship and obedience
Jesus follows up on this in v.6 with the source of that knowledge, Jesus, and of those to whom it is given, the disciples
The Revealer of God
The Revealer of God
the revealer of God is the Lord Jesus Christ
this begs the question, to whom does Jesus reveal the Father
we have our answer in,
“I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world. Yours they were, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word.
manifested: make visible and clear
Jesus says, “I have manifested, made visible, made clear, Your name”
God’s name is God’s character, all that God is. (Ps 9:10; 20:7; 22:22)
And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you.
Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.
I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will praise you:
to help us understand the fullness and richness of the name of God let’s consider the names given Him
Yahweh = everlasting, self-existent, the source of all that exists, the uncaused cause
Jews refused to pronounce because it was considered too holy
the only time it was pronounced was by the High Priest and then only once a year on the Day of Atonement
Jehovah = a mix of the consonants of “Yahweh” and the vowels of “Adonai”
Jehovah Jireh = the Lord will provide (sacrifice of Isaac)
Adonai = Lord, Master
Rock (defence, protection)
El Shaddai = Lord Almighty
El Elyon = Most High God
Jehovah Nissi = The Lord my Banner (celebrating defeat of Amalelites)
Jehovah-Raah = The Lord my Shepherd (Ps 23)
Jehovah Raphah = The Lord that Heals (warning of covenant)
Jehovah Shammah = the Lord is there (name of city of God in Ez)
Jehovah Tsidkenu = the Lord our Righteousness (when God saves His people in Jer)
Jehovah Mekoddishkem = the Lord who sanctifies (reason for keeping Sabbaths and statutes)
El Olam = Everlasting God (Abraham called on God)
Elohim = God
Qanna = jealous (God pictured as Israel’s husband)
Jehovah Shalom = the Lord is peace (Gideon’s altar celebrating deliverance)
Jehovah Sabaoth = God of hosts
Jesus’ revealing God was more than just His words, His teaching and preaching
All that Jesus was and did and said revealed the person and nature of the Father.
compare to v.4
I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do.
sums up all of Jesus’ ministry including the cross (in Jesus’ mind the cross was an already accomplished work so certain and sure He was of His self-sacrifice and resurrection)
other ways in which Jesus revealed the Father
And whoever sees me sees him who sent me.
according to Isa 53:2 Jesus had “no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him” so it wasn’t Jesus physical appearance
listen to what Jesus says a little further on in,
Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?
Jesus connects Philip’s being with Jesus and through that constant association and observation knowing Him
Philip and the rest of the disciples witnessed how Jesus conducted Himself in every area of His life and ministry
As the disciples were with Jesus they were able to see God, (Col 1:15; 2:9; Heb 1:3)
so Paul says,
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.
For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily,
and finally the writer to the Hebrews says,
He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,
Jesus so perfectly revealed the person and nature of God that He said,
I and the Father are one.”
Apart from the Lord Jesus Christ, there is no saving knowledge of God.
All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.
having looked at the Revealer let’s consider the Recipients
The Recipients of the Revelation
The Recipients of the Revelation
since Jesus is the “revealer”, to whom does He reveal the knowledge of God?
“I have manifested your name to the people whom You gave me” - a reference to the disciples
“gave” has the idea of granting a request
Jesus asked the Father for the disciples and they were given to Him as a gift
they were given to Jesus, by the Father
they belonged to the Father and were taken out of the world and given to the Lord Jesus
the disciples, as with all believers, are a love gift from the Father to the Son (2, 9, 24)
The first thing we are told about the disciples is that they were given to Jesus “out of the world”.
the world:
The world is that system that is under the control of Satan, motivated by the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh and the pride of life. (1 Jn 2:16)
the world system is focused on satisfying lusts and gratifying desires
what the bible says about it:
chokes the Word (Mt 13:22)
tempts to sin (Mt 18:7)
hates Jesus (Jn 7:7 - He testifies it is evil)
cannot receive the Spirit of truth (Jn 14:17)
hates Jesus’ disciples (Jn 15:18-19; 17:14; 1 Jn 3:13)
rejoiced at Jesus’ death (Jn 16:20)
does not know God or those who belong to Him (1 Cor 1:21; 1 Jn 3:1)
enslaves the unbeliever (Gal 4:3)
is not worthy of believers (Heb 11:38)
to be friends with it is to be an enemy of God (Jas 4:4)
it is full of corruption (2 Pet 1:4)
it defiles (2 Pet 2:20)
it is passing away along with its desires (1 Jn 2:17)
The disciples, as with all believers, are no longer a part of that system. (Col 1:13; Eph 2:1-2)
He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son,
And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—
Disciples are overcomers. (1 Jn 5:4-5)
For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?
Disciples guard themselves against the world. (James 1:27)
Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.
Paul tells us how,
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
you are either being conformed or transformed and the key is what you are doing with your mind
what do you think about most?
what is having the greatest impact on your thoughts, your desires, your dreams and goals?
how this is done
I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.
this is total surrender, on the altar, ready to die in the worship of God
Jesus described it as,
take up cross and renounce everything (Lk 14:27,33)
seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness (Mt 6:33)
the disciples were taken out of the world system which is under the control of Satan and were brought into the Kingdom of God
they were taught by the Lord Jesus Christ with the purpose of sending them into the world as His messengers, His witnesses
their high calling: to testify to Christ
The second thing we are told about the disciples is that they belonged to God.
Jesus hinted at it when he said “whom you gave” but then comes right out and says, “yours they were”
they belonged to God
they were His possession
here we come to the nub of Jesus’ deep, loving concern for His disciples and all believers
it is the main reason He prays for them
apart from God they are not worthy of intercession but because they belong to God and were given to Jesus and believe His Word Jesus intercedes for them
“yours they were”
tells us why Jesus knew the Father would fulfill all the promises He had made in chapters 13-16 and the requests of vv.11-19
before their conversion, before they met Christ, before they were married, before they were born, before they could say, think or do anything, even before the creation of the world, they were chosen by God, they were loved by God and thus set apart by Him for salvation
according to Eph 1:4-5 they were chosen before the foundation of the world and in love predestinated to adoption as sons and daughters
Before they existed their names were written the Book of Life. (Php 4:3; Rev 13:8; 17:8; 20:12,15; 21:27)
having chosen them before time, the Father promised to give them to the Lord Jesus, who in turn committed Himself to redeem them by giving His own life for theirs
Jesus considered them so precious a gift He was willing to sacrifice His life in order to save them and receive them as His own
their worth then comes not from anything in themselves but from God who chose them
we are precious to Christ because God chose us and gave us to Him
“they have kept Your word”
kept = guarded - to watch over, not to lose it, not to violate it, not to let anyone tamper with it
they obeyed God’s word
they delighted in the Word of God (Ps 1:1-3)
Obedience cannot be separated from salvation. (Php 2:12-13)
Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.
Obedience is a mark of genuine saving faith. (James 2:14-26; Eph 2:8-10)
the message of James: “faith without works is dead” (Jas 2:14-26)
does not earn or merit salvation but is the sure mark of true saving faith
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
Obedience in the New Testament is a synonym for faith! (Jn 3:36; Acts 6:7; Rom 1:5, 16:26)
Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.
(see also Acts 6:7; Rom 1:5, 16:26)
Obedience is a mark of love for Christ. (John 14:15,21,23-24; 15:10,14)
“If you love me, you will keep my commandments.
(see also John 14:21,23,24; 15:10,14)
God keeps those who obey Him. (John 17:11)
And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one.
God guards them, protects them, preserves them (John 17:11-12,15)