Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer – John 17:1-19
If you had less than 24 hours left to live, what would you do?
• Go for a walk on the beach?
• Hug your family members?
Jesus spent His last hours on earth praying. Jesus’ longest prayer in the Bible is recorded here in John 17. It is called the High Priestly prayer because in His prayer we see Jesus’ heart for us. He prays for Himself, for His disciples, and for us.
By studying Jesus’ prayer we get a window into His heart and can know exactly what He was thinking even as He prepared to die for us.
I. Jesus Prays for Himself (1-5)
A. Glorify Me That I May Glorify You
John 17:1 – Glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you.
John 17:4-5 – I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do. And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed.
In Jesus’ prayer for Himself, he prays for two things. He prays that the Father will give Him glory and He prays that He will give the Father glory.
In Christian circles, it is common to hear the phrase, “Give glory to God.” We talk about it. We sing about it.
1. What does it mean to give glory to someone?
Glory – High renown or honor won by notable achievements.
– A thing that is beautiful, impressive, or worthy of praise.
– Praise, worship, and thanksgiving offered to a deity.
The verb δοξάζω (doxazó) is used to describe the act of giving honor and praise to God, acknowledging His majesty, power, and divine nature.
It means to recognize their achievements or character and give them proper credit for what they have done.
An Olympic athlete who finishes in first place, receives a gold medal as a public recognition and sign of honor for their accomplishment.
2. Why does God seek glory for Himself?
First, does God seek glory for Himself? Throughout Scripture, we see that the answer is clearly YES!
God will not share His glory.
We were created for His glory.
Someone once asked me, “Is God prideful?”
If we ask people to praise us or if we tell people how great we are, then that is pride. But God does this all the time. How can a perfect God seek His own glory?
This is a good question. Sooner or later, most Christians will ask it. I answered with an illustration.
Let’s say that I am an author. I spend thousands of hours to write a book. It’s a very good book. But just before I get it published someone steals my manuscripts. They then publish the book in their own name as if it is theirs. After that they get the credit and the profit from the book that I wrote. As the rightful author, what should I do? Am I justified in taking up the case, going to the bookstores or to the court and showing proof that I wrote the book? I believe I am. It is my work, my creation. It is right and just that I receive the credit. Is that pride? No, that is justice. On the other hand, the person who is trying to steal the credit is sinning.
He is trying to take what is rightfully mine and that is not just.
The same is true for a painting. If you painted a beautiful picture, you would not like it if someone erased your signature and added their own.
This can help us to understand why God seeks praise and glory for all the things He has done. He is the Creator, Savior, and King. He deserves the glory for what He has done. If someone else tries to take glory for themselves, it is unjust and robbing God. God is against all injustice.
An amazing thing is that when we live our life as He designed us to for His glory, we are the most joyful. When children honor their parents, they live a happier, safer, healthier, and longer life. When we live to glorify God the same is true for us.
What is the chief end of man?
To glorify God and enjoy Him forever. These go hand in hand. Glorifying God is enjoyable.
El Salvadoran prison – I watched a video recently about the largest prison in the world. It is in El Salvador and is filled with violent criminals. These criminals live a miserable and empty life. No visitors. No outdoor time. They even have to sleep with the lights on. Their choices to live for themselves ended up destroying their lives. In like manner, the person who seeks his own glory will finally be separated from God in the eternal prison of hell.
Why does God seek glory for Himself?
1. It is right.
2. It is good for us.
Even though it is right to glorify God and Jesus is God, Jesus lived a humble life focused on bringing glory to the Father.
Jesus did not seek after His own glory.
John 8:50 – Yet I do not seek my own glory; there is One who seeks it, and he is the judge.
Jesus didn’t show off to get attention. He modeled humbly seeking the Father’s glory. He asked for glory so that He could in turn better glorify the Father.
Ultimately, Jesus glorifies the Father by leading us to Him.
John 14:6 – I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
The path to prove that Jesus is the Way to the Father was the cross and then the resurrection. Thus in the end, Jesus’ mission was to lead the world to properly recognize God’s power and authority. He did this by redeeming us on the cross.
Has Jesus’ prayer been answered?
Yes. For two thousand years, throughout the world God is receiving praise and thanksgiving for His amazing plan of salvation.
3. God seeks credit for His achievements, should we?
1 Thessalonians 2:6 – Nor did we seek glory from people, whether from you or from others, though we could have made demands as apostles of Christ.
1 Corinthians 10:31 – So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.
Negative example –
Acts 12:21-23 – On an appointed day Herod put on his royal robes, took his seat upon the throne, and delivered an oration to them. And the people were shouting, “The voice of a god, and not of a man!” Immediately an angel of the Lord struck him down, because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and breathed his last.
Here we can see what God thinks of people who receive glory from man.
Positive example –
Acts 3:12 – “Men of Israel, why do you wonder at this, or why do you stare at us, as though by our own power or piety we have made him walk?
Acts 3:16 And his name—by faith in his name—has made this man strong whom you see and know, and the faith that is through Jesus has given the man this perfect health in the presence of you all.
Here are some ways we may try to seek glory or credit for ourselves.
• Recognition – “Hey dear, are you watching this? I am doing the dishes…again.”
• Desiring pats on the back or praise after serving in church or giving a sermon.
• Being angry that people don’t thank us or show appreciation. Are you annoyed when people don’t notice or comment on your efforts?
• Fishing for compliments – “So, what do think of the meal I made for you. It took two hours.” “How do you think this new outfit looks?”
• Doing or announcing our good works in front of people (like the Pharisees).
o I’m fasting so I can’t eat that.
o I visited the sick in the hospital.
• You have a hidden competition with others in ministry or other areas.
• For the teens and youth –
o Self-praise on the football field
o Compare yourselves positively to others (“He is not actually as a fast as me. Or, “Yeah, he scored more but that is because I was focused on getting assists.” Or “I scored more than him the previous week.”
• Hearts, comments, and likes on Instagram or other social media platforms.
Are you seeking God’s glory or your own?
4. Giving God the glory He deserves
If even Jesus, who deserved glory, lived for the Father’s glory, how much more should we?
God honors Himself, not men. We want a God-centric view of life where He is in the center and we live for Him, not for ourselves.
What does it look like to live a life that glorifies God?
It is not going around with a “woe is me” attitude.
You can live a very successful life that is focused on glorifying God.
It is good for Christians to perform well at the top of their fields. If you are a student, get excellent grades. If you are in research, be innovative and inventive. If you are a writer or artist, create awesome content. If you are an athlete, run to win.
But as you do all of these things, remember that God is the one who gave you the ability, talent, and ultimately the success. Have that clear understanding in your heart and then reflect it in the way you communicate with others.
Liddell’s humility and desire to honor God compared to Muhammad Ali’s pride
Here are some practical ways to give God the glory He deserves in every area of our lives.
• Deflecting/turning praise for us back to God.
o What are some common ways people praise you? How can you turn those compliments into a testimony? It goes deeper than just lip-service. It is a lifestyle and comes from the heart.
• In worship.
o Worship should be God-centric. We should sing about God’s faithfulness not ours.
• Taking note of God’s work in our lives and intentionally testifying about it.
II. Jesus Prays for His Disciples
A. Keep them
John 17:11 – Keep them in your name.
John 17:15-16 – I Do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.
Jesus’ heart is that the disciples will be kept safe in the hands of the Father. While Jesus was with them, He could guard and protect them. Soon He would be leaving. There would certainly be many temptations, persecutions, and trials. In the last passage, we learned that three of these include time (waiting), tears, and tribulations.
In the Lord’s model prayer, Jesus taught the disciples to pray to be delivered from the evil one. Here He prays it for them. When Jesus left earth and ascended to heaven, He didn’t abandon them. He left them in the hands of God.
John 10:28-30 – I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.”
Jesus entrusted the disciples (and us) to the capable hands of the Father. That should give us confidence just as it gave Paul.
2 Timothy 1:12 – But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that day what has been entrusted to me.
God can guard your soul and your salvation. Nothing can take you out of His hands. The evil one (the devil) has no power over you.
Recently, some of us traveled to Cambodia. We visited Siem Reap, which is like a high seat of Buddhism. We heard many accounts of how dark the spiritual oppression is there. Our driver who picked us up at the airport told us his testimony. He met a pastor and somehow the pastor asked him to translate for him while he shared the gospel with another group of people. The pastor was telling of Jesus’ resurrection after his death on the cross, and the translator stopped translating and asked him, “Are you sure?” The pastor told him to continue translating and he would explain more later. So he did. Eventually this man became a believer. He told us how his wife faced decades of spiritual oppression. She often heard demonic voices. These voices badgered and oppressed her. Every year at a festival the demons would give her headaches and push her toward idolatrous practices to appease them so that they would leave her alone. After her husband came to Christ, she also placed her faith in Jesus. After she did, the voices stopped. They never bothered her again. The headaches ended. She was free.
Jesus’ prayer was fulfilled in her life. The Father kept her from the evil one. The evil one had no more power over her. She was washed by the blood of lamb. She was sealed by the power of the Holy Spirit. She was adopted into God’s family. She was under God’s protection. The enemy could do nothing!
Jesus prays the same for you. He prays that the Father will keep you from the evil one. If you are in Christ, Satan has no power over your life. Some of you are from cultures where it is common for witch doctors to pronounce curses. In some of these cultures, your enemies may go and hire these witches to pronounce curses against you.
Let me tell you something. You don’t need to fear these things. If you have placed your faith in Jesus, you have a high priest who cares for you. Jesus Himself prayed for you. He entrusted your care to the hands of the Father. God is more than capable to keep you from the evil one.
Romans 8:38-39 – For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
B. In the world, but not of the world
John 17:14-16 – I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.
Jesus’ followers can go to two extremes. Neither of them is what He intended.
1. The way of the Monk – Some believers become isolationists. They rightly see that the world is evil. In response, they seek to separate themselves from it. They move off grid and totally detach themselves. Historically, many monks have done that. Today some well-meaning Christians do the same thing.
There are many problems with this. The most obvious is that if we isolate ourselves, we will be unable to reach anybody for Christ. They are complaining about the evil in the world, but doing nothing about it! Another problem is lack of fellowship. When we isolate ourselves, it is easy to go astray.
Jesus ate with tax-collectors and sinners. He interacted with the world so that He could reach the world.
2. The way of Compromise – The other wrong way to interact with the world is to compromise with the world. Those who attempt to compromise with the world in order to “win” them will find there is nothing of substance left to “win” them to. Salt that loses its flavor cannot become salty again.
Others simply don’t have a strong desire to be holy. They make unholy alliances and compromise with the world by dating and marrying unbelievers, listening to the music of the world, doing business like the world, cheating in school like everybody else, etc.
Being in the world, but not of the world is a fine line. If we are not careful, we can also use this as an excuse to do what we want. In verse 16 Jesus said that the disciples are not of the world as He is not. So before we do something we should ask “What would Jesus do?”
C. Unify them
John 17:11 – That they may be one, even as we are one.
It is clear that Jesus wants His people to be unified. We have one Lord, one faith, and one hope. We are one body. But many times we are not unified in practice.
Do we speak negatively of other believers? Do we compete with them for recognition? Do we gossip? Do we complain?
We are to be one with one another. Not one with devices. Not going out to eat and each person watching his own little screen. Maybe they don’t have many conflicts, but that is not unity.
We should be able to love other believers even if we disagree with them on some points. We should not consider we are better just because we think our interpretation of the Bible is the right one. We should not listen to a sermon or attend a church service to find things we disagree with.
How can we be unified if we look down at others?
A few times I have received text messages in the middle of a service with a live stream complain. My advice would be, “Put down your phone. Don’t be distracted. Prayerfully and humbly pay attention and consider what God might want to teach you.” Surely, you can learn at least one thing. Even if the sermon is giving by a ten-year old, you could learn something. God’s Word doesn’t return void.
Ephesians 4:2-3 – With all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
We are to be diligent to maintain the unity. If you don’t maintain a car, it will be break down. The same is true with relationships.
Unity requires humility, gentleness, and patience. Your husband or wife is not there yet. Your brothers and sisters in Christ are not there yet. GICF is not there yet. But don’t tear them down. Don’t jump on them when they make a mistake.
Instead, seek to support them and help them grow. When they fall, don’t say, “Ha, you weakling!” Come alongside them and help pick them up.
Jesus did not say that His followers are to be known by their doctrine. He said, we are known by our love.
That does not mean that we cast doctrine aside. We should diligently study God’s Word to form strong convictions. But we should humbly listen to others and disagree with respect. We can still fellowship and work together as long as we agree on the essentials of the gospel. There are things worth dividing for. But many of the things Christians divide over are not. Sadly, division in the church is something that often repulses people from Christ.
Unity isn’t my idea; it is Christ’s! Jesus knew there would be all kinds of disagreements and different doctrines, yet He still asked the Father to make us unified!! Let us practice humility in this area.
Application – Are there any believers you are not experiencing unity with? Perhaps you have had a conflict or are cold and distant. Remember Jesus’ prayer. He prayed for you to be one with other believers even as He is one with the Father. This is not just a dream. It is possible. But it requires a willingness on your part to forgive and to ask forgiveness. Resolve to go to that person and seek reconciliation today.
D. Sanctify them
John 17:17 – Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.
We are reminded that Jesus wants us to grow. He does not intend for us to remain as baby Christians. Growth will not be a straight line, but there should be an upward trajectory. Last week, we learned that there might be times of waiting, tears, and tribulations. We can be comforted that in all of these, He is seeking our growth. God cares more about our character than our comfort.
Conclusion
We have learned that even as Jesus lived to glorify the Father, so we should live for God’s glory. That is why He made us.
A lot of people rebel against that idea. They live for their own glory. They seek their own pleasure. In their minds, the chief end of man is to glorify oneself and enjoy his own life forever. One reason is that they don’t understand what kind of a master God is.
God is not harsh. He is not mean or capricious. He is a good and kind Master. We see in John 17 that Jesus has a heart filled with love and compassion for us.
Hosea 11:4 – I led them with cords of kindness, with the bands of love, and I became to them as one who eases the yoke on their jaws, and I bent down to them and fed them.
Our Lord cares for us. He is a kind and gentle Master. He gave His life for us. He gave His last night on earth to pray and teach His disciples. I can happily live to honor and credit someone like that. What about you? Will you live to exalt your own name or to exalt His?
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