Jesus' prayer

[0:00] And then that prayer extends to his disciples who continue Jesus' mission in the world.! And then it ripples even further out.

[0:12] ! Don't worry if you can't read the funny writing. Even further out to pray for his church's mission as they continue this work that Jesus has begun.

[0:24] So firstly, Jesus prays for his own mission. And as he does so, I think we can think of two words particularly.

[0:35] He prays for the cross and for glory. We see that in verse 1 as Jesus begins his prayer looking up to heaven to his Father.

[0:46] He says, Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son that your Son may glorify you. He prays for cross and glory.

[1:00] He prays for the cross. He doesn't mention the cross, but he prays for the hour that has come. And the hour we've been thinking about in John's Gospel is the hour he was coming for to go and die upon the cross.

[1:16] And he prays that this would be a glorious hour. We noted a few weeks ago when we were in John chapter 12 that the hour had now come.

[1:28] It hadn't come up until chapter 12, but then it came as the Greeks came and said, Sir, we would like to see Jesus. And it triggered off that hour as he particularly then heads for the cross.

[1:43] That's always where he was heading, but now it's coming very soon. The hour that he'd come for is coming.

[1:56] But this doesn't seem particularly glorious. We know what's coming. Jesus, in just a few hours, will be unfairly arrested by a friend who betrays him.

[2:09] He'll be put on trial. He'll be condemned to death. He'll hang naked on a cross, bleeding, dying. It doesn't seem glorious, does it? And yet he prays that as the hour has come, he prays, glorify your son that your son may glorify you.

[2:32] He prays for glory. He's not seeing the place of the cross as a place of disappointment and defeat. He sees it as a place of glory.

[2:43] And this word glory, in the Greek, it's the word doxa. It's where we get our word doxology. And it means to kind of bring honor, recognition to someone because there's something great about them.

[3:02] I was thinking about where we give glory to people today. I was thinking about people being knighted or given MBEs or OBEs honors by now the king, be the queen.

[3:18] There was the New Year's honors list this year. This was Brian May, one of the most high-profile people to be honored, honored for his work to music and to charity. Or think about the Amex Stadium when someone scores a goal and you have crowds of people cheering, honoring them because of something great they've done on the pitch.

[3:42] We give honor, glory to them. And Jesus here is praying that glory would go to him, but also to his father.

[3:53] He prays that his father will be glorified as Jesus is obedient to his father's plan for salvation for the world.

[4:07] It's a place of glory. It's not a place of defeat. It's a place of victory. Because there at the cross we see that the father's plan will be finished, will be completed.

[4:24] Verse 4, it says this, I have brought you glory on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do. Jesus has come and he's going to finish, complete the work that his father called him to do.

[4:43] He was so willing, so obedient to do it because of his great love for his father. This is what Jesus came to do. John 12, 27, Jesus said this, Now my soul is troubled and what shall I say?

[4:59] Father, save me from this hour? Save me from the cross? Save me from this agony? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Jesus knew that that's why he was coming into the world.

[5:13] That's where he was heading. Willingly, obediently to the cross. To die for his people. This hour, as we were reminded this morning, it would involve him being lifted up and drawing all people to himself.

[5:32] This was the great plan of salvation that his father had. And so if the definition of glory is to give honor to someone for something great they have done, then I think as Jesus heads to the cross to be lifted up for us, to complete his father's plan of salvation, then yes, Jesus must get the glory for it.

[6:07] As he finishes that plan of salvation on the cross, he shouts on the cross those final three words, it is finished. They're words of victory, not of defeat.

[6:20] Because all is done to save us. The mission completed. Jesus must get the glory.

[6:33] And as Jesus finishes this work on earth, he says in verse 5, and now Father glorify me in your presence with the glory I had before the world began.

[6:46] As he finishes that work of dying in our place on the cross, he prays that he would get to share in the glorious splendor of heaven with his father, be where he had come from, back with his father, back in heaven.

[7:10] You may be wondering, is this all a bit selfish? If I stood up here and prayed, Father glorify me, glorify Daniel Shapala, you'd think he's being very, very boastful, self-centered, full of pride.

[7:29] Where's that guy's humility? To be an elder in our church. Don't think we should have him. But this is Jesus.

[7:40] And consider what he's going to do. The hour, the cross, it involves giving up his life. It involves dying. It's not selfish.

[7:52] He's dying in our place. To complete his father's plan of salvation. And there is even more that Jesus must get the glory for, that we see in these first few verses of this prayer.

[8:08] Must get the glory for the eternal life that he wins for us. So verse two and three. For you granted him authority over all people, that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him.

[8:24] Now this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.

[8:37] The son's death brings about eternal life for all those that the father would give him. I was sharing with some of us on Wednesday evening, often think of eternal life as life that lasts forever.

[8:55] And indeed it is. But as we get eternal life in Jesus, we get even more than that. Notice how Jesus describes eternal life.

[9:08] He says that they know you, the only true God and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. Eternal life for the Christian is to know God.

[9:23] Because consider in the beginning of time, when Adam and Eve sinned, they fell, they were cast out of the garden and they were out of relationship with God.

[9:33] It was broken. But now Jesus comes and by completing his father's work that he gave him to do, Jesus comes and offers a way back to God from the dark paths of sin.

[9:50] He offers a way for us to know God for ourselves. That's eternal life. Yes, life that lasts forever with God in his kingdom, but life that has a relationship restored with God because of what Jesus does on the cross, because of this hour.

[10:09] And so Jesus must get the glory for that. And so it was right that we sang, to God be the glory, praise the Lord. Praise the Lord that he opened the way for salvation for us.

[10:30] The second thing Jesus prays for is for his disciples. And he particularly prays for his disciples' mission, continuing the mission of Jesus in the world.

[10:41] And we see that through verses 6 to 19. Because consider who he's leaving behind to continue his work. Leaving behind a small band of men, one of whom has gone off to get ready to betray him.

[11:00] Another one, Peter's going to deny him three times. Peter, James, and John in the Garden of Gethsemane, they can't stay awake with Jesus when Jesus would like them to, when Jesus is in utter agony at the thought of what's to come.

[11:19] They're fragile, they're weak, they're sinful. Post-resurrection, you've got Thomas who just doubts, who just can't believe that Jesus could have possibly risen.

[11:29] They need prayer. And so it's humbling to think that Jesus would pray for them. Weak people that they are.

[11:44] And they really need prayer because Jesus is not going to be with them in the world much longer. Verse 11, I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world.

[11:56] And as we heard this morning, they will be hated by the world because of the world that is in opposition to God.

[12:10] Notice he doesn't ever say here that they're to withdraw from the world. Father, take them out of the world. Protect them in this little Christian bubble. No, they're to be very much in the world.

[12:23] When I was up at Oak Hill Bible College, I felt often at times, I was in this little Christian bubble and it was wonderful.

[12:36] But I had to remind myself there's a world out there. A world that is lost, that needs reaching. And so to remind myself, I would walk down to Asda, which is a great place to be reminded of it.

[12:49] Amen. Amen. And so as Jesus says that he's about to leave the world, we can be encouraged for these disciples that Jesus prays for them.

[13:06] We've been encouraged too that Jesus has promised in the chapters before that he'll send his Holy Spirit to be with them. He'll be living with them by his Spirit, helping them.

[13:18] And it's great that Jesus also prays for them. And two things I particularly want us to note that he prays for them. Firstly, security.

[13:30] So verse 11 continues, saying, 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.

[13:44] Praying for security, for protection for them. In the world. I was recently looking up protection that prime ministers get when they're in office.

[14:00] They have a team of people protecting them as they go out into the world. And there will be people in the country who are in opposition against the prime ministers who won't like them very much.

[14:13] Here's Boris Johnson out on a run and he's got a protection guy running behind him to make sure that he's safe as he goes out into the world. And as Jesus leaves his disciples to be living in the world without him physically present with them, he prays that his Father will protect them as they live in a world in opposition to God.

[14:40] and he particularly prays that they will be protected by the power of your name.

[14:55] By name, he means God's character and he describes his Father as Holy Father. And I was thinking about that over this week and thinking how God is a Holy God and we cannot stand on our own before a Holy God but if we're people who know and trust in the Lord Jesus as his disciples do, they can stand before a Holy God because of Jesus.

[15:27] And as they get to know God for themselves, God, the Holy God will protect them, will keep hold of them as they live life in this world.

[15:40] And he's particularly, I think, praying for protection, not for protection against persecution and death and danger because we're not promised we won't face those kinds of suffering.

[15:58] He's praying for protection for them not to fall away because he gives the example of Judas here in verse 12. I protected them and kept them safe that by that name you gave me none has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that scripture would be fulfilled.

[16:17] It's tragic to think that Judas, the integral part of Jesus' disciples, didn't really know Jesus as he should and he would fall away as scripture said he would.

[16:31] but for those who are following him he prays that they would be protected, they would be kept safe, they would be kept to the end until they get to be with their God forever.

[16:48] He prays for protection, it's a dangerous world, it's a world that seeks to oppose us, that will throw all it can against us. Jesus' praise would be kept safe from that, that we wouldn't fall away.

[17:05] What a wonderful reassurance for his disciples. And second, S, sanctification he prays for. Sanctification.

[17:16] So verse 17, sanctify them by the truth, your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them, I sanctify myself that they too may be truly sanctified.

[17:37] Sanctification in the Christian life is to grow in our holiness as we're set apart for living for God. and Jesus prays that that work would happen in them as they're set apart for living with him in the world, that they will grow in their holiness.

[18:01] And Jesus says here in verse 19 that for them I sanctify myself. And yet Jesus is holy, but I think he's talking about he himself is set apart to do the work of salvation for his people.

[18:17] He's set apart for a purpose in this world. And so are his disciples set apart so that they can continue the mission of Jesus, continue to make him known.

[18:31] He prays that his people will be set apart to go and continue on in his mission. It's a small band of people that he leaves.

[18:44] He's a weak and fragile group of guys. He doesn't pray that they'll be taken out of the world. He prays that they would be kept safe in the world and that they would be continuing to grow in holiness as they're set apart for living for God.

[19:07] And we ourselves continue in that mission which they started. we have Jesus' words in front of us because of the work these disciples did.

[19:23] We too want to run away and retreat from this world but we can have confidence that as we live in this world the Father will keep us safe, will keep us secure and we'll be at work as we're set apart for living for him.

[19:42] Finally, Jesus particularly focuses on praying for us. Thirdly and finally, Jesus prays for his church's mission.

[19:53] That's 20 to 26. Have a look at what it says in verse 20. My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message.

[20:10] And we are those. We are part of those. Part of many hundreds, millions of maybe billions of people who have come to believe in Jesus through the disciples' message.

[20:24] He prays for us. Isn't it humbling that Jesus takes time to pray for us here? So be encouraged this evening. If you're not encouraged by anything else this evening, be encouraged by the thought that Jesus took time to pray for you before he went to die for you.

[20:46] He really did have us in mind. And he prays particularly for two things, two things that certainly I want us to notice. lots more in these verses as I've said.

[20:59] But he particularly prays for unity. Unity. Verse 21. I pray that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you.

[21:13] May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. one. I have given them glory that you gave me so that they may be one as we are one.

[21:29] I in them and you in me so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.

[21:41] He says the word one there prays for oneness among his people and unity prays that his people will be united together and he prays that so that they may be a picture of the God that they are following.

[22:02] Verse 21 that all of them may be one father just as you are in me and I am in you the father and the son they are one together they are united together and he prays that his people would be two don't mishear any of these verses as Jesus saying oh we are one with God we're light we are God we're part of God he's not saying that we're human but we are united together in the Lord Jesus who has done this great work of salvation for us we're united to Jesus in his death and resurrection and when Jesus says may they also be may they be one with each other don't think that we should be kind of inside each other that's a weird thing that's kind of what

[23:07] I was picturing when I first read these verses that's not the case but we are united together as we're united to the Lord Jesus we're united together in that love that he has shown to us we're united in loving one another too as a church and we're united together in that love God has for us so that Jesus can pray that we would make him known that's the purpose of this so notice verse 21 may they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me and then in verse 23 then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me he wants the world to know him and his love as his people are united together in love for one another we are united in love for one another because

[24:12] Jesus has loved us and so as this loving unity is on display to the world they may know the one who has first loved us and so as we continue on in this mission of Jesus we show our unity together as we are together like this as we go out together some of us this week tomorrow and on Saturday as we together on London road and in the level people will see us together and will be on display to the world so that the world may see the Lord Jesus in us as imperfect as we are let's pray that God will use us as weak!

[25:15] to show the world him him who has loved us the world will be watching watching the church and we do that in a world that is so divided we see those divisions don't we at the moment all over the news divisions over pay and striking disagreements about politics even within political parties there's divisions there are racial divides class divides and yet the church involves people of all nationality all classes male and female Brighton and Crystal Palace fans young and old all joining together in this unique community of love that should reflect the love that God has shown to us and so as the father and the son are united in their love for one another so we're united with that love

[26:35] God's had for us and it's on display to the world so let's pray that God will use Calvary church in this let's pray that God will continue to answer this prayer of Jesus for unity amongst us over this next week over this next year and beyond and he will see this work through to completion verse 24 just very briefly father I want those you have given me to be with me where I am and to see my glory the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world he's going to get to share in his father's glory but he doesn't just want to share in that for himself he wants us to share in that as we get to be with him forever as we get to enjoy the splendor of heaven with our

[27:42] God who we get to know because of the eternal life that Jesus gives us but first we go through this world together on his mission to make him known to the world and then great glory will come Jesus prays he prays for his own mission as he completes the work the father gave him to do he prays for his disciples as they continue that mission on and he prays for his church even us here today we're going to pray in two ways we're firstly going to pray by singing a song that is a prayer for Thank you.