We are privileged to be able to listen in as Jesus offers
His prayer to the Father. In the first section He prays for Himself. In this
second section He is praying for those eleven men who are to become His
apostles. Please listen as I read His prayer.
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. Now they know that everything that you have given me
is from you. For I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have
received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you; and they
have believed that you sent me. I am praying for them. I am not praying for the
world but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours. All mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I
am glorified in them. 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. While I was with them, I kept them in your
name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has
been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled.
But now I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they
may have my joy fulfilled in themselves.
I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they
are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not ask that you take
them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not
of the world. Sanctify them in the
truth; your word is truth. As you sent
me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. And for their sake I
consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth. (John 17.6-19)
Here's the first thing I want you to see. Jesus commends His
friends. They have done well. Listen again.
For I have given them the words
that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth
that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me.
And then, on top of that Jesus says,
… and I am glorified in them.
Or to translate, 'They make me look good.'
Now, I would not be surprised if any of you were to think,
'Wait a minute. Who is Jesus talking about? Not those guys who seemed never to
understand, who argued about who was the greatest and who so often seemed to be
a drag on Jesus? Not those guys.' Yes, those guys. Jesus is not praying for a
bunch of losers. He's praying for His friends who get it. Jesus thinks highly
of these men.
Let's move on. Jesus makes requests for these friends of
His. Why? What motivates Him to make those requests? He tells us.
I have given them your word, and
the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of
the world.
Jesus is praying for these men because there is danger. He
knows that He is sending these men into a world that hates them. It hates them
quite simply because of the Gospel. The hatred of the world can show in
different ways, but for these men that hatred will include beatings,
imprisonment and in most cases, a martyr's death. Jesus sees the danger, and He
prays about it.
Now, note this. What does He pray for? In light of the
danger, what is He asking for?
Holy Father, keep them in Your name
…
'In Your name'? That's about no longer being of the world, no
longer being a part of humanity that is in rebellion against their Creator.
You'll remember that elsewhere Jesus tells these men to baptize people 'into
the name'. A baptized person is no longer a part of the world. He is in the
name. But being in the name of the Father does not mean that it's smooth
sailing from that point on. There is the danger precisely because such people
are not part of the world but in the name. So, Jesus prays for these men. The
world, in its hatred, will try to lure them away from the name so that they
would return to the world. And isn't that what happened to Judas? Tempted by
the world, he turned away from Jesus and turned toward the world. Jesus prays
that this would not happen to these eleven. He is concerned, and so He prays.
But please note exactly what He prays here.
I do not ask that you take them out
of the world.
Jesus does not pray that they would be removed from the
place of danger. How could He? There is work to be accomplished, a mission to
complete, the salvation of the world. The only way that that will happen is if
these men stay in the world, a place filled with temptation and danger. There is danger in pursuing the work of God
in the world. There is the possibility of being lured away. But there is
important work to be done. Jesus knows this and prays accordingly. Complete
safety will come later. Now, there is danger. So, Jesus prays.
That leads to something else that Jesus asks the Father for.
Sanctify them in the truth; your
word is truth.
Jesus asks that they would be sanctified. You might
translate this in terms of being consecrated or maybe even better, being
devoted to the work. Jesus prays that these men would be separated from the
world and its distractions, and instead be devoted to the mission that He has
given to them. And one reason that He prays for this is because devotion to the
Father's calling is protection against the temptations of the world. One big
way to fight the love of the world is by loving the Father more. And that's
what Jesus is praying for.
Then, there is one more thing.
But now I am coming to you, and
these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in
themselves.
In the midst of all of this about danger, Jesus prays for
joy. Jesus is all about joy. Following Him isn't to be this drudgery that you
just have to deal with. It's about joy. To be sure, there will be hard times,
suffering and struggle. But joy makes dealing well with these things possible.
Do you remember the time that these men ran afoul of the authorities in
Jerusalem?
and when they had called in the
apostles, they beat them and charged them not to speak in the name of Jesus,
and let them go. Then they left the presence of the council, rejoicing
that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name.
Jesus is all about joy, and He wants these men to experience
that joy. Being able to rejoice always is a great defense against giving in to
the temptations that come with the mission.
So, what's here for you? Jesus isn't praying for you here.
In the next section He will be praying for you. But He's not doing that here.
So, is there anything here for you? Yes, there is. You can see something of
Jesus' attitudes reflected here. And those attitudes have something to say to
you.
First, we see here how Jesus commends imperfect people. That
means that He commends you. Now, think about your week. Think about all the
different times you acted so much like those eleven at their worst moments.
Thinking of yourself first, conflicts with your spouse, complaining about
something or the other. And yet, just like those eleven, Jesus says of you,
'They make me look good.' But how can He say this?
Beyond a doubt, you are called to a very high standard, just
like those men were. You are called to holiness, a holiness that imitates the
Father. And like the eleven, you are nowhere near that. And yet, Jesus commends
you just like He did them. This is His attitude toward all His saints. He
commends you to the Father just as He did those eleven. There is great comfort
in this.
Being able to enjoy that comfort is tied up with that third
membership question, the one about endeavoring to live as a follower of Christ.
Are you endeavoring? Are you trying? To be sure, you're getting it wrong left
and right just like those apostles. But you're also repenting and trying once
again, right? Are you? Then you are commended. That's another part of the
Gospel of grace. Jesus commends you as you stumble your way forward. Believe
it. Remember it when Satan is telling you his lies about how you are a failure.
Jesus doesn’t think so.
Then, there is the danger. Like those men, you live in the
world, a very dangerous place. And what is your hope? It is not that you will
be removed from all of that temptation, all of that danger. You won't be. You
can't be. There is work to be accomplished. And you can't accomplish the work
given to you by trying to hide from the world, praying for a danger-free life.
It doesn't work that way. That is not your hope that keeps you going. Your hope
is that the Father will keep you in His name. Your hope is that what was started
at your baptism will continue throughout your days. And this is a solid hope
because it is something that the Father has promised. That is your hope.
Imitate Jesus and pray that for yourselves and for your children.
And remember, when it comes to living in this world, the
best defense is a good offense. Jesus understands the protection of being
devoted to the Father and to His mission. That's why He prays as He does.
Imitate Him. There are many distractions these days. Pray that you would be
able to avoid them by the Spirit stirring up in you a growing devotion to the
Father and to the work He has given to you. Again, pray that for yourselves and
especially for your children. It just seems that they are facing more
distractions than I did at their age.
Then the last. Learn how to rejoice. The joy that Jesus
speaks about is rooted in the awareness that the Father is busy doing good. By
the Spirit, He is changing the world. That change may involve you suffering
like those apostles. In fact, I'd be surprised if it didn't involve you
suffering. But if you are pursuing a growing devotion to the mission, you will
be able to rejoice even in the suffering because you will see that your
suffering advances the mission.