The Model Prayer in John 17

In Matthew 6:9-13, Jesus gave His disciples the Model Prayer, which provides at least 6 “agenda topics” that God wants us to address with Him when we pray (see message here). But Jesus didn’t just commend a model to us; He lived it out. When He prayed His great High Priestly prayer in John 17, just before He went to the cross, we find at least several elements of the Model Prayer in it: Continue reading

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The World Does Not Know Him

“O righteous Father, although the world has not known You, yet I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me.” (John 17:25)

Jesus makes it clear in this verse that those who are not His disciples in the world do NOT know God the Father, the One to whom He is praying here. He clearly says: “The world has not known You.” Continue reading

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The Eternal Love of Heaven

“Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.” (John 17:24)

In John 17:24 Jesus reveals His eternal purpose for His people: to be with Him, and to see His glory, which will satisfy them forever. (See devotion here) But at the same time, Jesus reveals some important things about Himself: Continue reading

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His Eternal Plan For You

“Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may behold My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.” (John 17:24)

The plans the Lord has for our lives here on earth varies from person to person. But all of us who follow Him as Lord & Savior find His plan for our eternity here in John 17:24: Continue reading

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“The Importance of Forgiving Others” (Matthew 6:14-15 sermon)

Several years ago a pastor went on a trip to England, where a Catholic priest told him and his wife a story about Lady Spencer, the mother of Princess Diana (who had been killed in a tragic car accident on Labor Day weekend 1997). Lady Spencer had battled a lot of demons in her life, including alcoholism. A couple of years before Diana’s death, Lady Spencer came to know Christ as her Savior, and she really began to grow in the Lord. Her pastor asked her to occasionally participate in services, by reading the scripture and the prayer for the day. But one Sunday she noticed that the prayer for the day was focused on praying for the Royal Family. (Some of you may know that after Diana’s death there was a lot of animosity between Diana’s family and the Royal Family.) So this was a real test for her. But she did read it, and she prayed for those whom many would consider to be her enemies. As she prayed, she wept — and she knew she had forgiven them, which was a huge milestone in her life.

Forgiving others who have hurt us is always an important spiritual issue. Some people never get past it, and it ends up crippling their spiritual life. That’s why Jesus took time aside here in the Sermon on the Mount to address “The Importance of Forgiving Others.” Continue reading

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Jesus’ Prayer Request: Unity In His People

One of the outstanding characteristics of the High Priestly Prayer of Jesus in John 17 is the repetition of His prayers for the unity of His people.  At least FOUR TIMES in His intercession He asks the Father to make His people unified, as ONE: Continue reading

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The Intercessor-Guardian

“I am no longer in the world, and yet they themselves are in the world, and I come to You. Holy Father, keep them in Your name, the name which You have given Me, that they may be one even as We are.
While I was with them, I was keeping them in Your name which You have given Me; and I guarded them, and not one of them perished but the son of perdition, so that the scripture would be fulfilled.” (John 17:11-12)

Here we see something of the intercessory ministry of Jesus on behalf of the disciples whom He loved, which serves as a great example for our intercessions for our own loved ones: Continue reading

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A Fellowship of Riches

“And all things that are Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine; and I have been glorified in them.” (John 17:10)

Jesus could say to His Heavenly Father that everything He had was the Father’s, and likewise, everything that was the Father’s, was His. This is a prayer we should each aspire to realize, for there is an amazing fellowship of riches available to us if we will: Continue reading

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Using Jesus’ Model Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13 sermon)

Hudson Taylor was the missionary to China who founded the Inland China Mission which touched multitudes of Chinese with the gospel. When Taylor was home in England, a young man who was interested in the ministry decided to go and see him at a meeting at his headquarters. He wrote:

“His appearance did not impress me. He was slightly built, and spoke in a quiet voice. Like most young men, I suppose I associated power with noise, and looked for physical presence in a leader. But when he said, ‘let us pray,’ and proceeded to lead the meeting in prayer, my ideas underwent a change. I had never heard anyone pray like that. There was a simplicity, a tenderness, a boldness, a power that hushed and subdued me, and made it clear that God had admitted him to the inner circle of His friendship.”

I think it must have been that way to hear Jesus pray too. Isaiah says He had no outward appearance that we should be attracted to Him — and yet there was such power evident in His prayers, that His disciples came to Him and said: “Lord, teach us to pray.” They didn’t ask Him: “Teach us to preach”; or “teach us to heal”; but “teach us to pray.” They knew that prayer was the source of His spiritual power. And it is for us too. Prayer is THE highest activity of the human soul (MLJ) and we will never be all that we should until we learn to pray.

And that is why Jesus took time here in Matthew 6 to teach His disciples — including US! — how to pray. Two weeks ago we looked at some “Keys To Effective Praying” that Jesus gave us in this text, and now today we are going to study the Model Prayer He gave us in :9-13. This Prayer is very well known; perhaps about as much as any scripture in the Bible — and yet many who “know about it” don’t really understand what this amazing prayer is. Continue reading

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Passing On The Word

“For the words which You gave Me I have given to them; and they received them and truly understood that I came forth from You, and they believed that You sent Me.” (John 17:8)

In His High Priestly prayer here in John 17, Jesus reviews with His Heavenly Father the ministry He had with His disciples, as a prelude to interceding for their future. In this “prelude” He recalls one of the most important aspects of His ministry to His disciples — which should be one of own priority ministries as well. Continue reading

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