John 17:20-26; Asking for the World

" ‘I ask not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word, 21 that they may all be one. As you, Father, 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 The glory that you have given me I have given them, so that they may be one, as we are one, 23 I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. 24 Father, I desire that those also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory, which you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world. 25 ‘Righteous Father, the world does not know you, but I know you; and these know that you have sent me. 26I made your name known to them, and I will make it known, so that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.’ "

I. Introduction--The Context of Jesus' Prayer

John 17 is this Gospel author's version of the "Lord's Prayer." Rather than teaching us how to pray, which is the way that Matthew and Luke frame their Lord's Prayer, Jesus here shows us what is on his heart as he is preparing to depart from the world.

John 17 appears in the larger context of John 13-17. These five chapters are Jesus' departure discourse to the disciples. He is occasionally interrupted by their questions, but for the most part he comforts them, instructs them on the coming of the Spirit, urges them to be strong in the midst of coming persecution and then, in ch. 17, urges them to practice the unity of faith that is already theirs. John 13-14 has the tone of a "conversation" with the disciples, where they try, unsuccesfully usually, to pick up on what Jesus is trying to say by asking him questions that really are slightly off the mark. He patiently explains to Judas, or Thomas, or Philip or Peter the nature of his ministry and how he will be returning to the Father. John 15-16 has more of the tone of a "monologue" as Jesus begins to launch into areas closest to his heart--the connection of the disciples to Jesus ("I am the vine; you are the branches"), the coming of the Spirit, and the persecution the disciples will face in the future.

Transition to John's version of the "Lord's Prayer" occurs through a comment in 16:30. The disciples say: "Now we know that you know all things, and do not need to have anyone question you; but this we believe that you came from God." Their confession of belief that Jesus "came from God" functions similarly to the "Greeks'" desire to see Jesus in 12:21. Their desire to seek Jesus leads to Jesus saying, "The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified" (12:23). So here. When the disciples say they know that Jesus has come from God, Jesus quickly tells them about the coming persecution (16:31-33) and then launches into his prayer for them and for the world in ch. 17.

II. The Character of Jesus' "High-Priestly" Prayer in John 17

The "flow" of John 17 is one of every growing or more inclusive circles. There are three "circles" which John 17 presents.

A. 17:1-5 stresses the relationship between Jesus and the Father, with emphasis on the concept of "glory"--John's beautiful all-inclusive word for the pre-existence, earthly life, death, and resurrection of Christ. Jesus asks for God to "glorify" him now with the "glory" he had before the world existed.

B. 17:6-19 prays for the disciples. We can see how important that little point from 16:30 is (the disciples believe Jesus came from God), because Jesus will mention it as the basis of his prayer:

"for the words that you gave me I have given to them, and they have received them and known in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me" (v. 8).

Jesus is "free to die" once the disciples understand the nature of Jesus' origin. For if Jesus came from God, and the disciples are the branches that cling to the "vine" which is Jesus, then the disciples' ministry in the world connects directly to the heart of God. Jesus' prayer for the disciples is passionate and direct. He prays primarily for two things: that they may be "one" (v. 11) and that they may be protected from the evil one (v. 15). This themes are united in one verse, so it might be good to pause on it for a moment.

"And now I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one, as we are one" (v. 11).

Jesus realizes the dangers that are attendant upon discipleship. Certainly that was true in the time John was writing, and would be the case for the next three hundred years in the Roman Empire. But after Christianity became the religion of the Empire, and when there became that synthesis of government and faith in the High Middle Ages, the expectation was that one was a Christian. This notion continued until well into the 20th century, though now we are seeing in the West (Europe and America) that outspoken commitment to Christ as Lord is probably a minority phenomenon. I think we will do everything in our power to make sure that the religious wars of the 17th century in the West, which continue today in some places in the Middle East and Africa, will not be characteristic of our future. Yet, Jesus' words are comforting nevertheless; danger may accompany an outspoken profession of faith in Christ.

C. But the theme of unity, mentioned briefly in v. 11, will be the focus of 17:20-26, our passage. This next more inclusive category of Jesus' prayer asks for those who "will believe in me through their (i.e., the disciples') word" (v. 20). The two themes that I will develop in the next essay from this text are the way that unity of disciples mirrors that of the Father and the Son and the vision of the glory of Christ available to those of us who didn't enjoy that first encounter with him 2000 years ago.

Now we are ready to exposit the passage of the morning.

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