In this sermon, Tim speaks into Jesus’ prayer for his disciples in John 17 where he prays for our protection in order that we may be one, and be safe from the evil one. Audio and text of the sermon are below!
We have been doing a series in the Gospel of John, focusing in on the final week before Jesus’ death and resurrection.
- As we enter into Jesus’ final prayer before he is imminently betrayed, arrested, tried and crucified
- It is so amazing to see what he prays for his disciples and ones to come like you and I.
- Kirrily spoke last week on the start of this prayer and the idea of glory!
- Oh my gosh, what a message!
- The hour has come. Jesus prays; Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you!
- The hour has come… the full demonstration of who God is, is about to be revealed, the weightiness, the essence, the character of God…
- And it will be demonstrated by the self giving love of Jesus Christ, crucified so that we may be forgiven and free!
So let’s continue in this prayer. And as Jesus continues to pray, it is turned towards us.
Read John 17:9-16
9 I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, for they are yours. 10 All I have is yours, and all you have is mine. And glory has come to me through them. 11 I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name, the name you gave me, so that they may be one as we are one. 12 While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled.
13 “I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them. 14 I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. 15 My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of it.
Isn’t it amazing that Jesus knowing what he is about to face prays for his disciples.
- Not for himself… but for them and us.
- I guess while he knew of the inevitable suffering, he also knew that the victory over death was certain.
- And so his focus is less on himself and more on us. He cares deeply about his disciples.
- He cares deeply about you!
Can I just say we follow Jesus for lots of reasons, and that includes little things like this…
- He thinks of others before he thinks of himself.
- Paul picks up on this in Philippians 2:3-4…
- He says; “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.”
- And then he goes on to speak about how this is modelled by Christ Jesus who took on the nature of a servant…
We do well in life when fundamentally we are focused on others and not just ourselves…
- Jesus here in praying for others models selfless-ness…
- Christianity is selfless-ness. It is Jesus shaped other-ness (is that a word?)
- Not important… you don’t pay me for my grammar…
- We are a people who follow the what of Jesus?
- The way of Jesus…
- Early disciples were known as people of the way…
- What way? Amongst other things… The other people focused way.
- And that is what changed peoples and ultimately the known worlds life!
So in the verses before it talks about them having accepts the words of Jesus.
- They may still have some misunderstandings, but they know that he is the Messiah, the sent one from God.
- And he loves them deeply… and that is what so much of this Upper Room Discourse has been about!
- His care for those who believe in him… and his desire that they would love each other like he has loved them!
So this prayer is for those who belong to God
- Verse 9 “I pray for them that you have given me.”
- Do you belong to Jesus?
- Hard reality… some in this life will become the children of God, but some will stay in the darkness.
- Of course salvation is for everyone…
- Acts 2:21 “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
- 1 Timothy 2:4 “God wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.”
- Titus 2:11-12 “For the grace of God has appeared that offers salvation to all people.”
But we are not universalists. We do not believe that somehow we all end up in a better place because after all, we’re not really that bad!
- No the Christian message is that we fall short of the glory of God… we are separated from relationship with God through our sin.
- But in his grace and mercy, he has made a way through his Son Jesus Christ.
- For you and I, we must believe and belong to God through Jesus.
- Jesus himself has said this in John in the Upper Room Discourse
- John 14:6 “I am the way, the truth, the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
- So this is a prayer for those who believe in Jesus and becomes followers of the way and are called the children of God.
- And for those… Jesus prays.
This evening we are having some very exciting baptisms… Andrew and Jimmy!
- I really like them… obviously that is not a pre-requisite for being baptised… I’ll still baptise you if I don’t like you but you are following Jesus… but I really like!
- Jimmy: carpenter (like Jesus)… loved Alpha and coming to Manly Life… looking across at him in worship…
- Andrew: from a great Christian family but had a few wobbles… came back to church at the start of this year and got saved! All in…
- Jesus has loved and saved them.
- Jesus is praying for them
- And so tonight they identify their lives with Jesus… publicly declaring, they belong to him.
- Cold waters… That the old has gone, and the new has come!
So what does Jesus pray? Prays for Protection – might be translated as for our preserving…
- Jesus in his care and love for his disciples and you and I prays for our preservation in the faith.
- Verse 11 “Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name.”
- And he prays this in order that we may be one.
- And he prays this that we may be protected from the evil one…
- Jesus in adopting you as children of the God wants you to be able to stand firm and get to the end of your journey here on earth.
- You see I’ll take some of your funerals (unless you’re taking mine)
- But on that day we will be able to say you persevered…. And you were persevered.
- You stood firm against the evil one.
- On that day we will know that Jesus has been praying for you…
- And that now you are entering into your eternal rest and assurance of life!
And this protection or preservation happens through (vs 11) “the power of your name.”
- Whose name? God the Fathers name.
- How? Well it carries authority.
- Things will come against you in this life… hard times, possibly persecution… circumstances that test and challenge you…
- But you got a name that carries authority that you can call on, to help you be preservered.
High School and having a big brother… 6’3ft, national swimming finalist, big dude.
- Entered High like most kids not that big or strong but a bit cheeky and prone to getting myself in a few tight squeezes….
- But no one messed with me…
- Because I could call on the name of my oldest brother. It carried authority.
- You’d think twice about messing with me because I could summon the big fella.
Can I encourage you if times are tough in your life or faith to call on the name of Jesus and remember that he is praying for you?
- Now because Jesus here prays for their protection, it doesn’t mean that the children of God are Teflon…
- But again back to this words deeper meaning of preservation… it does mean that we will be able to stand firm until whatever end we come to.
I think of one of my absolute heroes in the bible, Stephen in the Book of Acts.
- In chapter 6 we read about his boldness in following Jesus and telling the world of the good news. And it leads to his death.
- But what is important about his story isn’t some supernatural protection where he does what Jesus tells him to do
- And then in the face of opposition he skates off into a safe retirement plan…
- No, it is the fact that he does what Jesus tells him to do…
- Namely be a witness to the truth and preaches the Word…
- And then in the face of the fiercest opposition we could know… he doesn’t give in…
- He doesn’t wilt…
- He doesn’t take the soft option out… but instead endures and is faithful and thus is preserved to the point of death.
I was out with Lani and some friends last night and we were talking about Haberfield…
- And obviously we want it to grow and thrive and be a place of life
- But we were talking about our roles and we were talking about ultimately our roles being to do our absolute best in preaching and ministering and building community
- But you have no idea how it is going to go, particularly with all the challenges and so on
- Bit our job is what?
- It is faithfulness…
- And your job in your life is what? It is faithfulness…
- And Jesus is with you, praying and supporting you and protecting you so that you can be what?
- Faithful. So that you may preserve and be protected to the end…
So Stephen although killed is preserved…
- Perspective may be an eternal one… but you can be protected from the evil one and falling away by the power of God’s name!
- So call on it and know its authority…
- Nothing can separate you from the love of (what?)… God
- And the kingdom of God is not (1 Corinthians 4:20) a matter of what?
- It says “the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power.”
- So you have power in Jesus name to preserve and be protected and be faithful and to last!
And I think key to understanding this protection is in the passage. Is what we are being for…
- So verse 11; “Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name, the name you gave me, so that they may be one as we are one.”
- So biggest thing they need protection from is disunity or being scattered.
- If unity comes from our common life and love of God and love of each other…
- My sense is disunity comes when we step outside all that we have learnt in the Upper Room discourse?
- Unity comes from foot washing and loving one another
- Disunity comes from power and agendas and having your way!
And unity is modelled on the relationship between the Father and the Son…
- Verse 10: “All I have is yours, and all you have is mine.”
- So The Father and Jesus were in it together… based on relationship and love.
- More on unity in 2 weeks.
- But clearly the power of unity is in relationship and seeing ourselves as part of one family
- Not just the Manly Life family
- Or the Baptist family
- Or the Sydney Protestant family
- Or the Australian Christian church family
- But the global, Christian, trans denominational, Jesus following family!
Illustration – Nicky Gumbel… infinitely more in common than what divides us.
- Love his gracious approach to other traditions…
- Arrived in London I was a bit shocked…
- Parrott… I’d told Pentecostal friends they weren’t Christian…
- Why? Because I was stupid and naïve… and listened too much to white men who thought they knew everything…
- Nicky on Alpha Course talk on the church “I love the Catholics. I love the Orthodox, I love the Pentecostal’s…
- Powerful thing about Alpha is that it is used for mission by so many Christian backgrounds.
- Brings people together in mission rather than constantly dividing us.
So we try and do this at Manly Life
- Salvos lunches…
- Christian Surfers…
- Anchor RE, Manly West scripture.
- So much we can do together… that we can’t do apart.
- Across the churches and in our own church, we need to be on the watch against division.
- Yes, things Christians will disagree on, but as Nicky says… more in common…
I watch the Kings coronation and I cant quite work out why these men are wearing golden embraided dresses…
- Cant find that in the bible…
- But I know people who know these people and I know they love Jesus…
- And if I want to give in to the evil one, I don’t have to go much further that disparaging other Christians…
- I’m not about to start wearing pointy hats and flowing robes… or am I?
- But one of the beauties of following Christ is how untied it is to culture….
- It’s not follow Jesus and look like and dress like, and eat like a certain way…
- No, it’s the Upper room discourse… the way is the way of foot washing.
- Of getting low and loving each other.
- Amen?
Finally there is a reminder, as Jesus prays for us that we are not of the world, just like Jesus.
- Verse 14; “for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. 15 My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of it.”
- Jesus came from the Father… from heaven… from a different realm and place…
- He came into our world, but he was not of this world…
Now one of the men who were there listening to Jesus when he prayed this… would reflect on this many years later…
- 1 Peter 2:10-11 the Apostle Peter says;
| “Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires. ” Goes on to say “Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.” |
- Right, this Peter who had been with Jesus, many years later would say you have become like a foreigner
You still live in this world, but we belong to a different place now. We are citizen of heaven, exiled on earth.
- In the negative it means we abstain from sinful desires
- On the positive live such good lives that your good deeds are evident.
- Result: see your good deeds and glorify God.
What a great prayer… Jesus prays for our preservation, for our unity, for our new citizenship to be evident.
- How different, how extraordinary we are called to be!
- Jesus is praying for us… amen!