#26 – Knowing God Better – John 17

In the Old Testament when God spoke with Moses, God told Moses to take off his shoes, for the place he was standing on was “holy ground.”

I kind of feel that way when we come to John 17.

We’re listening in on a very intimate conversation between Jesus and the Father. Shhhhh.… listen.…

1 After saying all these things, Jesus looked up to heaven and said, “Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son so he can give glory back to you.

Does this remind you of anything?

Way back in John 5, Jesus rightly accused the Pharisees of only wanting praise and glory from the people. Their hearts and lives were not set on bringing glory to God.

But look at Jesus: Glorify your Son so he can give glory back to you.

Brace yourselves for this one. Jesus goes on to say:

4 I brought glory to you here on earth by completing the work you gave me to do. 5 Now, Father, bring me into the glory we shared before the world began.

Wow, huh? We can only aspire to one part of this – to bring God glory by completing the work he gives us to do. But we can’t touch verse 5.

Ok, jumping back up to verses 2 and 3, which I skipped, Jesus talks about eternal life. Referring to himself, Jesus says:

2 For you have given him authority over everyone. He gives eternal life to each one you have given him.

Q – According to his next statement (verse 3 below) how can we have eternal life?
A –

3 And this is the way to have eternal life–to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, the one you sent to earth.

Jesus then refers to his disciples. As you read the following verses, ask yourself…

Q – Is this also true of you?
A –

6 I have revealed you to the ones you gave me from this world. They were always yours. You gave them to me, and they have kept your word. 7 Now they know that everything I have is a gift from you, 8 for I have passed on to them the message you gave me. They accepted it and know that I came from you, and they believe you sent me.

Q – As you read the following verses, what is Jesus’ purpose for your life? (If you’ve ever searched for a life purpose, this is it!)
A –

9 My prayer is not for the world, but for those you have given me, because they belong to you. 10 All who are mine belong to you, and you have given them to me, so they bring me glory.

I’m going to end here, and next lesson we’ll see how Jesus prays for the disciples…and for us (literally)…verse 20:

20 My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message

That’s us!

We’ll pick this up next. Stay tuned!

Sincerely,

Marilyn Adamson
director of EveryStudent.com
and StartingwithGod.com