Christ's Great Prayer, Part 2
I am not praying for the world but for those whom thou hast given me, for they are thine;...and I am glorified in them....Holy Father, keep them in thy name, which thou hast given me, that they may be one, even as we are one....I do not pray that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; thy word is truth. As thou didst send me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be consecrated in truth. John 17:9-19, RSV.
In its second part the great climatic prayer of Jesus' ministry shifts from Himself to the disciples. He knows that their needs will be many after He departs to the Father.
The first thing to note is that He does not pray that God should take them out of the world. To the contrary, He knows that the world will be the place of their ministry. Therefore His prayer is not that they will find escape but rather victory. He never espoused the form of Christianity that buries itself in a monastery, but one that reaches out to help a lost and degenerate world. It is in the rough-and-tumble of life that His followers must live and work. While it is true that they require periods of prayer and meditation, those times are not ends in themselves but a means to the end. Christianity is never an abandonment of the world, but rather a desire to win the world. Christ prays for us as disciples because, even though we are in the world, we are not of the world.
A second thing to observe is that Jesus prayed for the unity of His disciples. They certainly needed it, having spent a great deal of time bickering over which of them was the greatest. And like other humans across time they had their petty jealousies and divisive ways. But Jesus' prayer for unity was not merely for them, but for us also. No church or congregation can be fully effective when its members are pulling in different directions.
A third aspect of the prayer is that God would protect His followers from the evil one. Jesus, unlike so many in our day, had a very clear understanding that there exists a powerful personality in the world seeking to derail each of us from our spiritual walk.
Last, Jesus prayed that they might be consecrated and equipped for their mission into the world.
That is a meaningful climax to His prayer for them. But it will have no effect unless we as disciples consecrate and set apart and dedicate our lives to Him. It is only when we consciously choose to place ourselves in His hands that Christ's prayer for us may be answered.
I am not praying for the world but for those whom thou hast given me, for they are thine;...and I am glorified in them....Holy Father, keep them in thy name, which thou hast given me, that they may be one, even as we are one....I do not pray that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; thy word is truth. As thou didst send me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be consecrated in truth. John 17:9-19, RSV.
In its second part the great climatic prayer of Jesus' ministry shifts from Himself to the disciples. He knows that their needs will be many after He departs to the Father.
The first thing to note is that He does not pray that God should take them out of the world. To the contrary, He knows that the world will be the place of their ministry. Therefore His prayer is not that they will find escape but rather victory. He never espoused the form of Christianity that buries itself in a monastery, but one that reaches out to help a lost and degenerate world. It is in the rough-and-tumble of life that His followers must live and work. While it is true that they require periods of prayer and meditation, those times are not ends in themselves but a means to the end. Christianity is never an abandonment of the world, but rather a desire to win the world. Christ prays for us as disciples because, even though we are in the world, we are not of the world.
A second thing to observe is that Jesus prayed for the unity of His disciples. They certainly needed it, having spent a great deal of time bickering over which of them was the greatest. And like other humans across time they had their petty jealousies and divisive ways. But Jesus' prayer for unity was not merely for them, but for us also. No church or congregation can be fully effective when its members are pulling in different directions.
A third aspect of the prayer is that God would protect His followers from the evil one. Jesus, unlike so many in our day, had a very clear understanding that there exists a powerful personality in the world seeking to derail each of us from our spiritual walk.
Last, Jesus prayed that they might be consecrated and equipped for their mission into the world.
That is a meaningful climax to His prayer for them. But it will have no effect unless we as disciples consecrate and set apart and dedicate our lives to Him. It is only when we consciously choose to place ourselves in His hands that Christ's prayer for us may be answered.
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