MONDAY
As we continue on in our campaign titled “The Lord will Fight for You” we are exploring some of the ways in which God fights for his people. Last week (Holy Week) we said that God fights for us by dying for us and rising (not rizing…thanks Andy) for us. In the cross he has fought for us by taking our sin upon himself and paying the penalty that we deserved. In the resurrection he fought for us by giving us his eternal life. This week we will see that God fights for us by preserving us in the faith.
In what is known as Jesus’ Hight Priestly Prayer in John 17 Jesus prays for his disciples:
John 17:11 (ESV) 11 And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one.
Jesus prays that the Father will “keep them in your name”. There are a few different components of this statement that we need to unpack. First, the verb keep carries the connotation of protect and is translated as such in the NIV. It means “to cause a state, condition or activity to continue. It means to keep something unharmed or undisturbed.
Remember, Jesus is praying this for his disciples…his disciples who all died brutal martyr’s deaths except for John who died exiled to the island of Patmos. Prior to martyrdom they were often imprisoned, beaten, and mocked. If Jesus means physical protection from harm this prayer wasn’t very effective.
So what does Jesus mean by keep here? The next phrase is vitally important for understanding Jesus’ meaning here—”in your name.” The Greek is vague as the preposition ev (pronounced ěn) can mean either refer to location (in the sphere of) or instrument (by). The NIV translates it as by and the ESV leaves it open for interpretation but steers toward the location. I think the ESV is right here. Jesus then is likely praying for the Father to keep his disciples in the sphere of Christ’s name amidst the persecutions from the world that are bound to come. In short, he is asking the Father to keep his disciples in the faith in the face of the world’s persecutions and life’s hardships. He is praying for them to remain Christians. The idea is similar to the Apostle Paul’s favorite description of Christians as “in Christ.”
I would argue that Jesus is completely successful at this. This is why Jesus notes that Judas is not included in this prayer when he says, “…not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction” in v. 12. Jesus is sure to note that Judas’s betrayal was not a failure on his part, but was instead a fulfillment of Scripture and God’s sovereign plan. This gets into the eternal security conversation. We will pick that up tomorrow and dig in a little deeper.
For today, this is Jesus’ last meal with his disciples before he goes to the cross. This is his last conversation with them before his death. He is here giving them comfort but also being real with them. He doesn’t sugar-coat the situation. He has protected them in his earthly ministry. Now he is leaving and things are about to tough for them. Jesus had been the object of the world’s scorn, now it will be the disciple’s turn to face the world in the physical at least. The world has hated Jesus and now it will hate them. The deck is stacked against his disciples so Jesus reassures them that he is interceding for their eternal security in the Father. He is praying for them and, therefore, they will be preserved. A few verses earlier Jesus has told them:
John 16:33 (NIV) 33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
As it was for the disciples, so it is with us. Jesus has overcome the world and he is now interceding for us.
Hebrews 7:25 (NIV) 25 Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.
Jesus fights for us by preserving us in the faith till the end. He is always interceding for us before the Father.
Reflection
It is a great comfort to know that someone is praying for you. Someone interceding with the Father on your behalf is one of the greatest gifts that we can give one another. The thought of Jesus interceding for you takes that to the next level. God in flesh is advocating for you. Just take a few moments today to let that truth sink in. Whatever is going on in your life hear Jesus say, “I am praying for you.”