October 6, 2023
A Perfectly Harmonious Prayer
“I have manifested Your name to the men whom You gave Me out of the world; they were Yours and You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word. Now they have come to know that everything You have given Me is from You; for the words which You gave Me I have given to them; and they received them and truly understood that I came forth from You, and they believed that You sent Me.” John 17:6-8 (NASB)
Years ago in seminary, our preaching lab professor shared different methods for preaching in church. He told us one method used the idea of what is called “reinforcement preaching.” It works like this: First, tell people in the beginning what you are going to share. Secondly, share it. Finally, close by telling them what you told them. Hopefully, by that time the audience would understand what was shared. I have seen some pastors who have used this method quite effectively, while others struggled to keep their attention on their message. Our professor gave us something to think about as we finished class, “If you can’t remember what you said in your message, how do you expect them?” He was right. Jesus used this same method in prayer. He used His prayer in an overview of His entire mission for the Father’s glory.
“I have manifested Your name to the men whom You gave Me out of the world… Now they have come to know that everything You have given Me is from You; for the words which You gave Me I have given to them;” Jesus encapsulated His entire ministry in the following words. All He has done on the earth is contained in this text. “I have made you known means the same as I showed your glory in verse 4. “I glorified You on the earth, having accomplished the work which You have given Me to do.” The verb have made you known is in the aorist tense, and it sums up the total revelation of God in Jesus’ ministry… In some languages it may be related to the preceding clause as ‘Those you gave me out of the world, these I have caused to know you.’”[1] In God’s workings, He led them to Christ (John 6:37, 44, 45). But there was more to it; “When Jesus introduced the apostles into His prayer, He first offered prayer about them rather than for them (John 17:6–8). He testified in the presence of God that the disciples whom God had granted to Him had been given the message that God wanted Him to give them and that they were obedient to God’s Word.”[2] I think it is interesting that from these verses, all the way to verse 19, Jesus widened His circle of prayer from Himself; to all those who would become His followers, and finally finishes with the entire world around Him. If we think about it in detail, we know this is how Jesus’s life began and throughout His ministry built outward. In the beginning, He met with the Father in prayer when He started His ministry in the wilderness. Next, He went to the disciples who would be His own, given to Him by the Father. Finally, Jesus prayed for a world that rejected Him, and who would come to know Him in the future. The timeline of His life is in this order. I don’t think it is an accident. His prayer is ordered in this manner.
In all my years I don’t think I have ever seen the order and precision with which Jesus prayed for His own. I know I haven’t seen it with ordinary men in their prayer lives. Only God Incarnate can issue perfection. I am so thankful to the Holy Spirit each day that He knows exactly what the Father needs from my life. He is my advocate and my sealer of salvation.
[1] Newman, B. M., & Nida, E. A. (1993). A handbook on the Gospel of John (p. 530). United Bible Societies.
[2] Foster, L. (1987). John: Unlocking the Scriptures for You (p. 184). Standard.