I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them

 

 "I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.  And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one:  I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.  Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.  

 

"O righteous Father!  The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me.  And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them."  

 

- John 17:20–26

 

On Thursday, we began reading the High Priestly Prayer; that is, Christ's final prayer at the Last Supper.  Yesterday we read that Jesus continued, "I pray for them.  I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given Me, for they are Yours.  And all Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine, and I am glorified in them.  Now I am no longer in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to You.  Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are.  While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Your name.  Those whom You gave Me I have kept; and none of them is lost except the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled.  But now I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves.  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 pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one.  They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.  Sanctify them by Your truth.  Your word is truth.  As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.  And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth."

 

  "I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.  And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one:  I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.  Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world."  Jesus prays for those who will believe.  My study Bible comments that the Church in every generation participates in the life and glory of the Trinity.  Christians enjoy two kinds of unity, it says:  first with God and also with one another -- the latter being rooted in the former.   See Christ's naming of the two greatest commandments in the Law (Matthew 22:36-40).  

 

 "O righteous Father!  The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me.  And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them."   My study Bible says that the ultimate goal of Christ's prayer, and even of life itself, is for the love of the Father to dwell in each person.  

 

 Let us note how Christ frames our unity.  Our unity is in love.  He says to the Father about His followers, "And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them."  Through faith in Christ's words and teachings, which come from the Father, we enter into God's love in the kind of unity that is one way to understand what it means to have eternal life.  For if the love with which the Father loves the Son is also in us, and Christ is also in us, then this means we may dwell with them.  Effectively, we are united in love.  John's Gospel is known as the Gospel of love, for it is St. John who teaches us so much about Christ's love and how it is inextricably linked to our faith.  For if the relationship between Father and Son is love to begin with, then for the Father and the Son (and the Spirit) to dwell within us, and we are to know that love, then love becomes all in all, and this is a kind of declaration in Jesus' prayer that ultimately, love is everything.  It is St. John also who will write in his Epistle that God is love.  "He who does not love does not know God, for God is love" (1 John 4:8).  So really, at its heart, our faith is all about love, and that is what one reads in His prayer.  It opens up a line of inquiry necessary for us to understand what we are about to wonder exactly, what is love?  For many people seem to define and live a variety of versions of love, or what people believe that love is.  There is the love that is covetous, that wants something, and wants it all to oneself. There is a kind of love that seeks to control, or wants others to be stamped in their image (say, a child, for example).  But throughout the Gospels, Jesus does not speak of love as taking or controlling.  Jesus speaks most often of actions that indicate expansiveness, giving.  He speaks of forgiveness (Matthew 18:35).  He speaks of giving up our lives to save our lives ("For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it" - Matthew 16:25; "He who loves his life will lose it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life" - John 12:25).  Jesus prepares His disciples for His Passion at the Last Supper by telling them, "Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends" (John 15:13).  All of these actions of love as given to us by Christ as actions of grace, actions that in some way emulate or express the love of God.  This love is generous, and cares for each one as is necessary for each one.  As the Good Shepherd, He calls us all by name; in Him we are known and we know Him (John 10:2-4).  Through His truth our Shepherd does not compel or enslave, but makes each one free who hears and follows ("If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed.  And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free" - John 8:31-32).  Moreover, in this love through which the Father, Son, and Spirit may dwell in us is a home with many rooms, many dwelling places, room for each one ("In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you" - John 14:2).  Let us consider carefully this understanding of Christ's indwelling, for the whole purpose seems to be to enfold us in love, so that we also become like God, and able to live and practice this love in our hearts also.  For this is a love we don't fully know, not a love like the world loves; this is a reconciliation of true peace for it is truly gracious ("Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid" - John 14:27).  Let us learn from Him, follow Him, remain true to His word and grow in His love as His disciples.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one

 

 "I pray for them.  I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given Me, for they are Yours.  And all Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine, and I am glorified in them.  Now I am no longer in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to You.  Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are.  While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Your name.  Those whom You gave Me I have kept; and none of them is lost except the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled.  But now I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves.  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 pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one.  They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.  Sanctify them by Your truth.  Your word is truth.  As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.  And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth."

 

- John 17:9–19 

 

Yesterday we began reading what is known as Christ's High Priestly Prayer, which He prayed at the termination of the Last Supper, just prior to going to His arrest.  He lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said:  "Father, the hour has come.  Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him.  And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.  I have glorified You on the earth.  I have finished the work which You have given Me to do.  And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.  I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world.  They were Yours, You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word.  Now they have known that all things which You have given Me are from You.  For I have given to them the words which You have given Me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came forth from You; and they have believed that You sent Me."

 

 "I pray for them.  I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given Me, for they are Yours.  And all Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine, and I am glorified in them."  My study Bible points out that Christ first prayed for Himself (verses 1-5), and second for them, the apostles (verses 6-19).   Only then He begins to pray for those whom You have given Me -- that is, all those who will come to believe in Him (verses 20-26).  Here the world is the way that He references the portion of humanity in rebellion against God; that is, in the words of my study Bible, those who prefer darkness to His light (John 3:19).  

 

 "Now I am no longer in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to You.  Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are. "  My study Bible notes that Holy Father is echoed in the eucharistic prayer of Didache 10:2, which reads, "We give you thanks, Holy Father, for Your holy name which You have made to dwell in our hearts."   The Didache is the earliest known Christian teaching document, said to be the teaching of the apostles.  

 

"While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Your name.  Those whom You gave Me I have kept; and none of them is lost except the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled.  But now I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves."  The son of perdition (perdition meaning "destruction") is Judas Iscariot (John 6:70-71).  Old Testament prophecy also alludes to Judas (Psalm 41:9, 109:2-13; Zechariah 11:12-13), and Judas become a type for all who will fall away in the last days.  See 2 Thessalonians 2:3, in which "son of perdition" refers to the Antichrist.

 

 "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 pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one.  They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world."  My study Bible notes that, inasmuch as Christ is from heaven, so those who are joined to Him become like Him.  So, therefore, all believers attract the world's hatred.  The Letter to Diognetus (6:3), written in the second century, states, "Christians dwell in the world but do not belong to the world."  My study Bible comments that, reborn in Christ, Christians have their citizenship in the Kingdom of God (John 3:1-5), but their vocation is in the world, where they are protected by God against the evil one.  

 

 "Sanctify them by Your truth.  Your word is truth.  As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.  And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth."  To sanctify is to consecrate, to make holy.  It also means to make separate and set apart from the world, and bring into the sphere of the sacred for God's use.  My study Bible quotes St. John Chrysostom's interpretation of Christ's words here:  "Make them holy through the gift of the Spirit and by correct doctrine."

 

Jesus prays to the Father regarding His apostles, "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 pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one.  They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world."   Perhaps a century later, in the Letter to Diognetus (cited by my study Bible; see above), a faithful Christian explains to a pagan of the time, "In a word, what the soul is in a body, this the Christians are in the world. The soul is spread through all the members of the body, and Christians through the diverse cities of the world. The soul hath its abode in the body, and yet it is not of the body. So Christians have their abode in the world, and yet they are not of the world.  The soul which is invisible is guarded in the body which is visible: so Christians are recognized as being in the world, and yet their religion remains invisible."  We Christians remain in this "body" as explained by the letter-writer, whom we now do not know.  But it is St. Paul who writes of the great communion of the saints, which helps us to further understand this "body" that truly makes up the Church.  In chapter 11 of the Letter to the Hebrews, St. Paul cites faithful believers from the Old Testament.  He enters this subject with these words that speak of things visible and invisible, "By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible" (Hebrews 11:3), and the rest of the chapter names many examples of the faithful.  In chapter 12 he concludes, "Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God" (Hebrews 12:1-2).  St. Paul's "great cloud of witnesses" remains the body of the Church, as referenced by the writer of the letter to Diognetus.  So we still form this body in the world, but not of it.  This is the body of those who continue in faith to the word given to Christ, and passed on to us through the apostles and their successors.  But how many of us today understand this "invisible" nature of the body of Christ, even as we remain very much in the world through the design of our Lord, as He indicates in His prayer?  Do we still have our important sense of being in the world, but not of it?  That we are a part of an invisible Kingdom, which doesn't work in the same ways the world does?  This understanding, so essential to Christ as evident in His prayer, and to the early Church in accordance with the history and documents we know, remains something intrinsic to our faith.  For we must remember Christ's words in prayer to the Father, He does not ask that His faithful followers be taken out of the world, but that God the Father keep them from the evil one.  Do we still have a sense of our difference from "the world?"  Do we understand our need to be kept "from the evil one?"  Let us ponder Christ's words, for these remain an essential part of who we are and what we step into when we enter into His faith, and seek to grow in His kingdom.  This perspective doesn't limit us, but it is the light by which we see and find our way in the world, His way.

Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him

 

 Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said:  "Father, the hour has come.  Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him.  And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.  I have glorified You on the earth.  I have finished the work which You have given Me to do.  And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was. 

 

 "I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world.  They were Yours, You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word.  Now they have known that all things which You have given Me are from You.  For I have given to them the words which You have given Me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came forth from You; and they have believed that You sent Me."

 

- John 17:1–8 

 

Yesterday we read that Jesus spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others:  "Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.  The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, 'God, I thank You that I am not like other men -- extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector.  I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.'  And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me a sinner!'  I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."   

 

  Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said:  "Father, the hour has come.  Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him."  Jesus' prayer (verses 1-26) is often called the High Priestly Prayer.  This is because it contains the basic elements of prayer a priest will offer to God when a sacrifice is about to be made:  glorification (verses 3-5, 25), remembrance of God's works (verses 2, 6-8, 22-23), intercession on behalf of others (verses 9, 11, 15, 20, 21, 24), and a declaration of the offering itself (John 17:1, 5).  My study Bible explains that His words, the hour has come, signifies that Christ is Lord over time.  A hymn declares that Christ "voluntarily willed to ascend the Cross in the flesh."  To glorify refers to the redemption of all creation which will be accomplished through the Cross and Resurrection.  This, my study Bible says, was the purpose for which Christ was sent into the world.  In this redemption, the Father and the Son are glorified.  This is why the Cross, which is a sign of death, is glorified in the Church as "life-giving" and the "weapon of peace."

 

 "And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent."  My study Bible comments that the knowledge of the only true God is far more than intellectual understanding.  It is participation in God's divine life and in communion with Him.  So, therefore, eternal life is an ongoing, loving knowledge of God in Christ and in the Holy Spirit.  

 

"I have glorified You on the earth.  I have finished the work which You have given Me to do.  And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was."  My study Bible notes that Christ's work can never be separated from who He is.   This verse is a statement every believer can make at the end of life, no matter how long or short that life may be.  

 

  "I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world.  They were Yours, You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word.  Now they have known that all things which You have given Me are from You.  For I have given to them the words which You have given Me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came forth from You; and they have believed that You sent Me."  The men whom You have given Me are Christ's apostles.  According to my study Bible, they are the ones through whom God's word comes to us.  This handing down of God's word to successive generations is called apostolic tradition.  It was prophesied by Isaiah that in the days of the Messiah, the knowledge of the Name of God would be revealed (Isaiah 52:6).  Your name:  In Old Testament times, the phrase "the Name" was reverently used as a substitute for God's actual name, "Yahweh," which was too sacred to pronounce.  The fuller revelation of the Name, my study Bible explains, was given to those who believe in Christ, for Christ manifested the Name not only by declaring the Father, but by being the very presence of God and sharing the Name with Him.  

 

Jesus begins His prayer this way:  "Father, the hour has come.  Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him."  It seems quite remarkable that we should be given to understand -- through the words of this prayer, heard by the apostles, and passed on for our knowledge -- that God and God's Son are glorified by giving eternal life to all those whom the Father has given to the Son.  In other words, Christ's prayer reveals that God the Father and God the Son -- neither in need of further glory -- are glorified through giving to us the gift of eternal life.  Following in this sense, it would seem to indicate that glory for God is magnified through graciousness, through the granting of this unsurpassable gift of eternal life for God's creatures.  Those who are given to Christ are those who come in faith.  That is, those like St. Peter, who upon His confession that Jesus is the Christ, was told by Jesus, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven"  (see Matthew 16:16-18).  It seems to indicate that the grand plan of salvation is, in fact, the grand plan of creation in the first place.  For we fallible creatures are capable of becoming perfected through faith and by the grace of God.  If God's glory is indeed magnified and made manifest through the granting of such a gift of eternal life to we who were created as finite and imperfect, then we live in a world that is a creation of the one true God who above all is gracious and loving.  This is a God who makes all things possible, for whom the gift of eternal life is a goal for His finite creatures and seemingly has been all along.  To be gracious, and magnanimous, to give impossibly expansive and ineffable gifts such as the life we're offered is what it means for our glorious God to be further glorified.  Does it not follow that, if for God Himself it is glory to extend what is infinite to the finite, then for we finite creatures to emulate glory is simply to be gracious?  We become glorious not by collecting but by giving, if we are to be "like" our God.  The very concept of what it is to be gracious becomes, through Christ, a transfiguring understanding extended to kings and nobles of what it means to have glory.  Let us extend our own capacity for grace through the gifts of the infinite God for His finite creatures.  For God's purposes have a meaning and a fullness to attain, and that glory is apparently attained in us.

 

 

 

 

And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them

 

 Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said:  "Father, the hour has come.  Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him.  And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.  I have glorified You on the earth.  I have finished the work which You have given Me to do.  And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.  

"I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world.  They were Yours, You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word.  Now they have known that all things which You have given Me are from You.  For I have given to them the words which You have given Me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came forth from You; and they have believed that You sent Me.  

 

"I pray for them.  I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given Me, for they are Yours.  And all Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine, and I am glorified in them.  Now I am no longer in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to You.  Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are.

 

"While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Your name.  Those whom You gave Me I have kept; and none of them is lost except the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled.  But now I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves.  

 

"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 pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one.  They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.  Sanctify them by Your truth.  Your word is truth.  As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.  And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth.  

"I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.  And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one:  I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.  Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.  O righteous Father!  The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me.  And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them."

 

- John 17:1–11 (12–26) 

 

In yesterday's reading, we read that Jesus said (as He taught in the temple in Jerusalem, following His Triumphal Entry), "Now My soul is troubled, and what shall I say?  'Father, save Me from this hour'?  But for this purpose I came to this hour.  Father, glorify Your name."  Then a voice came from heaven, saying, "I have both glorified it and will glorify it again."  Therefore the people who stood by and heard it said that it had thundered.  Others said, "An angel has spoken to Him."  Jesus answered and said, "This voice did not come because of Me, but for your sake.  Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out.  And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself."  This He said, signifying by what death He would die. The people answered Him, "We have heard from the law that the Christ remains forever; and how can You say, 'The Son of Man must be lifted up'?  Who is this Son of Man?"  Then Jesus said to them, "A little while longer the light is with you. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you; he who walks in darkness does not know where he is going.  While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light."  These things Jesus spoke, and departed, and was hidden from them.

 

 Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said:  "Father, the hour has come.  Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him."  Chapter 17 of John's Gospel consists of what is frequently called the High Priestly Prayer.  My study Bible explains that this is because it contains the basic elements of prayer a priest offers to God when a sacrifice is about to be made.  These elements include glorification (John 17:3-5, 25), remembrance of God's works (John 17:2, 6-8, 22-23), intercession on behalf of others (John 17: 9, 11, 15, 20-21, 24), and a declaration of the offering itself (John 17:1, 5).  The hour has come, my study Bible tells us, signifies that Christ is Lord over time.   He chose the proper time in accordance with the will of the Father.  Glorify refers to the redemption of all creation that will be accomplished through the Cross and Resurrection, the purpose for which Christ was sent into the world.  In this redemption, my study Bible continues, the Father and the Son are glorified.  It's for this reason that the Cross, which is a sign of death, is glorified in the Church as "life-giving" and the "weapon of peace."

 

"And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.  I have glorified You on the earth.  I have finished the work which You have given Me to do.  And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was."  My study Bible comments that the knowledge of the only true God is far more than intellectual understanding.  It is participation in Christ's divine life and in communion with Him.  So, therefore, eternal life is an ongoing, loving knowledge of God in Christ and the Holy Spirit.  It's important to note that Christ's work can never be separated from who He is.  My study Bible says that particular verse is a statement that each believer can make at the end of life -- no matter how long or short one's life may be.

 

 "I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world.  They were Yours, You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word.  Now they have known that all things which You have given Me are from You.  For I have given to them the words which You have given Me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came forth from You; and they have believed that You sent Me."  Jesus speaks of the apostles ("the men whom You have given Me").  They are the ones through whom God's word comes to us, my study Bible says.  This handing down of God's word to successive generations is called apostolic tradition.  My study Bible explains that Isaiah prophesied that in the days of the Messiah, the knowledge of the Name of God would be revealed (Isaiah 52:6).  Christ speaks to the Father of Your name.  My study Bible notes that in the Old Testament times, the phrase "the Name" was reverently used as a substitute for God's actual Name "Yahweh," which was too sacred to pronounce.  The fuller revelation of the Name was given to those who believe in Christ, as Christ manifested the Name not only by declaring the Father, but by being the very presence of God and sharing the Name with Him (John 14:9). 

 

"I pray for them.  I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given Me, for they are Yours.  And all Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine, and I am glorified in them.  Now I am no longer in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to You. Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are."  We note in the structure of this prayer, Jesus first prayed for Himself, and next for them, the apostles.  Only after that He prays for those whom You have given Me.  My study Bible explains that these are all those who would come to believe in Him (John 17:20-26).  When Christ speaks of being in the world, "the world" is the portion of humanity in rebellion against God, those who prefer darkness to God's light (John 1:4-5; 3:19-21).  Holy Father, my study Bible points out, is echoed in the eucharistic prayer of Didache 10:2 (from the earliest teaching document known in the Church):  "We give you thanks, Holy Father, for Your holy name which You have made to dwell in our hearts.

 

 "While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Your name.  Those whom You gave Me I have kept; and none of them is lost except the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled.  But now I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves."  My study Bible explains that the son of perdition (or "destruction") is Judas Iscariot (John 6:70-71).  Old Testament prophecy alludes to Judas (Psalm 41:9, 109:2-13; Zechariah 11:12-13), and Judas becomes a type for all who will fall away in the last days (see 2 Thessalonians 2:3), where "son of perdition" is a reference to the Antichrist).  

"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 pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one.  They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world."  As Christ is from heaven, so those who are joined to Him become like Christ.  So, therefore, all believers attract the world's hatred.  My study Bible refers to the second-century Letter to Diognetus (6:3) states, "Christians dwell in the world but do not belong to the world."   If we are reborn in Christ, then Christians have their citizenship in the Kingdom of God (John 3:1-5), yet our vocation is in the world, where we are protected by God against the evil one.

 

"Sanctify them by Your truth.  Your word is truth.  As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.  And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth."  To sanctify, according to my study Bible, is to consecrate, make holy, separate, set apart from the world, and bring into the sphere of the sacred for God's use.  It quotes from St. John Chrysostom's interpretation of this verse:  "Make them holy through the gift of the Spirit and by correct doctrine."

 

 "I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.  And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one:  I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.  Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.  O righteous Father!  The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me.  And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them."   Jesus speaks of those who will believe.  My study Bible remarks that the Church in every generation participates in the life and glory of the Trinity.  Christians, it says, enjoy two kinds of unity:  with God and with one another, where the latter is rooted in the former.  The ultimate goal of Christ's prayer, and even of life itself, my study Bible notes, is for the love of the Father to dwell in each person.  

Jesus says, "I have finished the work which You have given Me to do."  As my study Bible pointed out, we each who follow Christ also have our own work to do.  In John's 6th chapter, the people ask Jesus, "What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?"  He tells them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent" (John 6:27-29).  Living out our faith is our work in the world, becomes our life's work in Jesus' perspective.  Just as He lived and worked by seeking the Father's will and doing it, so our own model for the work of our lives is Christ, and we are to fashion ourselves on Him.  It is faith which defines, drives, carves out (so to speak) our work for us in life -- and indeed, this is our life.  With deepening faith, it becomes our life.  Like Jesus, when the work that God gives us to do through our faith is finished, our lives have come to an end as well -- and this is the place where Jesus has come in His life and His ministry.  God has but one "work" left for Him to do, and that is coming before Him as the Cross.  In John's 17th chapter, Jesus prays one last time before He will go to the Garden of Gethsemane to be taken prisoner, and made to be on His way to trial and execution.  In the structure of the Gospel, He has just finished His farewell discourse to the disciples at the Last Supper (these will be part of our lectionary readings after Easter).  This concept of work that Jesus presents here is very important to us, and essential that we understand.  For in this prayer that He prays for Himself, and then for the disciples, and then for all the faithful who will follow, He also prays for our "work" that follows Him, and in His footsteps and teachings He gave to the disciples.  Jesus prays to the Father, "But now I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves."  He asks that all believers be kept in the Father's name, and in Christ's name.  In the sense in which Jesus uses the word "name" here, He's indicating God's presence and God's person.  It is linked closely with God's glory, for both name and glory speak of the presence of an authority similar to a king or official.  These include renown and reputation, but also the fullness of power of the person and the person's office and authority.  It is all of this in which Christ prays that we, His followers and faithful, be kept even as we are in this world.  Perhaps the most profound words of Christ come at the end of this prayer, in which He indicates that to be kept in God's name not only entails the fulfillment of our joy and work in life, but of a participation in God's glory, and most of all in God's love.  He prays that we may come to know God's love as He has, and that we remain in that love even as we live our lives.  It is in God's love that we count on the protection from the evil one.  Our sanctification, to be set apart for the work God gives us to do, is the truth that Christ has given us, that the Spirit of truth will be sent to give us so that we might recall and know the things He has taught and which He gives us (John 14:17; 15:26; 16:13).  But He concludes with the great fullness of God for us, God's love, for this is the deepest and surest protection that we are kept in God's name.  Jesus' conclusion is the great testimony that love and its profound importance for us as we walk in our lives in this world, for every "work" we may do, is linked to God's love: "O righteous Father!  The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me.  And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them."

 

 

 

And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them

 

 "I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.  And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one:  I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.  Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.  O righteous Father!  The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me.  And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them."

 

- John 17:20–26 

 

In our current reading, the lectionary is giving us what is known as Christ's High Priestly Prayer.   The setting is the Last Supper, just after Christ's Farewell Discourse to the disciples (John 14 - 16), and just prior to His arrest.  The first part of this prayer is found in Thursday's reading.  Yesterday we read the second part, and today we're given the third and final part of the prayer.  In yesterday's reading, we read that Jesus prayed, "I pray for them.  I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given Me, for they are Yours.  And all Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine, and I am glorified in them.  Now I am no longer in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to You.  Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are.  While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Your name.  Those whom You gave Me I have kept; and none of them is lost except the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled.  But now I come to You and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves.  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 pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one.  They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.  Sanctify them by Your truth.  Your word is truth.  As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.  And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth."

 

  "I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.  And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one:  I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me."  My study Bible comments here regarding those who will believe.   It notes that the Church in every generation participates in the life and glory of the Trinity.  It remarks that Christians enjoy two kinds of unity:  with God and with one another, the latter being rooted in the former.  See Matthew 22:36-40.

"Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.  O righteous Father!  The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me.  And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them."  My study Bible notes here that the ultimate goal of Christ's High Priestly Prayer, and indeed of life itself for all of us, is for the love of the Father to dwell in each person.  

Perhaps the most important statement we will read in all the Bible is just this one by Jesus, "that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them."  As He puts it here, this is a declaration of the intent of all of His ministry, His purpose, why He has "declared to them Your name, and will declare it."  It's intriguing that on the very eve of His arrest, which is imminent here, Jesus speaks of the future, that He will declare it [the Name of God the Father].  Perhaps the greatest declaration of the Name of the Father is Christ's glorification on the Cross, and His Resurrection.  But perhaps also this passage speaks to the ongoing activity of the Trinity in our world and in our midst (Luke 17:21).  Perhaps both are true, that Christ's witness to the Father will fully manifest in His sacrificial love for us and His Resurrection; but also at the same time, He will live in us, continually declaring the Name of God so that it dwells in us and through us in the world.  If we look closely at this last statement, it sums up Christ's whole prayer by couching everything in love.  Christ repeatedly speaks of unity between the Trinity and believers; in this we can assume the whole cosmos is a part of this mission.  But His final statement truly teaches us what He means:  "The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me.  And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them."   The declaration of God's name is a pronouncement of love, of love going out and resting within the hearts that will receive it, and will reciprocate. Jesus speaks, then, of an entire created order couched, held, received, and permeated by love.  And in this love is our communion with Creator and one another -- even the great love of the Father for the Son is that in which we all may share.  May your life be blessed with the knowing of this love and its ever-flowing expression through us as well.  For so we also glorify God.

 

 

And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth

 

 "I pray for them.  I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given Me, for they are Yours.  And all Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine, and I am glorified in them.  Now I am no longer in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to You.  Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are.  While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Your name.  Those whom You gave Me I have kept; and none of them is lost except the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled.  But now I come to You and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves.  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 pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one.  They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.  Sanctify them by Your truth.  Your word is truth.  As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.  And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth."

 

- John 17:9–19 

 

In yesterday's reading, we were given the beginning of what is known as Jesus' High Priestly Prayer, found in John chapter 17.  This is Christ's prayer following His Farewell Discourse to the disciples at the Last Supper.  Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said:  "Father, the hour has come.  Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him.  And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.  I have glorified You on the earth.  I have finished the work which You have given Me to do.  And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.  I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world.  They were Yours, You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word.  Now they have known that all things which You have given Me are from You.  For I have given to them the words which You have given Me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came forth from You; and they have believed that You sent Me."  

"I pray for them.  I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given Me, for they are Yours.  And all Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine, and I am glorified in them."  My study Bible asks us to note that Christ first prayed for Himself (see yesterday's reading, above) and then for the apostles (again, see yesterday's reading above, those whom You have given Me out of the world).  After this He prays for those whom You have given Me, which includes all who will come to believe in Him (verses 20-26).  Here, my study Bible explains, the world is the portion of humanity in rebellion against God. That is, those who prefer darkness to Christ's light.

"Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are.  While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Your name."  My study Bible points out that Holy Father is echoed in the eucharistic prayer given in the Didache, the earliest teaching document of the Church.  Didache 10:2 reads, "We give you thanks, Holy Father, for Your holy name which You have made to dwell in our hearts."  

 

"Those whom You gave Me I have kept; and none of them is lost except the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled."  The son of perdition (or "destruction") is Judas Iscariot (John 6:70-71).  My study Bible says that Old Testament prophecy alludes to Judas (Psalms 41:9; 109:2-13; Zechariah 11:12-13).  Moreover, Judas becomes a type for all who will fall away in the last days (see 2 Thessalonians 2:3, where "son of perdition" is a reference to the Antichrist).  

"But now I come to You and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves.  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 pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one."  My study Bible comments that, inasmuch as Christ is from heaven, those who are joined to Him become like Him.  So, therefore, believers will attract the world's hatred.  In the Letter to Diognetus, written in the second century, we read, "Christians dwell in the world but do not belong to the world" (see Letter to Diognetus 6:1, 2).  As one is reborn in Christ, citizenship is of the Kingdom of God (John 3:1-5), but Christian vocation is in the world, where there is protection by God against the evil one.

"They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.  Sanctify them by Your truth.  Your word is truth.  As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.  And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth."  To sanctify is described by my study Bible as meaning to consecrate, make holy, separate, set apart from the world, and to bring into the sphere of the sacred for God's use.  It notes that St. John Chrysostom interprets this verse as saying, "Make them holy through the gift of the Spirit and by correct doctrine."

In yesterday's reading, the first part of what is called Christ's High Priestly Prayer was given to us by the lectionary.  Today's is the second reading of the prayer, and tomorrow we will read the final section of it.  In yesterday's reading, as my study Bible pointed out, Christ prayed first for Himself, and then for those whom He had been given by the Father.  Here, He continues that prayer, and we can observe His great concern for this beginning of His Church, and the ones whom He will send out into the world as seeds, so to speak, who will plant His word and found His churches in various parts of the known world.  There seems to be a great deal of delineation here, a kind of demarcation, between those who belong to the Father who have been given to Christ, and those who are of "the world" and cannot hear the word and do not respond in their hearts to the things of the Father which were given to Christ.  Jesus speaks of those who have responded to His ministry, "And all Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine, and I am glorified in them."  In such a way, we are given to understand that the apostles glorified Christ through their own faithful lives, and that we might do the same.  He prays for those who will remain in the world, that they will be kept in God's Name, as Jesus has kept them while He was in the world.  There is a great line drawn here, in this sense, between "the world" which is under the ruler of this world  (John 12:31, John 14:30, John 16:11) and those who will carry on and be held in God's Name.  It is in this "set apart" context of the sacred that Jesus prays to the Father for those who will bear the Kingdom into the world.  Only one of them was lost (Judas), but Jesus prays of the rest, "But now I come to You and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves."  As we discussed in yesterday's commentary, we may observe through John's Gospel how both Jesus and John the Baptist speak of joy in this sense, as a product of the fulfillment of their role in God's kingdom even in this world.  And here yet again, we as believers are also invited in -- as are the disciples here by Jesus -- to also fulfill this joy of Christ in ourselves.  We are to find ourselves in Christ, and in this sense this joy may also be fulfilled in us.  Jesus sets out very carefully for us, in these words of His prayer recorded for posterity, the delineation between those who receive the word given through Christ, and "the world" that does not.  But He does not pray that those who keep His word in their hearts be taken out of the world, but remain in it.  Instead He prays only that they may be kept from "the evil one"; that is, kept from the ruler of this world, the devil.  And again, as in so much of John's Gospel, we return to themes of truth:  "Sanctify them by Your truth.  Your word is truth.  As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.  And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth."  It is this truth that sanctifies and sets apart, but not for the purpose of separation alone -- for the purpose of bringing that which is sanctified into the world, Christ's holy truth, which is both His word and His Person given to us.  So, therefore, when we think about communion, we are to consider that it is meant to be a communion which is in this sense differentiated, set apart from what is "worldly," different from the world which does not know this truth, and does not share in the love Christ has brought to us.  John is often called the evangelist of love.  But in Matthew's Gospel,  the great warning about "end times" is a focus on love growing cold ("And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold" - Matthew 24:12).  So, in the context of Christ's prayer for the disciples, and for those who will follow, let us ponder upon the truth that we receive with love, and how important that the fire of this love not grow cold.  We, in faith, are set apart for something important, necessary for the world, a baptism of fire for the whole world brought by Christ (Luke 3:16, 12:49-53).  For those who do not love, the fire scalds and burns.  For those who receive this love in their hearts, it is a warming, invigorating fire of truth and grace which we are to live and bear into the world.  What burns and drives you forward today, kindling a spirit in which you feel joy and love?  Is there something you need to cast aside that cannot stand in that fire?  Where do you find your joy?  In the end of today's reading, Jesus gives us the fullness of His love and sacrifice for us:  "And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth."

 

 

Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You

 

 Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said:  "Father, the hour has come.  Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him.  And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.  I have glorified You on the earth.  I have finished the work which You have given Me to do.  And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.  

"I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world.  They were Yours, You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word.  Now they have known that all things which You have given Me are from You.  For I have given to them the words which You have given Me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came forth from You; and they have believed that You sent Me."

 

- John 17:1–8 

 

 In yesterday's reading, we were given Christ's parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector.  He spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others:  "Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.  The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, 'God, I thank You that I am not like other men -- extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector.  I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.'  And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me a sinner!'  I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

 

  Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said:  "Father, the hour has come.  Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him."  As the lectionary continues to prepare us for the Lenten journey (which begins this week in the West, and for the Armenian Apostolic Church), today we're given the beginning of what is termed Christ's High Priestly Prayer (John 17).   In it, He prays for Himself, after He has addressed His disciples at the Last Supper (John 14 - 16).   This prayer contains the basic elements of a prayer which a priest would offer to God when a sacrifice is about to me made.  As my study Bible explains it, these elements comprise glorification (verses 3-5, 25), remembrance of God's words (verses 2, 6-8, 22-23), intercession on behalf of others (verses 9, 11, 15, 20-21, 24), and a declaration of the offering itself (verses 1, 5).  Here His words bear witness to Christ's divinity, and His filial relationship with the Father.  My study Bible comments on Christ's words here that the hour has come signifies Christ is Lord over time.  To glorify refers to the redemption of all creation that will be accomplished through this voluntary mission of the Cross and Resurrection; in fact, the purpose for which He was sent into the world by the Father.  In this redemption, my study bible adds, the Father and the Son are glorified.  This is why the Cross, which is a sign of death, is glorified in the Church as "life-giving" and the "weapon of peace."

"And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent."  The knowledge of the only true God is far more than intellectual understanding, my study Bible comments here.  This knowledge is, in fact, participation in God's divine life and in communion with God.  So, therefore, eternal life is an ongoing, loving knowledge of God in Christ and the Holy Spirit.  

"I have glorified You on the earth.  I have finished the work which You have given Me to do.  And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was."  My study Bible says that Christ's work can never be separated from His identity.  This verse, it notes, is a statement which each believer can make at the end of life, regardless of how long or short that life may be.  

"I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world.  They were Yours, You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word.  Now they have known that all things which You have given Me are from You.  For I have given to them the words which You have given Me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came forth from You; and they have believed that You sent Me."  Here Jesus prays for the men whom You have given Me out of the world.  These are the apostles.  My study Bible explains that these are the ones through whom God's word comes to us.   This handing down of God's word to successive generations is what is called apostolic tradition.  My study Bible says that Isaiah prophesied that in the days of the Messiah, the knowledge of the Name of God would be revealed (Isaiah 52:6).  Your name:  In the times of the Old Testament Scriptures, the phrase "the Name" was reverently used as a substitute for the name of God "Yahweh" (after the Hebrew letters which represent the name given to Moses in Exodus 3:14), because the Name was considered too sacred to pronounce.  The  fuller revelation of the Name, my study Bible explains, was given to those who believe in Christ, for Christ manifested the Name not simply by declaring the Father, but by being the very presence of God and sharing the Name with God.

If we take a close look at the overall theme of these verses of Christ' High Priestly Prayer, we see that it is all connected within the understanding of the fullness and completion of His mission into the world.  It is therefore inseparable from the Father and the aims of the Father.  Additionally, it also encompasses not simply the relationship between the divine Persons of Father, Son, and Spirit but also includes believers, "the men whom You have given Me out of the world."  Actually in the Greek, this is possibly more literally translated as "those whom You have given Me out of the world."  Therefore, this is about Christ's faithful believers.  Certainly it was most relevant to those at the Last Supper, but Christ's prays for all whom the Father has given to Him, and this is a process which is still ongoing.  So both the fullness of Christ's manifestation, and glorification encompasses all the communion of saints, the fullness of the Church even including in its ultimate sense, and the divine Persons of the Trinity.  In this way, all is inseparable from Christ's mission, which Jesus now goes forward to complete in the Cross and the Resurrection.   This beginning of Christ's High Priestly Prayer invites us to consider what "glory" means, and how this glory is interconnected to Christ's manifestation of the fullness of the Father, which also includes in time and in eternity the fullness of the Church.  But this kind of glory is completely different from worldly notions of personal glory.  If we can get an idea of what this type of glory is truly like, we will come to understand also what it means when we read in the Gospels the notion of the fulfillment or completion of joy.  At the Last Supper, Jesus tells the disciples, "These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be full" (John 15:11), and He compares their imminent suffering to that of a woman in labor, who rejoices once her child is born (John 16:20-22).  This understanding of joy is linked to Christ's glorification, because both are bound up in the fulfillment of Christ's mission, in the fulfillment of the will of the Father, and each of our roles in that fulfillment.  It is the same with John the Baptist, when he declares, "He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled" (John 3:29).  This fulfillment of joy is one that is found not simply as an individual, or in a self-centered way, but one that comes in the completion of communion, a joy found in the sharing of the life in Christ, and the fullness of mission in this sense.  If we, also, are to find this fulfillment of joy, then we look to Christ's understanding of glory, and how it is found in the life that God prepares and asks us to fulfill in our own faithful living, through the light that Christ gives us for this path in each of our lives.  Joy becomes a part of the glory of God in which we might share and play our own roles, an expansion of the heart that cannot be contained in selfish and limited versions of worldly glory or renown.  Let us consider this integral, expanded, deep understanding of joy, and how it is connection to the ways we find ourselves in Christ, to the life of faith we're offered.  For the joy in our hearts comes from the fire of love (Luke 24:32), which which begins with God who is love and which Christ has manifest to us so that we also may participate in this life, and in His joy.

O righteous Father! The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me. And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them

 

 "I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.  And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one:  I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.  Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.  O righteous Father!  The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me.  And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them."

 

- John 17:20-26 

 

Currently, we are reading through Christ's High Priestly Prayer, which He prayed at the Last Supper, after His Farewell Discourse to the disciples.  In yesterday's reading, we read that Jesus prayed to the Father, "While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Your name.  Those whom You gave Me I have kept; and none of them is lost except the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled.  But now I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves.  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 pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one.  They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.  Sanctify them by Your truth.  Your word is truth.  As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.  And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth."

 

  "I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me."  In this prayer, Jesus has prayed first for Himself (verses 1-5), and secondly for the apostles (verses 6-19).  Only then does His High Priestly Prayer turn to pray for those whom You have given Me.  That is, all who will come to believe in Him through the word of the apostles, as He says here.  My study Bible comments, regarding those who will believe, that the Church in every generation participates in the life and glory of the Trinity.  Christians enjoy two kinds of unity:  with God and with one another, the latter being rooted in the former. 

 

"And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one:  I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.  Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.  O righteous Father!  The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me.  And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them."  Note that this entire finish to Christ's High Priestly Prayer is rooted in love, and specifically the love of the Father and how that is the root of the communion of all.  From the love of the Father is the love between Christ and the Father, and that love in turn is extended to those who believe in His word (the apostles).  Through the apostles, this love becomes a part of the faithful to come, "that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them."  There is nothing left out of this communion in the name of God, in which is rooted love and glory through God's word and faith in that word.

 

 As noted above, if we look closely at today's closing lines from Christ's High Priestly Prayer, we see everything couched in a communion of love.  It is clear that the Source of love is God the Father.  But this should not be confused with a kind of simple hierarchy that we understand on worldly terms.  For this love is not something that is limited, but shared, and shared deeply within a communion.  That communion is not only between Father and Son.  But it clearly also includes the Holy Spirit -- and beyond that, the apostles who bear Christ's word within themselves through faith and discipleship, and extends out to all those who will believe through their word.  Effectively, we have an entire universe, a whole cosmos, filled with this communion of love.  For, not only is God -- the Creator and Source of all -- love, but God's word that is extended, that finds itself in faith, bears that love to us.  That word bears God's name and Person, and these also can come to dwell in us, and through us even in the world that does not believe.  This is why, during Christ's Farewell Discourse, just before this prayer, Jesus tells the disciples, "These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world" (John 16:33).  So we have two things that we know.  The first is that God is love, and that Christ's word and the communion in His name, are couched and rooted in love, permeated in love.  The second is that the word we're given, the truth of God, even the glory of God, is going to be hated by some and rejected -- and in this, believers will also experience tribulation.  We have to remember that there are spiritual roots to all of these things, and that "we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places" (Ephesians 6:2).  But we take our peace and joy in this communion we can experience, in the word that gives us love and good guidance, and in which we can trust, even if there is tribulation.  As the faithful, we are called upon to know and to live these things, for we will surely experience them one way and another.  We know that Christ prays before going to the Cross, His sacrifice for all of us, for that love ("Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends" - John 15:13).  For each of us, how that works out depends upon our own places in this great net of love, the communion between God and the faithful (and, lest we forget, this includes the celestial powers loyal to God, as well as the communion of saints).  Let us go forward with confidence in that love, find His victory for ourselves, and be prepared for the kind of life to which we're called, in His name.

 

 

 

 

I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which You have given Me to do

 

 Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said:  "Father, the hour has come.  Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him.  And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.  I have glorified You on the earth.  I have finished the work which You have given Me to do.  And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.  

"I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world.  They were Yours, You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word.  Now they have known that all things which You have given Me are from You.  For I have given to them the words which You have given Me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came forth from You; and they have believed that You sent Me.  

 

"I pray for them.  I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given Me, for they are Yours.  And all Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine, and I am glorified in them.  

"Now I am no longer in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to You.  Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are.

 

- John 17:1-11 

 

In the current schedule of lectionary readings, we have been given Jesus' Farewell Discourse to the disciples at the Last Supper.  On Saturday, we read that Jesus told them, "A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me, because I go to the Father."  Then some of His disciples said among themselves, "What is this that He says to us, 'A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me'; and, 'because I go to the Father'?"  They said therefore, "What is this that He says, 'A little while'?  We do not know what He is saying."  Now Jesus knew that they desired to ask Him, and He said to them, "Are you inquiring among yourselves about what I said, 'A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me'?  Most assuredly, I say to you that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; and you will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned to joy.  A woman, when she is in labor, has sorrow because her hour has come; but as soon as she has given birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world.  Therefore you now have sorrow; but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you.  And in that day you will ask Me nothing.  Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you.  Until now you have asked nothing in My name.  As, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.These things I have spoken to you in figurative language; but the time is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figurative language, but I will tell you plainly about the Father.  In that day you will ask in My name, and I do not say to you that I shall pray the Father for you; for the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me, and have believed that I came forth from God.  I came forth from the Father and have come into the world.  Again, I leave the world and go to the Father." His disciples said to Him, "See, now You are speaking plainly, and using no figure of speech!  Now we are sure that You know all things, and have no need that anyone should question You. By this we believe that You came forth from God."  Jesus answered them, "Do you now believe?  Indeed the hour is coming, yes, has now come, that you will be scattered, each to his own, and will leave Me alone.  And yet, I am not alone, because the Father is with Me.  These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace.  In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." 

 

  Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said:  "Father, the hour has come.  Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him."  My study Bible tells us that Christ's prayer, begun in today's reading, is often called the High Priestly Prayer, because it contains the basic elements of prayer which a priest offers to God when a sacrifice is about to be made.  These are:  glorification (verses 3-5, 25); remembrance of God's works (verses 2, 6-8, 22-23); intercession on behalf of others (verses 9, 11, 15, 20, 21, 24); and a declaration of the offering itself (verses 1, 5).  In the Orthodox Church, verses 1-13 are read on the occasion of remembering the Fathers of the First Ecumenical Council (Nicea I) in AD 325.  This is because at that council the heresy of Arianism was condemned, which taught that the Son of God was created by the Father, and that there was a time when the Son of God did not exist.  Christ's words bear witness to His divinity, and to His filial relationship with the Father.  My study Bible says that this testimony is sufficient in itself to dismiss Arianism.  The hour has come signifies that Christ is Lord over time.  A hymn of Lent proclaims, "He voluntarily willed to ascend the Cross in the flesh."  Glorify, my study Bible explains, is a reference to the redemption of all creation that will be accomplished through the Cross and Resurrection -- the purpose for which Christ was sent into the world.  In this redemption, the Father and the Son are glorified. This is why the Cross, which is a sign of death, is glorified in the Church as "life-giving," called the "weapon of peace."

 

"And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent."  The knowledge of the only true God is far more than intellectual understanding, my study Bible comments.  It is, in fact, participation in Christ's divine life, and in communion with Him.  Therefore, eternal life is, effectively, an ongoing and loving knowledge of God in Christ and the Holy Spirit.

"I have glorified You on the earth.  I have finished the work which You have given Me to do.  And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was."  Christ's work, my study Bible says, can never be separated from who He is.   This verse ("I have glorified You on the earth.  I have finished the work which You have given Me to do") is a statement each believer can make at the end of life, no matter how long or short that life may be.

"I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world.  They were Yours, You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word.  Now they have known that all things which You have given Me are from You.  For I have given to them the words which You have given Me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came forth from You; and they have believed that You sent Me."   The men whom You have given Me is a reference to the apostles.  They are the ones through whom God's word comes to us, my study Bible says.  It explains that this handing down of God's word to successive generations is called apostolic tradition.  Isaiah prophesied that in the days of the Messiah, the knowledge of the Name of God would be revealed (Isaiah 52:6).  Your name:  In the times of the Old Testament, the phrase "the Name" was reverently used as a substitute for God's actual Name "Yahweh," which was too sacred to pronounce.  The more full revelation of the Name was given to those who believe in Christ, my study Bible explains, as Christ manifested the Name not only by declaring the Father, but by being the very presence of God and also sharing the Name with Him.

"I pray for them.  I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given Me, for they are Yours.  And all Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine, and I am glorified in them."  My study Bible notes that Christ first prayed for Himself (verses 1-5) and secondly, for them, the apostles (verses 6-19).  It is only afterward that He will pray for those whom You have given Me.  That is, all who will come to believe in Him (verses 20-26).  My study Bible comments that here the world is the portion of humanity in rebellion against God, those who prefer darkness to His light.

"Now I am no longer in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to You.  Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are."  Holy Father, my study Bible points out, is echoed in the eucharistic prayer of Didache 10:2:  "We give you thanks, Holy Father, for Your holy name which You have made to dwell in our hearts."

 

In today's reading, we observe that Jesus makes it very clear He knows He is going to the Cross, and that this act, in this special hour, is one that is central to His glory, or glorification by the Father.  We may well ask what "glory" and "glorification" means, as so much of today's part of Jesus' High Priestly Prayer is concerned with the idea of glory.  Glory is ascribed to Himself (Glorify Your Son), to God the Father (that Your Son also may glorify You), to the work that Christ has done on earth (I have glorified You on the earth.  I have finished the work which You have given Me to do), to Father and Son together (O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself), and even to the disciples (And all Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine, and I am glorified in them).  So let us consider what "glory" means, and what it means to "glorify."  The word for glory in Greek is δόξα/doxa.  According to Strong's Dictionary, this word literally means "what evokes good opinion; that is, that something has inherent, intrinsic worth."  This word can also be associated with weight, as in substance, and also value.  (At the time of Christ, the value of coins, for example, was correlated with weight, such as the value of a certain amount of gold or silver.)  But in the case of this meaning, to glorify, or to possess glory, we are speaking of good opinion, a value that is recognized, known, and understood.  We might think of it as to make precious.   But what we might think of in social terms as the currency of good opinion or popularity is not really the same as the meaning here.  That is because this particular glory is rooted in the Father, is given by the Father, is achieved only by virtue of living the life of the Father (manifesting God's name), and glorifying the Father.  We might say that this glory comes through positive association with the Father; it is rooted in this Source.  Therefore Christ can ask the Father to glorify Him, and in turn glorify the Father.  In turn, Christ Himself is glorified in His apostles, "those whom You have given Me, for they are Yours.  And all Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine, and I am glorified in them."  To glorify (again according to Strong's Greek Dictionary) is also to give honor, to to ascribe weight by recognizing real substance (value).  To glorify God in this context means valuing God for who God really is. Thus, for example, "giving (or ascribing) glory to God" personally acknowledges God in His true character (God's essence).  So we glorify God by our own recognition of God, God's goodness and truth and beauty, and the same is therefore true of Christ -- even through us.  So, with all of this, let us take into account what it means to glorify God, and for God to be glorified through us.  When we live our lives according to Christ's word, we recognize the value in that word.  When we live "in His name," and following His commandments according to His will, we glorify Christ, because we are showing the value and esteem in which we hold Him.  If we think about it, glorification would also include gratitude, for glorification -- according to the definition quoted -- implies a recognition of intrinsic worth, an esteem.  How can we glorify that which we take for granted, or for which we don't bother to feel any gratitude?  If we glorify God, and God is glorified through us, then, it means more than to pay a kind of nominal honor or praise.  It means to live the commandments given by Christ from the Father, to honor God's name or Person through the "work" that we do, just as Christ did so by completing the work given to Him.  Let us consider, then, what glory is and what we choose to glorify.  For glorifying Christ (and God the Father) implies giving honor to all that is offered through Christ, through His work in the world, and that necessitates a certain way of life, the honor we show in all our choices in life, the glory we bring to God through expressions of that honor and true esteem.  Let us be like Christ, and take wisely our choices for the "work" we do.