"I'm Praying for You," The Prayer of Jesus

A sermon preached by Pastor Joe Alain at Hebron Baptist Church, Denham Springs, LA on May 24, 2009.

Scripture Reading: John 17:6-26

Introduction
* This section rounds-out the Upper Room Discourse that formally began in chapter 14.
* Here we have the real Lord’s Prayer!
* Jesus first prays first for Himself, then He prays for
His disciples.

Before we look at the specifics of Jesus’ prayer, we are told some things about what it means to be a disciple of Jesus.
1. The disciple is given to Jesus by God (v.6). What does that mean? It means that the Spirit of God moves our hearts to respond to the appeal of Jesus. Jesus spoke of the fact that God “draws” us to Christ (6:44). Notice that Christ reveals the Father (v.6), the disciples are those who obey God’s word (v.6), and the disciples arrive at a certainty about Jesus (v.8). All of this is initiated by God and that is why salvation is by God and for His glory!

2. Through the disciple, glory has come to Jesus (v.10). The people that Jesus has saved bring honor to Him. Honoring Christ by obeying His word and Spirit brings glory to Him.

3. The disciple is a person who is commissioned to a task (v.18). We are a “sent” people. “As the Father has sent me, I am sending you” (Jn. 20:21). We bear not only God’s image, we bear His burden – to bring the message of salvation to our world. Jesus prays for his people in order that they may be such as to win the world for Him.

Jesus’ Prayer for His Disciples (“I pray,” vv.9, 20)
It is a remarkable thing to realize that Jesus is praying for us! After the resurrection came the ascension of Christ – His return to the right hand of the Father. There He lives forever to make intercession or to pray for us (See Heb. 7:23-26). What forms the content of Jesus’ prayers for us? What is He specifically praying for?

1. Jesus Is Praying for Our Protection (vv.11, 15)
Notice that Jesus did not pray that the disciples should be taken out of the world (v.15) but that they would be protected in the world as they carry out their mission. Jesus never prayed that they might find escape; he prayed that they might find victory. But even though it is true that the Christian is not of the world, it remains true that it is within the world that Christianity must be lived out. The Christian must never desire to abandon the world, but always desire to win it. We are in the world but not of the world so that we might win the world.

Jesus was specific in that He prayed that God would protect His disciples from the attacks of the Evil One (v.15). The Bible is not a speculative book; it does not discuss the origin of evil; but it is quite certain that in this world there is a power of evil which is in opposition to God. It is a great knowing that many times God is protecting us, shielding us from our enemy Satan.

2. Jesus Is Praying for Our Sanctification (v.17)
The basic meaning of the word “sanctify” is “different” or “separate” or “set apart.” Believers have been “set apart” by God for a special and holy task – that of honoring Him by living our lives for the kingdom of God. Even as we observe the Lord’s Supper today, we are reminded of the missionary aspect of our calling to follow Jesus. To take of the bread and the juice is to be reminded of who we are and who we belong to and even why we’re here. Just as Jesus came into this world to seek and to save that which is lost, so that is our mission as the hands and feet of Christ. Jesus is praying that we understand that about our relationship with Him. We are here for God’s purposes to be fulfilled in and through us. We are not our own, we’ve been purchased with a price! “Therefore honor God with your body” (1 Cor. 6:19-20). Jesus is praying that we would understand that holy task and that we would be equipped with the qualities of mind and hear and character which are necessary for the task.

And just how are we equipped for this task that Jesus has for us? We are sanctified “by the truth; your word is truth” (v.17). All of life is discipleship training, allowing the Spirit of God to shape us by the living word of God. Bible study is not an end in itself – there is a purpose in studying God’s word – God’s word of truth is sanctifying us, preparing us for our mission.

Part of our mission as a church is to help equip you for the work of ministry. “To prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up” (Eph. 4:12). We are praying and working towards developing a plan for allowing this to be more of our focus.

3. Jesus Is Praying for Our Unity (vv.21, 23)
This is a major aspect of Christ’s prayer. Why? Because where there are divisions, where there is exclusiveness, where there is competition between the churches, the cause of Christianity is harmed and the prayer of Jesus is frustrated. The Gospel cannot be preached in any congregation which is not one united fellowship of believers. Jesus said that unity was essential to our mission of sharing Him. Christian unity accurately portrays the character of God. Unity expressed communicates the reality of our God. If unbelievers see disunity, how then can they believe in the reconciling power of God?

What we observe today in the Lord’s Supper is a powerful testimony of the unity of the fellowship of believers. In the Upper Room as they observed that first supper, the disciples were to remember what Jesus did for them in redemption. The disciples were also to recognize that they too had a redemptive purpose to accomplish in the world. For this to occur the disciples would have to be unified around the person of Jesus Christ and His purposes.

This is still true today. We remember the price that was paid for our sins but we also unite around God’s kingdom purposes. We remember that we are part of God’s community – His people on mission. Unity is not uniformity as in the idea that we must all look alike and act alike. Scripture says that there is “one” body but “many” members in the body of Christ (1 Cor. 12). Unity is realized in a person – Christ! He makes us one body (v.21). Unity begins when we all come under the Lordship of Jesus Christ. This is the heart and center of true Christian unity.

Is this unity necessary? According to Jesus, it’s pretty important! Jesus even once said that a kingdom divided can not stand (Matt. 12:25). The same goes for a church. A church divided is an oxymoron! It is a contradiction of the character of Christ! “Is Christ divided?” Paul asked the Corinthians. Of course not! Paul also appealed to the Corinthians and all of God’s churches “that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought” (1:10).

Unity in the body of Christ is so important that it is a prerequisite for worship (See Matt. 5:23-24). Paul says that you should not even participate in the supper if you’re not willing to make things right with your fellow brothers and sisters. “For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body of the Lord eats and drinks judgement on himself” (1 Cor. 11:29).

The context of this passage is clear as to what the problem is. There were known divisions in the church (v.18). The division seemed to be that there were some in the church that had total disregard for their fellow believers in the church (v.21). When they came together, the divisions were all the more apparent. This is why Paul said “A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup” (v.28). So this examination is not just internally, “is there some sin in my life that is harming my fellowship with God?” We should also ask, “is there some sin in my life that is causing a rift in the fellowship of the church?” Unity in the church is very important to God.

Examination
As we prepare for the Lord’s Supper we should examine ourselves. And what do we ask of ourselves?
1. Am I a disciple? A believer? A follower of Jesus?

2. Am I in fellowship with my Christian family?

3. Am I in harmony with the purposes of God’s church?

Let’s Pray about this and ask God to search our hearts today.

For His Glory!
Pastor Joe