6 5 2016 “Jesus Prays for Future Followers” John 17:20-26
We have been looking at John 17 and are witnesses of Jesus’ prayer before He is arrested. We looked at the first two parts, the prayer for Himself and for His immediate disciples and in John 17:20-26, Jesus prays for all future believers followers of Jesus.
Look first at John 17:20-23: "I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; 21 that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. 22 And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: 23 I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.”
The Success of the Word preached
God promised in Isaiah 55:11: “My word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” Jesus came as the very Word of God in the Flesh. He trained the original disciples by His life and teaching, by His amazing atoning death and resurrection, His ascension and sending of His Holy Spirit so that the disciples would be thoroughly and completely equipped for the mission of sharing the Gospel throughout the World. God’s Word accomplishes what He desires. The present disciples would proclaim the Gospel to others with SUCCESS.
In verse 20 Jesus prays for “those who WILL BELIEVE in Me through their word.” It would be inevitable that the preaching of the Gospel would be successful because it is the very work of God to do so. The building of His Kingdom is God’s program, bringing under His rule, those He has ordained to be His Children to serve Him forever.
Unity or Oneness
In verse 21 Jesus again speaks of the Unity or Oneness of the Father in the Son and the Son in the Father, and then this same type of unity (oneness) displayed in ALL Disciples. Listen to vs. 21: “that they all may be one,(that is, ALL BELIEVERS) as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.” There is an assurance here first of all: ALL TRUE BELIEVERS WILL BE ONE in the same way that the Father and Son are ONE. All Believers constitute the “BODY of Christ.” They are the Body of Believers and have been placed “IN CHRIST” by the Word of Jesus on the Cross. They have been born into the Kingdom of God SO THAT they would be one with the Father and one with the Son.
Secondly, this is not merely an invisible or “spiritual” unity, but one that would be visible in the world so that unbelievers would be drawn to Jesus and believe that God sent Him. This is a remarkable verse because God is telling us that the Unity of Believers is a Witness to the world. This is an assurance for Believers but also the Unity of believers is an instrument of God in an ungodly world “that the world may believe that You sent Me.”
There is a pattern of unity that is characteristic of the Father and the Son, and the Son and the follower of Christ. Verse 22 goes on to explain: “And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one.” The Glory of God is God’s revelation of Himself. It is God’s activity and works among His People. In this manifestation, God is revealed for WHO HE IS. God’s self-disclosure is in the person of Jesus and is brought to full witness in His life and work as the Mediator on the cross for the salvation of mankind. Those who BELIEVE in the work of the Son share the GLORY OF GOD in knowing Him THROUGH His Revealed REDEMPTION.
One of the ways that the Glory of God was manifested in Jesus was in His servanthood: He came to serve not to be served. Jesus went to the cross to reveal God’s Glory and grace: We are called to serve Him and others in humility. That is part of the Glory of God in us, not to be worshiped and adored, but to be followers and imitators of the Lord Jesus Christ. Ephesians 5:1-2 says: “Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. 2 And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.”
Unity Perfected
The pattern of unity is perfected in unity and love. Verse 23 continues: “I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.” The manner of the union of believers is that the Son is in the Father: It is by Him that the faithful or believing are united with the Father, not that they “pass from one to the other, but because they FIND the Father in the Son. It is by Jesus revelation of Himself that we find the Father. Again notice that God’s kingdom purposes are at work here; it is not for selfish or self-serving purposes but so that the world may know that the Father sent the Son (and that Jesus proceeds from the Father).
Christians are caught up into the love of the Father for the Son. God’s love is not like the world’s love: His love is not to enhance or adorn himself but because He wills to give of Himself to those who are inferior to Himself. Believers find their eternal security, contentment and fulfillment being loved by the Almighty himself, with the very same love that the Father has always had for His Son and the Son for the Father. It is this Indwelling of Christ and God’s perfect love which proclaims God’s Mission to the world. Christ has come to redeem a fallen people for Himself: What great love the Father has lavished upon us, that we would be called children of God.
Beyond the Present
Look at verse 24 with me: “Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me (giving is characteristic of the Trinity-giving is GRACE!) may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.” Jesus’ prayer for unity and love includes holiness as the Church while on earth but also the yearning for God’s Heavenly glory. Jesus prays for the time when Saint on earth will behold the eternal Glory of Jesus the Son which has been His for all eternity past. He prays for the time when believers will witness the splendor and majesty which belonged to Jesus in the heavenly realms not just the glory of His lowly service while in the Flesh. It is this glory to which He would soon return.
Verse 25 and 26 reads: “O righteous Father! The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me.” 26 And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them."
“O Righteous Father” appeals to God’s justice and to His righteousness; here the distinction is made between those who accept and receive the work of Christ in their lives and those of the hostile world who reject the work of Christ. A distinction is made by the Lord Jesus in His prayer between those who believe in Jesus…and the hostile world which rejects Him. Jesus acknowledges that His disciples have understood that He was sent from God. They had come to understand that God had come to dwell in the midst of His people. The hostile world on the other hand, has rejected the truth about Jesus and so they will be condemned for their unbelief.
Verse 26 declares the ongoing Gospel program: “I have declared to them Your Name, and WILL declare it that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.” The work of the Gospel will continue until all of God’s people have been gathered in Christ. Christ Himself will continue to indwell His People, the True Church, and so God will dwell in the midst of His people. It is a thread of truth woven throughout Scripture described and revealed as God’s love toward His covenant people, displayed clearly in Christ’s redemptive work.
Listen to this: Whatever is TRUE REMAINS TO BE TRUE, even if no one believes it. What is FALSE REMAINS FALSE, even if everyone believes it. The glory of God is revealed in the Lord Jesus. Jesus is Deity; He is God Incarnate, God in the Flesh. His Word declares this. His Word declares that there is one way to God for forgiveness, salvation and eternal life in His Kingdom, under the Sovereign rule of God: That is through the Lord Jesus by faith.
The glory of God is revealed in the unity of the Church, through the love of God in the Church, through the mission of the Church. There is coming a day, scripture says, when the Righteous God will judge both the living and the dead. The Jesus who died that you might believe will rightfully and righteously be the judge. He IS the TRUTH. God’s Word is Truth. This will remain to be true, though many may debate it, excuse their unbelief, justify their anger or lack of forgiveness or love, and even if NO ONE would believe it, God’s truth will still remain. If the entire world should reject the Truth, it still remains to be THE TRUTH.
I want to close with Revelation 21; Remember this is John writing again to the Churches:
“Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. 2 Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, "Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. 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."
5 Then He who sat on the throne said, "Behold, I make all things new." And He said to me, "Write, for these words are true and faithful." 6 And He said to me, "It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts. 7 He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son. 8 But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death."
Drop to vs. 23: “The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light. 24 And the nations of those who are saved shall walk in its light, and the kings of the earth bring their glory and honor into it. 25 Its gates shall not be shut at all by day (there shall be no night there). 26 And they shall bring the glory and the honor of the nations into it. 27 But there shall by no means enter it anything that defiles, or causes an abomination or a lie, but only those who are written in the Lamb's Book of Life.”
Go to Rev. 22:12-17:
Jesus says: “12 "And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work. 13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last." 14 Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city. 15 But outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie. 16 "I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things in the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star." 17 And the Spirit and the bride say, "Come!" And let him who hears say, "Come!" And let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely.”
“The Grace of our Lord Jesus be with you all. Amen”
MESSAGE MEMOS
1. Jesus prays that the present disciples would proclaim the Gospel to others with SUCCESS. (20)
2. The unity of Jesus and the Father is compared to the unity of ALL Christian disciples: The Unity of Believers is an assurance to believers and Witness to the world. (21)
3. Those who BELIEVE in the work of the Son share the GLORY OF GOD in knowing Him THROUGH His Revealed REDEMPTION. (22)
4. The Indwelling of Christ is perfected in the believer with God’s Perfect Love and reveals God’s Mission to the world. (23)
5. Jesus’ prayer includes holiness and unity on earth but also the yearning for God’s Heavenly glory. (24)
6. “O Righteous Father” appeals to God’s justice and righteousness: Jesus makes a distinction between those who believe…and a hostile world who rejects Jesus.
Whatever is TRUE REMAINS TO BE TRUE, even if no one believes it. What is FALSE REMAINS FALSE, even if everyone believes it.
