Well, good morning, everyone.
My name's Janet Skora.
If you haven't met me before,
I have the great privilege of being one of the wardens here
at St Paul's as well as a community group leader.
Great to be able to open God's Word with you this morning.
First, let me pray for us,
and then we're going to explore this wonderful part of John's Gospel.
Gracious God, thank you so much that you give us your Word
that we might know you,
that we might continue to have a relationship with you,
and that we might use your Word
to spread the good news of Jesus across this world.
I pray, Lord, that as we open your Word this morning,
that you would speak to our hearts
and help us to understand more of who you are
and all you've done for us.
Amen.
So if you've been with us for the past few weeks,
we've been working through this particular section
of the Gospel of John.
Last week, Nick spoke to us about the deep sense of belonging
that Jesus imparted to his disciples,
a connection that was derived from God,
but that would sustain them when they were scattered,
in their doubts,
and in the difficult days that lay ahead for them.
The chapters that we've been exploring over these past few weeks
all take place in a four- to five-hour conversation
between Jesus and his disciples over a meal.
It starts at chapter 13,
in the passage that you'll be familiar with,
where Jesus washes his disciples' feet.
And so the passage in chapter 17 that Helen just read for us
draws this time to a conclusion.
Jesus' main concern is that he wants the disciples
to understand that God should be glorified,
that everything he's done is in fulfilment of God's plan,
including the call on the lives of a people to trust in him.
And this is the last chapter before Jesus is arrested,
before he's tried and crucified.
And so what we have here is an experience of Jesus,
a experience of Jesus that the disciples had not had.
Throughout these chapters,
we've had a real sense of the emotion that they've experienced,
the grief and the fear that they have
in thinking about his departure.
It feels like quite an intimate moment in Jesus' ministry.
And in this time, Jesus has compressed some of the most confronting
and challenging and comforting words that this group of men would hear.
They've asked questions, they've listened,
and I can imagine them feeling pretty emotionally and physically exhausted.
It feels like a scene to me,
like we're standing outside a room,
standing at a window,
watching quietly,
our noses pressed to the glass,
straining to hear,
realizing that we're witnessing something that is really profound for these men.
And then along the way,
we realize that he's also talking to us.
Jesus has spoken to them about where he's going,
that he has to go,
and that they will remain,
and that they will be scattered.
He promises his spirit,
the counselor,
who will come to continue to reveal the truth to them and to the world,
and to bring God glory.
Last week,
we heard from Nick that Jesus assures his disciples
that they will continue to belong to him after he has gone.
And so at the end of this time,
Jesus turns to prayer.
It's a prayer that gives us some deep insight into the heart of Jesus
and his desire for his followers.
It's a personal conversation with his father
that he opens up for the disciples to hear and experience.
This is the only time in the Bible we get a glimpse of the prayer
of one person of the Trinity to another.
We're invited into this intimate fellowship between father and son.
So there are three parts to Jesus' prayer.
He prays for himself,
he prays for the disciples,
and he prays for those who would believe the church.
Let's start with the first prayer in verse one.
Father, the hour has come.
Glorify your son that your son might glorify you.
This request that Jesus has for glorification
is not about selfish ambition,
but fulfilling his divine purpose.
He lifts his eyes to heaven,
the posture of prayer,
but it says so much more to the disciples in the room
about the relationship Jesus has with his father.
Jesus' prayer is conveying to God
that he has done what God has asked him.
He has completed the mission,
he's brought glory to God,
and seeks that God would continue to glorify him
as he faces the cross.
Jesus understands that the hour has come for him
to complete the mission on earth
through his death and resurrection.
This is something he's spoken openly about
in other accounts in the Gospels,
making clear that the timing and purpose on earth
for him are God's timing,
not for him to choose.
Earlier in his ministry at the wedding of Cana,
Jesus responds to his own mother's request
for him to intervene, to get more wine,
by saying in John chapter two, verse four,
my hour has not yet come.
And then later in chapter seven,
his brothers urge him to go to Jerusalem,
and he says to them,
my hour has not yet come.
And yet here he says,
my hour has come,
because he knew that the timing of the plan for his life
was God's to decide,
and his purpose on earth was to bring God glory.
In verses two and three,
Jesus repeats that his purpose is connected
to our eternal life.
For you granted him glory,
authority over all people,
that he might give eternal life
to all those you have given him.
Now this is eternal life,
that they know you,
the only true God,
and Jesus Christ,
whom you have sent.
Jesus makes it pretty simple.
Eternal life isn't something that starts when we die.
It isn't something that we search for
in a great quest to Mordor,
or that we spend our lives
trying to be good to achieve.
Eternal life is for all
who know the one true God
and his son Jesus.
What Jesus is telling them
is that eternal life starts then.
Verse three assures us today
that when we come to know God and his son,
we start to experience the things of heaven.
Heaven is, after all,
about the presence of our heavenly father.
The more we know Jesus,
the more we experience what heaven will be like.
These verses really are the gospel.
If you're looking for a simple way to remind yourself,
if you're looking for a simple way
to explain it to someone,
Jesus' prayer for himself
tells the disciples and us
the good news of eternal life
that God has gifted to us by grace
and which we receive by faith.
Separation from God
is the essence of what we see
and continual experience
from the consequences of sin
in our own lives and in the world.
Jesus' prayer for himself
makes clear that his purpose
was restoring that relationship
and at its core
is the eternal life that we know now.
He reverses the effects of sin
so that we can know God
through his son.
In this prayer,
Jesus shows that eternal life
is something given of God
along with the knowledge of God.
This is the assurance we have
that faith is not a leap into nothing.
After all, faith is belief in something
and that's what he gives us,
assures us in his prayer.
Next, Jesus shifts his focus to the disciples,
praying for their protection,
their sanctification and their unity.
Jesus' desire is that God
would accomplish his plan
through the mission
and the ministry of these men.
In the context of the room he's in
alongside his disciples,
he wants them to understand
that they are God's people,
that they have been called by God,
that they are dependent on him
and that they belong to God
and as we see in verse 6,
they were given to Jesus.
Jesus makes clear
that God has been made known to them
and that they have received the message.
In verses 7 and 8, Jesus prays,
Now they know that everything
you have given them comes from you,
for I gave them the words you gave me
and they accepted them.
They knew with certainty that I came from you
and they believed that you sent me.
Here we see Jesus interceding for the disciples.
He's representing their fledgling belief to God
so that he might protect and preserve them.
It's evident that despite still being so frail as humans,
the apostles have accepted
what Jesus has told them,
that they believe,
that they have acted on
and that they have acted on what they heard.
They might still have lots of questions,
they might not understand it all,
but they trust and they believe.
In verse 9, Jesus prays,
I'm praying for them.
I'm not praying for the world,
but for those whom you have given me,
for they are yours.
Now, why wouldn't Jesus pray for the world?
It feels a bit uncomfortable,
maybe feels a bit unusual
with what we might see the world describe Jesus as.
He doesn't pray this blanket love for everyone.
He deliberately prays
for those who have been chosen.
Jesus does pray for the lost
in other gospel records in Luke 23,
and later in this chapter,
we find Jesus praying
for those who will believe in me,
for those who are yet Christians.
But here,
he's specifically focused on the disciples,
his chosen few,
in this final time with them.
Those Jesus is praying for
have come to know in truth
that Jesus came from God
and they have believed
that the Father sent Jesus.
He prays for their protection,
which we see in verse 11,
the power of your name,
the name you have given me,
has covered them.
Jesus goes on to acknowledge
that his presence with them
has provided a level of protection for them,
and once he departs,
that's going to change.
He knows all too well
what they're about to face,
and so he prays for protection,
or for God to keep them.
We know this doesn't mean
that they're going to have easy lives,
far from it.
They will continue to face persecution,
and they will ultimately
lose their lives on earth.
But Jesus prays
that they'll be protected or kept.
It's more about guarding their hearts,
opening them up
to a full understanding
of God's work for them,
and to bring them joy.
It's about perseverance,
peace that transcends understanding,
a wisdom about what they will face
that gives rise to joy.
Jesus concludes this prayer
to the disciples in verse 17.
Sanctify them by the truth,
the truth of your word.
As you sent me into the world,
I have sent them into the world.
For them I sanctify myself,
that they may too be truly sanctified.
Jesus prays that God
will sanctify the disciples,
which means set apart,
in this case,
for God's mission and purpose.
Given the opposition
that they will go on to face,
it's perhaps not surprising,
it wouldn't be surprising
if Jesus had maybe said to them,
go, flee, find a cave,
give yourself a safe haven.
But that isn't what Jesus asks
of them, nor of us.
He knows the reality
of the spiritual battle
that they will face,
but he also knows
that they are critical
to God's plan for them
to take the good news
to the ends of the earth.
And that's going to mean
persevering through hardship.
He knows that the world
will hate them
because they don't belong
to the world,
just as he did not.
Jesus doesn't ask the Father
to take them out of the world,
but protect them
and sanctify them
by the truth of his word.
Jesus' prayer for his disciples
really highlights
the importance
of spiritual protection
and growth.
As believers,
we're called to live
in the world,
but not be of the world,
which sounds really tricky.
What it means
is that we must rely
on God's word
and his spirit
to keep us holy,
to keep us set apart
for his purposes.
God gives us his word,
he gives us his spirit
and his body,
the church,
to guide us,
protect us,
encourage us,
and restore us
when we need it.
And in the final part
of this prayer,
Jesus goes on
to pray for the church.
He extends his prayer
beyond the immediate disciples
in the room with him
to include all
who would believe in him
through their message.
Now this is where
if we're standing
at that window,
listening intently,
we hear our name
and our ears prick up
because Jesus
is talking to us.
He prays for unity
of all believers
that they may be one
as he and his father
are one.
This isn't about unity
for the sake of harmony
or peace,
but for a purpose,
to show the world
that Jesus was sent
by the father
and to reveal God's love.
Unity is a safeguard
for believers
in facing the challenges
and the opposition
of this world
that would seek
to divide,
distract from God's purpose
and discourage.
In verses 20 and 21,
Jesus says,
My prayer is not
for them alone.
I pray for those
who will believe in me
through their message
that all of them
may be one.
Father,
just as you are in me
and I am in you.
These aren't verses
about denominations
or churches.
They're about
a different kind of unity.
Twice Jesus speaks
of belief in these verses.
It's the foundation
of unity,
grounded in Christ
and his mission.
It's a unity
that we see
between father and son
and a unity
of purpose and intention.
At its heart for us
is unity
for those
who will believe in me
through the message.
The unity of believers
is such a powerful testimony
to the world.
Our love
and our unity
reflect the love of God
and the truth
of the gospel.
Unity is not uniformity,
but oneness in purpose,
in mission
and in love.
And so we should seek
actively to promote unity
within the body of Christ,
working together
despite our differences
to fulfil the mission
in spreading the gospel.
This prayer challenges us
to live in such a way
that our unity
becomes a witness
to the world.
Jesus concludes this prayer
in verses 25 and 26
saying,
Jesus' final prayer
is that the world
would know God
through him
and those who believe,
the spirit continuing
to make Jesus known.
we get that strong
sense of connection,
the connection
and the belonging
that Nick spoke to us
about last week
that is deeply anchored
in God's love
for his son
and he for us.
And so as we take
a step back
from that window
and wonder,
what does it all mean?
What's our next step?
Well, there's three things.
Firstly,
Jesus' prayer
is a powerful model.
It's a model for prayer,
for how we pray,
when we pray
and what we might pray.
He prays for God's purpose,
he prays for God's plan
and his glory.
His prayer for the disciples
show how we might pray
for ourselves,
for each other,
for where our identity
is anchored,
for protection by his name
from the opposition
of the world.
It gives us the assurance
that we can pray
in confidence
as we have a sure hope
in belonging to Jesus
and remaining in him.
It's a model
for how we pray
through our lives,
lives together
as believers
and how we pray
for mission.
We don't know,
as Jesus did,
who his believers
will be.
And so our prayer
is that as much
of the world
as possible
will be reached
for the gospel
before Jesus returns
and that we pray
for ourselves
that we would be
faithful witnesses
of Jesus
in this world.
Secondly,
Jesus' prayer
reminds us
of the assurance,
the joy
and the purpose
that we find
in the gospel.
Jesus' desire
is for his followers
to know
they are connected
to the Father,
they are loved,
they're protected,
they're set apart.
In him we have
eternal life,
not by anything
that we have done,
but because of God's purpose
he has fulfilled.
In the familiar verses
from earlier in John,
in chapter 3,
for God so loved the world
that he gave
his one and only son,
that whoever believes
in him
should not perish
but have eternal life.
For God did not
send his son
into the world
to condemn the world
but to save the world.
As someone who has
been following Jesus
for most of my life,
the simplicity
of the gospel
has spoken to my heart
more times
than I could remember.
The simplicity
of what we read
in verse 3,
now this is eternal life,
that they know you,
the one true God
and Jesus Christ
whom you have sent.
That's all we have
to believe.
Knowing God,
believing in him
is enough
and in hard days
that's sometimes
all we have.
Perhaps today
the world feels like
it's weighing heavy
on you.
Let me encourage you
to turn to Jesus,
open your Bible,
read this prayer again
for yourself
and ask the Spirit
to speak quietly to you
to comfort and assure you.
And if you're someone
who doesn't know Jesus yet,
if you're not sure
that he's talking to you,
the eternal life
that Jesus gave
the disciples
and the believers to come
is open to you today.
The only step
you need to take
is to believe.
So talk to someone today
and ask about
how you can believe.
Finally,
Jesus' prayer
is that the world
might believe
because of the unity
and testimony
of those who would come
to believe
through the disciples.
This is about unity
of purpose and intention,
that glory will be brought
to God,
pointing people to him.
This basis
for the unity
and the gospel
bringing together cultures,
ages, perspectives,
background,
is a unity
to be celebrated,
to be worked on
and to be nurtured.
It's active.
It's hard work
because we're different.
It means we need
to pray together.
We need to meet together
around the Bible
to share our life
with people
who will encourage you.
And if you aren't
in a community group,
let me encourage you
to take that step today
and get into one
because they're awesome.
This is why
our vision
here at St Paul's
is that we would
treasure Jesus together
for God's glory
and the joy
of all people.
It's important
that we have the gospel
at the centre,
that we're founded
in truth.
It's important
that we acknowledge
we're different,
but it's also
our responsibility
to share the message,
even though it is God
who is sovereign
over salvation.
Our job
is to tell the gospel,
speak it,
live it,
and God will take care
of the rest.
Theologian
and writer
Martin Lloyd-Jones
says,
to us is given
the privilege
and responsibility
of being the representatives
of God,
of the Son of God
in this world.
We stand for him.
People judge him
by what they see in us
and they do so
because we are the ones
through whom
and in whom
he is glorified.
Jesus' prayer
tells us
that if you want
to know God,
get to know Jesus.
He shows the Father
to us
and by his Spirit
he continues
to make God
known through the world.
The love
that God
has for his Son
is the love
that we have
through faith in Christ,
connected,
protected
and invested in.
What love
and what a great glory.
Let's pray.
Our Father in Heaven,
thank you
that you gave your Son
that we might know
eternal life.
For all of us
here today,
may the message
of your Gospel,
may his love
and protection
and grace
continue to
spur us on
and preserve us
in the hard days
and in the joyful days.
I pray, Lord,
for anyone
who is still
trying to work out
whether they believe
in you
that they would
take their first step
today
and seek you
for the first time.
Amen.