The High Priestly Prayer
Jesus Prays for His Glory
(part 1)
John 17:1-2
 
It has always intrigued me how the cross and all the hideous, horrible things that happened there is so glorious.  The cross has always been, and still is, glorious to believers. From the Apostle Paul to us, to all those who will know Christ throughout the church age and until He comes again, the cross will always be glorious.
 
There’s another aspect that is often overlooked in regard to that, and it is that it was glorious to Christ also.  With all of the pain and anguish and suffering and sin bearing that Christ went through at the cross, it was still, to Him, glory.
 
It was also glorious to the Father.  That’s means that to all that know God and to God Himself and His Son, the cross is the most glorious thing that has ever happened in man's history.
 
In fact, that is the beginning focus of what theologians refer to as “the High Priestly Prayer”.  It is found in John 17, and tonight I want us to begin an in-depth study of it.  It’ll take us about six weeks to digest it and see what it has to say to us. 
 
Now, as is most often the case, it’s difficult to break into the middle of a chapter and verse and fully understand what is going on, so let’s back up for a moment to verse 33 of chapter 16 and get a running start on 17.
Jesus has just closed out what has been called the table talks. Judas has left, and Jesus is gathered with His eleven disciples.  From chapter 14 through 16 Jesus unfolded to them promises, and they all really hinging on the one promise of the coming of the Holy Spirit.
 
Then He makes this classic, climactic great statement in verse 33, He says this: "Be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."
 
Now that's a statement in anticipation. And in the Greek structure of the language, the past tense is used to express a future inevitability. In othere words, when someone wanted to say something that was so positive it couldn't be changed, he would often frequently use the past tense to express the impossibility of it ever not happening.
 
So when Jesus says -- I have overcome the world; He is securing, before the fact, the victory of the cross. He is anticipating the finished product of what is yet to happen.   
 
Now it's pretty obvious, if you look at the facts from a human standpoint, He has done anything but overcome the world. He is about to be nailed to a cross, die and be buried.  This will be Satan’s finest attempt to stop the plan of God.  And in light of this statement and what is about to happen, what He says not only appears to be a lie, it looks like a joke.   And yet, in anticipation or what is about to happen, He talks about His victory before the fact by saying -- I have overcome the world.
 
 
Now let me insert here, as we are passing by, that's the kind of confidence that every believer can have.  That's what John was talking about in 1 John 5 when he said, “our faith overcomes the world”.  And although it hasn't happened yet it's so secure we can speak of it as if it has already taken place.
 
So Jesus Christ announces this climactic victory over the sin and Satan and the world. 
 
Now, in order for that to be not just an announcement but a fact, it has to be done by the omnipotent power of God. So immediately after the announcement He goes straight to prayer to the Father in order that what has been announced may really happen in the energy of God's power.
 
Now that’s important to keep in mind because even though He was the Son of God, in fact, God in the flesh, He submitted Himself to the will and power of God while He was on the earth. 
 
So having announced the victory He recognizes that that victory is only possible if God’s will is done in God’s power at work in and through Him, He thens prays to God, acknowledging that He is the power behind making it happen.
 
And chapter 17 is that prayer.  Now I would suggest to you that this prayer is the most thrilling prayer by far that's ever recorded in the Bible.
 
So what we are going to do is just take it slow and easy for the next six weeks and explore its riches. 
 
 
Here in this prayer, the veil is pulled back and we get to peek in and listen to what is happening in the Holy of Holies in this face to face communion between God the Father and God the Son. 
 
Now, keeping the background in our minds, in just a few hours, Jesus will be on the cross.  And He is looking to the cross but in this particular chapter He doesn’t focus on the suffering, but on the glory. 
 
Time after time He tried to press that truth on His disciples.  He would talk about a woman giving birth and getting past the pain to the joy. 
 
In fact, the Bible tells us in the book of Hebrews that He approached the cross and did 'it for the joy that was set before Him. Clearly, He is focusing of what would be accomplished, looking past the temporary pain to the eternal glory. 
 
One other thing I want us to have in mind, then we’ll begin looking at the text:  this chapter is a transitional chapter. 
 
We are now at the end of Christ’s earthly ministry. 
This is the wrap-up just before He dies.  What difference does that make?  Well the end of his earthly ministry marks the beginning of His intercessory ministry. 
 
We are told, that now, “He ever lives to do what?”
Make intercession for us. He's right now seated at the right hand of the Father. And what's He doing? Interceding on our behalf. This is His mediatorial work. He is constantly interceding for the believer right now, before the throne of God.
That new ministry began when the ministry on earth ended. When He went to heaven His work on our behalf didn’t end.  He began a new ministry on our behalf, and here in John 17 we get a little sneak preview of what that’s all about. 
 
And one of the most exciting things about this chapter is, as hard as it is to believe, we find Jesus praying for you and me. 
 
You say not by name. No. Not by name, but He knew your name.  There was just no sense in putting everybody's name in there. But He prays for you. He prays for all of those who will ever come to know Him. And He knew what their names would be. And so, this is the beginning of His intercessory work.
 
And I like the fact that He speaks this prayer aloud and let’s the disciples in on it.  He could have spoken this prayer silently and accomplished the same thing but He didn't. He said it loudly in order that they might hear.  And in letting them hear, they get a glimpse of three different aspects of his prayer.  And those three things will be where we will focus our attention. 
 
First of all, in the first five verses, He prays for Himself.  Then in verses 6 to 19 He prays for the Apostles. And in verses 20 to 26 He prays for all believers.
 
So let’s dive in and get started on this first thought of Jesus praying for Himself.
 
Verses 1-2
 
Now in verse 1 where we find the phrase, “Jesus spoke these words. . .”, obviously that has reference to everything He said in chapter 14, 15 and 16.
So having said all of these things, having spoken three chapters worth to the Apostles, He now lifts His eyes and prays.
 
Now this is a tremendous thing to realize because Jesus is going to ask the Father, just a simple thing.
 
He's going, first of all, to acknowledge to the Father all the things that are the Father's will and then He's just going to say -- Father, let it happen. His prayer is really a confirmation of God's will.
 
His prayer is kind of like -- Father, we've got it all planned, laid out from eternity past, now let's get at it. It's that kind of a prayer. And so, He prays to the Father on the grounds of what He knows is the Father's will.
 
And I love the principle that just jumps off the page in that He took three chapters to tell them all these tremendous truths and comfort them and give them peace and talking about joy and the Holy Spirit would come and teach them all things and lead them into all truth and bring all things to their remembrance, and glorify Christ to them and He went on and on and on about the promises that He’d come back and get them. 
 
Then after saying all these things and repeating all the promises and all the wonderful things that are going to happen, He stops and says -- Father, I've made all these promises, but I need Your power to make them happen.
 
Now there is a principle there, and it is simply this:
 
After we have done all we can to provide comfort and promote holiness and teach and preach and instruct and counsel and encourage, after it has all been said and done there ain’t nothing been done unless God does it. 
 
“All is vain unless the Spirit of the Holy One comes down!”
 
And Jesus is giving us this great principle from His own life as He illustrates His dependency upon the power and will of God. 
 
Every preacher and teacher needs to apply that principle to our life and ministry.
 
So, Jesus, having stated all these things says -- Father, it's going to be through Your power that it's all going to come to pass ... energize this thing.
 
Now don’t miss what that means.  Jesus is looking forward to events that haven’t happened, but knowing God is in control, trusts God to make them happen.  Everything is historical from God’s perspective.  History is the moment by moment materializing of the plan and the will of God. It's no accident.
 
It’s exciting to me to contemplate the fact that God is writing history. I mean, that's security. God has not lost His grip on the world. He’s just up there doing exactly what He's planned to do all along. It's all going the way it was designed to go. Sin runs its course, God designed sin to run its course and then destroy it.
God designed the redeemed remnant to come to Him all the way along the line, and they do. History is God's will materializing.
 
So with that in mind, Jesus says, “The hour is come”. 
 
What hour is He talking about? Well, what hour has history been waiting for? What is the crucial hour in all of the redemptive strain of history for man? Why it's the hour that Jesus bears the sins of men.
 
It's here. I mean, We finally got here, Father, from eternity through 33 years of time My living on earth, We've arrived, it's here at last. The apex of history, the glory hour, it's here. The time to blot out the curse, to reconcile men to God, to destroy the power of sin, Satan and death, to illuminate the obscured spiritual kingdom of Christ, it's here, it's arrived, the hour is here.
 
The time has come for Christ to die.  Jesus said in chapter 12 verse 27: "For this cause came I into the world." See. He was born for that hour and when He was hanging on the cross and it was all over with He made the great statement -- tetelestai -- which translated is -- it is finished, right on schedule.
 
God's redemptive history climaxes itself in the glorious death of Jesus Christ. It's amazing that this glory would be accomplished in the way it was accomplished. 
 
The King of Glory is nailed to a cross, He became sin for His beloved people, He bore the wrath of a sin hating God, the sun refused to shine, the whole universe went into chaos.
The earth rocked and reeled, the graves split open and dead people came to life when Jesus died on the cross.
 
To men the cross appears as an instrument of shame, but to Christ it meant glory.
 
And so He says, verse 1, "The hour is come,"
 
What's the next statement? What's the next word? "Glorify Thy Son." How are You going to do that?
 
How will it be accomplished?  On the cross. 
 
Now, it seems strange because from a human viewpoint you'd think He would say, “Father, exalt Me now to some great role of rule in the world.”
 
If it was real glory why you wouldn't think it would have anything to do with suffering, but it does because the glory came in, not what Jesus endured temporarily, but what He accomplished for eternity. 
 
The purchase of eternal life depended upon death and so He had to die. And so, Jesus is simply saying - Father, grant that by means of this event, My death, burial, resurrection, ascension and coronation, I may be glorified.
 
And so Christ is simply saying -- Father, let's get at it so I can display these attributes and receive the honor that is due. The cross was glory for Jesus and that results in glory for God.   
 
And so, Jesus says -- Father, let's get at it. Let's get at this thing so We can receive the glory due.
 
Now in the death of Christ and that which followed, His resurrection, ascension and coronation when He reached heaven, His glory is revealed in three ways.
 
That was the introduction.  Now let’s get to the meat:
 
In terms of the glory revealed it was first of all revealed because
 
1. He Provided Eternal Life
 
verses 2 and 3
 
Isn't that a fantastic realization, that out of the dying of Christ came life? You see, the Bible says the wages of sin is death. So, for every sinner there must be death. So we die for our sins or else there is a substitute that dies in our place and that's exactly who Jesus was -- the substitute, He bore our sins in His own body. He became sin for us who knew no sin that we might be made the righteousness of God. So, Jesus died and when He died bearing the penalty of sin He freed us to live.
 
Someone says, “Yeah, but even Christians die.”
 
Only physically, and really, not to be callous or cavalier about it, that's no big deal. There are three kinds of death the Bible talks about; physical, spiritual and eternal death.
 
Jesus eliminated the eternal and the spiritual and all we have to do is die physically which isn't a bad deal anyway. I don't know if you're happy with your body, but the promise of a glorified body is appealing to me.
And so the only thing left is that physical death and it just releases us to be with God in a perfect environment.  And so the glory of the cross is that Christ's dying bore the penalty of sin and freed us to live and that's what eternal life is all about.
 
Look at verse 2 again
 
He's still praying to the Father and He says, “Father, let's get at this thing because in this I'm going to be able to give eternal life to all those You've given Me.”
 
Now He wanted the glory of the cross that came in providing eternal life. Would you say eternal life is glorious?   Next week we’ll get more into what eternal life is all about, but just know this:  it’s glorious.
 
The idea here is that Christ wants to get at the cross because He sees in it the provision of eternal life for all those that the Father gives Him.
 
So God has designed that Jesus should give eternal life. And as Jesus Christ is God's love gift to the world so believers are God's love gift to Jesus. Did you ever think about that? That's a fabulous thought.
 
Did you know that if you're a Christian you are the Father's love gift to His Son? Is that not exciting?  To realize that you have been given to the Son as a love gift from the Father?
 
And yet I know Christians who say, I don't know if I'm really saved and they have no security and worry and fret about it. 
 
Listen, your security doesn't depend on your attitude; you're the Father's love gift to the Son. You think He's going to show His love to the Son by giving a gift and taking it back?
 
Security depends on the sovereign design of God. You have been designed to be a love gift to the Son. And it wouldn't show a whole lot of love if He took His gifts back. Christ acknowledges that those who receive eternal life will be such as the Father grants Him. And so He gives eternal life.
 
John just seems consumed with this thought of Jesus giving us eternal life.  Right at the beginning of his gospel, John 1:4, "In Him was life."
 
And then in John 5, "He hath life in Himself."
 
John 5, verse 4, "That you will not come to Me that you might have life."
 
John 10:10, "1 am come that you might have life and have it more abundantly."
 
John 6:33, "He giveth life."
 
John 6:35, "He is the bread of life."
 
John 8:12, "He that followeth Me shall not walk in darkness but shall have the light of life."
 
John 11:25, to the sorrowing sister of Lazarus He said, "I am the resurrection and the life."
 
 
 
John 14, to Philip who didn't understand much He said: "I am the way, the truth and the life," Life, life, life, life all over the place in John's gospel, and those are just a few.  In fact, we find in the closing verse, it’s why the book of John was written to begin with: 
 
John 20:31, "But these are written that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you might have life through His name."
 
The whole thing was written that you might believe and when you believe in Christ that's how you receive eternal life.  You say -- What do you have to believe about Him? Believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. Believe that. If you believe that you have life. You say -- It's that easy? That's right. You believe that you have life. John wrote the whole book so that you might have life. That's the whole reason for the gospel.
 
And that’s not all, John was really hung-up on this concept of life and rightly so. In I John 5, listen to why he wrote the epistle of I John. "And this is the record that God hath given unto us eternal life and this life is in His Son. He that hath the Son hath life and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life." Now, here's why I wrote this, "These things have I written unto you, I John, why did he write it? "That believe on the name of the Son of God," I'm writing to Christians, "That you may know that ye have eternal life."
 
So, he wrote the gospel so that you might have eternal life and he wrote the first epistle so that you might know that you had eternal life.
And the whole epistle deals with the characteristics of a Christian and how you can know you have eternal life.  Jesus came to give life. And John said it well. He said, "These things are written unto you that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God and that believing you might have life." That's the only way to have life. There's no life in any other than Jesus Christ.
 
No wonder hymn writer Elisha Hoffman wrote:
 
Down at the cross where my Savior died,
Down where for cleansing from sin I cried,
There to my heart was the blood applied;
Glory to His Name!
 
I am so wondrously saved from sin,
Jesus so sweetly abides within,
There at the cross where He took me in;
Glory to His Name!
 
Oh, precious fountain that saves from sin,
I am so glad I have entered in;
There Jesus saves me and keeps me clean;
Glory to His Name!
 
Come to this fountain so rich and sweet,
Cast thy poor soul at the Savior’s feet;
Plunge in today, and be made complete;
Glory to His Name!
 
Glory to His Name,
Glory to His Name:
There to my heart was the blood applied;
Glory to His Name!
 
Let's pray.