TEXT: John 17:1-4:
1 These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee:
2 As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him.
3 And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.
4 I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do.
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Today, I am continuing the daily Just Jesus Evangelistic Campaign sermon series, which is aimed at sharing the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ with unbelievers and reminding Christians, in this important election year, to keep the main thing the main thing — and that is reaching unbelievers with the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ and praying for their salvation, for the problem in America is not only disobedient presidents, politicians, and people, but disobedient pastors, preachers, and parishioners who have refused to obey the Lord’s Great Commission which is to, “Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.” and who have refused to obey God’s repeated commands to “pray without ceasing” for unbelievers, believers, and political leaders. Yes, you should pray for the right candidate to win; yes, you should vote for the candidate that the Lord gives you peace about voting for. But, don’t get caught up in it like the world does. Nothing much is going to change until people get saved and get their hearts right with the Lord.
This campaign is inspired by the following three verses: 1 Corinthians 2:2 which says, “For I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.” Acts 5:42 which says, “And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ.” And 2 Timothy 2:4 which says, “No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.”
This series is not for Christians necessarily. However, I do hope you are one of those saints who still loves to hear the “Old, old story of Jesus and His love” — As another hymn says, “For those who know it best Seem hungering and thirsting to hear it like the rest.” This series is primarily for unbelievers, so they can hear and understand the Gospel and be saved from sin and the punishment of sin which is hell. This is message number 279.
Philip Melanchthon said, “There is no voice which has ever been heard, either in heaven or on earth, more exalted, more holy, more fruitful, more sublime, than the prayer offered up by the Son to God Himself.”
Over the past four chapters in the book of John, Jesus has exclusively addressed his disciples — first twelve, and then eleven after Judas Iscariot left them to carry out his demonic betrayal of the Son of God. Now, having said all that He intended to tell them at the time, Jesus launches into a lengthy prayer to His Heavenly Father. Much of Jesus’ speech to the disciples concerned their newfound relationship status with the Father. And this prayer from the Son to the Father demonstrates the closeness and intimacy that the disciples would be able to enjoy going forward.
The first thing we are told about this prayer is Jesus’ posture: “These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven.” We associate bowing our heads and closing our eyes with prayer; but in the Jewish religion, the custom of prayer is to turn the face to Heaven as if the eyes could see God. Some commentators have stated that this posture implies that, despite the gloomy circumstances surrounding Him at the moment, Jesus had hope and confidence in God’s plan. He was not downcast and saddened, something which He had just told His disciples they did not have to be either.
Here, Jesus does not make mention of the painful events that He knows are ahead for Himself and His disciples. He is praying entirely with the will of God in mind. He says, “Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee…” Addressing God as Father shows the closeness of their relationship and is an example we should follow as well. This relationship will bring comfort to us when our hour of decision, or trial, or conflict comes.
Jesus’ “hour” was His betrayal, trial, and crucifixion, which would begin that very night. He refers to it as “the hour”, indicating that it is something already set, something that He and the Father have already worked out. Several times before this Jesus had told people, “my hour is not yet come.” Here He has finally reached the point where “His hour has come” and God says, “Okay, it’s time to do what You came into the world to do.”
Jesus’ request is, “glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee.” Jesus knows that what happens next will be hard for Him. But He also knows that it will be useless if He does not follow through or if God is not pleased with His sacrifice. D.A. Carson said, “It will bring no glory to the Father if Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross is not acceptable, or if the Son is not restored to his rightful place in the presence of the Father’s unshielded glory. That would mean the divine mission had failed, the purposes of grace forever defeated.”
This prayer for glorification is Jesus’ request that He be sustained, strengthened, enabled, and empowered to complete the task at hand. Thus, His sacrifice will be pleasing to God, and in turn will bring glory to the Father. Today, people look on Jesus’ death, burial, resurrection, and ascension in awe at the divine plan that began back in the Garden of Eden, took hundreds of years to culminate and is still being carried out today. Jesus’ death brought glory to God, and in His prayer, we see that this was Jesus’ desire.
A lesson that the disciples saw in this prayer, and one that we should take heed to today, is that when we face tribulation in the world, we ought to consider not how we can get ourselves out of it, but how God can get glory out of it. We must remember that God might just have a plan to use our time of tribulation for greater good down the road.
Samuel Pearce wrote:
In the floods of tribulation,
While the billows over me roll,
Jesus whispers consolation,
And supports my fainting soul.
Floods of tribulation brighten,
Billows still around me roar;
Those that know not Christ ye frighten,
But my soul defies your power.
In the sacred page recorded;
Thus the word securely stands,
Fear not, I’m in trouble near thee,
Nought shall pluck thee from my hands.
If you do not know the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior, here is how you can place your faith and trust in Him today.
1. Accept the fact that you are a sinner, and that you have broken God’s law. The Bible says in Ecclesiastes 7:20: “For there is not a just man upon earth that doeth good, and sinneth not.” Romans 3:23 reads: “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”
2. Accept the fact that there is a penalty for sin. The Bible states in Romans 6:23: “For the wages of sin is death…”
3. Accept the fact that you are on the road to hell. Jesus Christ said in Matthew 10:28: “And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” The Bible says in Revelation 21:8: “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.”
4. Accept the fact that you cannot do anything to save yourself! The Bible states in Ephesians 2: 8, 9: “For by grace are ye saved through faith: and that not of yourselves: it is a gift of God. Not of works, lest any man should boast.”
5. Accept the fact that God loves you more than you love yourself, and that He wants to save you from hell. Jesus Christ said in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
6. With these facts in mind, please repent of your sins, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and pray and ask Him to come into your heart and save you this very moment. The Bible states in the book of Romans 10:9, 13: “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
Dear friend, if you are willing to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation, please pray with me this simple prayer: Heavenly Father, I realize that I am a sinner and that I have done some bad things in my life. For Jesus Christ sake, please forgive me of my sins. I now believe with all of my heart that Jesus Christ died for me, was buried, and rose again. Lord Jesus, please come into my heart and save my soul and change my life today. Amen.
If you believed in your heart that Jesus Christ died on the cross, was buried, and rose again, allow me to say, congratulations on doing the most important thing in life and that is accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour! For more information to help you grow in your newfound faith in Christ, go to Gospel Light Society.com and read “What To Do After You Enter Through the Door”. Jesus Christ said in John 10:9, “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.”
If you accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior today, please email me at dw3@gospellightsociety.com and let us know. There is some free material that we want to send you. If you have a prayer request, please e-mail that to us as well, and we will pray for you until you tell us to stop.
God loves you. We love you. And may God bless you.
The Gospel Light Minute X 