Reading through the Gospels #188
17:1-26 THE HIGH PRIESTLY PRAYER
John Chapter 17 is often called "Jesus’s High Priestly Prayer" as Jesus is the great high priest interceding between God and man.
In John 14:31, Jesus says, “Rise, let us go from here," which places their location from there after Jesus and the disciples left the upper room, now walking along the road between Jerusalem and Gethsemane. John 18:1 which is after these verses says, "When Jesus had spoken these words, he went out… across the Kidron Valley, where there was a garden.”
The disciples, now eleven (Judas has already left in John 13:30) were present when Jesus started to pray. I have always thought it a blessing to have someone hear you pray for them, or for me to hear someone pray for me. The Holy Spirit works comfort in the heart at the sound of prayers!
Jesus the Son prays to the Father. There is a lot of red text in these verses as Jesus speaks and the disciples listen to His prayer. Just like the Lord's Prayer, we can learn how to pray by Jesus's example.
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 to God Himself.” - Philip Melanchthon (1497–1560) a prominent German reformer, theologian, and an associate of Martin Luther.
Jesus prays for Himself (verses 1–5)
17:1 Jesus is not bowing his head in prayer, but rather lifting His eyes to heaven in prayer. Throughout John, Jesus has said His hour had not yet come, but here is where the language changes. The hour has come! Jesus prays the Father glorify Him so that He can glorify the Father. Jesus's sacrifice and returning to heaven will bring glory to God and, therefore, Jesus is praying that Scripture be fulfilled as the hour has come. I think of a marriage where each partner should build up the other, yet so many times we instead tear each other down. Can I apply this prayer to me? Can I pray for God to glorify me so that I can glorify Him? My first reaction is that I resist anyone building me up because I am not worthy of the same. Then my second reaction is that I do need to be the best Christian I can be so that I can glorify God, and only He, living inside of me, can make me worthy of a good impression to others as a Christian. This impression would cause others to want to have what I have, and lead to me sharing about my faith. I cannot under my own will become a better person, but I can pray to the Holy Spirit the same, with the purpose to glorify God back.
2. Continuing the same sentence, now it seems like Jesus is talking about Himself in the third person. Jesus wants the Father to glorify Him since the Father has given Him authority over all flesh (man) to give them eternal life to all the Father has given to Him. The way Jesus will be glorified on the cross and Jesus is saying now is the time for the Father to put the wheels in action to make this happen. I think of the verse that "all" are sinful and need to be saved as the word "all" is used here as well. Jesus came for all people. Jesus is the authority over all mankind in that He is the judge of the living and the dead, as in who goes to heaven and who goes to hell, as in eternal life with Jesus or without Him. John 5:22: "For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son."
3. Jesus in His prayer describes to the Father what eternal life is, but I wonder if this is more for the listening ears of the disciples to learn. Eternal life is knowing God as the only true God, and also knowing Jesus Christ who God the Father has sent. Simply put, we have eternal life if we believe.
How do I know there is a God? God clearly reveals Himself to us (Revealed knowledge of God) Commandment 1: Thou shalt have no other Gods before me.
CATECHISM: Introduction. Who is Jesus Christ? Jesus is true God and true man in one person. He is the ternal Son of the Father, conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary to be our Savior and Lord. This God who became flesh in the person of the Son, Jesus Chris, is the only true God, the Holy Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
CATECHISM: The Apostles' Creed, Second Article (Part 1). Why do I confess that Jesus Christ is my Lord? Jesus has given me internal life and taken me under His external care and protection (See LC II 30). Quotes John 17:3-5
4. Jesus says, "I glorify You on earth." Jesus states that while man walking on earth, He has glorified the Father. Of course perfect Jesus glorifies the Father, but could I dare say that prayer? I sometimes think how the flowers and mountains and the great outdoors glorify God, so why would I not too? I do not feel worthy. Jesus glorifies the Father because He has accomplished the work that the Father gave Him to do. Have I accomplished the work God has given me to do in order to say that I glorify Him? I am pondering "glory" and first think of a boomerang how it is bouncing back and forth between the Father and the Son, but then I correct myself in that it does not bounce back and forth, but actually is within both simultaneously, and as a child of God, also simultaneously in me. Read versed 10 below that confirms that I glorify God.
5. This verse tells me the important fact that God, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, existed before the earth was ever created. Before there was, He was! Jesus is asking the Father that it be the way it was before He was made man. Jesus is currently 100% man and 100% God, but He is praying to just be 100% God only again. I note there is "shared glory" between God the Father and God the Son.
Jesus prays for His disciples (verses 6–19)
I read these verses to include all disciples of all time, not just the 11 present when Jesus prayed, but I see that some read these verses to be specifically the 11 disciples.
6-7. Nowadays the word "manifest" is a red flag to mean some sort of spirituality other than faith in the One true God, so it takes me aback seeing Jesus use the word. People say things such as "If you just manifest it, it will happen," as if you can think into existence good in your life.
Definition of manifest as a verb: To show something plainly, or to make an event, symptom, or quality visible and evident (e.g., "the illness manifested as a rash"). In modern self-help and spiritual contexts, it also means using focus, visualization, or positive thinking to bring a desired goal into reality.
Jesus manifested the Father's name, so Jesus made visible (displayed) who God is as a man on earth, and Jesus made evident the character of God to the people the Father gave to Him. The people were the Father's, but He gave them to Jesus the Son, and they have kept God's Word. Now the people know that everyone Jesus is was given by the Father.
8. Jesus gave His people the Words that the Father gave to Jesus, and the people received them and know that they are the truth that Jesus came from the Father. The people believe that the Father sent Jesus. This is sounding like the Trinitarian Creed!
9-10. Jesus prays for His people, not the whole world, but those who were given to Him, for these people are God's people. All of God's people belong to both Jesus the Son and to the Father, and Jesus is glorified in them. Ah! There it is! I glorify Jesus! This prayer does not sound like a prayer of request, but just Jesus telling the Father the way it is. This more and more sounds like Jesus is speaking for the overhearing ears of the disciples. Jesus would pray for the world aka future believers later in this prayer. 2 Corinthians 3:18, "And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit."
11. Jesus says He is no longer in the world, as if He has already died on the cross and resurrected, but it is happening soon. God's people are in the world. Next Jesus addresses the Father by His name "Holy Father" and prays that He keep God's people in His name, which was given to Him, that God's people and God's name may be one, just as Jesus and the Father are one. Well, that makes me feel close and a part of the family! This is an example for me to pray that God "keep" me in His name. I cannot by my own will keep me in faith. Faith is a gift from God and He keeps it in me. This verse also brings to mind the word "unity" for all.
CATECHISM: Ten Commandments, Second Commandment You shall not misuse the name of the Lord Your God. How do we fear and love God in keeping the Second Commandment? D. speak and teach truthfully about God in accordance with His Word. John 17:11-19 - notice the connection between God's name and truthfully teaching His Word.
12. Jesus says that while He was with His followers in the world, He kept them in God's name. That gives a context for the meaning of God's name. God keeps us in His name and it is nothing that we do. The King James version uses "son of perdition" which is an unfamiliar word to me and may change the meaning, but I am using ESV. Judas Iscariot, the one of the twelve apostles who fell away and betrayed Christ, being lost to Satan, who is destruction. We are children of God and Judas is a child of Satan. Psalm 49:1 was fulfilled, "Even my close friend in whom I trusted, who ate my bread, has lifted his heel against me."
CATECHISM: The Apostles'' Creed. Third Article (Part 2). Will the Church always exist? Yes. The Holy Spirit will preserve the Church and keep it with Christ until He returns.
13. Jesus repeats yet again that He is coming to the Father, but is speaking these things while He is in the world so God's people may have Jesus's JOY fulfilled in themselves. God's Word is a means of grace. People are saved by hearing God's Word. By hearing God's Word the Holy Spirit comes into us and faith is born. Therefore, FAITH equals JOY and it is IN us! Whoop Hoo! It cannot get any closer than that!
14. Jesus says He has given God's people God's Word and the world hates them because they are not of the world anymore, just as Jesus is not of the world. As 100% man and 100% God, Jesus was never OF the world, but was IN the world while walking on earth as a man. I am reminded that I am not OF the world because of my faith, but yet I am still IN the world. I ponder the word "of." I am "of" Missouri because I come from there. I am "of" America because I come from there. I am "of" the various surnames in my ancestry because I come from them. I am also "of" God because I come from Him. I could also say that I belong to God. To be "of" something is a phrase to possess a certain characteristic. Therefore, to be of God is to be of His good name. This verse explains verse 11. Scripture interprets Scripture.
Jesus promises that you will be hated. Don't act surprised at the actions of the world and culture. What does Jesus do?
15. Jesus prays to God asking that He does not take His people out of the world, but to just keep them from the evil one. We are IN the world with a purpose to share God's Word so that more people can come to faith. If we were taken out of the world, this would not happen. While IN the world, Satan tempts us and there is sin and hurt and bad, but Jesus prays for me/us to God the Father that He keep us from these troubles. There is a battle of good and evil going on and Jesus does not pray that we be removed from it, but rather for strength to fight the good fight of faith.
16. Jesus repeats that His Kingdom of people are not OF the world, just as He is not OF the world. See notes to verse 14 above.
17. Jesus says, "Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth." Ooohh, that is good stuff! It summarizes so much in so few words. The word "truth" is used twice making it worthy to ponder. Jesus says, "I am the truth and the life." God is the author and the creator who is above all else and where truth exists. In the beginning was The Word and the Word was God. The ultimate truth of Scripture is Jesus Christ. The entire Old and New Testaments point directly to Him. Scripture is not about us, it is about Jesus! So many religions and Bible studies focus on life application and comfort for self when in actuality, it is not about us at all, but about Jesus. Whenever I read or hear something encouraging a focus to be about me, I see a red flag and adjust my thinking. Yes, we do have and find comfort in Jesus, but the focus is on Him, not us. Next I ponder on the word "sanctify" which means to me a lifelong process of continually working to be a better person by sinning less. The way the process is designed is that I learn to recognize my sins so that I can turn from them by confessing them to God who forgives me. Yes, I may do that same sin again even though I try not to, but the repeated circle of recognizing my sin and forgiveness from God eventually creates a new pattern of turning away from that sin. To me that is how the sanctification process works. I cannot by myself become better and sin less. It is the Holy Spirit within me that guides this process. This brings together the ponderings of "truth" and "sanctify" in that it is the truth, being Jesus Himself, being a part of the Trinity God, that sanctifies me. Sanctification is fully attained only after death in heaven because of what Jesus has done for me on the cross.
Handwritten summary in my catechism: Sanctification is a life-long process that brings me to faith, strengthens my faith, guides me to produce the fruits of the Spirit, inspires me to overcome sin, and inspires me to do good works. The blessings of redemption.
One of the means of grace is God's Word, which is one of the ways I receive the Holy Spirit. Why it is so important to share God's Word -- it is a means of grace -- the way the Holy Spirit comes to non-believers.
CATECHISM: Lord's Prayer. First Petition. Hallowed be Thy Name. What are we asking when we pray that God's name be kept holy? We pray that God our Father would help us to keep His name holy by: A. speaking truthfully about His Word.
CATECHISM: Apostles' Creed. Third Article (Part 2). What are some of our responsibilities toward other Christians and church bodies? Quotes John 17:17-21. Summary - Continually pray for fellow Christians and work with them to alleviate human suffering; seek to prevent and heal sinful divisions; express the unity of the church by practicing alter and pulpit fellowship; no pretend disagreements unimportant nor give a false witness of unity by community together; lament doctrinal disunity; engage others in conversation; heal the divisions; express our unity in the faith, even as we are united in Christ.
18. God the father sent Jesus into the world to be born as a babe in the manger to be both man and God. Galatians 4:4, "But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law." Jesus sent God's people into the world to proclaim God's Word. Matthew 28:19–20 (The Great Commission): "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations…"
19. To "sanctify" or "consecrate" both mean to be set apart for holy use by God. To consecrate is to officially declare as set apart for holy use by God, and to sanctify is to be set apart by God through the Holy Spirit to live a new life and do good works as a lifelong process. To be holy (hagios) means to be separated or distinct. I wrote about sanctification in verse 17 above. Jesus consecrates Himself in that He gives a self-offering. Jesus dedicates and offers Himself up as the spotless sacrifice on the cross for our sins.
Jesus prays for future believers (verses 20–23)
20-21. Jesus begins to pray for future believers, for those WILL believe in Him through the Word. I love how simply it is put what it takes to have ones sins forgiven. This "believe" is so that "all may be one." Jesus explains what being one means. We are one with God and Jesus because we are "in" them. When we are "in" God, we believe, and Jesus prays that "the world" which would be all people, believe. These two verses are just as good as John 3:16! Being "one with God" speaks of unity.
CATECISHM: Apostles' Creed. Third Article (Part 1). What does it mean that the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel? Through the Gospel, the Spirit both invites and enables me to believe by promising me a new life on the basis of Christ's death and resurrection. The Word of God does more than give information; it actually delivers what it says.
CATECISHM: Apostles' Creed. Third Article (Part 1). What does it mean that I am enlightened with His gifts? Christ is made known to me by means of the Spirit's gifts of the Word, Baptism, and the Lord's Supper (means of grace). The written and poke Word of the Gospel and the Sacraments are called the Means of Grace. The Holy Spirit uses these means.
22-23 Jesus states that the glory the Father gave to Him has been given to believers. I do not feel glorious, yet Jesus just said I am! This "glory" is so that they "may be one," which is a repeat of the verses above, but adds that they "may become perfectly one." Believers are one, but will become perfectly one as part of the sanctification process which is finished on the day or resurrection when Jesus comes again. There is even more "so that!" This glory is so that the world may know that the Father sent Jesus and that the Father loves believers even as the Father loved Jesus. I read into this that the glory that is in me because of my faith will shine to others so that the whole world may know God's plan that all be saved. If they see the glory in me, they will want it too!
24. Jesus address Him as "Father" now and prays a desire that the believers that the Father has given Him may be with Him where "I am." I see the "great I am" words here which jump out to me. Jesus prays that He desires believers to see His glory given to Him by the Father because the Father has loved Jesus before the foundation of the world. Before the world was created, Jesus and the Father were in existence. The Holy Spirit was also before the foundation of the world, "Genesis 1:2, "Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters." Jesus prays that believers "may be with Me where I am, to see My glory" which describes what happens when we die. As a believer, when I die, I will be with Jesus and see His glory.
CATECHISM: Apostles'_ Creed. Third Article (Part 3). What happens to me as a Christian when I die? When I die, the God-given unity of my body and spirt will be broken. I will immediately be in the presences of Christ, in heave, but my body will remain in the grave until the resurrection.
25. Jesus address Him as "O righteous Father" and I see that as an example of how I can address Him in prayer too. God is the only being that is righteous, except Jesus in our faith makes us righteous. Jesus states that the world does not know the Father, but that He Jesus knows the Father, and that believers know that the Father has sent Him.
CATECHISM: Apostles' Creed. Second Article (Part 1). Why is it so important for us that the man Jesus, our Brother, is also the Son of God who created the universe? H. He loves us with an everlasting love. John 17:25-26
26. Jesus says He made known the Father's name to believers and He will continue to make it known; hence this being a prayer for future believers. Jesus prays that the love of the Father that is in Him Jesus be in the people of the world, and He in them. It all feels so close knit to me, like yarn wound around each other as one item.