Within this passage of scripture is one of Jesus’ final prayers for his disciples before the cross. What’s interesting is that Jesus specifically prays for us and here are the specific things for which He prays:
1. Our Sanctification - To remain COMPLETELY separated from sin and the world’s influences.
Jn 17:14-21 “I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.”
2. Our Truth - To rely COMPLETELY upon the sufficiency of God’s Word as our only source of truth for godliness.
“Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.”
3. Our Mission - To fulfill the Great Commission (Mt 28:18-30).
“As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world. And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth. Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;”(You & Me)
4. Our Unity - To serve in the spirit of the Great Commandment (Mt 22:37-40).
“That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.”
LESSON - Jesus prayed for us to be a distinctively godly people. He prayed that we would be unified under 1 Spirit (the HS) by 1 word (the Bible) with 1 purpose (the Great Commission) through 1 motive (the Great Commandment). Our lives should be so holy that the world we are trying to reach will marvel at our transformation and glorify God as a result (Mt 5:16). This is a question which I am going to ponder. Does my life reflect God’s answer to Jesus’ prayer for me?
~Mike