Rev. Steven S. Billings
Easter 7
Sermon
5-4-2008
John 17:1-11
1 These things Jesus spoke; and lifting up His eyes to heaven, He said, "Father, the hour has come; glorify Thy Son, that the Son may glorify Thee, 2 even as Thou gavest Him authority over all mankind, that to all whom Thou hast given Him, He may give eternal life. 3 "And this is eternal life, that they may know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent. 4 "I glorified Thee on the earth, having accomplished the work which Thou hast given Me to do. 5 "And now, glorify Thou Me together with Thyself, Father, with the glory which I had with Thee before the world was. 6 "I manifested Thy name to the men whom Thou gavest Me out of the world; Thine they were, and Thou gavest them to Me, and they have kept Thy word. 7 "Now they have come to know that everything Thou hast given Me is from Thee; 8 for the words which Thou gavest Me I have given to them; and they received them, and truly understood that I came forth from Thee, and they believed that Thou didst send Me. 9 "I ask on their behalf; I do not ask on behalf of the world, but of those whom Thou hast given Me; for they are Thine; 10 and all things that are Mine are Thine, and Thine are Mine; and I have been glorified in them. 11 "And I am no more in the world; and yet they themselves are in the world, and I come to Thee. Holy Father, keep them in Thy name, the name which Thou hast given Me, that they may be one, even as We are."
We have here a description of one of the most dramatic moments in Holy Scripture - the Lord's High Priestly Prayer.
Jesus had completed celebrating the Last Supper with His disciples, during which He had revealed who His betrayer was, and had instituted the Sacrament of the Altar, which His followers were to continue until the end of time. After this, He spoke His final words of instruction - warning and comforting the remaining apostles whom He was about to leave behind in this world.
Looking at the events following this prayer, we see the Garden of Gethsemane, the betrayal by Judas, the hearing before the high priest, the beatings of the soldiers, the trial before Pilate, and the crucifixion on Calvary with all its horrors. With all of that in mind, we see Jesus in our text lifting up His eyes to heaven to pray . . . for us.
Oh, dear friends in Christ, listen to me now and strive to grasp what this means: We have a High Priest who prays for us!
John writes in his first epistle: "If anybody sins, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense, namely Jesus Christ, the Righteous" (1 John 2:1). The Apostle Paul writes in his letter to the Romans: "Christ Jesus, who died - and more than that, who was raised to life - is at the right hand of God and is interceding for us" (8:34). Here in our text, my friends, we have a glimpse of what that looks like, what it sounds like. I can't begin to tell you what a thrill it is to think that Jesus is speaking similar words on our behalf right now!
Listen to what He says: "Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Son, that the Son may glorify You." He was about to suffer and die for the reconciliation of the world! And what s His concern? That His Father on heaven be glorified!
The truth is, in His suffering and death the Father would indeed be glorified. His very obedience to the Will of the Father - His coming here, taking on human flesh, living a perfect life in accordance with the Holy Law of God - these things in and of themselves glorified the Father! And now His further obedience in dying and rising again would certainly continue to bring glory to God.
Oh yes, Jesus has every right to say to His Father: "I have glorified You on the earth."
But isn't it interesting that He doesn't stop there. He goes on to say: "I have finished the work You gave Me to do."
Remember, He prayed this prayer on the night before His death. How can He say that He has completed the work?
Man, what a lesson for us! Jesus claims victory even before the battle has begun! He knows He will be the victor! He is confident He will win!
Paul, too, when he faced death at the guillotine because of Christ, proclaimed: "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race" (2 Timothy 4:7). He, too, was certain that the power of the risen Lord would sustain him and he would remain faithful to the end; victory would be his and the Father in heaven would be glorified.
What encouragement, dear Christian! You and I can be certain that because Jesus arose, victorious over death, we too will be victorious. We, too, can be as confident as He was that before the battle even begins, the victory is ours, and that through us Jesus is still - through us! - bringing glory to the Father!
Of course, the devil isn't content simply to sit by and watch the Father be glorified through us. So he distracts us; he confuses our priorities.
For instance, do we - with any kind of consistency - allow Christ to work through us, encouraging us, strengthening us, giving us the victory? Does the prevailing testimony of our lips and our lives show forth the praises of Him who has called us out of darkness into His marvelous light? Do we live - day-by-day - as children of Light?
The world is full of people who don't know the Father or Jesus Christ, whom He has sent. Isn't it God's Will that these countless millions hear about Him, believe in Him, love Him, and glorify Him? And shouldn't we be asking ourselves: "What contribution have I made in leading others to faith?" Do the people in my life know that I am a child of God? Listen, I know we can't all be pastors or missionaries or evangelists, sharing the message of Christ with strangers, but can't we do our best - with God's help - to live as a Christian, simply to be the Christian we are before the world in which we live?
Beloved, please don't hide the light that is within you; let it shine for all the world to see.
What Satan has tricked you into believing is that it takes a lot of effort to share your faith. The truth is it takes more energy to hide the light than it does to let it shine. We waste so much time trying to cover up our Christian faith. Why? So that we won't have to answer any questions? So that we won't be singled out and put on the spot? So that we won't be ridiculed or mistreated? Who cares? Let them say what they will. Let them think what they will. Let your light shine. Bring glory to God. Honestly, what do you really have to lose? Think of what you - and they - have to gain!
But, maybe you're a little like Moses, who said: "O Lord, I have never been eloquent . . . I am slow of speech and tongue" (Exodus 4:10). What Jesus tells His disciples reminds us of God's answer to Moses: "I will be with you."
Do you think God sends us out to testify about Him, to bring glory to Him by ourselves, under our own strength? Not a chance! He promises to be with us! He strengthens us. He leads and guides us.
Jesus says in our text: "I have revealed You to those whom You gave me out of the world. They were Yours; You gave them to me and they have obeyed Your Word. For I gave them the words You gave me and they accepted them." The disciples had learned to know the Father by the words of Jesus. He had given them everything they needed to believe in Him and to follow Him. And He gave them everything necessary to do the work He had called them to do.
Dear friends, they weren't any different from us. Their knowledge of God was still limited, their faith plagued by many weaknesses. They often forgot to apply Jesus' teaching to their own lives. Their flesh frequently led them off the path of relying completely on what they had learned from their Savior. But that didn't change the fact that they believed in Him, trusted in Him, believed that He had been sent to them from the Father. Where do you think that strength and determination of faith came from? It was a gift from the Lord - a gift you and I have been given as well. Oh, if only we would take advantage of it!
Thank God today, my brothers and sisters, that our great High Priest still prays for us! He even promises that He will never leave us nor forsake us. Why, He comes to us at this very hour in His Holy Word and Sacraments. Through these He reveals the Father to us, showing us the Father's love. By the Holy Spirit working through the means of grace we rest secure in the faith of our Savior, knowing that our destiny lies with Him in heaven.
Yes, there will be times when, like the disciples, we will be buffeted by weaknesses and doubts, but in spite of them all our High Priest has led us to know Him as the Son of God, and will continue to support and strengthen us. Let this be a comfort to us and let us be assured that He will continue to enable us to glorify Him as we believe His Holy Word and lead godly lives according to it. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen
