SECURING THE SUCCESS OF JESUS’ MISSION-II—John 17:1-26
Attention:
Need:
Jesus’ prayer in the Upper Room reflected the means to securing the success of His mission.
The success of Jesus’ mission is secured.
How is the success of Jesus’ mission secured?
What secures the success of Jesus’ mission?
20 measures for securing the success of Jesus’ mission.
Previously we had found that Securing the Success of Jesus’ mission involves...
1. The Ultimate CONTACT(:1)
2. The Ultimate HOUR(:1)
3—Securing the Success of Jesus’ mission involves...
The Ultimate GLORY(:1, 5)
Explanation:(:1, 5)Giving God the Credit/Merit.
:1—“Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, & said: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You,””
‘To glorify’—To credit with, OR give recognition to, OR to honor.
In order for this moment to meet its full potential/power/intent, then both the Father & the Son must act hand in hand. The Father must grant to the Son certain freedoms in order for His ministry to be fulfilled.
The Father must glorify the Son & vice versa. But how will/can/does He do that? The Son must be glorified in order for the Son to glorify the Father. In other words, the Son must be granted the freedom/ability to perform certain actions, thus calling attention to(glorifying) the fact that He is the Son of God—which/who will in turn provide glorification for the Father.
Such glory belongs to God alone!
“Glorify”(See :4, 5, 10)—doxazw—1) To think, suppose, be of opinion; 2) To praise, extol, magnify, celebrate; 3) To honor, do honor to, hold in honor; 4) To make glorious, adorn with luster, clothe with splendor—4a) To impart glory to something, render it excellent, 4b) To make renowned, render illustrious—4b1) To cause the dignity & worth of some person or thing to become manifest & acknowledged. Strong—To render(or esteem) glorious (in a wide application).
:5—““And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.””
Now it is pertinent that Jesus show the Father that He recognizes the need to enter into the final phase of His incarnation. He thus calls upon the Father to “glorify” Himself “together” with His Father.
The impending Cross-work of Christ will both “glorify” Himself as well as His Father as the two work flawlessly to bring about the permanent rescue of flawed people.
This glorification is bound up in & destined to reveal to the world the very “glory” with which He had “before the world was”(Jn. 1:1-5; Php. 2:5-7).
Jn. 1:1-5—“In the beginning was the Word, & the Word was with God, & the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, & without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, & the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, & the darkness did not comprehend it.”
Php. 2:5-7—“Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, & being made in the likeness of men.”
“World”(See :6, 11, 21, 23, 24)—kosmov—1) An apt & harmonious arrangement or constitution, order, government. Strong—Orderly arrangement, i.e. Decoration; by implication--The world(in a wide or narrow sense, including its inhabitants, literally or figuratively [morally]). English— ‘Cosmetics’
Argumentation:
1Cor. 15:35-41—“But someone will say, “How are the dead raised up? And with what body do they come?” Foolish one, what you sow is not made alive unless it dies. And what you sow, you do not sow that body that shall be, but mere grain--perhaps wheat or some other grain. But God gives it a body as He pleases, & to each seed its own body. All flesh is not the same flesh, but there is one kind of flesh of men, another flesh of animals, another of fish, & another of birds. There are also celestial bodies & terrestrial bodies; but the glory of the celestial is one, & the glory of the terrestrial is another. There is one glory of the sun, another glory of the moon, & another glory of the stars; for one star differs from another star in glory.”
To deny God in your day-to-day leanings, is to deny Him His rightful glory by transferring that glory to yourself as autonomous.
Rev. 4:2-11—“Immediately I was in the Spirit; & behold, a throne set in heaven, & One sat on the throne. And He who sat there was like a jasper & a sardius stone in appearance; & there was a rainbow around the throne, in appearance like an emerald. Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, & on the thrones I saw twenty-four elders sitting, clothed in white robes; & they had crowns of gold on their heads. And from the throne proceeded lightnings, thunderings, & voices. Seven lamps of fire were burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God. Before the throne there was a sea of glass, like crystal. And in the midst of the throne, & around the throne, were four living creatures full of eyes in front & in back. The first living creature was like a lion, the second living creature like a calf, the third living creature had a face like a man, & the fourth living creature was like a flying eagle. The four living creatures, each having six wings, were full of eyes around & within. And they do not rest day or night, saying: “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, Who was & is & is to come!” Whenever the living creatures give glory & honor & thanks to Him who sits on the throne, who lives forever & ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne & worship Him who lives forever & ever, & cast their crowns before the throne, saying: “You are worthy, O Lord, To receive glory & honor & power; For You created all things, And by Your will they exist & were created.””
Illustration:
Biltmore House near Asheville, NC/Largest privately owned mansion in the US/George Vanderbilt had it built for his own pleasure/However, many hundreds of people were involved in the final outcome/In fact, George contributed major support to the economy of that area & thus he gained The Ultimate GLORY
Application:
?You employed The Ultimate GLORY of Jesus’ mission?
?You Secured the Success of Jesus’ Mission?
4—Securing the Success of Jesus’ mission involves...
The Ultimate AUTHORITY(:1-2)
Explanation:(:1-2)
:1—“Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, & said: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You,””
Jesus’ glory & His glorification of His Father, testify loudly of His authority.
:2—“as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him.”
The Father’s glory in Jesus rests in the fact that Jesus has been given all authority(Mat. 28:18) in matters dealing particularly with ‘mankind’(“flesh”) & his relation to “eternal life.” This “eternal life” is bound up in the granting, by the Father, of certain persons into Jesus’ possession....Possession being grander than mere physical sovereignty/control.
“Authority”—exousia—1) Power of choice, liberty of doing as one pleases—1a) Leave or permission; 2) Physical & mental power—2a) The ability or strength with which one is endued, which he either possesses or exercises; 3) The power of authority (influence) & of right (privilege); 4) The power of rule or government (the power of him whose will & commands must be submitted to by others & obeyed). Strong—from exesti (in the sense of ability); Privilege, i.e. subjectively--Force, capacity, competency, freedom, or (objectively) mastery (concretely, magistrate, superhuman, potentate, token of control), delegated influence.
“Flesh”—sarx—1) Flesh(the soft substance of the living body, which covers the bones & is permeated with blood) of both man & beasts; 2) The body; 3) A living creature (because possessed of a body of flesh) whether man or beast; 4) The flesh, denotes mere human nature, the earthly nature of man apart from divine influence, & therefore prone to sin & opposed to God.
Argumentation:
Rom 13:1-7—“Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, & the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, & those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, & you will have praise from the same. For he is God’s minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God’s minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil. Therefore you must be subject, not only because of wrath but also for conscience’ sake. For because of this you also pay taxes, for they are God’s ministers attending continually to this very thing. Render therefore to all their due: taxes to whom taxes are due, customs to whom customs, fear to whom fear, honor to whom honor.”
Mat. 28:18-20—“And Jesus came & spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven & on earth. Go therefore & make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father & of the Son & of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; & lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.”
Jn. 3:35—““The Father loves the Son, & has given all things into His hand.”
Mat. 11:27-30—““All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, & no one knows the Son except the Father. Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, & the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him. Come to Me, all you who labor & are heavy laden, & I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you & learn from Me, for I am gentle & lowly in heart, & you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy & My burden is light.””
Heb 12:1-2—“Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, & the sin which so easily ensnares us, & let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author & finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, & has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
Illustration:
The old Water Plant in Carrabelle, FL/There is a huge hole in the roof/Sagging rafters/Decay & Gravity/The Ultimate AUTHORITY
Old house at corner of Gantt & 3rd Sts. in Faith, NC/During my lifetime, the garage roof caved in/Now the roof of the 2-story house beside it has caved in/Decay & Gravity/The Ultimate AUTHORITY
No matter what you do your life will ‘cave in’ under the Ultimate Authority of God in Christ!
Application:
?You employed The Ultimate AUTHORITY of Jesus’ mission?
?You Secured the Success of Jesus’ Mission?
5—Securing the Success of Jesus’ mission involves...
The Ultimate LIFE(:2-3)
Explanation:
:2—“as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him.”
The Father’s glory in Jesus rests in the fact that Jesus has been given all authority(Mat. 28:18) in matters dealing particularly with ‘mankind’(“flesh”) & his relation to “eternal life.”
This “eternal life” is bound up in the granting, by the Father, of certain persons into Jesus’ possession....Possession being grander than mere physical sovereignty/control.
Upon having been granted to Jesus’ care, He in turn, gives them eternal life. This ‘giving’ is accomplished by God the Father to God the Son. The “giving” by God is neither random, nor merited/earned, nor irresistible, but is secured by God’s grace thru one’s personal free faith. It is only irresistible in the sense that Yes, God has “given” only “to as many as” He has chosen to give. These He has ‘chosen’ by the polarizing means of faith.
It is vital for the believer & unbeliever alike that “eternal life” is key to one’s fulfillment regarding every aspect of human life both here & in the hereafter.
:3—“And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, & Jesus Christ whom You have sent.”
In case anyone misses the significance of “eternal life”, a definition is offered. Jesus is reminding both Himself, but mainly His disciples(after all, “Jesus spoke these words”), in prayer, of the simple focus & importance of His mission....That His disciples might know the Father & the One whom He has sent.
“Eternal life” of which Jesus speaks is bound up completely in one’s personal intimate “knowedge” of “the only true God” as well as in “Jesus Christ.” This Jesus (the Christ) was indeed “sent” from God in order that mankind’s salvation might be accomplished.
Argumentation:
Js. 4:13-15—“Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such & such a city, spend a year there, buy & sell, & make a profit”; whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time & then vanishes away. Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we shall live & do this or that.””
Oswald Chambers’ quote—“Continually restate to yourself what the purpose of your life is. The destined end of man is not happiness, nor health, but holiness.”
Mat. 18:8-9—““If your hand or foot causes you to sin, cut it off & cast it from you. It is better for you to enter into life lame or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet, to be cast into the everlasting fire. And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out & cast it from you. It is better for you to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes, to be cast into hell fire.”
Jn. 3:14-17—““And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.”
Jn. 3:36—““He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; & he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.””
Jn. 6:27—““Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him.””
Not merely life everlasting but life lived in the presence of the One who is love, exemplifies love, empowers us for love, & loves you!
Illustration:
American Dream—‘Life, Liberty & the Pursuit of happiness’/But what are these without God at the forefront of our determination?—Empty pursuits no different from any other people on earth!/The Ultimate LIFE
What makes your Life worth living?
What is the character of your Liberty?
What will make you truly Happy?
Application:
?You attained The Ultimate LIFE of Jesus’ mission?
?You Secured the Success of Jesus’ Mission?
CONCLUSION:
Action:
Securing the Success of Jesus’ mission involves...
3. The Ultimate GLORY(:1, 5)
4. The Ultimate AUTHORITY(:1-2)
5. The Ultimate LIFE(:2-3)
1. The Ultimate CONTACT(:1)
2. The Ultimate HOUR(:1)
Presented 05/05/2013am to:
FBC Carrabelle
206 Storrs Ave. SW
Carrabelle, FL 32322
Presented 03/24/2013pm to:
Needmore Baptist Church
1620 Mt. Vernon Rd.
Woodleaf, NC 27054
