Easter 13 Resurrection, Hope and Jesus' Prayer

[HKHaugan]

Easter 13 The Resurrection, Hope and Jesus’ Prayer

As we have said before prayer is hope in practice. So just how did Jesus pray? While we could look at The Lord’s Prayer as Jesus teaching us how and what to pray for, the not so often quoted longer prayer in John 17 exhibits hope from a different angle. Here is a prayer that captures God the Son hoping and praying for His people. It is really a three-fold prayer encompassing His prayer for Himself, His disciples and all future believers. Because it is Jesus’ prayer just before He goes to the Cross, it is the Resurrection that raises its importance and therefore the importance of hope.

First, for Jesus Himself (vs.1-5)

Jesus asks His Father to glorify Him---and here is the key---so that He may glorify the Father. Jesus did not seek glory for Himself alone. The purpose of His request was for everyone to see the glory of the Father through Him. Jesus lived to praise His Father in all He did. His will was always His Father’s. The message for us is the same. If we seek to give Jesus the glory the Father is blessed. It translates into our working life as well. If I am at work my job is to make my boss look good. Wherever I am it is my job to make others look good. That attitude is an attitude of glory. It is an attitude that we have to work at because sin’s aim is to make me look good at the expense of others. It is especially hard when those we glorify use us to enhance their glory by taking credit for what we have done for them. Ego again. Remember it is God who handles life and our humility before God in the presence of others is the spiritual integrity we carry into eternity.

Second, for His disciples (vs.6-19)

The longest part of His prayer is for His disciples. In this part of the prayer He stands on four things.
First, He knows the Father gave them to Him.
Second, He knows they will be His first string, His varsity.
Third, He knows they will be the ones who establish a beachhead for His Kingdom in this world.
Fourth, He knows they have His Word, His presence and His Spirit.

So Jesus prays four things for them.
First, He prays that they may have the full measure of His joy.
Second, that the Father protects them from the devil.
Third, that the Word of Truth may sanctify them.
Fourth, that He sanctifies Himself that they may be sanctified.

The importance of this part of the prayer is that now every believer is a disciple and these things apply to us as well.

Third, for all future believers (vs.20-26)

While the second part of the prayer applies to any disciple He elaborates on what He hopes for the future of those who will be His Body. Here He prays five things. First, He prays for their unity.
Second, He prays that they be in the Father and the Son together.
Third, He prays that they may be loved as The Father has loved the Son.
Fourth, He prays that they may be with Him where He is.
Fifth, He prays that they may see the Father’s love for Him before Creation, which is His eternal glory.

The Resurrection indicates that His prayer for us is happening even as we are aware of ourselves being in the present, right now.

The three subjects of Jesus’ prayer give us a pattern to practice hope for others and ourselves. Jesus’ prayer is to become our prayer. We hope for ourselves to glorify God in everything as a first priority. We pray for all believers to do the same. We pray for unbelievers that may find Jesus and know His hope and love for them. (Jesus’ prayer will be studied in detail Tuesday May 12 at 10am in Bible Study at Crown Point Baptist.) Stay tuned.