THE "REAL" LORD'S PRAYER
 

JOHN 17

This prayer of the Lord's is the greatest prayer ever prayed on earth and the greatest recorded anywhere in Scripture. It is not known for sure whether it was prayed in the Garden on in the Upper Room but it was in the presence of the disciples at the end of the Passover. It is with reverence we must enter into the Holy of Holies as God "the Son pours out His heart to God the Father...humility and worship must be in our hearts as our Savior talks with His Father about what He is about to do, fulfilling the plan from eternity past, giving His life a ransom for sinners. What a privilege we have to read and meditate on this conversation within the Godhead...and to hear the love they have for us in making a way to be back in fellowship with our Father. 

One of the things clearly seen here is that Jesus lives out the life of an Overcomer. This is a phrase used many times in the New Testament, it seems to be lost in our generation. Jesus appeared to the disciples, His family, the religious leaders the secular leaders, and probably everyone else, to be a failure...avictim, but He wasn't. He was THE Victor! Many times in our lives, we may appear to be a Ioser...even to ourselves. However, if we are yielded to God, and are abiding in Him, how can we be losers, or victims...if we are carefully following the Lord, we too are overcomers, and victors...HE says so, John 16:33. He uses the word "world" 19x here, and a definite connection is made from this prayer to John 16:33. Understanding and applying the truths of this prayer will enable us to be an overcomer, as He was.",

Read John 17...The progression of Jesus thought is this:

  1. He prayed for Himself, told the Father His   work on earth was finished, vs 1-5

  2. Prayed for the disciples, asked the Father   to keep and sanctify them, vss 6-19",

  3. Prayed for you, me and the Body to be unified in Him and one day share His glory,vs   20-26",

Why did He pray this prayer?

  1. He was preparing Himself for what was com  ing( great example), His suffering. Thinking   about the glory to come, He drew strength from   the Father and could move ahead to the sacri  fice. Heb 12:1-3",

  2. He was concerned for His disciples, what an   encouragement it must have been for them to   hear Him pray for their security, their joy, their unity and their future glory.

  3. He prayed for us that we should know, all   He has given us, and all He will do for us   when we get to heaven.

He told the Father, the Hour has come, I have finished the work You gave me to do...

The finished work?                         

  1. His message and miracles for three years and His blameless life lived out

  2. He trained the disciples

  3. His sacrifice

There are four privileges we have as His children to enable us to be Overcomers:

  1. WE SHARE HIS LIFE. Vss 1-5

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Praying for self is not selfish...Bible   prayers emphasize this. Jesus burden was the glory of God and it would be realized in His finished work on the cross. Any servant of Christ has the   right, indeed the responsibility to   ASK! Ask Him for what is needed to do the work for His glory...John 15:7-9   tells us that is the first emphasis…

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see also Matt 6:9

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The word "glory" is used in these verses 5x, 3x but they are different glories...

  1. His pre-incarnate glory with the Father, the glory He laid aside to be born, serve, suffer, and die. Is it any wonder the apostles gave themselves and called us to give our lives to God as our reasonable service... Rom 12:1-2

  2. He reported to the Father that His life and ministry on earth had glorified Him and was finishing up.

  3. He asked that His pre-incarnate glory be given to Him again and He would glorify the Father in His return to Heaven.

  4. He glorified the Father in His miracles, (Jn 2:11:11:40). But His greatest glory was in His suffering and death.

To us as humans, Calvary was a horrible display of sinful man...But from Heaven's perspective, the cross revealed and magnified the grace and glory of God. The word "give" is used in one form or another 17x, Jesus said that believers are the Father's gift to Him. We are use to thinking that Jesus is the Father's love gift to us but the Lord affirms that we are the Father's gift to Him!

Eternal/everlasting life is an important theme in John's Gospel...used 17x...what is it? It is not just about Him but having a personal relationship with Him BECAUSE of the finished work of Christ. Jn 14:6-1. tells us we cannot know the Father apart from the Son. To believe in God is not enough, James 2:19 says the demons also believe and tremble. And, we can't earn it, it's a gift. Because we share His life we are overcomers and share His victory. Don't let Satan rob you of your overcoming power!

  1. WE KNOW HIS NAME (VSS 6-12)

Old Testament Jews knew God as Jehovah, the Great I AM... Ex 3:11-14. Jesus used that sacred name l AM and gave it special and very understandable meaning: I am the Good Shepherd, I am the Bread of Life, etc. He revealed the Father's gracious name by showing His disciples that HE was everything they needed! But the name was more...Father 53x from chapter 13-17, 122x in the Gospel. For the Jew, Jesus message was clear:

  1. The Father sent Him

  2. He was equal to the Father

  3. His words and work came from the Father.

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These messages clearly claimed Deity but the Jews refused to believe.

Biblically, name and nature were meant to reveal something special about the person bearing the name. For instance, Jacob meant scheemer, to take by the heel, to deceive. Isaac meant laughter. Jesus means Savior· To say "1 have manifested Your Name" means I have revealed the nature of God. One of the Son's ministries was to reveal the Father, Jn 1:18...not in a great blaze of glory, because the disciples could not have born it (Jn 16:12), but a little at a time by His words and deeds.

There are a few great facts revealed here that make us as believers feel "safe" in our relationship with Him.

  1. We are here to glorify Him...even though the disciples had faults and failures, they received the word of commendation here.",

  2. God keeps His own, vss 11 & 12, our safety depends on the nature of God not on us. What glory would there be for God if those who trusted His Son did not reach Heaven? Moses argument, Ex 32:12

  3. God has provided divine resources for us to glorify Him and be faithful:

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A.  The Word

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B.  The Son interceding C/the Father al  ways answers the Son, Jn 11:41-42

  1. The fellowship of the Body, isolated believers   are unknown in the New   Testament because we need each other!

 

  1. WE HAVE HIS WORD VSS 13-19)",

The Word is a gift to us...the Father to the Son...the Son to the disciples...the disciples to those inspired by the Holy Spirit, II Tim 3:16, ll Pet 21:21,. Those who are overcomers know the word and how to use it in daily life.  HOW????

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  A. It gives us joy...vs 13, 15:11, Jer 15:16 Psa 119:14,162

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  B. Assures us of His love, vs 14, the world hates   us because we don't belong to it's system, Jn   15:18-19 and we don't conform to it's  practices and standards.",

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  C. We have God's power for daily living, vss 15-17, we're sanctified...we are in the world but not of it and are not to be like it. We are to serve Him and be a blessing to others

 

  1. WE SHARE HIS GLORY (VSS 20-26)",

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The Lord prayed for our unity...not a spirit of competition or unrest not oneness in Him. It must break His heart when we are so fractured. Thomas Brooks, a Puritan preacher said this:" Discord and division become no Christian. For wolves to orry the Iambs is no wonder but for one Iamb to worry another is unnatural and monstrous.

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What is the basis for true unity? The person and work of Christ, and His glory!"

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"One of the few things that impresses the world is when Christians act like the Bible says they should! The way they see us act is the way they see God, who IS love!",

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"Here are some reasons we should love each other and live in unity:",

We trust the same Savior

We share the same glory

We will enjoy the same Heaven

We belong to the same Father

We seek to do the same work

We believe the same truth

We follow the same example

This beautiful prayer reveals the spiritual priorities in the Savior's head:

  1. The glory of God

  2. The sanctity of His people

  3. The unity of the Body"

  4. The need to share the Gospel with a lost world

In that day,...will we be able to say, "l have glorified Thee on the earth; I have finished the work you gave me to do"? I pray it will be

 

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