I pray for them. I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given Me, for they are Yours

 

 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 the 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 

 

We have currently been reading through Jesus' Farewell Discourse, given to the disciples at the Last Supper, and following as they moved to another location.  On Saturday, we read that Jesus said to 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 into 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.  Ask, 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 have will 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 the authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him."   Verses 1-26 of chapter 17 of John's Gospel make up a prayer, frequently called the High Priestly Prayer of Christ, as it contains the basic elements of prayer which a priest offers to God when a sacrifice is about to be made.  These things consist of glorification, to which Christ refers in verses 3-5, 25, remembrance of God's works (verses 9, 11, 15, 20, 21, 24), and a declaration of the offering itself (verses 1, 5).   My study bible explains that the hour has come signifies that Christ is Lord over time, establishing His voluntary acceptance of the Cross.  It says that glorify refers to the redemption of all creation that will be accomplished through the Cross and Resurrection.  This is the purpose for which Christ as sent into the world.  In this redemption, both Father and Son are glorified.  It adds that this is why the Cross, 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."  Here my study bible comments that the knowledge of the only true God is far more than intellectual understanding.  Rather, it includes participation in God's divine life and in communion with God.  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 explains that Christ's work cannot ever be separated from who He is.  Thus, this statement regarding the work which You have given Me to do is a one each believer can make at the end of life, no matter how long or short one's life might 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 refers to the apostles when He speaks of the men whom You have given Me.  The apostles are the ones through whom God's word comes to us, my study bible reminds us.  This handing down of God's word to successive generations is called apostolic tradition.  My study bible tells us that Isaiah prophesied that in the days of the Messiah, the knowledge of the Name of God would be revealed (Isaiah 52:6).  Jesus declares, "I have manifested Your name . . .."  In the Old Testament times, the phrase "the Name" was a reverent substitution for God's Divine Name "Yahweh," considered too sacred to pronounce.  This fuller revelation of the Name is 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 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.  Now I am no longer in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to You."  My study bible notes here that Christ first prayed for Himself (in verses 1-5), and secondly for them, the apostles (verses 6-19).  Only then He prays for those whom You have given Me -- that is, all who will come to believe in Him (verses 20-26).  Here, the world is the portion of humanity in rebellion against God, those who prefer darkness to God's light.  

 

"Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are."  In the Didache, there is a eucharistic prayer (Didache 10:2), which echoes Christ's words:  "We give you thanks, Holy Father, for Your holy name which You have made to dwell in our hearts."

Jesus prays to the Holy Father, "I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given Me, for they are Yours."    My study bible tells us that in this instance, Jesus refers to the world as those who are in rebellion against God; specifically, those who prefer darkness to God's light.  This is in keeping with the understanding of the terminology of royal names and houses, in the sense that the devil has been referred to (also in John's Gospel) as "the ruler of this world."  Please see John 12:31, 14:30, 16:10-11.  This might seem a bit disconcerting and confusing, as we also are to understand that Christ goes to the Cross for the redemption of the world, even for His enemies.  When He gave His new commandment, "Love one another as I have loved you," this is the way we are to understand it, the measure of Christ's love, that He would die even for His enemies.  How is this possible for us to reconcile?  Is there a contradiction here, in that Jesus would pray for His own -- and those to come who will believe in Him -- but not for "the world" that is in rebellion against Him and the Father?  This is something important for us to discern.  It's important to note the different senses of time that are inherent in Christ's teachings.  Earlier He has taught that the Holy Spirit will be sent from the Father after Christ's Ascension, and that the Holy Spirit will "convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment" (John 16:8).  But let us note that this work of the Holy Spirit is such that it spans the age which Christ has initiated, the whole of what might rightly be called the "end times," which has progressed for some two millenia.  We are not to understand this conviction as something we explicitly know in some worldly sense, or something we -- as creatures, human beings -- can put a time limit on or fully comprehend.  God's judgment is God's judgment, and the heart has depths that only God knows:  whether sinful or righteous.  Secondly, Christ also came to redeem, to forgive sins through grace, and that is also something we cannot fully understand from our human perspective, as creatures rather than Creator.  Do we know the depths of the heart, or how a person might come to repentance, how their lives are going to evolve?  We can say none of these things.  So, it is in the fullness of this understanding that Christ can say that He does not pray to the Father for the world, but rather prays for His own.  For He goes to the Cross in order to save all -- to offer the hand of salvation to all.  But as creatures, our own work in cooperation in God requires of us one thing:  to give our assent, to accept God's work in us.  The work of the Holy Spirit, the Helper, in us seems to me to work at such a depth that we are not necessarily entirely conscious of it, but yet there is an assent within us, a consent to the love of God, and a mutual return of that love.  And at least from the perspective of the Lord in the Gospels, nevertheless, although at such a depth as to be even something of which we are not entirely aware until it comes to us as conviction -- and, of course, experience in this may vary -- this is accounted to us as acceptance, our "yes" of belief.  It is so linked to loyalty and love as to be -- in my experience and estimation at least -- inseparable.  It is the same as the love we feel for others which we can't necessarily explain away from merely the rational mind or intellectual choice:  all we know is that we love, even at a depth we can't necessarily name.  Yet this still accounts to us as assent, as choice.  It's just that the choosing happens within a depth of the self, and we are so used to living on the surface of life, even on the "surface" of what really constitutes the fullness of ourselves.  There is also a sense of time passing in terms of repentance, coming to love and embrace God, in the sense in which we can't rightfully know all the steps necessary in repentance to get from point A to point B.  So often repentance is a complex set of steps, of psychological change, and of gradual transformation.  This is something we cannot predict nor map out, as it takes a divine perspective to fathom and understand.  We are capable of discerning this movement only in hindsight, and possibly only for ourselves or from another who has experienced such depth of change.  So let us consider Christ's love, given to all, but specified as returned by some, by those who will love and welcome the light, and resisted by those who prefer the darkness.  And this is our world in which we live, and we are given that light to share in, in which to participate, and to reflect and shine into the darkness, as did He.  We don't know what effects that will have.  We can only seek to know the work that Christ gives us to do (John 6:28-29).  It is for this He gives us His commands to follow Him.

I pray for them. I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given Me, for they are Yours

 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 our current readings, Jesus and the disciples are at the Last Supper, Christ's final Passover Supper in His worldly life as Jesus.  He is speaking to them what is known as the Farewell Discourse.  On Saturday, we read that Jesus said to them,  "A little while, and you will not see Me; and again 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 into 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.  Ask, 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."  Christ's discourse in chapter 17 is called the High Priestly Prayer.  It contains the basic elements of prayer that a priest offers to God before a sacrifice is about to be made.  These elements are, according to my study bible:  glorification (vv. 3-5, 25), the remembrance of God's words (vv. 2, 6-8, 22, 23), intercession on others' behalf (vv. 9, 11, 15, 20, 21, 24), and a declaration of the offering itself (vv. 1, 5).  Christ begins the prayer with the statement, the hour has come.  My study bible says this this signifies that Christ is Lord over time, a statement of His voluntary going to the Cross.  Glorify, my study bible notes, refers to the redemption of all creation which is accomplished through the Cross and Resurrection, the very purpose for which Christ was sent into the world.  Also, in this redemption, the Father and Son are glorified.   It is for this reason that the Cross, 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."  To know . . . the only true God is much more than an intellectual understanding.  We as true faithful participate in His divine life and in communion with Him.  Therefore, my study bible notes, eternal life is an ongoing, loving knowing 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."  The work of Christ cannot be separated from who He is, His identity.   This verse, my study bible tells us, is a statement which each believer can make at the end of life, no matter how long or short.

"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 refers to the apostles.  It is the apostles through whom the word of God comes to all of us.  The handing down of God's word to future 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).  Jesus refers to Your name.  In the times of the Old Testament, the phrase "the Name" was a reverent way of substituting God's Name as written in the Scripture,  "Yahweh", as this was considered too sacred to pronounce.  My study bible says that the fuller revelation of the Name was given to those who believe in Christ, as Christ manifested the Name not simply by declaring the Father only, but also by being the very presence of God and 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.  Now I am no longer in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to You."  First Christ has prayed for Himself (in verses 1-5), and then He begins to pray for the apostles, for them.   In Wednesday's reading, we will cover vv. 20-26, in which Jesus prays for those whom You have given Me; that is all those who will come to believe in Him.  Here, my study bible says, the world refers to that portion of humanity which is in rebellion against God, those who prefer darkness to His light.

"Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are."  In the Didache, the first known teaching document of the Church, there is an echo of Christ' address here to God the Father, in the Eucharistic Prayer:  "We give you thanks, Holy Father, for Your holy name which You have made to dwell in our hearts" (Didache 10:2).

Jesus prays to the Father, "I pray for them.  I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given Me, for they are Yours."   We don't often like to hear or consider this kind of language.  Christ died for everyone, didn't He?  Didn't He forgive everyone from the Cross?  What we can consider form this language is that Jesus is pointing out to us -- through this prayer to the Father -- that there is a clear delineation in the world.  Jesus has come to save the world, out of love for the world.  The Evangelist writes, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved" (3:16-17).  So what is this "world" that Christ specifically say He does not pray to the Father for?  There is a distinction in the created world between that which desires the salvation and redemption Christ has come to give, and those who do not.  What has been offered to us are the words and works of God the Father through Jesus Christ as He lived in the world.  Jesus prays, " 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."  There is a seamless kind of connection here, as Jesus has maintained through all of His preaching and ministry, between those who can accept the word of the Father through Christ, and their belonging in faith to Christ.  There's no disconnect between one and the other, no abstraction of "principles" or "values" separate from the relationships entailed in vine, vine-dresser, and branches (15:1-5).  We may experience this in our lives as a deepening, broadening, growing experience.  But Christ's words are clear:  if we have seen Him, we have seen the Father (14:9).  As we come to "know" God, in the same sense as we come to know other persons, our eternal life becomes fuller, more solid, deepening within us, because of this connection between the word planted in us, and Christ, and the Father.  We take confidence in it, and this is the nature of faith, a deepening trust which flows in us.  It is something like a hose that fills more fully with water, the greater and greater pressure created by a more generous flow that makes the hose into something that seems solid, the image of a confidence which grows with that solidity and firmness, like a rock we can build a house on.  Psalm 91:14 reads, "Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him on high, because he has known My name."  This is our faith.  Christ does not pray for those who reject this solid foundation of life within the branches and the Godhead of Father, Son, and Spirit,  We may, of course, pray for the salvation of the world, the mission of Christ.  But He makes a distinction that teaches us all about the nature of our choice and the nature of love.  No one is compelled or manipulated into this faith; instead, it depends on the condition of our hearts and our will to choose love.

Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are

"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 the High Priestly Prayer, given at the end of 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 points out that Jesus first prayed for Himself (see the earlier verses in the prayer, above), and secondly for them, the apostles.  Only after these does He pray for those whom You have given Me -- that is, all who will come to believe in Him.   The world (as used here) is the portion of humanity in rebellion against God, my study bible explains; that is, those who prefer darkness to His light (see John 1:5).

"Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are."  Jesus once again expresses our communion and participation in Him and the Father, when He prays that all may be kept "through Your name."   Holy Father, my study bible says, is echoed in the eucharistic prayer of the Didache, the first teaching document of the Apostles:  "We give you thanks, Holy Father, for Your holy name which You have made to dwell in our hearts" (Didache 10:2).

"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."  The son of perdition ("destruction" -- implying total loss) is Judas Iscariot (6:70-71).  Old Testament prophecy alludes to Judas (Psalm 41:9; 109:2-13, Zechariah 11:12-13).  Judas becomes  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).

"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."   My study bible tells us here that inasmuch as Christ is from heaven, those who are joined to Him become like Him.  Therefore, all believers attract the world's hatred.  The second-century Letter to Diognetus (6:3) states, "Christians dwell in the world but do not belong to the world."  Those who are reborn in Christ have their citizenship in the Kingdom of God (3:1-5).  But one's 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 means to consecrate, make holy, separate, set apart from the world, and bring into the sphere of the sacred for God's use.  My study bible cites St. John Chrysostom, who interprets this verse as saying, "Make them holy through the gift of the Spirit and by correct doctrine." 

What is truth?  This is the question asked by Pilate to Jesus in Tuesday's reading.   In today's reading, Jesus prays to God the Father, "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's a hard-seeming concept to try to understand, but Jesus invites us into the truth in His Person, via participation in the Eucharist and thereby communion with Himself, the Father, and the Holy Spirit.  Jesus prays, "Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are."  To be kept in this Name is to be kept in the truth, the reality of the kingdom of God, the understanding of the love of God and how we may "live and move and have our being" (Acts 17:28) in that love, in the reality of he presence of God in us and among us (Luke 17:21).  In this sense, God's Name is like a stamp on a passport, identifying the Kingdom of God to which one belongs.  Wherever we travel, we remain a citizen, and we bear the customs, the values, "the word" of which Jesus speaks.  In this sense, He asks the Father to "keep through Your name those whom You have given Me."   It is in this sense that He prays, "They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world."   Above all, if we read carefully, Jesus prays that all the faithful may be kept in this place, as citizens of this Kingdom, although we venture to a far country, so to speak, and be kept away from the evil one, who wishes nothing more than to draw us away from our loyalty to God, and our dwelling place in God's word and God's love.  We wish to remain, in the language of the Gospel, in His light at all times.   If Christ so prays as His fervent prayer for us to the Father, then how seriously must we take His prayer for ourselves?  Let us consider the freedom we're given to belong to this place, and to carry His love and His kingdom with us, and how precious that is.  He has asked us to share it with others, so that we may glorify in turn our Father in heaven (Matthew 5:16). 

Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are

 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

Last week, we read through Jesus' Farewell Discourse to the Apostles.  On Monday, we read Jesus teach, "In My Father's house are many mansions."   Tuesday's reading gave us, "Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you."  In Wednesday's reading, Jesus said, "I am the vine, you are the branches."  In Thursday's reading, He taught, "This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you."  In Friday's reading, He said, "When He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth."  Finally, on Saturday, Jesus taught:  "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 into 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.  Ask, 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 has some interesting things to say about these passages.  It notes that "the hour has come signifies that Christ is in charge of time.  He cannot be crucified until He is ready. . . . Glorify refers to the exaltation as well as the eternal glory of the preexistent Christ.  The 'hour' is that of His death:  the sacrifice of the Lamb of God made once and for all.  This is Jesus' exaltation upon the Cross -- the completion of the work and salvation for which He was sent by the Father. . . . God is glorified when salvation and eternal life come to His people."

"And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent."  A note tells us, "The knowledge of God, which is eternal life, goes far beyond rational or academic pursuit; it is participation in divine life and communion with God.  Thus, eternal life -- life proper to the age to come -- is an ongoing, loving knowledge of God in Christ."

"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 tells us, "For Christians, there are two important and interrelated aspects of Christ:  (1) who He is:  the eternal Son of God incarnate; and (2) His work:  accomplished through His Incarnation.  His work is not limited to the Cross.  It incorporates everything from His conception in the womb of Mary to His Ascension and enthronement in the eternal Kingdom."

"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."  My study bible tells us that the men to whom Jesus refers are the Apostles.  "It is the Apostles who receive the Word of the Father from the Son and pass it on to those 'who will believe in Me through their word' (v. 20) [which we will find in Wednesday's reading].  The Apostles as a body -- not primarily Peter, nor any individual preacher or teacher -- are the ones through whom God's Word comes to us.  This is what is meant by apostolic tradition."

"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."  Again, as He has done so much throughout John's Gospel -- and especially in this Farewell Discourse -- Jesus invokes the closeness of the relatedness between Himself and the Father.  Earlier He taught that "all things the Father has are mine" (Friday's reading).  Here, He is assured that the Apostles understand the fullness of this relationship, and that what they have received has come from the Father.  We really can't separate the urgency with which Jesus continually refers to the Father so that the disciples understand completely His (Jesus') identity in relationship to God the Father, and through this teaching, their own mission linked to the Father -- and hence our faith intrinsically linked also in that relationship.

"I pray for them.  I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given Me, for they are Yours."  My study bible says that "although God loves the whole world, and the Son came with a specific mission to the world, Jesus prays here for the disciples, the Twelve.  He will later extend His prayer to all believers to come.  But He does not pray for the world as such in terms of society, governments, nations.  Here the world is that portion of humanity which exists in direct opposition to Him; preferring darkness to His light; refusing to come to the light; rejecting Him and thus standing under judgment."  We remember Jesus' command to "love one another" -- which my study bible calls, "a definitive mark of discipleship."  In this we find a key to what it is to walk in the light, as opposed to the darkness of "the world" as the term is used here.  The question of what we love will always be pertinent to this prayer, and the deep mystery of how the Father leads us to faith.

"And all Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine, and I am glorified in them."  Jesus' prayer is for those He leaves behind "in the world."  We remember His warnings about the persecutions to come, and how they will scatter at the time of the Crucifixion.  Jesus is praying in trust to the Father, so that those whom He has drawn 'out of the world' will remain intact after He goes to the Father.  In some sense, He completes the circle:  All His are the Father's and the Father's are His, and Christ is glorified in them.  It is His love for us that He is expressing here.

"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."  The important thing here is Jesus' fervent prayer that they be kept in the Father's name.  Jesus has mentioned this in the beginning of the reading and here we end with it also.  It is a sign of all that we are a part of in faith, in His name.  It keeps us all as one.  My study bible cites a prayer from the Didache (10:2), the earliest known surviving teaching work of the Apostles:  "We give You thanks, Holy Father, for Your Holy Name which You have made to dwell in our hearts, and for the knowledge and truth and immortality which You have made known to us through Your son Jesus."

Let us consider, as it's of central importance to today's passages, what it is to live "in His name."  Jesus prays to the Father, "I have manifested Your name to the men You have given Me out of the world."  In these words we understand relationship beyond anything we conceive of in a worldly sense, because it is the Father who has given "these men" out of the world to Christ; Jesus has manifested the Father's name to them, and the fullness of today's prayer is a prayer for these men - and those who will come to Him through them - to remain in the Father's name.  So let us consider what it means to manifest His name.  My study bible teaches that "in Old Testament times the term 'the Name' was reverently used as a substitute for God's actual name, 'Yahweh.'  Although all humans belong to God, the fuller revelation of the Name was given only to those who were given to the Savior from out of the world.  The word they have kept is Jesus' revelation, and especially the new commandment to love one another."  So, when we pray "in God's name," or "in the name of Christ" or the name of the Father, Son and Spirit, we have to keep in mind all that this implies.  Ultimately, it is all about relationship, and the depth of a kind of relationship in which all is included:  His teachings, His word to us, His love for us, and the love we are expected to share in return.  All of this is included in "the name," and all of it goes back to and includes the Father at every turn.  The power of relatedness is what shows forth here, and it is a relatedness that teaches us how we live and relate to one another, a relationship, ultimately, of love.  So to remain in His name, in the Father's name, is to remain "out of the world" in the sense that we don't live by all the rules we find in the world that call upon us to be short-sighted, selfish, merely to understand ourselves in competition with one another.  Rather, God's love calls us to live in a particular type of family and in a way from which we can learn and practice love.  So how does that light call you today, out of things you may have learned from "the world"?  How does it invite you in?  When we ask to remain "in His name" let us remember "His name" includes "His Way."