I have revealed to them who you are and I will continue to make you even more real to them, so that they may experience the same endless love that you have for me, for your love will now live in them, even as I live in them! (John 17:26 TPT)
Over the last few weeks, I have been looking at how Jesus revealed his Father and how this was the central purpose of his time on earth. John 17 is his final prayer before he is led away to the cross and, as we've looked at it together, I hope you can see how it represents a summary of Jesus' life and ministry. He has shown us what the Father is like, he has given us the Father's words of eternal life, he has demonstrated how we can live in love and he wants us to be with him where he is. Now, at the end of his prayer, Jesus concludes with these words: "in order that the love you have for me may be in them". Jesus concludes his earthly ministry by reassuring us that he has made his Father known and that he will continue to make him known. We are not left in any uncertainty, Jesus will continue revealing his Father to us, to you and me. It's a very powerful statement. You and I are loved by God, the Father, in exactly the same way as he loves Jesus. No if's or but's, just unconditional love which is totally dependent on him and not in any way on us. We can't earn his love, we can't make him love us any more through our actions or words. We can't stop him loving us. We are loved as he loves Jesus. Should this revelation make us lazy Christians? Of course not! It changes our hearts so much that we find we are motivated, or compelled, to walk in his ways and therefore to delight in doing his will (Ezekiel 36:27 and Psalm 40:8). The revelation (or series of revelations) we've looked at from John 17 really do present us with a clear picture of the gospel. To me, it is so simple, we are loved by the perfect Father who wants to be a Father to us.
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Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. (John 17:24 NIV)
In John 17, Jesus is praying to his Father and giving an account of the things he has accomplished during his time on earth. It reads like the completion, or fulfilment, of a mission statement: "This is what you sent me to do and this is what I have done". The prayer contains an important list of things the Son has done is making his Father known. "I want those you have given me to be with me where I am". As we read through this chapter we see how Jesus has shown what the Father is like, he has given us the Father's words of eternal life and he shows how we can live like the Trinity. And now we are given a personal invitation. An invitation to be with Jesus where he is. Well, before we accept this invitation we need to know where Jesus is. Right now, in this present moment, where is he? That's where we're invited to be. We read in John 1:18 that Jesus came from the bosom, or side, of the Father. Once again a picture of intimacy; a son leaning against his father's heart. In John 14, we read that Jesus is going back home, to his Father's house and then he and the Father, through the Holy Spirit, will return and make their home with us. This is the invitation: we are invited to be at home with the Father. To be at his side, leaning against his heart. This is an invitation and, as such, it requires a response. It's Jesus' desire to take us where he is but he leaves us with a choice - do we want to be at home with the Father? It's a question we can only answer for ourselves. We can look from afar or we can draw near and allow our hearts to come home. My encouragement is for you to come home. Allow yourself to be drawn into that place of intimacy with the Father. Allow Jesus to take you to the Father, his Father and your Father. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one — I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. (John 17:22-23 NIV)
In John 17, Jesus is praying to his Father and giving an account of the things he has accomplished during his time on earth. It reads like the completion, or fulfilment, of a mission statement: "This is what you sent me to do and this is what I have done". The prayer contains an important list of things the Son has done is making his Father known. "That they may be one, as we are one". The life that is in Jesus is in us. The relationship Jesus has with his Father is imparted to us, we can have the same intimate relationship, with the Father, that Jesus had. When Jesus prays that we may be one, we often think that he is talking about our relationships with one another. I believe that is correct. But as I've meditated on this verse, I wonder if there is another interpretation or meaning to Jesus' words. What about us being one with him in the same way that Jesus is one with him? Having prayed that we may be one he then expresses his desire for us to be involved, or to live in, the unity of the Trinity. He really wants us to know that we are in him as much as he is in us. It is a profound description of unity and intimacy. This is not a distant relationship, but the closest of Father-Son relationships and we are invited to participate. As Jesus accounts to his Father for the things he has accomplished, he is clear that we have been enabled to live like the Trinity live. A life of intimacy and unity is one of rest and peace. It is a fulfilled life. I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. (John 17:14 NIV)
In John 17, Jesus is praying to his Father and giving an account of the things he has accomplished during his time on earth. It reads like the completion, or fulfilment, of a mission statement: "This is what you sent me to do and this is what I have done". The prayer contains an important list of things the Son has done is making his Father known. "I have given them your word". It must have been an amazing sight when Jesus read from Isaiah 61 in the synagogue in Nazareth. He was basically reading about himself and having done so he simply sat down. He did not need to preach a sermon or try and explain what he'd read. He just said "today this is fulfilled". Simple, yet powerful. He was the Word of God, reading the Word of God about the Word of God. Jesus said the words he spoke were not his own words but they came from his Father (John 12:49). He was a true ambassador, speaking on behalf of another. If we are to know the Father, we have to understand this. Everything Jesus said was, in effect, his Father speaking. The words we have recorded in the gospels are the words of the Father, spoken to us through Jesus. In coming to earth, Jesus became the Word of God made flesh, coming as a man, becoming the Father's mouthpiece. The words he spoke give us the gift of life and that life is meant to be full or abundant. It is total and complete, not a half measure. There was a time when the crowds were all deserting Jesus and he asks his disciples if they, too, will leave him. Peter replies: "Where else can we go, you have the words of eternal life". We have a Father who is always ready to speak to us with words that will bring life, his words will change our lives. Do we have ears that are listening to the Father's voice? He is speaking to each one of us. |
Weekly SignpostA Father to YOU is a signpost to the heart of the Perfect Father. When we became Christians we were given the right to become children of God (John 1:12). Sadly, many of us fail to take up that right and instead continue to live as slaves or orphans. But our true destiny is being sons and daughters who have a permanent place in the Father's family. This blog is an encouragement to help you know who God really is and who you really are. Click here to subscribe. |