“A JOURNEY THROUGH THE GOSPEL OF JOHN” ST. JOHN 17:6-12

The Remarkable High Priestly Prayer of Christ

Part II

As we continue to study the wonders of Christ’s intercessory prayer, let’s continue to view Christ’s prayer from three perspectives:  in St. John 17:1-5, He prayed for Himself; in St. John 17:6-19, He prayed for the eleven disciples yet alive; and in St. John 17:20-26, He prayed for those who should believe; that is, He was praying for us in this dispensation of grace.  Isn’t it comforting to know that the Lord had your interest in mind, wanting even that you be saved!  Salvation is a free gift from God, appropriated by anyone who would believe in Christ as Saviour, for St. John 3:36 says:  “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting (eternal) life:  and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.”

In completing the first section (St. John 17:1-5), we discovered that Christ was praying for Himself, praying for His own glorification, to the end that the Father would be glorified.  His prayer for His glorification was vitally connected to His union with His Father:  “that the Father be glorified” (St. John 17: 1, 5).  As one meditates on the remarkable prayer of our blessed Saviour, one arresting thought should be prominent:  “the glory of the Father is the paramount consideration of Christ from beginning to the end.”  In Christ’s petition for His own (St. John 17:6), He declared that He had manifested the Father’s name – thus, He had disclosed the Father’s character and remarkable perfections.  Christ perfectly revealed God to men, for St. John 1:18 says:  “No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him.”

Yes, when you saw Jesus incarnate, you were looking at the declaration of who God is!  Certainly, Christ had revealed the absolute perfections of His Father in His immaculate and perfect life, wondrous miracles and superb teachings.  Christ went on to utter in His prayer that the disciples were given to Him, and that the disciples had kept the Word.

What a marvelous commendable remark that was made – “that the disciples had continued in the word.”  The essence of true discipleship is that one continues in the word (St. John 8:31).  The eleven disciples were praised by Christ for responding to the message of the gospel; moreover, these disciples knew that they were a gift from the Father (v. 7).  Thus, the disciples had received God’s message of grace through Christ and they had a firm belief that Jesus came as a missionary gift from heaven (v. 8).  It is indeed a marvel to contemplate that the Lord would pray for the little flock of eleven disciples in view of all their human weaknesses (v. 9-12).  Christ’s consuming passion in this prayer was that the disciples would be preserved and that they might be unified as the Father and the Son were (v. 11).  On a solemn and sad note, Judas Iscariot was appointed as a disciple, and later as an apostle; however, he was never a believer (St.  John 13:30).  May God Bless!