John 17:20-26

 John 17:20-26

In this final section of Jesus's prayer we see His appeal for the unity of all believers through the whole church age. This prayer for unity has been the impetus of more than one movement. Nevertheless there are few that would say that unity among believers exists. We might even ask what are the implications of Jesus earnestly making a request of the Father and that this prayer was not fully answered. What do we see in Jesus's unanswered prayer? 

In fact there is not even an agreement about what this unity would mean or would look like. Would we say that this unity is a mystical unity that exists at a spiritual and supernatural level? That can't be all there is to it because the unity of which Jesus speaks is visible to the unbelieving world and causes them to come to faith. If we say that unity is a functional and ecclesiastical unity we miss the spiritual description of it being like the Son being in the Father and the Father in the Son. This unity, whatever it is, is at least as easy to understand as the doctrine of the Trinity. In fact the marvel of the church's unity is based on the Trinity.

One attempt at unity has been the statement, “In matters of Faith Unity and matters of opinion Liberty that in all things love”. This is pretty good as far as it goes in III John we see that if a person is a heretic we can't receive them, clearly there are limits to unity. But conversely we are not in agreement with what are matters of faith and what are matters of opinion. We have a remarkable ability to fight over almost anything. I once heard of a church split that occurred over whether the new roof on its building should be shingle or metal. Nothing tells the world, “We have nothing you want” like a church fight.

The issue of church unity is about 2,000 years old and has been studied, prayed over, and argued about by some very smart and godly people and we still don't have it figured out. But there is one starting point and one thing we can do and that is love. As Jesus concluded this prayer, “…that the love where with Thou dids’t love me may be in them and I in them.”

“Lord, if nothing else help me to love those who love you. AMEN”

John 17: 8 - 19

 John 17: 8 - 19 

What is the reality of the relationship of the disciple and the church in the world? What is the fundamental experience of the people of God while they live between their conversion and their personal Resurrection? The fundamental relationship between the world and the people of God is one of hostility. The world hates the Christian and the church. For its part the church is not in the world to coddle and soothe but to challenge the world to continue the message and the work of Christ.

Jesus does not call us out of the world to a safe Christian Cloister. Rather He sends us into the world, into the midst of struggle and hostility and opposition but under the Father's protection by His word. We err equally when we, as disciples, believe we ought to sequester ourselves in the safe confines of Christian Community, seen especially in the church. When we believe that we can reform the world with our optimistic view of a better world now.  If we imagine that we can affirm and endorse the world’s values, morals and ethics as they are. There is equal folly in each.

If the foundational problem in the world is that it is in rebellion towards God we will not be able to see resolution until the rebels surrender. That surrender will not occur by our escapism, surface superficial reforms, or agreement with the world’s terms of surrender. The rebel may never repent but he can be told he needs to. That telling is as apt to produce hostility, as it is repentance, maybe more. In either case we are under Divine protection. That protection is the source of our joy in the midst of the suffering.

“Lord, grant me courage under Your protection in this hostile world.  AMEN”

John 17:1 - 8

 John 17:1 - 8 

The Son is glorified by the Father for what He will do and what He has done. In verses 1-2 we see that Jesus asked His Father to glorify Him because of the future action of giving eternal life to men. The work of Salvation on the cross is only hours away but it will rescue men for eternity. In versus 4-5 Jesus asked that the Father glorify Him for what He has already been accomplished. Jesus accomplished the work that the Father had given Him: the Incarnation, life, ministry, teaching, miracles and sinlessness of the Son were completed. Between these two statements of glorification is the description of eternal life to know the one true God and Jesus Christ sent From Heaven.

Declaring of the glory of God is never more complete and full than it is when men accept the gift of eternal life and become disciples or followers of Christ. The great sermons and lessons, the music and songs, the interjections and expressions of praise all have their place. But they remain sign posts pointing to, they are explanations and descriptions of the person and work of Jesus who came to save the lost. The marvel and tension of perfect forgiveness and perfect justice are worked out on the cross. How can a perfectly holy God at the same time fully punish the most grotesque sin and forgive the perpetrator? By the Incarnation, perfect life, and sacrificial death of God the son. The greatest composer, singer, speaker, writer, or musician glorifies God less fully than the one who says “In the Cross of Christ is God's plan of eternal life. Come follow Christ!"

“Lord, grant that I will follow faithfully and simply. AMEN”