3/22/10 John 17
Jesus Prayed for You
John 17:20 “I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word;”
In John 17 Jesus is praying for His disciples. He knows that His hour has come and He has been preparing His disciples for His departure. He has demonstrated to them that they must be servants as He has been a servant by the washing of their feet. He has given them a visual picture of His death by the breaking of bread and drinking of wine during what was their last Passover meal. He comforts them with instructions about a Helper or Comforter, the Holy Spirit, who will come in His place. He has been sharing with them how they should treat one another and what they can expect from how the world will treat them. He then tells them they will have grief for a time, but in a little while they will see Him again and their hearts will rejoice and their joy will be secure, because He has overcome the world.
So in John 17 Jesus then prays to the Father on their behalf because Jesus will no longer be with them. Jesus first asks the Holy Father that He will keep them in His name and that they will be one with each other. This request is that the Father will protect them from the evil one and the world’s temptation and hatred toward them. He also asks that they will be sanctified by truth, meaning that they will be set apart for a specific use. Jesus has sanctified Himself that His disciples may be sanctified by the truth. The request to the Father is that His disciples will fulfill all that the Father desire for each of them individually and as a group. Just as Jesus faithfully obeyed the Father, Jesus prays that His disciples will do the same and this is done through truth.
The good news for us is that this prayer is not only for His immediate disciple, but for those who believe in Jesus through their (the disciples) word. That mean Jesus prayed for everyone who believes in Him and that the Father has sent Him in to the world to accomplish the Father’s will. Jesus prayer for us is also that we would be one and perfect in unity with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and each other. The end purpose of this unity is that the world may believe that the Father has sent the Son, which will result in glory for the Father and the Son and eventually all those who believe in Jesus name.
Prayer: Dear Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. I ask that I would be in unity with Your will, purposes, and plans for me. I pray that I will be in unity with others that are called by your name. I ask that you will protect and keep me from the world and its temptations. Sanctify me by your truth daily and use the truth to shape and mold me for your purposes. I long that others may come to know and believe in Jesus and that He was sent by You, in Jesus name. Amen.