Christ’s Intimate Prayer

 
An Intimate Prayer with Eternal Consequences Becoming One…with God! (Part 1) Text: John 17:1-3; 21-23 – Jesus Christ’s High Priestly Prayer By Pastor Dan Kennedy © June 10, 2012 www.pastorkennedy.com There are selected messages and poems, available on Amazon Kindle Books - Dan B. Kennedy. Recently published “A Simple Explanation of Salvation”, to Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0089TEBEK What an amazing concept…becoming One with God! Not becoming God, but becoming One in Him in Christ. The Key Verses today are found in John 17:21-23 21 That they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, 23 I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me. Becoming “perfectly one” with the Creator of the Universe is astounding! Hold on. Becoming One with God conflicts with my own self-centered delusions: • “I want me to be first.” • “I can be anything I want to be.” • “I want to do what I want to do.” • “I want self-confidence.” • “No fear.” • “Self-aggrandizement.” • “I am right.” • “I am the boss.” • “Self-assertiveness is the key to my success.” • “Self-determination decides whether or not I will make it.” • “Ego-centric.” • “Me, myself & I.” These are just a few mantras of our “me-centered” society and generations. We teach these assertions boldly in our schools so our children will speak up for themselves, take responsibility for themselves, and take initiative to become somebody. Our desire to see our children succeed may be commendable, but when someone must always be right and always be first and always be the leader, then there is a small problem…because everyone cannot always be right, everyone cannot always be first in line…or in whatever they are doing, and everyone cannot always be the leader. God wants us to be One with Him! That means we should be submissive to what His Word says about how we should view life, and how we should live…but most of all, how we should honor God. We can’t make ourselves primary and make God first too. We can’t try to make everyone (including God) to conform to our priorities, when God wants His Children to conform to His priorities. The biggest problem with this concept of our becoming one with God is giving up the goal of needing to be first, ourselves. 1. The first step in finding God, is needing God…not relying solely on ourselves. 2. The second step is following God…following His Word (understanding His Plan for our Salvation and relationship with Him), and following His Spirit’s promptings. Looking More Closely at Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer in John 17 Just Before the Garden of Gethsemane Jesus Christ prayed this intimate prayer to His Father just before taking His disciples to the Garden of Gethsemane, before He was arrested that night just a few hours after praying this prayer. He knew what was coming. His disciples did not. This prayer gives us insight into Jesus’ view of Himself and His relationship with His Father. It gives us a front row seat into what Jesus has done for us and what the deepest meaning of our relationships will be in the Kingdom of Heaven. John 17 17 When Jesus had spoken these words, he lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, “Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Son that the Son may glorify You… Who Are We to Glorify? The Father Glorifies the Son and the Son Glorifies the Father As God’s Children, we are to glorify God the Father and Jesus Christ His Son. What does “Glorify” mean in this context? Let’s go back to John 12 for an explanation. John 12 23 And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24 Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. 25 Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 27 “Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? But for this purpose I have come to this hour. 28 Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came from heaven: “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.” 31 Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out. 32 And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” 33 He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die. When Jesus says in John 17:1 “Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Son that the Son may glorify You”… Jesus is saying the hour of His glorification is the hour of His crucifixion! This is considerably different than what we mean when we say we want to be “glorified”! The difference between Jesus’ “glorification” and our understanding of “glorification” is that Christ came to redeem the world…and redemption meant that He would have to die – for the sins of the whole world! Jesus is “glorifying” His Father, because this was the plan before the foundation of the world, which Jesus fulfilled! (1 Peter 1:20; Hebrews 9:26; Rev. 13:8) We learn from John 17:2 that… “Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Son that the Son may glorify You 2 since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. The Father Has Given Jesus Christ the Son, Authority over All Flesh to give Eternal Life. What are the Qualifications for Eternal Life? John 17:3 And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. Eternal Life is for those who Know the Only True God and Jesus Christ whom He has Sent. Let’s review the book of John for a moment… Do you see this concept of Eternal Life through Jesus Christ confirmed throughout the book? John 1:1-4 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 was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men. John 1:14, 17 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. 17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. John 1:29, 33-34 The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 33 I myself did not know him, but he who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God.” John 3:16, 18 16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. Jesus Equated Himself to be Equal with God John 5:18 5:18 This was why the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God. The Authority of Jesus Christ, the Son John 5:24-29 24 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life. 25 “Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. 26 For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself. 27 And he has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man. 28 Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice 29 and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment. Do these Verses leave any doubt as to who Jesus is? Do they agree with the concepts of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, given in John 17? Further Confirmations in the Book of John regarding Jesus’ Identity: • Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand with a boy’s lunch in John 6:1-16 • Jesus Walks on Water in John 6:16-21 • “I Am the Bread of Life”, Jesus says of Himself in John 6:35 (22-59) • Jesus Says that the Words that He Speaks are Spirit and Life, John 6:60-63 • In John 7:37-39, Jesus Says those who believe in Him will be given “Rivers of Living Water” (just like He told the woman at the well, in John 4) • Jesus said, “I Am the Light of the World”, in John 8:12 • Jesus said, unless we believe in Him, we will die in our sins, in John 8:24 • Jesus said, “If anyone keeps my word, he will never see death,” in John 8:51 • Jesus Heals a Man Born Blind in John 9 • Jesus tells us, “I Am the Good Shepherd”, in John 10 “I and the Father are One” In John 10, Jesus also tells the ones questioning whether or not He is The Christ, that, “I and the Father Are One” John 10:24-30 So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” 25 Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name bear witness about me, 26 but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep. 27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. 30 I and the Father are one.” John 11: Lazarus Dies…but Jesus Raises him from the Dead I Am the Resurrection and the Life 23 Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” 24 Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” 25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, 26 and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” 27 She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.” Note: Jesus’ references that those who believe in Him “will never die.” This is related to our spirit…not our crumbling physical body. It is also related to what the Bible speaks of as “the second death”…which is eternal damnation. (Rev. 2:11; 20:6, 14; 21:8) John 14: Jesus tells us He is going to Prepare a Place for those who Believe in Him 14 “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. 2 In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. Jesus tells Thomas, “I Am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life” John 14:4 And you know the way to where I am going.” 5 Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” 6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. Is there any question, from our review of the statements and miracles found in the book of John that Jesus was anyone else other than who He claimed Himself to be in John 17:1-3? “Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you, 2 since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. 3 And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” John 17:1-3 We have only gotten through three verses today – but let’s look at the key verses in John 17 again, then in the future we will pick up where we left off. The Key Verses for John 17 are found in verses 21-23 21 That they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, 23 I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me. The profound confirmation throughout the New Testament is that Jesus Christ came to earth as God the Son. He was crucified and buried, but He rose again on the third day, just like the Scripture proclaimed. This redemptive Sacrifice is the foundation for the salvation and eternal life for all who believe the Scripture, without which there is no reconciliation with God. The ultimate goal for this Sacrifice is that we who believe in Christ will become perfectly One with the Father. “I in them and You in Me”…“That they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us!” When we see the complexity of creation all around us – and all around the universe, to have perfect oneness with Him who created all things is astounding! Oneness with God and with each other in God’s Family is God’s final goal for His Children. How amazing will that be…for eternity!
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