JESUS’ HIGH PRIESTLY PRAYER
(Part 1b: Jesus’ Prayer For Himself)
John 17:1-5
We are currently studying Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer. On the eve of the Crucifixion Jesus spent His final hours giving some important instructions to His closest followers. At some point (likely just before they arrived at Gethsemane) Jesus transitioned from teaching the Disciples to praying for them. In this prayer Jesus prays for Himself, His Disciples and for His Church (including us). I would like to pick up where we left off when we last gathered and continue to examine:
JESUS’ PRAYER FOR HIMSELF
In verse 2 Jesus proclaims “You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him.” The phrase “authority over all flesh” speaks to the fact that the Lord Jesus possesses absolute sovereign authority. Jesus is Lord which means that he is the supreme ruler, the ultimate authority in history.
Once again we see clear evidence of the divinity of Christ. There is no doubt that He is God. Though He came to earth as a man for a time, His humiliation was nearing its end. Soon His purpose would be fulfilled, His work would be complete and He would be exalted above all. (Philippians 2:9 Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, 11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.)
The proclamation that He possesses “authority over all flesh” (people) echoes what Jesus said in: John 5:26 “For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself, 27 and has given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of Man.” In the Great Commission Jesus said to His Disciples "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth” (Matthew 28:18). He also said in Matthew 11:27 All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father. Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him. Then in John 3:35-36 He said “The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into His hand. He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him."
During His earthly ministry Jesus performed countless miracles. The Gospels tell us that He gave sight to the blind, made the deaf hear, and enabled the mute to speak; He cleansed lepers and healed men who were lame and even paralyzed. He delivered many who were possessed by demons. On two separate occasions He fed multitudes with minimal resources. We are also told of three specific occasions where He raised people from the dead. These amazing miracles were possible because He possessed “authority over all flesh”.
John begins his Gospel account with the proclamation that God created the world through Christ and as a result He is the ruler of it. (John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.)
The authority that the Father gave the Son entitles Him to grant forgiveness and eternal life to “as many as (He has) given Him”. Notice v2 as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him.
There is no denying the fact that even before the foundation of the world God chose a people to be “in Christ”. This truth is evident in countless scriptures. Some people get uncomfortable when they hear words like “elect”, “chosen” or “predestined”. But each of these words describes biblical doctrine and they are found throughout the New Testament.
John 6:37 All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.
John 15:16 You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you.
John 15:19 If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.
Acts 13:48 Now when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and glorified the word of the Lord. And as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed.
Romans 8:29 For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. 30 Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified. 31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? 33 Who shall bring a charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies.
Ephesians 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, 5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He has made us accepted in the Beloved.
2 Thessalonians 2:13 But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God from the beginning chose you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth.
Titus 1:1 Paul, a bondservant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God's elect and the acknowledgment of the truth which accords with godliness, 2 in hope of eternal life which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began
1 Peter 1:2 “to the elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ”
These are just a few verses concerning God’s divine election in the process of salvation; there are many other passages that make it clear that we are saved because God chose us. Lost men and women do not seek a Holy God. (Psalm 14:2 The LORD looks down from heaven upon the children of men, To see if there are any who understand, (any) who seek God. 3 They have all turned aside, they have together become corrupt; There is none who does good, No, not one. 4 Have all the workers of iniquity no knowledge, Who eat up my people as they eat bread, And do not call on the LORD?) Paul quotes this passage in Romans 3:10 As it is written: "There is none righteous, no, not one; 11 There is none who understands; There is none who seeks after God. 12 They have all turned aside; they have together become unprofitable; There is none who does good, no, not one."
Apart from the supernatural work that God does in our lives, none of us would ever seek after God; for seeking God is a spiritual and holy act and the Bible tells us that sinful man is incapable of such spiritual things. (Isaiah 64:6 But we are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags; We all fade as a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, Have taken us away. 7 And there is no one who calls on Your name, Who stirs himself up to take hold of You…) In this very Gospel (John) the Lord Himself says that the only way we can seek God is if the Holy Spirit stirs our hearts with a desire for Him. (John 6:44 No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.)
If you are saved it is only because God Himself has drawn you unto Him. (Ephesians 2:8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.) We are born in sin, conceived in iniquity and naturally rebellious against God; it is only by His marvelous grace that God that we are enabled to seek God for salvation.
Perhaps the greatest (and most detailed) conversion experience in scripture is that of Saul of Tarsus. Before His conversion, Saul (the Apostle Paul) was the greatest human adversary of the Church. He stated that his intention was to destroy the Church. In Galatians 1:13 he said: “you have heard of my former conduct in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God beyond measure and tried to destroy it.” One day as he was headed to Damascus with authorization that if he were to find any Christians “whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.” (Acts 9:2) As he drew near to Damascus “suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?" And he said, "Who are You, Lord?" Then the Lord said, "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting…" (Acts 9:3-5) It was at this moment that Saul’s life changed forever.
It is apparent that Saul did not set out to find Jesus; clearly Jesus came to him. In response to this divine confrontation Saul surrendered to Jesus, abandoned his mission to destroy the church and eventually became the greatest Christian who ever lived. Paul’s writings prove that it was God who chose him for salvation and Christian service. He said in Galatians 1:15 “it pleased God, who separated me from my mother's womb and called me through His grace, 16 to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles…”
If you have been saved, then your testimony is similar to that of Paul. You were lost; you were dead in trespasses and sins and deserving of death, wrath and eternal condemnation. But God in His marvelous grace called your name and saved you from the wages of your sin. (Ephesians 2:1 And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, 2 in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, 3 among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others. 4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)
When writing to Titus Paul declared that: “we ourselves were also once foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving various lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful and hating one another. But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, that having been justified by His grace we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. (Titus 3:3-7)
Jesus Christ has “authority over all flesh”; the reason for this is so that “He should give eternal life to as many as (the Father has) given Him.” Before the foundation of the world God chose a people to be “in Christ”. It is interesting to note that these people are described as being given to Jesus. Often we speak of the fact that Jesus is God’s gift to us and that certainly is true; but ultimately we are God’s gift to Jesus. This truth is evident in Jesus’ proclamation that He will “give eternal life to as many as You have given Him”.
- Moreover, Jesus magnifies this reality several more times in this prayer.
v6 "I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world. They were Yours, You gave them to Me.
v9 I pray for them. I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given Me, for they are Yours.
v11 …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
v24 Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am….)
In ancient Jewish culture it was common for a father to arrange the marriage of his son. This is seen in Genesis 24 when Abraham commanded his servant to go to his home country and select a wife for his son Isaac. The servant obeyed his command and went and found Rebekah and she was presented to Isaac. Similarly God the Father has chosen a Bride and given her to His Son. In Ephesians 5 Paul refers to the Church as the Bride of Christ. Those who are members of Christ’s Church have assurance of eternal life.
Here in verse 3, Jesus vividly describes eternal life. (v3 “And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent”). When we hear the phrase “eternal life” certain thoughts automatically come to mind. We think about the things that will be “no more” that John described in - Revelation 21:4 “And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away." When we think about eternal life we think about receiving a glorified body and being reunited with our loved ones who have gone before us. When we think about eternal life we anticipate a time when we are delivered from the presence of sin as well as no longer having to deal with Satan and his evil forces. We think about mansions, streets of Gold, walls of jasper, gates of pearl and all of the many other aesthetics that we are told about concerning that Holy City, New Jerusalem. Concerning eternal life we think about a place of indescribable beauty, and a life filled with peace, hope, joy, love and security.
Without a doubt there is biblical evidence for each of these realities. However, Jesus mentions none of these things in this prayer. Rather, He states that eternal life is knowing God the Father and Christ Himself. Many people have the mistaken idea that eternal life begins when they transition from earth to Heaven. Eternal life is not a future reality for the child of God; instead it is a present possession. Eternal life begins the moment a person exercises faith in Christ. Jesus said in John 3:36 “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life.” Again I say, eternal life is a present possession for the Christian!
In verse 3, Jesus declares that eternal life is knowing the Father and the Son. It is important to note that there is no knowledge of the Father apart from the Son. (John 14:6 Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me). It is through the Son that the Father reveals Himself to the Elect. (John 14:9 “He that has seen Me has seen the Father”).
When Jesus speaks of knowing God, He is taking about more than intellectual knowledge. To truly “know God” is to have a personal relationship with Him. There are many people who know about God, there are many people who even believe all that the Bible says about Jesus, but this is not enough to guarantee salvation and eternal life. James said “You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe-and tremble!” (James 2:19)
Jesus declares that on the Day of Judgement there will be many who not only claimed to follow Him but have done many marvelous works in His name. However, these people did not have an authentic relationship with Him and as a result they will hear Him say “I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!” (Matthew 7:23). This passage (as well as many others) makes it clear that people may be sincerely religious and still not know God. No one can attain eternal life by good morals or good works; eternal life is a gift that is given to us by God. We receive this gift by admitting we are sinners and repenting & believing in Jesus Christ. John would later write in his first epistle – “God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life” (1 John 5:11–12).
Jesus says that eternal life is knowing Him and knowing the Father. There is no way to articulate just what an amazing privilege this is. Because of the finished work of Jesus Christ, we are able to live in intimate fellowship with the God of all creation. This prayer shows us that Jesus’ desire is that “they may know You, the only true God”. Our God is not just some mystic deity, He is “the only true God”, and it is His desire for us to know Him personally.
Throughout history multitudes have worshipped countless false Gods. We are told of such false gods as: Baal, Asherah, Ashtoreth, Chemosh, Dagon, Hadad, Moloch, Tammuz, Aphrodite, Apollo, Athena, Zeus, Hermes, Artemis, Dionysus and others. Our God is far greater than any and all of these entities; He is the only true God! This fact is proclaimed throughout the scriptures: (Deuteronomy 6:4 "Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one!); (Isaiah 43:11 I, even I, am the LORD, And besides Me there is no savior.); (Isaiah 44:6 "Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel, And his Redeemer, the LORD of hosts: 'I am the First and I am the Last; Besides Me there is no God.); (Isaiah 46:9 …For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me).
The Baptist Catechism (1795) states that “There is but one (God) only, the living and true God” and goes on to state that “There are three persons in the Godhead, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one God, the same in essence, equal in power and glory.”
Throughout this prayer we see evidence of Jesus’ divinity, and there is ample scriptural proof elsewhere that Jesus (like the Father) is the only true God. (John 10:30 I and My Father are one."); (1 Timothy 2:5 For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus,); (Revelation 22:13 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.)
Because of our relationship with Jesus we are assured that He is the only true God. (1 John 5:20 we know that the Son of God has come and has given us an understanding, that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life.) Jesus reveals the Father to the world and through His death on the Cross God has provided forgiveness of sins and eternal life to all those who believe in Him. The information contained within the first 3 verses of this chapter declares some amazing realities for the Christian; these things are possible because of the finished work of Jesus Christ. Jesus reveals the Father to the world and through His death on the Cross, God has provided forgiveness of sins and eternal life to all those who believe in Him.
We have seen some amazing truths this evening and they are all possible because of the finished work of Jesus Christ. In the following verses Jesus says “I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which You have given Me to do.” (v4). Next week we will see how Jesus glorified god on earth and what was involved in the work which God gave Him to do. Until we meet again I encourage you to remember the amazing work of our Savior and to spend ample time with Him in prayer.
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