Hi, I'm Darrell Bailey, Service for Christ. Come and be with us in our Bible study. If you're not currently involved in a Bible study somewhere, I'd love to have you come and join us, Amen. Here, taking Bibles over to John chapter 17, verses 1 through 26, as we talk about the great intercessor from the series of the Gospel of John, the identity of Jesus, amen, or the deity of Jesus. I want to welcome every one of you to come and be with us at Bethel Crossroads Baptist Church. We're located at 450 Iron Hill Road, Taylorsville, Georgia 30178. Step into our sanctuary and discover the joy of worshiping with us where every soul finds its song and every heart begins to find its home. And so I'm glad that come and join us on behalf of our pastor Keith Dempsey for our morning Sunday school at 10 a.m., morning worship at 11, Wednesday nights Kiss for Christ with Rusty and Lynn Lanier from 6 to 7, and our adults Bible study in the Gospel of John from 6 to 7 in building number 2. We'd love to have you on behalf of our pastor Keith Dempsey. Come and join us if you're not somewhere is already involved in worship. We would love to have you come and be with us, praise God. Now, as we get on into our Bible tribute, John 17 prays for his disciples and all believers, but what does Jesus emphasize as eternal life in John 17? A, the knowledge of the law, B, following religious rituals, C, knowing God and Jesus Christ, or D, accumulating wealth and power. And it's about knowing God and Jesus Christ in John chapter 17, verse 3, that he deals with this about eternal life, amen, that he emphasizes it, that what the emphasis is on is knowing God and the emphasis is knowing Jesus Christ. There's no other way to get to heaven except through Jesus, praise God. Now, the 17th letter of the Hebrew alphabet, Pe, When we look at this, here is a reminder that we look and realize that in Israel, a 15-year-old girl woke up one morning to discover suddenly that she could no longer speak. And after three days of shock and denial, her parents brought her to an elite doctor in Tel Aviv. The physician examined her and then he told the mother and father, it's impossible that this girl has ever spoken. She has no vocal cords. So the parents protested that their daughter had been speaking for 15 years, but nevertheless, the doctor proclaimed he could do nothing to help her. After many, many months and numerous visits to all the specialists throughout Israel, the family's last hope was a doctor that was in England. He too concluded that the girl had no vocal cords and so that it was impossible for this girl to even be speaking. as hopeless as that was, by chance the family happened to encounter on their journey a man that advised them to go see a Rebbe or a Rebbe. The father was lucky, but the mother insisted that she started making phone calls and she arranged their trip to the United States and the family went into the Rebbe's office and the mother immediately started to sob uncontrollably. Now, I'm going to put up the current Arabian Israel sneers in just a moment. But I'm glad that the 17th Hebrew letter of pay deals like a mouth. And it's a speaker because it teaches us to be able to listen. But also as we speak, And when we look at this, we see this story of this little girl that all of a sudden for 15 years could speak. But after that, she lost all ways of communication. And all the doctors said she had no vocal cords. The Rebbe is someone like a rabbi, but he is more holier and is one that instructs all the others. So the rebbe asked the parents to leave the room so that he could speak to that little girl alone. And he said to her as she was listening, I know that you're intelligent and I know that you appreciate what I have to say. In your previous incarnation, you did many things that were not very good. What they were isn't important, but what is important is to know that it was decreed in heaven that your punishment was to come down to this world and be born mute. However, because you were blessed with great and holy forebears for their merits. You were given 15 years of speech. From now on, you will not be able to speak unless you agree to use your mouth, the pay, to talk to other children. and about keeping Shabbos. If you agree to do this, you'll once again speak. So do you agree to do this? And he put her right on the spot and he began to ask her, you know, will you do this? And I mean, to bring it to that very, very point. Will you do this? And so I thank God, the little girl, she came right out. And as he said, I want you to make a commitment that do we have a deal? And he began to drive it home to her. And as soon as he said that, do we have a deal? And the girl opened her mouth and out came the word, yes. To this day, that girl is now a grown woman that gathers children together every Shabbos to speak to them about the sanctity of the day. the Hebrew mysticism and the study of the Hebrew alphabet, the letter of the pave represents both speech and silence. I'm glad that when we look at this, it collaborates in John 17, the symbolism of speech and silence that's interpreted in various ways. Speech, the pave represents the power of speech and communication and expression. And Jesus communicates with God as the great intercessor through prayer, speaking his desires and concerns openly. And I'm glad that the page symbolizes silence as well. One can listen attentively. to the divine, reflecting on the truths and the meanings that come with it, praise God, through prayer and meditation to connect with the spiritual realm, amen. And so I'm glad that when we look at this, we see how the letter of the 17th chapter of John and the 17th letter of the Hebrew alphabet, Peh, begins to correlate all of this together. The design of the Peh is the mouth with the tooth emerging from its upper jaw. Here is the Rebbe that's there today in Israel. When you go to Israel, You'll see his picture posted all over Israel because he is one that is close in with God according to their belief that he's even more of an instructor, of a teacher, than even the rabbis are. He is the one that is the holiest and the closest to the presence of God in the nation of Israel. And so I'm glad that when we look here in John chapter 17, the longest recorded prayer that Jesus ever offered during his public ministry on earth. It takes three minutes to read, but I'm glad that you know what? the veil is drawn aside and we're ushered into the holy of holies and listen if you please we are in the presence of our great high priest Jesus Christ he makes intercession for you and I we're humbled and hushed as we get to listen in on this wonderful prayer by the great intercessor this is the 25th this series of John chapter 17 verses 1 through 26 of the of the identity or deity of Christ April the 10th here we see in the word the second of Nissan 5784 now let me double-check myself on that Yes, I'm telling you right on that the second of Nisan, 5784 of the Hebrew calendar. Here are the longest of the Lord's prayers and the four gospels as well as the only one that states that they have a prayer that is prayed with the disciples. Now, Christ took all of the human burden of sorrow as well as all the poisonous sting of death and would channel eternal life for all humanity through the cross of Calvary. Here is one of the most powerful prayers that I thank God that he speaks with the Heavenly Father before the hour that he gives his life a wraps in for all of the human race in the world. Praise God. And so I'm glad when we look at John Knox, we see that he said the Scottish reformer and founder of the Presbyterian in Scotland, John chapter 17, John Knox read it over and over again. And on his deathbed, his wife asked him where he wanted her to read. And he said, read where I first put my anchor down in John chapter 17. This is a very powerful, powerful chapter. And I pray that as a teacher, that you listen closely to this message because this Bible study is very, very powerful. Now, you know, as we look at prayer, the first step to take when you get in God's presence is to be still. The second step is to be still some more. And then you begin to listen. Then you begin to hear his voice. And then you begin to experience his powerful presence. Amen. Partaking in Jesus's life reflects his teaching, his character, his example, and here are some ways to do just that. We study his word, we spend time reading the Bible, amen, and so we pray and cultivate a personal relationship with Jesus, and I'm glad that we follow His example and we strive with our behavior in our daily lives. Amen. And so these are some of the many ways that we do this, that we fellowship, we sacrifice and surrender our own desires and comforts for the sake of others and for God's kingdom. We surrender our will to God's will, seeking to align our life with his purpose and his plans, praise God, and we remain in him. We stay connected to Jesus as a source of our life and strength, praise God. Now, silence is not empty. Listen to me. It's full of answers. You know, if you was to watch a movie today, you're seeing the final result of thousands of hours of hard work invested in a wide array of elements, special effects, editing, background music, sound mixing, CGI enhancement, and color correction, just to name a few. You can take an actor and they can make him look younger or actress than they really are. by the technology that they have. These techniques are all built on the raw material of the real essence of the film. But the actor's performance captured on the camera during the production of a movie, each day's work is quickly developed, it's synced to sound, delivered to the director the following day. These are called dailies. And the director watches them, usually with a film crew, in order to evaluate the day's footage. And he ensures that there are going to be no problems, because when he does this, he wants to make sure there's no technical problems, that the director is satisfied with the scene. These dailies are typically unimpressive by themselves because no technical wizardry, no added music, no enriched color, just actors repeating their lines and playing their parts. But in these dailies that are reviewed, that make or break a film, that's how powerful they can be. You could spend a zillion dollars on the special effects and all of the studio tricks. But if the dailies aren't good, neither will the film be good. Life works the same way. There's a big picture, a specific direction that you want your life to take. No doubt you hope that it all adds up to something that's meaningful. But a great life cannot be manufactured in a post-production. No, sir. No, ma'am. It can only take place in the dailies where someone is reviewing and looking over the details of the raw material of your life. It can only take place in these dailies. If you don't get it then, you won't see it in the final cut in the coming days because the event of your life may not be that impressive when viewed a few frames at a time. Maybe you don't think you're doing a whole lot. Maybe you're rougher and harder on yourself than anyone else is. But listen, it's the discipline that you establish. It's the good habits that you practice day in and day out that can make your life an Oscar winning epic. This Bible is designed to help every one of us maximize the dailies, giving life the best performance every morning, noon and night. And if you're not in the Word of God, if you're not praying, you're missing out on something that's really powerful. You need to get involved. In this prayer, our Lord reveals four marvelous blessings that we have as his children, and it empowers us and it gives us power to triumph. When we look at this, we see, first of all, out of these four marvelous blessings in this prayer that our Lord reveals, we partake in his life and John. Now, what happens? The Lord prays for himself, but we partake in that life, each and every one of us, because he's the faithful son and he's the fruitful son. What he asked, he says, glorify your son. But why he asked it, so he can give glory back to you. And I'm glad that that faithful son that's fruitful, he has given eternal life to all of us of the elect, and he has completed his assignment. So we partake in his life. And so, when we look at this, we're reminded, praise God, that what the Lord is going to do for us, amen, in this prayer is that we look and realize that here as the disciples and all, as they begin to come together, it's believed that this prayer took place in the upper room. When I was in Jerusalem, We had the most magnificent, powerful singing and time when we were in the upper room. But some are not sure whether this prayer took place right in the upper room or why he was coming out of the upper room and headed to the Garden of Gethsemane that this prayer was taking place. But whether he prayed in the upper room or in route to the garden, this much is sure. It is the greatest prayer ever prayed on earth and is the greatest prayer recorded anywhere in scripture here in John chapter 17. It's the holy of holies of the gospel record. And I'm glad that we look and realize what a privilege it is to get into this. We partake in his life. Father, as we open up the word of God, I pray for Lynn Lanier and her pain. I pray for Rusty. I pray, Lord, for our friend that has cancer, Lord, of Brother Jeff, his friend. I pray, Lord, for our pastor's safe return back from their trip and pastor's wife, Amy, and Lord, for all that are lost that need salvation. Lord, I pray that you'll do a great work. Lord, I pray that you'll speak to our hearts. all of us, and God as my role is, Lord, trying to take your word and expound on it that it'll begin to, Lord, go out and begin to do a great work in the life of the body of Christ. May we work alongside all of our other brothers and sisters. May we work alongside the pastor, Lord. May we work alongside all of our other body of Christ and do all that we can, Father, to reach the lost before it's too late. And so Lord, we look to you in this John chapter 17, the Lord to show us some wonderful things of your word in Jesus' marvelous mighty name. Amen. And so I'm glad that when we look at this, when we apply the truths revealed in this profane prayer, It will enable every one of us. It will reveal some marvelous blessings as the children of God and as we are empowered. He prayed for himself, but he also began to pray for his disciples. When we look at this, we partake in his life. In verses 1 through 5, the Savior prays for himself. I'm glad that life is sprinkled with crucial hours and moments where we might say, you know what? It's time. It may be the wonderful hour of your wedding where the groom takes responsibility for someone's life other than his own and the bride leaves her home and comes into his and makes a lifetime commitment where they raise a family. Your hour may be the hour of your graduation. You have completed your studies and a new chapter of your career begins in your life. Someday though, you may face the hour of your death when you slip into eternity either arriving on the golden shores of heaven or engulfed in the flames of an eternal hell burning forever and ever where the worm dies not and the fire is not quenched but Jesus says to his father in this prayer he comes about and he says it's time The hour has come. This is the seventh and the final time that Jesus refers to this hour, because in this hour, the Son of God would end the work of his earthly life by his death. In this hour, the dread of Satan's vengeance would be unleashed into full fury upon the life of Jesus Christ. In this hour, the wrath of man's wickedness would come and foam to the surface, exploding the violence of man's corruption without Christ in his heart and proven without the Lord that we're the children of darkness. In this hour, the messianic prophecies birthed in the Old Testament, beginning with Genesis in 315, would be fulfilled, and the serpent would bruise the heel of the woman's seed, and the spiritual picture that is sprinkled through the entire Old Testament would be fulfilled right here. Why? Because the nod of the scarlet thread which is the picture of the blood of Christ, will be found his hour of death, like the rays of the sun that tunnel through the charcoal storm clouds over the fields across America, and the sunshine of Christ's glory that will shine forth through the ebony of man's evil. Here in this hour, Christ's love would be confirmed. When we look, we see that the Savior, as he prays for himself, This faithful son and this fruitful son, we see what he does. These words, Jesus lifted up his eyes to heaven and said, Father, notice the hour is come. Glorify thy son that thy son also may glorify thee. I'm glad that when he gets done, he says it's paid in full. I'm glad to send out of the believers in Christ, hallelujah, as the just would die for the unjust, and I'm glad the lovely one would die for the unlovely. Jesus asked God the Father, glorify thy son. He was looking ahead at the cross, and the cross was the glory of Jesus because he was never more magnificent and majestic than his death, praise God. And so the cross was the completion of his earthly ministry. And I'm glad that his race and life as the cross begins to demonstrate everything of the love of God that he was willing to do and suffer for our salvation and redemption. Praise God. There is no limit to God's love for us. The cross showed what men thought of Christ and the resurrection showed us. Hallelujah. what God thought of his son. The cross was the worst that men could do to Jesus, but it was the best that Jesus could do for all men. Man's worst could not conquer Christ. Woo! Thank God, hallelujah. The resurrection glory shattered the rejection and the rebellion of the cross. Rising from the grave, Jesus proved once and for all that he was the Son of God. Jesus glorifies his Father. And I'm glad when we look at this, we begin to realize of all the things that we see as the great intercessor, that he's finished his work. Amen. I'm glad that every one of us, when we look and we begin to realize that eternal life is not something that we earn by our character or conduct. It is a gift that we receive by admitting that we're sinners. and repenting and believing on Jesus Christ and Jesus Christ alone. The father answered the son's request and he gave him the glory. And there is in heaven today a glorified man, the God man, Jesus Christ, because he has been glorified in heaven. And you know what? All of us sinners were saved on earth. Anyone that trusts Jesus Christ will receive the gift of eternal life. Amen. And so I'm glad that when we look at this, we begin to see the great intercessor himself, because Jesus looks up to heaven and he prays, asking God to glorify him so that he can glorify God. Amen. And so What he asked, amen, is glorify thy son. And why he asked it, that thy son also may glorify thee, praise God. There we see, he goes on, as thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him, praise God. He goes on, and this is life eternal, that they might know thee, the only true God and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent and so we see eternal life we see life eternal we partake in his life by doing this amen and so we see that that the faithful son and the fruitful son of Jesus as he prays has given eternal life to all of the elect Right here is something that's powerful that he's given all of us of the elect born into the family of God the power over flesh and Eternal life that he's given to us a man that we might know the only true God and I'm glad Jesus whom thou sent he said Here I have glorified thee on the earth. I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do. And so I'm glad that Jesus declares that he has brought glory to God on earth by completing the work God gave him. But he goes on and he says he has completed his assignment. And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thy own self, with the glory which I had with thee before the world was. And I'm glad that when we look at this, Jesus has God to restore him to the glory that he had before the world existed. Amen. I'm glad our Lord began this prayer by praying for himself, but in praying for himself, he was also praying for us. And I'm glad that when we look and begin to realize that the glory that he talks about the word glory that's used. He's referring to the pre-incarnate glory with the father, the glory that he laid aside when he came to earth to be born, to serve, to suffer, and to die. And that's what he's talking about in verse 5. But in verse 4, he reported to the father that his life and ministry on earth had glorified him because Jesus himself had finished the work the father gave him to do. But then in verse 1, Our Lord asked that his pre-incarnate glory be given to him again so that the son might glorify the father in his return to heaven. And I'm glad every one of us Calvary was a revolting display of man's sin, but from the divine point of view, The cross revealed and magnified the grace and the glory of God. Amen. And so the work was finished. Amen. An eternal, everlasting life that was given. Praise God. And so I'm glad that many of us, when we go through life today, we look and we realize that Many of us today are still trying to finish up some things and Christ had finished his ministry and he had completed everything. There's a boy that was failing in college work and he wired his mother and he said, I failed everything, prepare Papa. And his mother wired that boy back and said, Papa's prepared, now you better prepare yourself. This is the message that a lot of us need in view of the judgment seat of Christ. God's prepared. We need to prepare ourselves by making each day count for the Lord and we all have a divine appointment one day with him. May it be a pleasant time and not filled with grief because we many have wasted our lives away For we all must appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that everyone may receive the things done in his body according to that he hath done, whether it be good or whether it be bad. Amen. And so we partake in his life. Praise God. Hallelujah. And so what he asked here is glorify thou me as he did in verse one. Here we see not only that we partake in his life. Amen. As Jesus prays to the Father, acknowledging his name and expressing his relationship with the disciples, here's how we can understand and apply this message. We've got to recognize Jesus' authority and identity. Amen. And not only that, But we all need to receive his teachings. Jesus entrusted all to his disciples. Amen. And so as he entrusted those disciples with the teachings and words that the Father had given him, we can acknowledge his name by receiving his teachings and applying to them to our lives. Amen. Studying the Bible, meditating on the words, seeking to live those. We've got to experience his presence. Jesus prayed that his disciples would be kept in the Father's presence, amen. And so when we look at that and begin to realize that as we receive all of these things, amen, and we experience his presence, amen, as the disciples did, that the unity and the oneness that Jesus prayed for his disciples that they and the Father are one. We can acknowledge his name by striving for unity and harmony among believers. Amen. And so protection and preservation that he prayed for us and for the disciples as well. We partake in his life. But we secondly look that we acknowledge his name in verses 6 through 12. That when we look and we begin to realize that as we acknowledge his name, praise God, and we begin to realize that as we do that. We begin to make a big difference because as we acknowledge his name and begin to look back and begin to realize what the Lord is going to do in our life, we get to the scripture of it that it tells us of his name. And that is, as we acknowledge his name, the Savior is praying for his disciples still. Jesus reviews his ministry. And he says, I have manifested thy name under the men which thou gavest me out of the world. Thine they were, and thou gavest them me, and they have kept thy word, amen. And so here he says, now they have known that all things whatsoever thou hast given me are of thee. He tells us that Jesus acknowledges that he has received or revealed God to his followers who were given to him by God and they have obeyed God's word. Amen. But secondly, Jesus states that his followers understand that everything that has come from God and no one else. And so he reveals the father to them in verses six and seven. As we acknowledge his name in the prayer that's being prayed. Then in verse 8 he says, For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me, and they have received them, and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me. Here we see the Father's words that are given to them. to the disciples themselves. Amen. And so Jesus affirms that they accepted the words God gave him, recognizing that Jesus came from God and believed that God sent him. Praise God. And so we see that he tells us, I pray for them. I pray not for the world, but for them which thou has given me, for they are thine. And I'm glad that when we look at this. Here, we're told. that Jesus specifies that he prays for his followers as they belong to God, amen. And then he goes on, he said, and all mine are thine and thine are mine and I am glorified in them. Jesus declares that everything that he has belongs to God and through his followers, he has received that glory. He has prayed for them in verses 9 and 10. And so Jesus began to review his ministry because here the Savior prays for his disciples. And as he reviews his ministry for the disciples, here in verses six and seven he has revealed the father to them amen he's given the father's words to them and he has prayed for them and then i'm glad as we move on further he's going to do a little bit more for because jesus asked that the father as we go forward that is he prays for disciples and now i am no more in the world but these are in the world and i come to thee holy father keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me that they may be one as we are." It's that unity that he's praying for. Jesus asks that the Father as he says here that he asked for the Father to unify them. This is his request that he makes known that you see down in verse 11. But then Jesus has a report that he asked as well, because we read as he unifies them, while I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name. Notice, we acknowledge his name. I kept them in thy name. Those that thou gavest me, I have kept, and none of them is lost. Listen, but the son of perdition." Who? Judas is. That the scripture might be fulfilled because he has kept all the disciples safe with the exception of Judas. Judas made the choice that he made. He could have changed in that room when they were having the communion, but he didn't. In war, I tell you, he said, go and do what you got to do. And he chose to betray the Lord. And so when we look at this, we see that Jesus asked the father to keep them safe, except Judas. Amen. And so we see that we partake in his life. Verses one through five. And I'm glad that we also see the prayer that Jesus, that we acknowledge his name in verses six through 12. But thirdly, we possess his word. And I'm glad in verses 13 through 19, that as Jesus prays for the Father, for his disciples, asking for the protection, sanctification, and unity, that here that we apply this and as we receive his word, amen. And I'm glad that as we continue to guard his word, as for his disciples to be kept in the Father's name, amen, and do all of these things, I'm glad that we look and realize that as we go through the sanctification, Jesus prays for disciples to be sanctified or set apart in the truth. that we can possess his word by allowing it to transform us and conform us to his likeness. That involves surrendering to the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives, allowing him to convict us of sin, purify our hearts, empower us to live according to God's will. But then we've got a mission and purpose. And Jesus sends all of us into the world just as he did the disciples, that we possess his word by embracing our mission and our purpose as his followers. and that involves sharing the message of the gospel, making disciples, being an ambassador of Christ's love and grace to the world, and then that unity and oneness that Jesus prays for his disciples to be one. Just as he and the Father are one, we can possess his word by striving for unity, for harmony, and among believers. This involves cultivating a relationship built on love, humility and so I'm glad that when we move on we possess his word amen in verses 13 through 19 DL Moody said one thing he said listen he said that when he wrote this in the front of his Bible he said this book will keep you from sin or sin will keep you from this book we are to be challenged and changed by the Bible And I'm glad that each and every one of us in the unbeaten tracks of Japan, Isabella L. Byrd relates a remarkable instance of the power of scriptures over criminals, a portion of the New Testament. The only parts then translated and printed in Japanese were given to the keeper of the prison at Atsu, a place in the interior of Japan. And beyond the reach of the missionary instruction, the officer of the prison gave it to a scholarly convict incarcerated for manslaughter. And so as the story goes, as he gave this to that time past, and nothing was heard from this precious gift of the word of God that was given to that scholarly convict. It seemed to have been thrown away on some of these heathen men in Japan, but not so fast. A fire finally broke out in the Atsu prison in Japan, and here was an opportunity that would be thought of all the hundreds of prisoners to escape As they begin to look at them to see if they would attempt to make an escape, every one of them helped put out the flames and volunteer remained to serve the rest of their punishment. Such an honorable conduct mystified all of the authorities and they led them to a careful investigation. While they went into this investigation, they developed the fact that the manslaughter person that was teaching the word of God had become so impressed with the truth of Christianity by studying the scriptures which the officer had given him that he had embraced the life-giving truth of the gospel and devoted himself to teaching his fellow prisoners and thus the power of the word of God changed these men and the circumstances led to the release of a manslaughter a scholar but he preferred to remain in Atsu that he might teach more of the gospel to the prisoners and God's word changed us and it changes us to be like him. Unfortunately though, many Christians are not doing what they should with the Bible. They fail to understand the power of God's word in their own lives. Mahatma Gandhi spoke forcefully to Christians when he said, you Christians have and you're keeping a document with enough dynamite in it to blow the whole world of civilization to bits, to turn society upside down, to bring peace to this war-torn world, but you read it as if you were just good literature and nothing else. Boy, I'm going to tell you, that's sad. That's how the world is today. But when we continue on, the Savior prays for his disciples. Jesus asks the Father, and now come I to thee and these things I speak in the world that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves. Here we look and we begin to realize that he asks that the Father impart joy to them. Notice that joy that is fulfilled, praise God. And I'm glad that as he imparts that joy, I have given them thy word and the world have hated them because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Remember, we possess his word. Boy, what a power that we have when we possess his word. And so when we look at verse 14, he has given the father words to them. that he's praying amen he goes on and we see in verse 15 i pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil and so they are not of the world even as i am not of the world uh other words he prays for the father protect them but i'm glad that we go on and he says sanctify them through thy truth thy word is truth remember we possess his word and so I'm glad that when we look at the 17th, We're reminded, amen, that he asked the Father to sanctify them, amen, to be able to set themselves aside to be what they ought to be, to do the work and the ministry of the Lord that he sanctifies them. Then in verse 18, as thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world, amen. Here he sent them out to do the work of the Lord, of God's truth, amen. I'm glad that God's truth There's three additions to that. His word is truth in John 17, 17. His son is the truth in John 14, 16, and his spirit is the truth in 1 John 5, 6. We need all three if we're to experience the true sanctification, a sanctification that touches every part of our inner person. With the mind, we learn God's truth. Through the word, with the heart, We love God's truth, his son. So with the will, we yield to the spirit and we live God's truth day by day. How can we be overcome by the world when we have the word of God to enlighten us and enable us and to encourage us, despite having the word of God to enlighten and all this encouragement, believers can still be overcome by the world due to a couple of things. If you neglect the scriptures, look out. You don't study, you don't meditate on the word. Oh my goodness, you won't have any spiritual insight. You won't have any strength that's needed to resist the worldly influences to be effective. Amen. You won't have the wisdom found in scripture. You'll be vulnerable to the world. Then there's selective application. There's a lot of folks says, I'm going to select what I believe. I like this what the pastor said, but I don't like this what the pastor says. You know what? There's people out there that they may fail to apply its teachings consistently to all the areas of the lives because if they selectively apply God's word based on personal preferences or cultural, Rather than aligning their lives fully with the biblical principles, they leave room for all of these worldly attitudes and behaviors to creep in. Also, if you neglect spiritual warfare, we're engaged in battle with unseen forces of darkness. And the enemy, Satan, seeks to deceive, distract, discourage, using temptation, pressures to undermine our faith and commitment to Christ, and without vigilance and reliance on the power of God's word, we can be swayed by these spiritual attacks. Worldly influences exert us pressures, values, ideologies that infiltrate us and our lives, compromise our commitment to Christ, and we prioritize worldly pursuits conformed to all of the cultural norms and all of the things that unbelievers that they partake in. Weakness of the flesh, of being born Again, in Christ, believers still struggle with a sinful nature, a no sinful fleshly nature, all the way back from Adam, according to Romans chapter 7, because the desires of the flesh often conflict with the desires of the Spirit, leading all of us to worldly temptations and engaging in behaviors contrary to God's Word without that reliance on the Holy Spirit. and the truths of scripture believers we may yield to the desires of the flesh and be overcome by the world and so God equips all of us to resist and overcome these influences that we remain biblically in the word of God and the power of the Holy Spirit guarding against these things amen and so we see in verse 19 And for their sakes, I sanctify myself that they also may be sanctified through the truth. Amen. Here he has sent himself apart for their sanctification. Amen. That they're able to do these things that he asked for them. Amen. And so as this continues on, we see this prayer reveals some marvelous blessings. First, that we partake in his life in verses 1 through 5. Secondly, that we acknowledge his name in verses 6 through 12. Then, we possess his word in verses 13 through 19. But lastly, we partake in his glory. In verses 20 down to verse 26, Jesus prays for the future believers, including us asking for unity, love, sharing his glory, that we can understand and apply by partaking in his glory. Unity in the body of Christ. Jesus prays for all of us to be unified. Amen. And so I'm glad that we set aside our differences and work together in love and mutual respect. Praise God. Oh, so we have a belief uh in Jesus as Jesus desires that future believers would believe in him through the message proclaimed by his disciples that we partake in his glory by placing our faith and trust in Jesus as our savior and lord and accepting his sacrifice for our sins surrendering our lives to him and following him faithfully. Then we acknowledge, have the knowledge of God's love that Jesus praised for believers to know and experience that love that the Father has for him. We partake in that glory by growing in our knowledge, experience of God's love for us. That involves spending time in prayer, meditation on God's word, allowing his love to transform our hearts and lives. And then we share in Jesus's glory because Jesus promises to share his glory with all believers, revealing the Father's love to them. we can partake in his glory by experiencing the fullness of his presence and the blessing of his kingdom in all eternity. Praise his mighty name. And so, verse 20, neither pray I for these alone, but for them also, which shall believe on me through their word. There it is again. I'm glad we partake in his glory though, he says, that they all may be one as thou Father are in me and I in thee, that they also may be one in us. And so, I'm glad, he goes on in verse 22, and the glory which thou gavest me, I have given them, that they may be one even as we are one. Amen. And so, Father, Jesus asks that the Father unify the churches, what he's saying, then, Jesus asks that the church honor the Son right here. And I'm glad that here he says in verse 20, I in them and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one and that the world may know that thou has sent me and has loved them as thou has loved me. Here, Jesus asks that the church display God's love. And I'm glad that's what we should be doing every time that we come together in the house of the Lord. Amen. And so as we get ready to close out, as the Savior prays for his church. Verse 24, Father, I will that they also whom thou hast given me be with me where I am, that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me for thou lovest me before the foundation of the world. I'm glad that we can partake in his glory. Amen. And so I'm glad that when we do that as followers of Christ, and as we begin to partake of that glory, God begins to give us some of the greatest blessing. Our Lord focuses our attention on the future, and he begins to pray for us who live today for the whole church throughout all ages. And he's prayed about our security, our sanctity, And now the burden of his prayer is unity. And he is concerned that his people experience spiritual unity, that we have the oneness of the Father and the Son, that we belong, all of us, to different fellowships, but we all belong to the Lord and to each other. And the disciples had exhibited a spirit of selfishness and completion and competition and disunity that must have broken the Savior's heart. But here he feels that when he sees the condition of the church today, I'm glad that he'll be able to relate and know that we're doing everything that we can in the unity and the work of the Lord Jesus Christ, because we partake in his glory. Goes on, the church enjoys Christ's glory in heavens forever is what he's telling us. And oh, so, oh, righteous father, the world hath not known thee, but I have known thee and these have known that thou hast sent me. And I have declared unto them thy name and will declare it that the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them and I in them." I'm glad we see here that true unity. Here, Jesus asked that the church experience God's love. Boy, I'm glad when we look at this. Here, we realize the great intercessor himself on all of our behalf, amen. You know what? There was a soldier in the Union Army, a young man that had lost his older brother and his father in the war. And he went to Washington, D.C. to see the President Lincoln to ask for an exemption from military service so that he could go back, help his sister and mother with the spring planting on the farm. And when he arrived in Washington after having received a furlough from the military to go and plead his case, He went to the White House, approached the doors, asked to see the president. However, he was told, you can't see the president. Don't you know? There's a war on. The president is a very busy man. Now go away, son, and get back to the fight that you're supposed to. So he left. He was disheartened. He was sitting on a little park bench. I know because I've been to the White House, and I've been through the White House. that I was invited there back years ago to eat. And I thank God as a soldier that won a place to do a plane trip to the White House through my military career. And I'm not bragging on myself. I know the Lord had a reason for me to be able to go and see all of those things and go and see the Missonian Institute and see all the sites in the White House of how things was so that I'd know the concept of later on of how things go as a man of God. And I'm going to tell you, this man was disheartened. As he said on that little park bench, a little boy came up to him And the boy said, soldier, you look unhappy. What's wrong? And that soldier looked at this young boy and began to spill his heart out to this young little kid about his situation, about his father, about his brother having died in the war and how he was the only male left in the family and was needed desperately back at the farm for the spring planting. And that little boy took that soldier by the hand and he led him around to the back of the White House. And they went through the back door, past the guards, past all the generals and the high ranking government officials until they got into the president's office itself. And that little boy didn't even knock on the door, but just opened it and walked in there. There was President Lincoln with his Secretary of State and looking there during this time, Amen, that all of the discussion that was going on with this, the President, Amen. And so how remarkable this was that this little boy could go right in and take him right in past all of the guards and everybody else that was taking place, Amen. And so what an amazing thing, because as this was taking place, about the hardship of this man as he gave access to him through the son. I'm glad that we look and we realize that here was the son of the president. And I'm glad that as they came in and passed all of these ones looking over the battle plans on the desk, President Lincoln looked up and said, what can I do for you, Todd? And Todd said, Daddy, This soldier needs to talk to you." And right then and there, the soldier had a chance to plead his case to President Lincoln, and he was exempt from military service due to the hardship that he was under. Such is the case with our Ascended Lord. We have access to the Father through the Son. It is the Son that brings us to the Father's throne and says, Daddy, here's someone who wants to talk to you, and I'm glad that back in verse nine, pray for them. I pray not for the world, but for them which thou has given me, for they are thine. We live in a very divided time. A unified church is a powerful witness to the world. But you know what? Of all the things as Christians, we can be pulled into unintentional conflicts with brothers and sisters in Christ. And Jesus prayed that we might be unified. that we reach out to all our fellow believers, that we look and try to come together and solve things and do things together. Amen. What did he pray about at that very important moment? I'm glad he prayed for himself in verses 1-5, then he prayed for his disciples in 6-19, and then he prayed for the church and future followers in verses 6-26. He prayed for those who would eventually believe because of the words spoken through those early disciples. This is a remarkable word spoken by Jesus who was spoken through his disciples to others who continued to this very day until it reached you and me Jesus prayed for us, Lord, that we're so grateful for what he's done. Let's pray. Father, I want to thank you for all that you have done for us, what you have given to us, Lord. You have blessed us with one of the greatest blessings of a prayer that you pray for all of us. Now, Lord, take this message. May it find a lodging place in the heart of someone. And may it speak to them what we have through this powerful prayer of our Savior on our behalf that pray for all of us to be unified, sanctified, and to come together in Jesus' marvelous mighty name. Amen. God bless you because we can all partake in his life, acknowledge his name, possess his word, and partake in his glory. May God bless you.