John 17
The Gospel of John • Sermon • Submitted
0 ratings
· 97 viewsNotes
Transcript
v 1a) Introduction
v 1a) Introduction
Prayer is one of the foundations of the Christian life. There have been so many great prayers throughout Scripture: Solomon’s in 1 Kings 8, Abraham’s Genesis 18, Moses’ Exodus 32, yet by far this is the greatest prayer recorded in our Bible.
We call this prayer the High-Priestly prayer.
This would be Jesus’ final prayer with His disciples. Giving an account of His earthly mission to His Father. He starts with prayer for Himself (vv. 1-5), then for His disciples (vv. 6-19), finishing with later believers (vv. 20-26).
“The whole prayer is a beautiful illustration of our blessed Lord’s intercession at the right hand of God. Not a word against His people; no reference to their failings, or their shortcomings… No. He speaks of them only as they were in the Father’s purpose, as in association with Himself, and as the recipients of the fulness He came down from heaven to bestow upon them… All the Lord’s particular petitions for His people relate to spiritual things; all have reference to heavenly blessings. The Lord does not ask riches for them, or honours, or worldly influence, or great preferments, but He does most earnestly pray that they may be kept from evil, separated from the world, qualified for duty, and brought home safely to heaven. Soul prosperity is the best prosperity; it is the index of true prosperity” -Marcus Rainsford
Have you heard a true man or woman of God deep in prayer?
There is something holy, wholesome, and awesome about it. That is what we find here in this prayer, between Jesus Christ and the Father.
This is the only long, continuous prayer of Jesus recorded in the Gospels. The sentences and words are simple, but the ideas are incredibly deep, moving, and meaningful.
“There is no voice which has ever been heard, either in heaven or in earth, more exalted, more holy, more fruitful, more sublime, than the prayer offered up by the Son of God Himself.” - Melanchthon a collaborator with Martin Luther
True and genuine prayer reveals a person’s innermost being.
What we get here, again, is an unique opportunity to see the nature and heart of Jesus.
There are many of the same concerns found in the Lord’s Prayer in this prayer also.
9 In this manner, therefore, pray:
Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
10 Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts,
As we forgive our debtors.
13 And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.
What are some of the correlations you guys see?
Prayer is repeatedly directed to God the Father.
There is recognition of the concern for God’s name.
There is concern for the work of the kingdom of God.
There is concern for keeping from evil.
What are some differences you notice?
This is not a prayer of an inferior to a superior. In this prayer, constantly there is seen a co-equality of the Speaker with the Father.
Do you really want to have your mind blown?
The Two have but one mind… Where the Son speaks He is not seeking to bend the Father to Him: rather He is voicing the purpose of the Godhead.
The NT tells us that Jesus has an ongoing, present work of intercession for His people:
34 Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.
25 Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.
“lifting His eyes to heaven:” This posture is not what we usually associate with deep prayer. Here in the west we often bow our head and close our eyes. this is striking a customary posture of prayer:
1 To you I lift up my eyes,
O you who are enthroned in the heavens!
34 And looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, “Ephphatha,” that is, “Be opened.”
13 But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’
This really is beautiful. After finishing up supper, Jesus’ public ministry is coming to an end, and nothing remaining for him to do but die. Jesus gave himself wholly unto prayer. He was not going to instruct the multitude, or heal the sick, and in the interval which was left to Him, before dying of the cross, He prepared himself for a special time of intercession. He poured out His soul in life before He poured it out unto death.
One more point about this posture it also indicated that Jesus looked up in a hopeful sense and was not gloomy or downcast in this prayer. This is actually a prayer of faith and confidence, even victory- all the while acknowledging the reality of the conflict.
He had just uttered these words:
33 I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”
Jesus made no mention of his problems of the decisions He must make. His heart and mind were fixed on the highest things, pledging Himself to the absolute fulfillment of God the Father’s will no matter what the cost, so that eternal life could come to others.
v 1b) Jesus asks to be glorified
v 1b) Jesus asks to be glorified
We’ve read many times so far in this gospel that Jesus’ hour had not yet come. His enemies had been unable to kill Him. But now the time had arrived for the Lord to be put to death.
Why is Jesus asking to be glorified?
He was looking ahead to His death on the cross, If He were to remain in the grave the world would know that He was just another man. But if God glorified Him by raising Him from the dead, that would be proof He was God’s Son and the world’s Savior.
Jesus also set an example for us here too. In all times of tribulation let us fall back upon our adoption into the family of God. After all who better to go too?
Jesus prayed first for Himself, but His petition is far from selfish. His concern for Himself was actually a concern for the glory of the Father. The Son can only glorify the Father if the Father first answers the prayer of the Son, “Glorify Your Son.”
Because it will bring no glory to the Father if His sacrifice on the cross is not acceptable, or if the Son is not restored to His rightful place in the presence of the Father’s unshielded glory.
Jesus gave several reasons or grounds for this prayer.
Because the hour had come (v.1)
Because the Father will be glorified (v.1)
Because the authority had already been given to grant eternal life (v.2)
Because Jesus is the only way to life (v.3)
Because it finishes the work the Father sent the Son to perform (v.3)
It is the cross that will glorify the Son:
27 “Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? But for this purpose I have come to this hour. 28 Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came from heaven: “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.” 29 The crowd that stood there and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.” 30 Jesus answered, “This voice has come for your sake, not mine. 31 Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out. 32 And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” 33 He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die.
The cross was utter humiliation to the world, but it was an instrument of glorification in God’s eyes. This is an aspect of the foolishness and weakness of the cross:
18 For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
How different are most our prayers?
In one form or another we can fall into asking the Father to glorify us. Glorify me, O Father, we cry, by giving me the largest congregation in town; by commencing a great revival in my mission, by increasing my spiritual power, so that I shall be greatly sought after. Of course, we don’t state our reason quite so concisely; but this is really what we mean. And we wonder why those prayers aren’t answered.
“that the Son may glorify you:” This is counterintuitive work, the cross glorified Jesus the Son and displayed the wisdom and power of God.
23 but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, 24 but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
Yet it also glorified the Father, by displaying His wise plan and great sacrifice in giving the Son to do such a work.
The Son glorified the Father by revealing in this act the sovereignty of God over evil, the compassion of God for men, and the finality of redemption for believers.
Christ’s motive needs to be ours as well. When we ask a blessing from God, ask it that you may glorify God by it. Do you ask to be healthy again? Be sure that you want to spend that health for Him. Do you desire for better finances? Desire it that you may promote His glory.
vv 2-3) Source of eternal life.
vv 2-3) Source of eternal life.
[2] As a result of His work of redemption at the cross, God has given His Son authority over all mankind.
This authority entitled Him to give eternal life to those whom the Father had given Him.
Here again we are reminded that before the foundation of the world, God marked out certain ones as belonging to Christ.
This is a clear and startling claim to deity; No One but God could truthfully and knowingly make this claim.
This gives us hope for evangelism and missionary work, knowing that Jesus has authority over all flesh. Even for those who reject Jesus or are ignorant of Him, even if they do not know it or acknowledge it, Jesus has authority over them. We pray in faith and ask Jesus to exercise that authority over those who have yet to repent and believe.
Philippians is a demonstration of this, that all will recognize the authority of Jesus:
5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
[3] Jesus understood that He was an is the One who grants eternal life to those given to Him by the Father.
We often think of Jesus as God’s gift to us; we rarely think of ourselves as God’s gift to Jesus.
What sticks out to you from this passage?
The fact that His name is mentioned together with God the Father’s as being the joint source of eternal life means that They are equal. Here the Lord called Himself Jesus Christ. Christ meaning Messiah. Here again disproves the charge that Jesus never claimed to be the Messiah.
Eternal life is found in an experiential knowledge (ginosko) of both God the Father and Jesus Christ, God the Son.
vv 4-5) Full of faith
vv 4-5) Full of faith
[4] As Jesus is uttered these words, He was speaking as if He had already died, been buried and risen again.
He had glorified the Father by His sinless life, by His miracles, by His suffering and death, and by His resurrection. He had finished the work of salvation the Father had given Him to do.
Jesus has glorified the Father through His whole life, from His circumcision and dedication at the temple (Luke 2:21-23) Through His quiet years of obedience in Nazareth (Matthew 2:23).
Believer’s Bible Commentary W. Jesus Prays for His Ministry (17:1–5)
As Ryle puts it:
The crucifixion brought glory to the Father. It glorified His wisdom, faithfulness, holiness, and love. It showed Him wise, in providing a plan whereby He could be just, and yet the justifier of the ungodly.—It showed Him faithful in keeping His promise, that the seed of the woman should bruise the serpent’s head.—It showed Him holy, in requiring His law’s demands to be satisfied by our great Substitute.—It showed Him loving, in providing such a Mediator, such a Redeemer, and such a Friend for sinful man as His co-eternal Son.
The crucifixion brought glory to the Son. It glorified His compassion, His patience, and His power. It showed Him most compassionate, in dying for us, suffering in our stead, allowing Himself to be counted sin and a curse for us, and buying our redemption with the price of His own blood.—It showed Him most patient, in not dying the common death of most men, but in willingly submitting to such pains and unknown agonies as no mind can conceive, when with a word He could have summoned His Father’s angels, and been set free.—It showed Him most powerful, in bearing the weight of all transgressions of the world, and vanquishing Satan, and despoiling him of his prey.
[5] Before Christ came into the world, He dwelt in heaven with the Father. When the angels looked upon the Lord, they saw all the glory of Deity.
To every eye, He was obviously God. But when He came among men, the glory of Deity was veiled. Though He was still God, it was not apparent to most onlookers. They saw Him merely as the carpenter’s Son. Here, the Savior is praying that the visible manifestation of His glory in heaven might be restored.
This clearly teaches us the preexistence of Christ.
8 I am the Lord; that is my name;
my glory I give to no other,
nor my praise to carved idols.
11 For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it,
for how should my name be profaned?
My glory I will not give to another.
If God the Father and God the Son share their glory, they must both be YHWH.
The Gospel of John has emphasized the glory of Jesus throughout its record. John was careful to record the many ways Jesus referred to His own glory in this prayer.
The life of Jesus was a manifestation of God’s glory, and the disciples beheld this glory:
14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
The miracles of Jesus manifested His glory:
11 This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him.
Jesus only ever sought the glory of His Father:
18 The one who speaks on his own authority seeks his own glory; but the one who seeks the glory of him who sent him is true, and in him there is no falsehood.
50 Yet I do not seek my own glory; there is One who seeks it, and he is the judge.
The revelation of glory is the reward of faith:
40 Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?”
Many times Jesus spoke of His coming passion and crucifixion as His coming glorification:
39 Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.
16 His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him.
23 And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.
31 When he had gone out, Jesus said, “Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in him.
God the Son seeks to glorify God the Father:
28 Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came from heaven: “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.”
God the Father glorifies God the Son:
31 When he had gone out, Jesus said, “Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in him. 32 If God is glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself, and glorify him at once.
24 The Lord bless you and keep you;
25 the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you;
26 the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.
