Daily Devotions
John
John 17 : 1 - 26 "THE POINT OF PRAYING"
Day 264 – John 17
THE POINT OF PRAYING
Jesus prayed for His Disciples as only He knew how to pray. Let’s review some of the things that He asked for on their behalf:-
1. He prayed that they might be specially kept by the Father. (John 17:11)
2. He was deeply concerned about their being “One” with each other.
(John 17:11)
3. He also prayed that they might have His joy in their hearts.
(John 17:13)
4. He prayed for special protection from the Devil. (John 17:15)
These were valid concerns indeed! They were things that only the Father could give to them. They were not things that the Disciples could do for themselves. This is the whole point of prayer! Jesus wasn’t just presenting a shopping list to His Father. He knew the significance of the things that He asked for from His Father! They were vital to both life and ministry. They were also things that the Disciples could not produce with mere human effort! How we must thank God for Jesus, our great High Priest! What deep insights in prayer!
ONE MORE CONCERN
Jesus prayed because His heart was moved with concern and compassion for His Disciples. He also prayed with a mind that was filled with knowledge and wisdom. He knew that the Disciples needed yet another thing.
“Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.”
John 17:17
All who served the Lord from the most ancient of times knew that they were to be “sanctified” or “set apart” for holy service. The books of Exodus and Leviticus describe the elaborate way in which the Aaronic priests were set apart or sanctified to serve God as priests of God.
1. There was the ceremonial aspect.
This included special clothing for the High Priest and the priests.
2. There was the spiritual aspect.
However, even this involved the ceremonial aspect.
The whole point of the exercise was to set the priests apart from the children of Israel so that they might serve God in the Tabernacle worship. Let us look at some of the more significant passages that would help us understand their consecration.
“Now take Aaron your brother, and his sons with him,
from among the children of Israel, that he may minister
to Me as priest, Aaron and Aaron’s sons:
Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.
And you shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother,
for glory and for beauty.”
Exodus 28:1-2
The Lord went on to speak to Moses about the need to consecrate them as priests.
“So you shall put them on Aaron your brother
and on his sons with him. You shall anoint them,
consecrate them, and sanctify them,
that they may minister to Me as priests.”
Exodus 28:41
God went on to speak of how He would consecrate the priests. He said,
“And there I will meet with the children of Israel,
and the tabernacle shall be sanctified by My glory.
So I will consecrate the tabernacle of meeting
and the altar. I will also consecrate both Aaron and
his sons to minister to Me as priests.”
Exodus 29:43-44
Sanctification was in God’s mind for all His special ministers- the priests! Sanctification was also in Jesus’ mind as He prayed for His Disciples!
SANCTIFIED BY THE TRUTH
There was nothing wrong with the ceremonial aspect of consecrating the Aaronic priesthood. It was God Himself who gave Moses the elaborate plan to consecrate them as His priests.
Jesus focused on the concept of consecration rather than the ceremonial aspect of sanctification. The ceremonial aspect could be set aside, and the conceptual part of it would still be valid and relevant.
When God set apart the Aaronic priesthood through consecration, He honoured them. He pledged Himself to bless them and assist them in their work. The concept of sanctification included all these things and more.
Jesus now asked His Father to bless His Disciples in a similar way. He prayed that they might be consecrated or sanctified. He asked that God would sanctify them with His Truth. He was making a direct reference to the Word of God!
What was Jesus asking for specifically? He was praying that His Disciples be clothed with the truth of God’s Word. He was praying that Truth would be the courts in which His Disciples would walk. He was praying that the Father would give to His Disciples His way of truth, and thus they would be specially blessed indeed. They would be covered by truth. The Word of truth would characterize their life and ministry. They would become holy through being in contact with the Word of truth.
AN ANSWERED PRAYER
Was this prayer answered? Much in everyway! The Sanhedrin Council of Jerusalem was amazed at the way in which the Disciples proclaimed their faith. They realized that they had been with Jesus, and Truth had now set them apart most distinctly (Acts 4:1-13).