The Real Lord's Prayer

The REAL Lord's Prayer

John 17:1-5

http://gbcdecatur.org/sermons/RealLordsPrayer.html

Jesus was the greatest preacher who ever lived. And His sermon on the mount was the greatest sermon ever preached. But not one time did any of His disciples ask Him, "Teach us to preach." They said, "Teach us to pray!"

ill.--I took classes on studying the Bible [hermeneutics] and exposition and exegesis, as well as Homiletics classes on how to preach. I wish they had taught me to pray!

Jesus was all about prayer.

We see Him praying at His own baptism, and before He selected His disciples, and as He would perform miracles. We see Him praying here just before He goes to the cross, continuing in the garden of Gethsemane where He prayed with such earnest agony that his sweat glands burst and bled.

Jesus praying - it is an interesting concept. For though He IS God, He prays TO God. He isn't talking to Himself, mind you...He prayed to His Father just as we should.

We pray to the Father, by the Spirit, in Jesus' name. It is in His name that we are granted that access to boldly come to the Father. Christ prayed to the Father, IN the Spirit, and of course, He didn't have to name drop His own name. He is the way to the Father! This is true in prayer, and true for salvation!

In our text we find the real Lord's Prayer. We all are familiar with the prayer example Jesus gave His disciples: "Our Father, which art in heaven..."

Notice that within that prayer there is a request for forgiveness. That can't be the Lord's prayer. It should be the believer's prayer.

By the same token, WE cannot pray the prayer in our text.

v. 4 This can be spoken by the Lord Jesus alone.

Jesus prays for Himself in vv. 1-5

Jesus prays for His current disciples in vv. 6-19

Jesus prays for future followers in vv. 20-26

Did you know that there is conversation which takes place within the Trinity?

Genesis 1:26

26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness:

God = Elohim [plural]

Genesis 11:7

Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's speech.

In the NT we see the Spirit interceding for Christians and Jesus praying for believers.

And there are other examples in Scripture of this kind of God-versation. Today's text is an example, and we have the privilege of eavesdropping on their conversation.

ill.--a man hadn't heard well in years, and finally went to the doctor for hearing aids. They worked great! He left the doctor's office. He returned for a checkup one month later. The doctor said, "Your family must be thrilled to once again be able to converse with you." He replied, "I haven't told them yet. I just sit around listening to their conversations. I've changed my will 3 times this month!"

Notice today the interesting things the Son says to the Father. Also, pay attention to what Jesus is doing for us as our High Priest, interceding for us! Many of you share requests for my prayer list and others prayer lists. And we pray for one another. But even better than being on the pastor's prayer list is being on Jesus' prayer list!

If the Bible were to be compared with the OT Tabernacle, then the whole of it would be the outer court, and John's gospel would be the Holy Place, and John 17 would be the Most Holy Place, the inner sanctum. All Scripture is equal in its importance, but certainly we should give particular reverence to this intimate prayer of Jesus before He went to the cross!

Over and again we see the word 'glory.' It is a key word.

vv. 1, 4, 5, 10, 22, 24

What a summary of all that Jesus is to us, past, present, and future. You see, what God justifies, He always sanctifies, and what He sanctifies, He always glorifies. We are destined for future glory!

A. Jesus prays for Himself. [vv. 1-5]

[The glory of His person.]

v. 4

1. His character.

What is the purpose of your existence? Is there one? Can you even know it? Is it just to exist? To continue the species? To pay the bills?

Our purpose is to glorify God through Jesus Christ! Just as the moon reflects the light of the sun, we are to reflect the glory of God in His Son!

Matthew 5:16

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

Now here's the problem: We've all sinned and come short of that glory of God [Rom. 3:23]. So we find that glory in the sinless Christ!