Behold the wondrous mystery – of Christ who died for me. Yes oh Lord, although you have revealed much of Yourself, You still remain largely a mystery. Yet I am not a mystery to You because You know me so intimately that You know my thoughts even before I speak.
”You are right to understand that there is much about Me which is still mysterious to you and to the whole world. I have created you into a wondrous being, incredibly complex in design. Even the most astute scientists don’t understand everything about man. Your minds are finite and could not take it all in. Yet you can enjoy Me fully because you can know that behind the mystery is all My goodness and love. Enjoy everything you know about Me, what I have revealed about Myself and enjoy knowing that there is so much more to learn about Me.”
Today we come to the end of the “high priestly prayer” of Jesus in John 17:20 – 26. We have looked at the long prayer Jesus prayed for His disciples, those who were intimately connected to Him during His earthly life. Although that prayer was specifically intended for these men we could nevertheless draw some important words which are still applicable to us today.
The section we are looking at today covers His prayer for “all those who will believe in Me through their (the disciple’s) message.”vs 20. In other words all Christians including each one of us. Let us look at the priorities which He raises in this prayer of His.
His first priority is that of unity among believers. This unity is intimately bound to the unity between Jesus and the Father and is the surest demonstration of our faith, vv 23 and again 24.This is a theme from way back cf 14:34 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men shall know that you are My disciples.” The whole section which follows that statement shows us the importance and value of abiding as a demonstration of relationship which flows from Jesus’s relationship with the Father. This relationship then underpins the whole idea and practical application which is ultmately displayed in unity.
Sadly, one of the greatest problems in the Christian Church today is disunity. People who call themselves Jesus followers, squabbling and arguing and splitting apart into multiple denominations. Families rent apart in strife followed by divorce. I think this is one of our greatest challenges today. To be able to love one another, despite our many differences. The world, which is in constant conflict on a national as well as a personal level, should be looking at the Christian Church in wonder at how we demonstrate His love. Instead they often see exactly the same problems as they are experiencing. This is a huge challenge to us both in our prayer life as well as our everyday actions.
True unity comes from the Spirit’s work as He first brings us to humility and dependence on God’s grace. Disunity mostly arises from pride and selfcentredness causing a sense of entitlement. A symptom at best, of immaturity in the faith, at worst of not being believers at all. On top of that I would be remiss if I did not mention the role of Satan who recognises this weak spot and capitilises by promoting differences and strife and thus making the church ineffectual in its great task of spreading the gospel.
Jesus then goes on to discuss Glory. He has given all believers His glory, the glory which the Father gave Him. This is more of a nebulous concept which I suppose we will only appreciate when we are fully exposed to the the Father’s glory in the new heavens and the new earth. It is the ultmate goal in our relationship with Yahweh though, which is indicated by it being one of these priority themes in this prayer.
The third idea which is brought forward is the reality of God’s love. vs 23b 26c. A major part of Jesus’s revelation to the world and especially to His disciples is His love. That is what underpins everything else in what He has said and is the fitting last word in the prayer.
Looking back at this prayer should make us reconsider what the focus of our prayers and actions should be. As we demonstrate the Father’s love for Jesus and thus His love for us we must remember that that love was shown most graphically by His death on the cross on our behalf. Greater love can no man have than that he should die for you. Twice He includes in the prayer the importance of making Him and His love known. Firstly in vs 20, it is through the Apostles’ message, ie God’s word that people come to believe, and in vs 26 as Jesus makes His love known, how else will the nonbeliever get to know Him if we don’t tell them. Romans 10:11ff
Once again a fistful of input to chew on. Enjoy doing that till we meet again next week.