Unity In Christ – John 17 (Winter SWO)

John 17

[1] “When Jesus had spoken these words, he lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, “Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you, [2] since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. [3] And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. [4] I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do. [5] And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed.

[6] “I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world. Yours they were, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. [7] Now they know that everything that you have given me is from you. [8] For I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me. [9] I am praying for them. I am not praying for the world but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours. [10] All mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them. [11] And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. [12] While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. [13] But now I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves. [14] I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. [15] I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. [16] They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. [17] Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. [18] As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. [19] And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth.

[20] “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, [21] that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. [22] The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, [23] I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me. [24] Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world. [25] O righteous Father, even though the world does not know you, I know you, and these know that you have sent me. [26] I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.”

What’s The Point?

This passage is amazing! This is the longest prayer of Jesus that we have in the whole Bible, and in this prayer he prays for you! He is praying for his disciples, and then in v. 20 he says, “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word.” Just tuck that fact away when you need encouragement; Jesus prays for you.

But what is Jesus praying for his disciples and us? Like the previous chapters, the words are quite plain, and we are not searching for hidden meaning. Jesus prays for us to be unified with each other and to have unity in him. He also uses words like “keep” and “kept” in describing how God holds us according to his good plans.

This is beautiful because back in chapter 15, Jesus was teaching his disciples to abide in him. Then the very thing Jesus commands of his disciples, he prays for them. Think about that for a second. Jesus tells his disciples to stay connected to him like a branch is connected to the vine; then he prays that God the Father would keep those very same disciples.

Let’s be honest. If it were up to us to stay connected to the vine, we would totally ruin it. If I only had one job, to stay holding tightly to the vine at all times, guess what… I would wreck it! Now, this doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t strive at all times to stay close to Jesus; we should always be seeking to abide in him. What it means is, we are in desperate need of help if we are going to stay faithful until the end.

Luckily, or rather graciously, we have all the help we need. First, Jesus is praying that this would happen, and the prayers of Jesus are pretty good, to say the least. Second, Jesus’ prayer is that God the Father would keep us in his name and keep us from the evil one. And third, though it is not mentioned in this passage, we have the Spirit that now lives in us. So, we have Jesus’ prayers working for us, we have God the Father keeping us from our enemy, and we have the Spirit living inside of us.

We must realize what a big deal this is. When you struggle with a sin you feel like you can’t get out from under, or when you think you are too depressed, or God couldn’t possibly still be faithful to you after what you’ve done—remember that every person of the Holy Trinity has been and is involved in redeeming and keeping you!

Did you know that the word Trinity is a made-up word? It is not found anywhere in the Bible, but it began being used in the 2^nd or 3^rd century to describe the three-in-oneness (the tri-unity) of God. That is the depth of unity that Jesus is calling us to share in. The first half of v. 21 says, “that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us.” Jesus gives us the ability to share in his relationship with the Father.

Why does he do that? Look at the last half of v. 21; “so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” This isn’t just for us and our encouragement, although it is for that. It is a tool for sharing the Gospel. The way we live as believers, united with Christ and united to each other, should be a testimony to the world that they would believe that Jesus Christ is God!

This should lead us to live faithfully and worship the Father for his plan of salvation for us. We are loved by the Father with the same love he has for the Son. We have unity with Christ that draws us into an eternal relationship with the Father. And we are kept in this relationship by the Creator of all things. The same God who keeps everything in the universe in perfect order is the one who keeps us by his will, and nothing is able to take us from his mighty hand.

Scripture Memorization

1 John 1:7

“But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.”

Prayer

Father, I know that I can come to you only because of the work of Jesus. His blood covers my sin, and he has given me his righteousness, and because of this, you have adopted me as your child. Thank you for answering the prayers of Jesus and holding me fast. I have failed over and over, but my worth is found in Jesus, not in my failures. I want to know you more so that my longings for the things of this world grow dim. Give me the joy that can only be found in you, and cause my affection for you to grow. You are gracious and good.

Reflection

1. Take a moment and think about the fact that in Christ we enter into the eternal, perfect relationship that God has always had within himself as the Trinity. (If this doesn’t blow your mind, just keep thinking about it)
2. Starting in v. 20, Jesus applies his prayer to all believers. Read through that passage again and think about Jesus praying that prayer specifically for you.

Discussion Questions

1. What does this passage teach us about the relationship between the Father and the Son?
2. What does this passage teach us about our relationship with the Father and the Son?
3. 1 John says a lot about fellowship and the Church. Read some of those passages (1 John 1:3, 3:11, 4:7, 4:11-12) and discuss how they apply to us today.