Soar Like Eagles (Parts 38-39)
A God Who Prayed - John 17:1-26

As the church seeks to get its priorities in order, there's no better
way to do this than to find out what was important to Jesus Christ.
In our study today, Jesus tells us what His priorities were and are!
It has been said that "some people pray by the yard; but true prayer
is measured by weight, and not by length." The greatest prayer ever
prayed is John 17, and it takes about six minutes to reverently read
aloud, which isn't necessarily long...but there is certainly a great deal
of depth and weight!
There are some 650 definite prayers recorded in the Bible, yet none of
them approaches this one!
We might also approach these lessons in this way: If you were in great
stress, what would you pray? If you knew you were going to die tomorrow,
what would you pray? If you had just been hurt bu a close friend, what
would you pray?
Pain and stress have a way sometimes of making us self-centered. When
we are hurting or afraid, it is difficult for us to think of anyone else.
That is part of what makes this such a remarkable prayer!

What makes this prayer so great? Let's quickly make four points:

1. It is great because of the Person who prayed the prayer.
This Person is none other than Jesus Christ, the Son of God... eternal
God in the flesh. Each of the four gospels has its own emphasis:
- Matthew emphasizes Christ the King, the Messiah promised in the Old
Testament scriptures
- Mark is the gospel of the Servant
- Luke pictures the sympathetic Son of Man
- John's purpose is to present the deity of Jesus.
John 20:30-31: "Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence
of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. {31} But these are
written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God,
and that by believing you may have life in his name."
Only God the Son could ask the Father to glorify Him (vs. 1). And only
God can give sinners eternal life (vs. 2). And note in verse 3 that Jesus
put Himself on an equal basis with God.
A question that's often asked: why does God pray? There are at least
19 instances in the gospels when Jesus is praying. But realize that when
Jesus was ministering on earth, He did everything inn total dependence on
the Father. In other words, our Lord lived by faith and depended on
prayer during His life and ministry on earth, just as He wants us to do!

2. It is great because of the occasion that demanded the prayer.
Jesus had just finished instructing His disciples (John 13:13-16) and
now prays for them, because prayer and the Word of God go together.
If we have all Bible and no prayer, we may have a great deal of truth
but no power. It would be "light without heat."
But if we have all prayer but no Bible teaching, we're in danger of
becoming fanatics--heat without light. Zeal is a good thing, but zeal
without knowledge is usually destructive!
But, note, too, that Christ prayed for himself here. He faced the
cross and would be leaving His disciples. Yet, as He prayed for Himself,
He was praying for us, since His return to glory would mean glory for us.

3. It is great because of the petitions in the prayer.
Prayer that asks nothing accomplishes nothing. Jesus prayed for
Himself (1-5), for His disciples' security (6-12) and their sanctity
(13-19) and for the whole church (20-26).
- The petitions in this prayer take us back to eternity past (vs. 5)
and forward into future glory in heaven (vs. 24)
- This prayer deals with the glory of the Father and the Son (vs. 1)
as well as the church glorifying God on earth (vs. 10)
- Our Lord mentions the Father's love for Him (vs. 24) as well as the
Father's love for believers (vs. 23)

4. It is great because of the victory it can give us today.
Jesus closed His Upper Room teaching with these words: John 16:33: "I
have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this
world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."
In His prayer in John 17, He used the word "world" 17 times! This
prayer tells us how to overcome the world! What we will learn from this
prayer will give us the courage to overcome the world, and the joy of
this victory that can fill and control our lives.

* BASIC TRAINING AND THREE GIFTS (17:1-3)
A possible theme for this chapter is: "The mission of Jesus Christ and
of His followers on earth, unto the glory of God." This is a prayer from
the very heart of God in the flesh!
The prayer itself was probably spoken after the little party had left
the room where the last supper was eaten, and before they crossed the
Kidron Valley to the Mount of Olives.
"After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed: "Father,
the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. {2}
For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal
life to all those you have given him. {3} Now this is eternal life: that
they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have
sent."
In Luke 11:1, the disciples said to Jesus, "Lord, teach us to pray!"
It reminds us that we must learn to pray.
While praying is as natural to the Christian as breathing is to a
mammal, even breathing must be studied and practiced if it is to be
correct.
Singers and public speakers work on their breathing so that they get
the most out of their voice and don't injure it. The fact that we have
been praying since childhood is no guarantee that we really know how to
pray effectively.

- Posture is not important.
We don't know if our Lord was kneeling or standing, but we do know that
He lifted up His eyes to heaven. The important thing is the posture of
the heart. It is much easier to bow the knees than to bow the heart in
submission to God. While the outward posture ã‚á‚î‚ be evidence of the
inward spiritual attitude, it is now always so.

- We pray to the Father.
The biblical pattern for prayers is to the Father, in the name of the
Son, in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Jesus addressed His Father six times in this prayer...there's nothing
wrong with saying "Father" several times in a prayer! It is not a "bad
habit that needs to be cured!"
We address the Father because prayer is based on sonship. And it is
more than an obligation of the Father to listen...it's delight when His
children fellowship with Him and share their needs.
Matthew 7:11: "If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give
good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven
give good gifts to those who ask him!"
The Father's heart reaches out in love to His own, and He longs to
share good things with them. And the better we know our Father, the
easier it is to pray in His will.

- We must yield to the Father’s will.
A storm passed over the Florida coast and left a great deal of
wreckage behind. The next day, as the men were cleaning up their little
town, one man said: "I'm not ashamed to admit that I prayed during that
storm last night." One of his friends replied, "Yes, I'm sure the Lord
heard many new voices last night."
Prayer is not like those little red boxes we see in buildings and
occasionally on street corners, marked "use only in emergency."
I enjoy sharing good things with my children, but if they only spoke
to me when they were in trouble or in need of something, our relationship
would quickly deteriorate. Unless we do the will of God, our living will
negate our praying.
Phillip Brooks said: "The purpose of prayer is not to get man's will
done in heaven, but to get God's will done on earth."
If we want to pray in the will of God then we must live in the will of
God. Prayer is not something that we do; it is something that we are. It
is the highest and deepest expression of the inner person.

- The glory of God should be our primary concern.
The word "glory" is used in one form or another eight times in this
prayer. What does it mean?
In the Old Testament, the Hebrew word translated "glory" meant
"weight, that which is important and honorable." In the New Testament,
the Greek word translated "glory" means "opinion, fame."
Theologians tell us that the "glory of God" is the sum total of all
that He is, the manifestation of His character. The glory of God is not
an attribute of God, but rather is an attribute of all His attributes! He
is glorious in wisdom and power, glorious in His mighty works, and
glorious in the grace He bestows upon us.
This prayer teaches us to put God's concerns before our own!

- We must pray in faith.
Suppose the Master had looked at His situation through human eyes
alone. Could He have prayed the way He did? Suppose He looked back on His
years of ministry and evaluated that ministry from a human point of view.
It would have looked like a failure! He had very few followers, and His
own nation had rejected Him. Humanly speaking, His work had failed.
Yet, He prayed "I glorified Thee on the earth, having accomplished the
work which you gave me to do."
By faith, He would be that "grain of wheat" planted in the ground, and
He would produce much fruit (John 12:24).
- Peter was about to deny Him three times
- Judas at that very hour was with the Jewish council and selling the
Master like a common slave
- Peter, James, and John would go to sleep in the Garden when they
should have been encouraging their Lord
- Yet, He knew this small band of men would be sent into the world to
share the gospel message
-And he knew they would succeed!
* Before we leave these first three verses, let’s make some quick
comments:

- The idea of giving is important in this prayer. "Give" in one form or
another is used 17 times in our Lord's prayer and 76 times in the gospel
of John.

- Three remarkable gifts are mentioned in these verses.
1. The Father gave the Son authority.
We're introduced here to the mysterious inner workings of the Trinity,
the plans that were made "before the world was" (vs. 5).
Authority is the right to act, to exercise power. God gave Christ the
authority to do what He did on earth. He also gave Him the authority to
judge.


2. The Father gives people to the Son.
God decided that His Son would live, die, and be raised...and those
who would respond to this "gospel" in faith would receive eternal life
through faith.

3. The Son gives eternal life to those who are given to Him.
The word "life" is used 36 times in this gospel. In fact, John wrote
so that sinners might trust Christ and receive eternal life...and know
they have received it!
There are five special blessings that belong to those who have been
given to the Son by the Father:
- Eternal life (vs. 2)
- Knowledge of the Father (vs. 6-7)
- Christ's intercession on their behalf (vs. 9)
- Divine protection in this world (vs. 11-12)
- Eternal glory (vs. 24)

What is the earliest recollection that you can bring back from the
deep mine of your memory? I have a faint remembrance of my mother going
to the hospital for surgery and my grandmother coming to care for us
children, but the picture is quite dim.
The oldest written text the historians can lay their hands on is dated
about 3500 B.C., and was found on some clay tablets unearthed in Iraq in
1952.
But the Bible takes us back beyond time and into eternity. Why?
Because we can never really understand what is going on "in time" unless
we know what happened "before the world was."
If you and I did not believe that God was on His throne, working out
His perfect will, we would sink in the storms of life.
All of which takes us to the opening verses of our text for today:

* What happened "before the world was" (John 17:4-5)
"I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me
to do. {5} And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I
had with you before the world began."
Several facts emerge to help us discover the answer to the question:

- Jesus existed as eternal God.
Of course, all three members of the Godhead existed; but our special
focus of attention in John 17 is the Lord Jesus Christ.
The gospel of John begins with a declaration of the deity of Christ:
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word
was God. {2} He was with God in the beginning."
It is worth noting that six different persons in this gospel bear
witness that Jesus is the Son of God:
­ John the Baptist: (John 1:34: "I have seen and I testify that this
is the Son of God.")
­ Nathaniel: (John 1:49: "Then Nathaniel declared, "Rabbi, you are the
Son of God; you are the King of Israel.")
­ Peter (John 6:69: "We believe and know that you are the Holy One of
God.")
­ The healed blind man (John 9:35-38: "Jesus heard that they had
thrown him out, and when he found him, he said, "Do you believe in the
Son of Man?" {36} "Who is he, sir?" the man asked. "Tell me so that I may
believe in him." {37} Jesus said, "You have now seen him; in fact, he is
the one speaking with you." {38} Then the man said, "Lord, I believe,"
and he worshipped him.")
­ Martha (John 11:27: "Yes, Lord," she told him, "I believe that you
are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world.")
­ Thomas (John 20:28: "Thomas said to him, "My Lord and my God!")
The Samaritans called Him "the Savior of the world" in John 4:42, a
title that could only belong to Deity. And our Lord Himself affirmed His
eternality in John 8:58: "I tell you the truth, Jesus answered, "before
Abraham was born, I am!"

2. Jesus shared the Father’s glory.
John 1:14: "The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We
have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the
Father, full of grace and truth."
John 17:22: "I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they
may be one as we are one:"
John 17:24: ""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."
Hebrews 1:3: "The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact
representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word.
After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right
hand of the Majesty in heaven."
While the verses clearly state this fact, we need to realize one more
amazing fact: those who have trusted Jesus possess this glory now and
will see God’s glory and share it in heaven one day!

3. Jesus was beloved of the Father.
"God is love" (1 John 4:8)...and before God poured His love out on
mankind, the Persons of the Godhead expressed their perfect love to one
another in a glorious communion.
The Scriptures especially point out the Father’s love for the Son:
Matthew 3:17: "And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I
love; with him I am well pleased."
Matthew 17:5: "While he was still speaking, a bright cloud enveloped
them, and a voice from the cloud said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with
him I am well pleased. Listen to him!"
And think of what it meant when the Son left the bosom of the Father
and came to earth to be hated!
John 3:16 (""For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only
Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal
life"). takes on new depth of meaning when you try to comprehend the
eternal love of the Father and the Son!

4. The Father established His eternal purpose.
No verses better teach this principle than Ephesians 3:10-12: "His
intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God
should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly
realms, {11} according to his eternal purpose which he accomplished in
Christ Jesus our Lord. {12} In him and through faith in him we may
approach God with freedom and confidence."
That God has an "eternal purpose" for all things is both scriptural
and logical. If God is God at all, He is sovereign. He cannot work
independently of His own nature, for then He would cease to be God,
something that is impossible.
His ultimate purpose is to bring glory to His name...and will do this
by uniting "all things in Christ" (Eph. 1:10). And it’s to be done
through us, the church.

5. The Son covenanted to die for sinners.
This, of course, is a part of God’s eternal plan.
Luke 22:21-23: "But the hand of him who is going to betray me is with
mine on the table. {22} The Son of Man will go as it has been decreed,
but woe to that man who betrays him." {23} They began to question among
themselves which of them it might be who would do this."
Ephesians 1:4: "For he chose us in him before the creation of the
world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love"
2 Timothy 1:9: "...who has saved us and called us to a holy
life--not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose
and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning
of time..."

* THE DYNAMICS OF DISCIPLESHIP (17:6-8).
Discipleship is a popular topic in the church these days. It seems
just about everybody is talking about discipling somebody. The word that
is translated disciple in our New Testament is used 264 times, and it
is found exclusively in the four gospels and in Acts.
In the New Testament days, a ‘disciple’ was someone who bound himself
to a teacher in order to learn both the theory and the practice of the
subject or trade. Perhaps our closest modern equivalent would be an
‘apprentice.’
A true disciple was not simply a student who learned from books...he
was also a doer who watched his teacher, obeyed him, and learned from
actual practice...he wanted to be like his teacher.
In the verses for this section, our Lord outlined the stages in the
experience of His disciples:

1. They belonged to the Father (vs. 6)
""I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world. They
were yours; you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word."
It seems obvious that they belonged to the Father first of all by
creation. Paul reminded the Greek philosophers in Acts 17:28 that it is
in God that we "live and move and exist."
We need God because we are the creatures and He is the Creator. When
man refused to acknowledge his creature dependence on God, he began to
magnify himself as God (remember Romans 1:18-32)? Mankind today worships
and serves the creature, not the Creator; and this helps to explain why
the world is in such a mess. Man is playing God, and he is not able to do
the job!
The disciples also belonged to the Father through their belonging to
the Jewish nation. They were the sons of the covenant; they were born
into that one nation on the face of the earth that God had chosen for
Himself.

2. The Father gave the Word to the Son (vs. 7-8)
"Now they know that everything you have given me comes from you. {8}
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."
Two other verses from John speak to this idea:
John 7:16: "Jesus answered, "My teaching is not my own. It comes from
him who sent me."
John 12:49: "For I did not speak of my own accord, but the Father who
sent me commanded me what to say and how to say it."
Statements like these help us to understand but in a small measure the
intimate fellowship that existed between the Father and the Son when
Jesus was ministering on earth. It explains why our Lord rose early in
the morning for prayer, and why He often withdrew from the crowds.
The Father gave the words to the Son, just the words that the
disciples (and the other people) needed to hear. What did the Son do with
these words?

3. The Son gave the words to the disciples (vs. 8).
It is the Word of God that reveals the Person of God to us. While God
does reveal Himself in nature and in the workings of divine providence in
the world, He is more fully and clearly revealed in the Word which He has
given us through His Son.
And while He was upon the earth, He gave his "seal of approval" on the
Bible. He quoted from Old Testament scriptures often and promised the
Holy Spirit would assist in the writings of the Gospels in John 14:26:
"But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my
name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have
said to you."

* THE WORD
- is a gift from God
- generates faith (Romans 10:17: "Consequently, faith comes from hearing
the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.")
- it reveals Christ to us (John 5:39: "You diligently study the
Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life.
These are the Scriptures that testify about me").

4. The disciples received the word and believed.
The Word of God is like seed, and it must be received into the "soil"
of the heart if it is to take root and produce fruit (Luke 8:4-15).
God prepares the heart for the Word: Acts 16:14-15: "One of those
listening was a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city
of Thyatira, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to
respond to Paul's message. {15} When she and the members of her household
were baptized, she invited us to her home. "If you consider me a believer
in the Lord," she said, "come and stay at my house." And she persuaded
us."
But we can harden our hearts against God’s word: Hebrews 3:7-14: "So,
as the Holy Spirit says: "Today, if you hear his voice, {8} do not harden
your hearts as you did in the rebellion, during the time of testing in
the desert, {9} where your fathers tested and tried me and for forty
years saw what I did. {10} That is why I was angry with that generation,
and I said, 'Their hearts are always going astray, and they have not
known my ways.' {11} So I declared on oath in my anger, 'They shall never
enter my rest.'" {12} See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful,
unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. {13} But encourage
one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may
be hardened by sin's deceitfulness. {14} We have come to share in Christ
if we hold firmly till the end the confidence we had at first."

If we ignore or neglect God's Word, or if we treat it carelessly, we
are admitting to God that He is not important in our lives.

5. The Disciples Kept the Word (vs. 6).
The word here for "kept" can also mean "obey" or "guarded. "
Certainly, the disciples were consistent in their priority to the
teachings of God. And they kept the Word because they loved Jesus Christ!
John 14:23-24: "Jesus replied, "If anyone loves me, he will obey my
teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our
home with him. {24} He who does not love me will not obey my teaching.
These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent
me."
1 John 2:4-5: "The man who says, "I know him," but does not do what he
commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. {5} But if anyone obeys
his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know
we are in him."

6. The Disciples Shared the Word with Others.
The Lord sent them into the world that they might win others through
the lives. There is a church today because Christians have been faithful
to share the Word down through the ages!
2 Timothy 2:2: "And the things you have heard me say in the presence
of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to
teach others."
Suffice it to say now that a true disciple is not a reservoir but a
gushing fountain, an artesian well of spiritual blessing. He does not
live to get...he lives to give
- What he receives from the Lord, he shares with others
- And in sharing, he receives more

John 8:31-32: "To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, "If you
hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. {32} Then you will know
the truth, and the truth will set you free."
We are living in enemy territory, so, beware! The world system hates
Christ while pretending to honor God. Satan prowls about as a roaring
lion.
The very atmosphere we breathe is poisoned with "the lust of the flesh
and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life" (1 John 2:16).
The world system around us appeals to the flesh within us so that we
fight a steady battle against temptation.
How, then, can the dedicated Christian remain safe and secure in such
a dangerous world? Our security is in Jesus Christ!
These verses (beginning at verse nine) indicate and affirm this
security.
"I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you
have given me, for they are yours. {10} All I have is yours, and all you
have is mine. And glory has come to me through them. {11} I will remain
in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming
to you. 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. {12} While I was with
them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me. None
has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture
would be fulfilled."
Jesus had great concerns for His disciples because they were remaining
in the world even though He would no longer be in the world with them.
While they would be in the world, they were not part of the world.
Because of their mission, they were being sent into the world. Jesus’
prayer about their relationship with the world brings to mind the prayer
of Elijah in 1 Kings 19:4. During a particularly discouraging time in his
ministry, he had prayed that God would take his life and remove him from
the world. God refused Elijah's request and soon had him working in the
world once again, as a prophet of God.
Jesus' prayer for His disciples describes for us our relationship with
the world today. Although we are in the world, we are not of the world.
As servants of God, our mission is to go into the world with His gospel.
Our relationship with:the world is no simple matter, but Jesus' prayer
on the eve of His crucifixion goes a long way in making this difficult
issue clearer.
To be sure, He was praying for His disciples in these particular
verses, but we today stand in a similar relationship to the Savior as the
disciples did in that day.
In this prayer, our Lord looked upon the work of redemption as
something already finished. He was to leave the world and return to the
Father in heaven, and there He would enter into His "unfinished work" of
interceding for His church.
Both the Father and the Son love us and are concerned for our welfare
and spiritual success:
- we pray to the Father through the authority of Christ
- we come to the High Priest at the throne of grace
- and He gives us "grace to help in time of need" (Heb. 4:16)

We also need to realize that we are the Father's gift to the Son. And
eternal life is the Son's love gift to all who believe on Him.
But one point cannot be overlooked! The Son also prayed for unity
among His church:
- "each one reach one" is a popular motto in the church
- Christ took time to take care of individuals in need
- but individuality is left when we become part of the "family"
- We're to be one! United!

The Christian becomes a part of the Body of Christ, the church. And
his life from then on must reflect this great fact!
The spiritual unity of the church is an important theme in this
prayer...it's mentioned in verse 11 and also verses 21-23: "...that all
of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May
they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.
{22} I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one
as we are one: {23} I in them and you in me. May they be brought to
complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them
even as you have loved me."
There are several illustrations of this great truth given in
scripture:
- the Vine and the Branches (John 15:1-10)
- the Body and the members (1 Cor. 12)
- the stones in the Temple (1 Peter 2:4-10)

Because we are related to Christ, we are related to each other! We
belong to each other and we need each other.
————————————————————-
This is probably a good stopping point for this first of two lessons on this
chapter...make certain you spend the necessary time on this important
chapter.
————————————————————

* THE MAN WHO SHOULD NEVER HAVE BEEN BORN (17:22).
"While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that
name you gave me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction
so that Scripture would be fulfilled."
There are some names that have made their way into the dictionary,
names such as Jezebel, Benedict Arnold, Cassanova, and Brutus. And Judas
Iscariot!
To call someone a "Judas" would be to classify him with the most
infamous traitor in human history. And consider the words of Jesus in
Mark 14:21: "The Son of Man will go just as it is written about him. But
woe to that man who betrays the Son of Man! It would be better for him if
he had not been born."
In all the lists of the names of the 12 disciples, Peter is always
listed first and Judas last. And the New Testament tells us more about
these two men than any of the others.
Let's consider the different acts in the drama of the tragedy of Judas
Iscariot:

1. The disciple.
After a night of prayer, our Lord came down from the mountain and
chose 12 men to become His disciples (Luke 6:12-16). Did Jesus know what
Judas was like and what he would do? The indications are that He did:
John 6:64: "Yet there are some of you who do not believe." For Jesus had
known from the beginning which of them did not believe and who would
betray him."
John 2:24-25: "But Jesus would not entrust himself to them, for he
knew all men. {25} He did not need man's testimony about man, for he
knew what was in a man."
Then, why did He call him as a disciple? Because it was the will of
God. Our Lord prayed all night before He called these men.
But there have been some interesting (and wrong) responses to this
choice:

- Some see Judas as a victim, saying he had to betray Jesus (outside his
own choice) to fulfill prophecy.
But this approach to the problem makes Judas a mere robot, a pawn of
God's omnipotent hand. It robs Judas of humanity and of responsibility,
yet the Bible makes it clear that Judas was held responsible for what he
did.
In fact, even Judas admitted his personal guilt in Matthew 27:4: "I
have sinned," he said, "for I have betrayed innocent blood." "What is
that to us?" they replied. "That's your responsibility."

- Another approach is that Judas was a victim of Satan.
But this theory would make a devil out of God! James 1:13: "When
tempted, no one should say, "God is tempting me." For God cannot be
tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone."

That Satan was involved in the sin, no one can deny! John 13:2 "The
evening meal was being served, and the devil had already prompted Judas
Iscariot, son of Simon, to betray Jesus...As soon as Judas took the
bread, Satan entered into him. "What you are about to do, do quickly,"
Jesus told him."
Luke 22:1-4: "Now the Feast of Unleavened Bread, called the Passover,
was approaching, {2} and the chief priests and the teachers of the law
were looking for some way to get rid of Jesus, for they were afraid of
the people. {3} Then Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot, one of the
Twelve. {4} And Judas went to the chief priests and the officers of the
temple guard and discussed with them how he might betray Jesus."

The idea was there long before Judas entered the upper room, for he
had already contacted the Jewish leaders. And he'd already been a liar
and a murderer (John 8:44: "You belong to your father, the devil, and you
want to carry out your father's desire. He was a murderer from the
beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When
he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father
of lies").

2. The thief.
Judas was the treasurer of the disciple band and one of his jobs
was to distribute money to the poor (John 12:1-8 and 13:26-30). But John
also makes it clear that Judas had been stealing money from that
treasury:
John 132:6: "He did not say this because he cared about the poor but
because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help
himself to what was put into it."

3. The traitor.
Judas had listened to John the Baptist and submitted to John's
baptism, as seen in Acts 1:21-22: "Therefore it is necessary to choose
one of the men who have been with us the whole time the Lord Jesus went
in and out among us, {22} beginning from John's baptism to the time when
Jesus was taken up from us. For one of these must become a witness with
us of his resurrection."
And certainly our Lord must have done everything He could in the
effort to rescue Judas...He made repeated warnings against the love of
money and His denunciation of hypocrisy made no impact on him, either.
And, in the upper room, Jesus certainly made one last effort!

4. The suicide.
Judas did not repent of his sin, as seen in Matthew 27:3: "When Judas,
who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus was condemned, he was seized with
remorse and returned the thirty silver coins to the chief priests and the
elders."
Remorse and regret are not the same as repentance. But why suicide?
Because Satan is a murderer (John 8:44) and a destroyer (Rev. 9:11).
He comes first as the deceiving serpent but then turns into the
destroying lion (1 Peter 5:8). He uses despair and guilt to drive people
to self-destruction.
We have learned that the "world" is an important concept in John 17.
Jesus used the word 19 times, and He used it in three different
connotations to mean (1) the material creation, as in verse 5; (2)
people, as in verse 18, and (3) "the world system" opposed to God, as in
verses 6, 14, and 15.
The Christian has a unique position in life. He lives "in the world"
physically, but he is not "of the world" spiritually. His resources do
not come from the evil world system, but from the Lord.
While he is "in the world," he must live unlike the world because he
must have a ministry to the people who are yet in the world. We are "in
the world" to win people "out of the world," and we live with the
glorious expectation of being taken from this world when Jesus Christ
returns!
In other words, Christians are in enemy territory. Like an astronaut
in space, or a diver at the bottom of the sea, the Christian is "out of
his element." And, like the astronaut and diver, the Christian must
depend on outside resources if he is going to make it successfully.
Jesus Christ provides for us the spiritual resources we need to
overcome the world:
1. HIS JOY (17:13).
"I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the
world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them."
Jesus is often described as a "man of sorrows" and certainly He did
experience a variety of emotions as He ministered upon the earth:
- He had both deep sorrows and the highest joys
- His heart was broken when He saw people destroying themselves with
sin
- His heart exulted as He saw God at work, saving the lost and making
alive new!
- He had the sorrow of the shepherd, seeking the lost
- And He had the joy of the shepherd, bringing home the sheep that had
been found

* Joy in life is not the absence of sorrow.
The Arabs have a saying, "All sunshine makes a desert." If God were
to insulate us from sorrow, we would never grow or develop mature
character. Heaven is a place of all joy and no sorrow, and hell is a
place of all sorrow and no joy. But this present life is a mingling of
the two!
The Christian who experiences the joy of Jesus Christ will not be
interested in anything that the world has to offer. When two people fall
in love, they are not attracted to anyone else because they are fully
satisfied with each other. When a husband or wife starts to find greater
joy elsewhere, then trouble begins.
Christian joy is a deepening relationship with Jesus Christ, in which
we learn more about Him and about ourselves. The more we learn about
ourselves, the more we see our own needs. But the more we learn about
Christ, the more we see how He fully meets those needs.
This joy from Christ does not depend on accidentals or externals. It
is something we experience within and the circumstances of the world
around us cannot take it away.

2. HIS WORD (17:14).
"I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they
are not of the world any more than I am of the world."
Twice in His prayer, our Lord mentions the gift of the Word (vs. 8 and
14). Since we are living in a deceived and a deceiving world, the
possession of the truth of the Word is absolutely essential. It is not
our word, but God's Word, that overcomes the deceitfulness of this world
system.
- the material world was created by the Word of God (Psalm 33:6, 9)
- the same Word that created the Universe is also sustaining it (2
Peter 3:7)
- everything in the created world, except man, obeys the Word of God!
- the Word exposes the world as it truly is
- the Bible has nothing good to say about the world system
1 Corinthians 1:18-24: "For the message of the cross is foolishness to
those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of
God. {19} For it is written: "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the
intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate." {20} Where is the wise
man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not
God made foolish the wisdom of the world? {21} For since in the wisdom of
God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased
through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.
{22} Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, {23} but we
preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to
Gentiles, {24} but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks,
Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God."
James 4:4: "You adulterous people, don't you know that friendship with
the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the
world becomes an enemy of God."
The Christian who gets friendly with the world (James 4:4) may find
himself spotted by the world (James 1:26).

* Not only does God's Word reveal to us the true nature of the world
system, but it also spells out our personal relationship to that system.
A true believer will be hated by the world, not because he is offensive,
but because he represents Jesus Christ.
The sooner the Christian believes what the Bible says about the world
and his relationship to it, the sooner he will start living in victory.
It is impossible for the world system and the Christian to get along with
each other! (2 Cor. 6:14--7:1).

3. OUR IDENTIFICATION WITH CHRIST (17:14b, 16).
"...for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world.
They are not of the world, even as I am not of it."
In 1 John 4:17 John makes an astounding statement about Christians and
their Lord ...as He is, so also are we in this world."
Christ is in heaven and we are on earth, yet we are united in our
shared life through the Spirit. Just as the deep-sea diver needs his
lifetime above, so the Christian in the world needs a spiritual lifeline
to heaven. We are united to Christ: as He is in heaven, so are we in
this world.

4. CHRIST’S INTERCESSION ON OUR BEHALF (17:15).
"My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you
protect them from the evil one."
Our Lord deliberately prayed that the Father would keep us in the
world! Why? Because the world needs us...and we need the blessing that
comes as we seek to represent Christ in the world.
There are several false ideas in the mind of some Christians regarding
their relationship to the world:

- One is isolation:
This is the idea of going out of the world, which is the philosophy
behind the monastic movement. Samuel Johnson once visited a convent in
France and conversed with one of the members: "You are not here for love
of virtue, but from fear of vice" he said.
But the Catholics are not the only ones guilty here! Some
well-meaning, conservative Christians also band together like babes in
the woods and try to protect themselves, forsaking the inner city and
isolating ourselves from reality, burying our heads in the sand, putting
on blinders...and pretending that we will find ourselves in the safe and
sane 50's. Is this true?
We are needed in the world! And it's by fighting the battles that we
grow! Both Joseph and Daniel became great men of God while living in
pagan societies.

- Another idea is insulation.
We go ahead and stay in the world, but we insulate ourselves from its
problems and pains. The priest and Levite were willing to walk down the
Jericho Road, but they were not willing to share the plight of the
half-dead man at the side of the road. They were insulated.
It is becoming more and more difficult for Christians to maintain
compassion in this world simply because we are bombarded with so many
emotional stimuli.
We no longer hear of wars...we see the actual combat on TV. Our
newspapers are so filled with crime, violence and corruption that we
bypass the front page and turn to the comics or the sports page--and
sometimes the violence and crime are even worse there! We have
desensitized ourselves! We are no longer our brother's keeper!

- A third idea...imitation.
Some think the only way to "reach the world" is to be like the world.
But history convinces us that it was when the church was the least like
the world that it did the most to change the world!

* CHRISTIANS ARE SPECIAL (17:17-19)
"Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. {18} As you sent me
into the world, I have sent them into the world. {19} For them I sanctify
myself, that they too may be truly sanctified."
In both the Old and New Testament, the word "sanctify" means "to be
separated from sin and devoted wholly to God."
- God sanctified the Sabbath Day for the Jews in Genesis 2:3; that is,
He set it apart for His own purposes
- He also sanctified the firstborn of man and beast in Exodus 13:2
- The tabernacle and the Temple were sanctified because they were set
apart by God's presence (Ex. 25:8; 2 Chron. 20:8)
- God sanctified the people of Israel as His own possession (Exodus
31:13)
- He sanctified the priests to serve in His courts (Lev. 21:8)

All saved people are also set apart for special service to God:
- we're called by His grace, saved by His blood, indwelt by His Spirit
- Our body is the temple of God; therefore, it is not for rent or for
sale!

We have been set apart for special service so that Christ might send
us into the world to share the message of the gospel (vs. 18).
Some Christians boast about what they don’t do, but they have little
to say about what they do accomplish! True sanctification is not only
separation from sin; it is also devotion to God, being set apart for His
exclusive use!

* CHRISTIANS UNITED-OR UNTIED? (17:20-24)
"My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will
believe in me through their message, {21} that all of them may be one,
Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so
that the world may believe that you have sent me. {22} I have given them
the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: {23} I in
them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the
world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved
me. {24} "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."
All of us need to heed Joseph's advice to his brothers, "Do not
quarrel on the journey" (Genesis 45:24).
Bible history and church history bear record to the sad fact that
Christians do not always get along with each other. Even our Lord's
disciples argued with each other, and Jesus was right there with them!
- our Lord's prayer for unity cannot be fulfilled in some man-made
organization
- putting together all religious groups, regardless of what they
profess to believe, will not solve the problem
- disregarding doctrine and watering everything down to the least
common denominator is not what Jesus had in mind
- doctrine é‚ó‚ an essential part of unity: for there is not only "one
Lord," but there is also "one faith" (Eph. 4:5)
- we're to "contend for the faith which was once for all delivered to
the saints" (Jude 3)

Our Lord gives us every encouragement for spiritual unity by reminding
us of the bonds that tie us together:

We trust the same Savior.
"What do you think about the Christ, whose Son is He?" is still life's
most important question (Matt. 22:42). The way we answer that question
determines where we spend eternity.

We bear the same witness to the world.
Twice in this prayer, Jesus mentions the church's witness to the lost
world. We lived before the keen eyes of a watching world that is only too
quick to detect hypocrisy and defects in the church.
It is obvious that this unity is not simply "internal" and personal.
It is big enough and strong enough for the world to see. When Christians
love each other and bear witness together, the world will see it.
Jesus assures us in this prayer that some will believe because of our
witness (vs. 20). What an encouragement this statement must have been to
Peter when he faced that crowd at Pentecost! And to Paul when he traveled
to pagan cities with the gospel message!

We share the same glory.
When Moses dedicated the tabernacle, and Solomon dedicated the Temple,
the glory of God moved in. The presence of God's glory made Israel a
unique people. When God guided Israel in the wilderness, it was His glory
that led the way. These 12 distinctive tribes were united by the glory of
God.
Each individual Christian is God's temple, and the glory of God dwells
in them. Christ has already given us the glory even though the full
manifestation of this glory awaits the return of Christ (Rom. 8:19). The
presence of God's Spirit within marks a person as a true believer (Rom.
8:9).

We enjoy the same love.
The Father loved the Son before the foundation of the world (vs. 24).
The Father also loves His children even as He loved Christ. The
motivation for unity is not only hope, but also love. Truth and love work
together to build the body of Christ.
It has well been said that truth without love is brutality ("I'm going
to tell you the truth whether you like it or not!"), and love without
truth is hypocrisy.

JOHN 17
Someone has aptly termed this chapter "The Holy of Holies of John’s
Gospel." We have the privilege of hearing the Son conversing with the
Father. You could spend many weeks meditating on the truths in this
chapter, but here we can only touch upon the highlights.

I. Christ Prays for Himself (17:1-5)
The great theme of these verses is that He has finished the work of
salvation. Beginning at 2:4, John has often mentioned "the hour." Use
your concordance and trace the pattern of these verses for yourself. "I
have finished the work"—the work of salvation—and because of this, "I
have glorified Thee on the earth" (v. 4). Christ always looked upon the
cross as a means of glorifying God (12:23). Paul also saw glory in the
cross (Gal. 6:14).

Christ prays that the Father will give Him again the glory He laid aside
when He came to earth to die (Phil. 2:1-12). The only time that His glory
was revealed on earth was on the Mount of Transfiguration (John 1:14; 2
Peter 1:16-18). Note the "gives" in in v. 2: (1) The Father has given the
Son authority over all mankind; (2) the Son gives eternal life to (3)
those the Father has given the Son. One of the precious truths in John 17
is that each believer is God’s love gift to the Son! (John 6:37) This is
a mystery we cannot explain, but we thank God for it! "The gifts and
calling of God are without repentance" (Rom. 11:29). This means that our
salvation is secure, for the Father will not take us from the Son!

"I have manifested Thy name" (v. 6)—this statement should be related to
the "I AM" statements of Christ in John’s Gospel. God’s name is I AM (Ex.
3:13-14), and Christ reveals that God is to us whatever we need Him to
be. To the hungry Christ says, "I am the Bread of Life." To the lost He
says, "I am the Way." To the blind He says, "I am the Light of the
World."

II. Christ Prays for His Disciples (17:6-19)
The key thought here is sanctification, that is, the disciples’
relationship to the world. Jesus said, "I have given them Your word" (v.
14, NKJV), and in v. 17 He states that we are sanctified—set apart for
God—through the Word. Sanctification does not mean sinless perfection,
otherwise Christ could never say, "I sanctify Myself" (v. 19), for He had
no sin. A sanctified Christian is someone who is daily growing in the
Word and as a result is separated more and more from the world unto the
Father.

Christ asked the Father to keep the disciples (v. 11). Verse 15 asks that
they be kept from the evil one. Christ was physically with the disciples
and was able to keep them together, united in heart and purpose,
separated from the world. Now that He was going back to heaven, He asked
the Father to keep them.
Christians are not of the world, but they are in the world to witness for
Christ. We keep our lives clean through His Word. Christ has actually
sent us into the world to take His place (v. 18). What a responsibility
we have!

Last modified: April 18, 2006