This morning, we return to John 17 and pick up we were left off last week. Remember, we are looking at the Lord’s prayer, but it’s not the Lord’s prayer in Matthew 6 where Jesus taught us to pray. It is the Lord’s prayer in John 17 where Jesus prayed.
In John 17, Jesus prayed for Himself, His disciples, and for us. It was very late on Thursday night or maybe even early Friday morning. Jesus and His disciples were on their way if not already in the Garden of Gethsemane.
This morning, we return to John 17 and pick up we were left off last week. Remember, we are looking at the Lord’s prayer, but it’s not the Lord’s prayer in Matthew 6 where Jesus taught us to pray. It is the Lord’s prayer in John 17 where Jesus prayed.
In John 17, Jesus prayed for Himself, His disciples, and for us. It was very late on Thursday night or maybe even early Friday morning. Jesus and His disciples were on their way if not already in the Garden of Gethsemane.
Exposition
Before we get to Jesus’ prayer for His disciples, Jesus was talking to His Father in verses 6-8. By the way, that is all that prayer is…talking to your heavenly Father.
In verse 6, Jesus portrayed His Father to His disciples. In turn, His disciples obeyed God’s word.
Finally, because Jesus portrayed His Father to His disciples, they knew that God the Son had come from God the Father. In other words, Jesus was God!
- Jesus prayed for His disciples’ security for eternity, 17:9-14.
9 “I pray for them. I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given Me, for they are Yours. 10 And all Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine, and I am glorified in them. 11 Now I am no longer in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to You. Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are. 12 While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Your name. Those whom You gave Me I have kept; and none of them is lost except the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. 13 But now I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves. 14 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.
This word “security” or secure is wrapped up in the word “keep” and “kept” in verses 11-12. Jesus prayed for the Father to keep or secure His disciples.
Notice why they were kept. They were kept because they belonged to God the Father and God the Son. God the Father gave them to God the Son in verses 9-10.
They were also kept because of the Father’s name. That means according to His character. In this instance, His character was that of faithfulness.
Because they were secure for eternity, that should mean the joy of Jesus in them according to verse 13. The world hated them. However, God the Father and God the Son loved them and would secure them for eternity.
- Jesus prayed for His disciples’ safety from the evil one, 17:15-16.
15 I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.
God’s word never says that He will take you out of a trial or tribulation. However, Jesus does pray that God will protect His disciples from the evil one or in other words, the devil.
By the way, why did God not take Jesus’ disciples out of the world? He left them to do a job. We’ll come back to that in a minute.
- Jesus prayed for His disciples’ sanctification on earth, 17:17-19.
17 Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth. 18 As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. 19 And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth.
In verses 17-19, Jesus prayed for His disciples to be sanctified by God’s truth. To be sanctified means to be set apart for a specific purpose. It means to be dedicated or devoted.
Multiple times in verses 6-19, Jesus said that even though His disciples were in the world, they were not of the world. In other words, they were supposed to be distinctly different and set apart from the world.
Conclusion
Even though this is Jesus’ prayer for the 11 disciples, there is much application for us as well. By the way, I didn’t address Jesus’ comments about the son of perdition at the end of verse 12, but I will on Wednesday Night at Digging Deeper. We’ll meet at 6:30 PM in the Fellowship Hall and look at a proverbial fly in the ointment.
First, as Jesus prayed for His disciples’ security, we too are secure for eternity if we have decided to follow Jesus. However, our security is not because of anything about us.
I am secure for eternity because of God’s faithfulness. Again, you aren’t secure because you walked an aisle in a Sunday morning alter call. You aren’t secure because your church believes in “once saved, always saved.” You are secure because you have been baptized. You certainly aren’t secure because of your own personal morality or righteousness.
If you are saved, you have been saved by God’s grace. You are secured by God’s faithfulness.
Second, as Jesus prayed for His disciples’ safety from the devil, we too are safe from the devil. However, I am not talking about physical safety from the devil but spiritual safety.
Remember, all of the disciples except John died a martyr’s death. If Jesus meant physical safety, God didn’t answer Jesus’ prayer, and that would be somewhat troubling.
The devil will do whatever he can on this earth to harm you. He will inflict you with sickness. He will destroy your family. He will take away your money. He will do anything and everything to destroy your witness.
By the way, your witness is why God left you here right now. He left Jesus’ disciples to do a job. That was to lead the first church.
When He saved you, He could have taken you to heaven immediately, and He can do that at any point. However, He left you to minister.
He left you to witness. He left you to point others to Jesus and for no other reason, but the devil will be working against you even though your soul is safe from him.
Third, as Jesus prayed for His disciples’ sanctification, we too are called to live in the world but not of the world. Our speech and ethics and spending and recreating and morality should be distinctly different than lost people.
I would submit to you this morning that one reason why churches have lost influence in the community today is because we have become too much like the world. There isn’t a lot of discernable difference.
Today, we have pastors with no integrity who have a love for money and a love for sex, and they are caught regularly with their hand in the offering plate and caught with their pants down.
Today, we have adults with no bravery. In elections, they vote for the economy and jobs rather than morality and justice.
Today, we have teenagers with no morality. They are cheating their way through school, sleeping around, and blending in with their lost friends just to stay popular.
Brothers and sisters of all ages, let us be set apart from the world living our lives according to God’s word.
Invitation
If you are here this morning, and you have never called on Jesus to save you, He will today if you are answer His call to salvation.
If Jesus is leading you to unite formally with EBC, will you obey Him today?
If Jesus is leading you to repent of sin and disobedience in your life, will you obey Him today?
