Background
Leading up to chapter 17, in chapters 14, 15, and 16, Jesus tells his disciples a great deal about what is to come. He tells them of the Holy Spirit who will come after him and reveal all things. All that the father has given Jesus will be revealed to the disciples through the Holy Spirit. There will be suffering because if they persecuted Jesus, they will surely persecute his followers.
Jesus also tells them to remain in him and he will remain in them. The secret of which is to obey his commands. Jesus says his command is this, that they should love one another as Jesus has loved them. No greater love is there than a friend to lay down his life for another. Jesus then proceeds to call them friends as opposed to slaves which becomes self evident in the fact that Jesus has revealed so much to them.
Jesus has told them all this so that they will not go astray. And yet, in this he includes suffering, being kicked out of synagogues, and being killed by those who think they are doing a service to God. How could this be? Did Jesus expect this to be a motivation speech by speaking of suffering? Well, actually, yes, I think he did intend this short talk to be motivation for them. Because, Jesus tells them them that if they remain in him and obey his commands, his joy will be in them and that joy will be complete even through suffering. This is an interesting paradox. Joy that is complete by having a faith that invokes persecution. Persecution from a world that stands condemned by the Holy Spirit (16:11).
Today, I see some Christians link how successful one is to how great their faith is. There is some truth but it is mixed with legalism. A fool as we see in Proverbs will have endless trouble and God promises to bless his followers. But, this blessing does not always appear in material wealth. In fact, in these chapters, the blessing is only inward. For us, I think, if we are blessed in a material way, this is an added bonus. However, our focus and our measurement of blessing from God should be focused on our inward spiritual health. If we focus on our outward contentment for a measurement of our spiritual happiness, we will always be depressed spiritually. If our contentment comes from within, our measurement of our outward contentment will be based on our inward joy.
Then, you may ask, how are some Christians blessed financially and others are not? I think it better asked, which ones are inwardly satisfied? As you start your Christian walk, you may have a standard of what your life style should be. But, as you grow closer to God, that measurement of what you expect will be lowered in comparison to the riches of God’s Kingdom. After a while, what you expect and what you have will line up, and thus, you will be blessed by God. I’m not saying God wont bless Christians with good things. But, until you heart is content, these things may not happen. Christians that fully rely on God do not always have security locked up. Those that want full security are not in a position to fully trust God. Where do you stand?
Prayer to the Father
Now, in chapter 17, Jesus begins to pray to the father in light of all that he has taught and the death on the cross that looms over him.
Jesus says, “Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you.” – This fits with what Jesus told his disciples in 16:15. The succession of power and knowledge from the Father to Jesus to the Holy Spirit to us. The power and commands flow down. And as they do, this power in us in turn moves up so that the glory may travel back up. Ultimately, the Father is to be glorified in all that we do. Here, Jesus is giving glory to the Father from the glory he receives.
All that we do for the kingdom should be done in a way that does not glorify us but instead points to Jesus and the Father. All our prayers should be to do the same. All that we ask should do the same. If what we asked glorifies the Father than we know God will answer us. It may be difficult, but the more we have the mind of Christ, the more we will do his will and not ours. This, of course, aligns with what I said previously. That is, the measurement of what you expect to align with the Kingdom of God. If, our intent is to glorify the Father in all that we do, our focus is not ourselves but the Kingdom. When you pray for things you need, is the end goal for that blessing to be used for the glory of God? Or, perhaps it is just to bless yourself? Glorify and bless us Jesus, so that we may glorify and bless you!
In Part 2, we will look at the versus 1-9 of chapter 17 in more detail.
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