seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
John 17:1 After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed:
“Father, the hour 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 know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. 4 I have brought you glory on earth by finishing 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.
6 “I have revealed you[a] to those whom you gave me out of the world. They were yours; you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word. 7 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. 9 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[b] 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[c] that name you gave me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled.
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. 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. 15 My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. 17 Sanctify them by[d] 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.
20 “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—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will 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.
25 “Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. 26 I have made you[e] known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them.”
a. John 17:6 Greek your name
b. John 17:11 Or Father, keep them faithful to
c. John 17:12 Or kept them faithful to
d. John 17:17 Or them to live in accordance with
e. John 17:26 Greek your name
These analytics are from the bible-studys.org site.
This chapter is a transitional chapter, marking the end of Jesus’ earthly ministry and the beginning of His intercessory ministry for believers (Hebrews 7:25). In many respects, the prayer is a summary of John’s entire gospel. Its principal themes include:
1. Jesus’ obedience to His father;
2. The glorification of His Father through His death and exaltation;
3. The revelation of God in Jesus Christ;
4. The choosing of the disciples out of the world;
5. Their mission to the world;
6. Their unity modeled on the unity of the Father and Son;
7. The believer’s final destiny in the presence of the Father and Son.
The chapter is divided into three parts
1. Jesus’ prayer for Himself (verses 1-5);
2. Jesus’ prayer for the apostles (verses 6-19);
3. Jesus’ prayer for all New Testament believers who will form the church (verses 20-26).
We read in a previous lesson how Jesus is ruler over everything. Jesus is creator God, as we read in chapter one of John. It says all things were made by Him. The Creator had dominion over His creation. Our flesh was made from the dust of the earth by creator God.
The life we experience is the result of the breath of life breathed into us by God. We are a free agent. We can refuse eternal life. Jesus purchased eternal life for all of mankind. Those who accept it will have eternal life with Him. We are His workmanship.
To manifest is to make known or real. Jesus has made the Father real to the people. He has stopped them from thinking of a bunch of laws and has revealed the personality of God to them. We see in this, that Jesus' followers have been given Him by the Father.
We will see in Revelation, that those who make it to heaven to be with Jesus (the Christians), are sealed with Jesus' name. We are sealed here with that name, Christians (believers in and followers of Christ). God giving these to Christ just means the Spirit of God wooed them and they came and received the gift of life through Christ.
I've heard it said that there are some people who are just not meant to be Saved. There are a lot of people in the churches I have attended over the past 70 years.... who were run out of the church because the "holier than thou goody two shoes" decided they were too stinky to be in their church. That's not what I'm talking about. I'm talking about the ones whose story is checked and the path is marked..... way in advance of their first breath.Consider this... please.... God created time. God has manipulated time. So.... now we know that God can look into the future if He so desires. After all God created "future" too. God sculpted each and every single one of us. We are adorned as He sees fit. He selected the color of our skin... the length of our nose... and the curl in our hair..... He counted the hairs that would grow on our heads. So God knew who we are and who we are going to be before we took our first human breath. God knew who would choose to be His child.... and those who would rather go it alone on the streets. God knew which of us would choose Him..... even though we choose our own path.... God knows what we will do... because He can plainly see it. He controls time.
Over the past few days.... I've been considering how "free will" and "predestination" should work together..... consider this scenario.
Over 70 years ago.... God was about to sculpt me. Yep I'm trying not to get a big head about it... but yep... I believe I was hand sculpted by God. I believe, based on the Bible... that God actually counted out the number of hairs that would grow on my head [even the ones that fell out due to chemo]. I believe He gave me freckles and long long long legs.
Now consider.... While God was working on what would become me... and He looked into my future.... I think God saw that one day I would say "Let me write a Bible Study Lord". While God was working on what would become me.... He saw that I would choose to be helpful. I don't know if I was "assigned" this morning thing.... or if I "chose" it..... but in this scenario... let's say God saw that I would be happy posting a Bible Study on a little hometown web site.
Now.... my choosing to Believe in God... that's "free will".
However... in order to write a Bible Study every morning... I have to love to keyboard. I have to love to do a little research. I have to love reading commentary. I love thinking about matters of the Bible and how they control my life. I have to use the English language. I have to have certain talents.
Because God knew that I would "choose" to post a Bible Study every morning.... [Boy I'm getting a really big head writing this].... God "predestined" my experiences. I was meant to go to a lot of failing churches. I was meant to go to a few good churches. I was meant to be Baptized the same day as my mom... and I was destined to hear her choke coming out of the water. I was meant to experience bars... I was meant to hitchhike across the US... twice. I was meant to meet certain people and have certain experiences because those experiences would be important to what I would write.
I was "predestined" to learn certain lessons so that when I said "Lord, Let me write a Bible Study"..... I would have the talents and the experience to perform the task for Him.
I had "free will". I chose to use that "free will" and take up a Mission. I was "predestined" to take up a Mission. All Christians have some kind of Mission... it's what we do... really! Some are great at teaching... some are great at organizing.... some are great at rocking a crying baby to sleep... some are great at making coffee cakes. He makes sure the Mission fits the talents and the talents fit the Mission. God made sure that when I said "Let Me!" I could do it.
So what does all this "free will" and "predestination" have to do with these verses.... well verse in Verse 12.... Judas was one of those who exercised his "free will" to hang with Jesus... but Judas would never Believe. So.... since God knew Judas would only be a pew warmer rather than a Christian..... then God "predestined" Judas to be a snitch.
In this chapter.... Jesus raised His face to Heaven and talked to God.
In Verse 24... Jesus asked God to let Christians come to Heaven and "see" His Glory.
To put this in children's language. Jesus wanted God to let Him arrange a play date.
Jesus asked His Dad if all the Christians could come and play.
This chapter is about the real Lord's Prayer.
