Responding To What God Has Done

“I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world. They were yours; you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word. Now they know that everything you have given me comes from you. For I gave them the words you gave me and they accepted them. They knew with certainty that I came from you, and they believed that you sent me. I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, for they are yours. All I have is yours, and all you have is mine. And glory has come to me through them” (John 17:6-10, NIV).

Are you familiar with the plant called “Mimosa Pudica”? (Show the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zq3UuHlPLQU)

It has various names in English: “touch me not plant,” “shy plant,” “sleepy plant,” “sensitive plant,” “humble plant,” “shame plant,” etc.

When I was a young child, that plant was familiar in our place and it was a source of my amazement and glee. Every time you touched it, it would not fail to respond by closing its leaves.

Do we also realize that we will not fail to respond when God will do something in our life?

So, let us highlight this time some ways that we would be… RESPONDING TO WHAT GOD HAS DONE …. which is also the title of my message, as we study the portion of the prayer of Jesus in John 17:6-10.

So, what should be our response to what God has done to us? And before we answer that, first we need to find out what He has really done. Are we aware and do we even value what He did or what He is doing in our life?

Before we proceed, let’s be reminded that the prayer of Jesus in John 17 was recorded by John, who described himself as “the disciple whom Jesus loved” (John 13:23; 19:26; 20:2; 21:7 & 20). And this prayer was uttered by Jesus before His private prayer in the place of Gethsemane.

In verses 1 to 5 of John 17, we noted that it was the prayer of Jesus for Himself. And we learned before from those verses at least three lessons.

First, we have eternal life; second, we have the knowledge of the true God; and third, we ought to glorify God.

And in our text, starting verse 6 up to verse 10, we noted at least three things we should be doing in response to what God has done to us. What are those responses?

First, OBEYING (verse 6).

We read in verse 6, “I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world. They were yours; you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word.”

Take note what Jesus said in the last part of the verse, “…you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word.”

First, what did God the Father do to those special people?

He gave them to the Son. And Jesus would like His disciples to realize that from the multitude of people in the world, they were chosen to be given to the Son. They needed to understand that they came to Jesus not because of their own initial choice. They drew near to Him not because they were tender hearted, or they were submissive, or there was any good thing in them. But God the Father gave them to Him.

And what was the response of – actually, the effect to – those persons given by the Father to Jesus?

Jesus said, “…they have obeyed your word.” They became obedient. And they obeyed not the persuasive words of men, not the majority of people, not their own feelings, not their own reason. They obeyed the Word of God.

Today, true followers of Christ should also realize that they became to be so, because God the Father had given them to the Son. They should not entertain the idea that they were given by the Father to Jesus, because they had followed Him.

Jesus said in the first part of John 6:44, “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them,…” It was so important that He also said in verse 65, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled them.”

But, will everyone given by the Father to the Son comes to Him?

Notice carefully the words of Jesus in verse 37, “All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away.”

If all the persons whom the Father gives to Jesus will come to Him, then it shows that not everyone in the world is given by God the Father to the Son. Because we see not everyone comes to Jesus. Not everyone is obeying.