Matthew 6:9-13 - After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom
come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive
our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory,
forever. Amen.
The Sermon for This Week is: The Greatest Prayer Ever Prayed - John 17:1-26 - These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven,
and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee: As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should
give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him. And this is life eternal, that they might
know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. I have glorified thee
on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do. And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the
world was. I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world:
thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word. Now they have known
that all things whatsoever thou hast given me are of thee. 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. I
pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine. And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them. 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. While
I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but
the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled. And now come I to thee; and these
things I speak in the world, that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves.
I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even
as I am not of the world. I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them
through thy truth: thy word is truth. As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I
also sent them into the world. And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might
be sanctified through the truth. Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall
believe on me through their word; That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world
may believe that thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them;
that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made
perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me. 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 lovedst me before the foundation of the world. O
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.
INTRODUCTION
1. “Some brethren pray by the yard; but true prayer is measured by weight, and not by length.”
- Charles Spurgeon
2. This statement is true, for the greatest prayer ever prayed is recorded in John 17...
a. It takes about six minutes to reverently read it aloud
b. There may not be much length, but there is certainly a great depth and weight!
3. Though there are approximately 650 prayers recorded in the Bible...
a. Not one of them can match our Lord’s “High Priestly Prayer” in John 17
b. Nor can any prayer recorded outside the Bible
[What is it about this prayer that makes it so great? At least four reasons can be given. From (John
17:1 - These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour
is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee:)
we learn it is great because of...]
I. THE PERSON WHO OFFERED THE PRAYER
A. JESUS; REVEALED IN THIS GOSPEL AS...
1. He who was with God in the beginning - John 17:1 - These words spake Jesus, and lifted up
his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify
thee:
2. He who was God - John 1:1 “glorify thy Son, that thy Son also
may glorify thee”
3. He who was in the beginning with God - John 1:2 - The same was in the beginning with God.
4. He who was the Creator of all things - John 1:3 - All things were made by him; and without
him was not any thing made that was made.
5. He was the light of men - John 1:4 - In him was life; and the life was the light of
men.
6. He who became flesh and dwelt among men - John 1:14 - And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt
among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
B. JESUS, PROCLAIMED IN THIS GOSPEL AS...
1. The Word - John 1:1 - In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word
was God. - John 1:14 - And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory
as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
2. The Lamb of God - John 1:29 - The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold
the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.
3. The Son of God - John 1:34 - And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God.
4. The King of Israel - John 1:49 - Nathanael answered and saith unto him, Rabbi, thou art the
Son of God; thou art the King of Israel.
5. The promised Messiah - John 4:25-26 - The woman saith unto him, I know that Messias
cometh, which is called Christ: when he is come, he will tell us all things. Jesus saith unto her, I
that speak unto thee am he.
6. The Bread of Life - John 6:35 - And Jesus said unto them, I am the
bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.
7. The Light Of the World - John 8:12 - Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.
8. The Great “I Am” - John 8:56-58 - Your father Abraham
rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad.
Then said the Jews unto him, Thou art not yet fifty years old, and hast thou seen Abraham? Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.
9. The Good Shepherd - John 10:11 - I am the good shepherd: the good
shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.
10. The Resurrection and The Life - John 11:25 - Jesus said unto her, I
am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:
[The prayer in Jn 17 is great because the greatest Person who ever lived is the One who offered
it! It is also great because of...]
II. THE OCCASION THAT DEMANDED THE PRAYER
A. OCCASIONS PROVIDE WEIGHT TO WORDS...
1. Neil Armstrong said, “That’s one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind.”
a. If he had made the statement while playing hopscotch with the neighborhood children, nobody would have
paid him attention
b. He made it as he stepped down from his spacecraft, the first man to walk on the moon
2. The situation helped give weight to his words!
B. THE OCCASION SURROUNDING THIS PRAYER...
1. Notice His first words: “Father, the hour has come” - John 17:1 - These words
spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son,
that thy Son also may glorify thee:
2. What ‘hour’ is that?
a. His appointment with the cross - cf. John 16:31-32 - Jesus answered them, Do ye now believe? Behold, the hour cometh, yea, is now come, that ye shall be scattered,
every man to his own, and shall leave me alone: and yet I am not alone, because the Father is with me.
b. A time of separation, betrayal, suffering, and crucifixion
c. A time in which God’s eternal purpose is about to be carried out
d. A time in which Jesus is about to bear the sins of the world on the cross!
[The occasion, in which Jesus knows His crucifixion is imminent, gives great weight to the words of His
prayer. Whatever preoccupied the mind of Jesus at this time must be very important! The prayer was also great because of...]
III. THE CONTENTS OF THE PRAYER
A. THIS PRAYER DEALS WITH GREAT THEMES...
1. It takes us back and forward in time
a. Back to eternity past - John 17:5 - And now, O Father, glorify thou
me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.
b. Forward into the future glory in heaven - John 17:24 - 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 lovedst me before the foundation of the world.
2. It deals with glory
a. The glory of the Father and the Son - John 17:1 - These words spake Jesus, and lifted up
his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify
thee:
b. The disciples glorifying God on earth - John 17:10 - And all mine
are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them.
c. The Son giving glory to His disciples - John 17:22 - And the glory
which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:
d. The disciples beholding the glory of the Son - John 17:24 - 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 lovedst me before the foundation of the world.
3. It discusses love
a. The Father’s love for believers - John 17:23 - I in them,
and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them,
as thou hast loved me.
b. The Father’s love for Jesus - John 17:23-24 - I in
them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved
them, as thou hast loved me. 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 lovedst me before the foundation of the world.
B. THIS PRAYER CONTAINS GREAT PETITIONS...
1. “Glorify Me” - John 17:1-5 - These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his
eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify
thee: As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as
many as thou hast given him. And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only
true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. I have glorified thee on the earth: I have
finished the work which thou gavest me to do. And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine
own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.
2. “Keep them” - John 17:6-12 - I have manifested thy name
unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word.
Now they have known that all things whatsoever thou hast given me are of thee. 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.
I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine.
And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them. 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. While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them
is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled.
3. “Sanctify them” - John 17:13-19 - And now come I to
thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves. I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the
world. I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest
keep them from the evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth. As thou hast
sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world. And for their sakes
I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.
4. “That they all might be one” - John 17:20-23 - Neither
pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; That
they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in
thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. And
the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: I
in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast
loved them, as thou hast loved me.
5. “That they may behold My glory” - John 17:24-26 - 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 lovedst me before the foundation of the world. O 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.
C. THIS PRAYER HAS THREE GREAT DIVISIONS...
1. Jesus prays for Himself - John 17:1-5 - These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to
heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee:
As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou
hast given him. And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and
Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the
work which thou gavest me to do. And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with
the glory which I had with thee before the world was.
2. Jesus prays for His disciples - John 17:6-19 - I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou
gavest them me; and they have kept thy word. Now they have known that all things whatsoever
thou hast given me are of thee. 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. I pray for them: I pray
not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine. And all mine
are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them. 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. While I was with them in the
world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition;
that the scripture might be fulfilled. And now come I to thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they might have
my joy fulfilled in themselves. I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them,
because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I pray not that thou shouldest
take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. They are not
of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is
truth. As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world.
And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.
3. Jesus prays for all believers - John 17:20-26 - Neither pray I for
these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; That they all
may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that
they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. And the glory
which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them,
and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them,
as thou hast loved me. 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 lovedst me before the foundation of the world.
O 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.
[Even a brief examination of its contents reveal the greatness of this prayer, and why it is worthy of
careful study. Finally, a fourth reason why this is the greatest prayer: because of...]
IV. THE VICTORY REVEALED IN THE PRAYER
A. THE CONCERN OF JESUS IS EVIDENT...
1. Pertaining to “the world” (used 19 times!) and the effect it can have on believers
2. A justifiable concern, for we live in a world which is:
a. Deceived (blinded by Satan) - cf. 1 John 2:15-17 - Love not the world, neither the
things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in
him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the
pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth
the will of God abideth for ever.
b. Dangerous (promises fulfillment, but will pass away) - cf. 1 John 2:15-17 - Love not
the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love
of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the
lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust
thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.
c. Defiled (defiling those who accept it) - cf. James 1:27 - Pure religion and undefiled
before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and
to keep himself unspotted from the world.
d. Divided (this is self-evident, especially in regards to religion)
B. YET JESUS HAS OVERCOME THE WORLD...
1. As He told His disciples prior to this prayer - cf. John 16:33 - These
things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer;
I have overcome the world.
2. In this prayer, the victory in Jesus is revealed! The world may be:
a. Deceived, but Jesus has shown us reality, in revealing the only true God - John 17:3
- And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ,
whom thou hast sent.
b. Dangerous, but Jesus provides security as we are kept in God’s name - John 17:11-12
- 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. While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest
me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled.
c. Defiled, but Jesus provides sanctification through God’s word - John 17:17 -
Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.
d. Divided, but Jesus offers unity through His glory - John 17:22 - And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:
CONCLUSION
1. These four reasons help us appreciate why Jesus’ prayer in Jn 17 has been called...
a. “The Greatest Prayer Ever Prayed”
b. “The High Priestly Prayer”
c. “The Lord’s Prayer” (not just that taught by Jesus in Matthew 6 and Luke
11)
2. It is indeed a great prayer...
a. But it is a prayer in behalf of those who are Jesus’ disciples
b. If you are not a disciple, Jesus’ prayer is that you first become one! - cf. Matthew 28:18-20
- And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in
earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and
of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded
you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the
world. Amen.
Then as disciples of Jesus Christ, we should do all that we can to see that “The Greatest Prayer
Ever Prayed” be fulfilled in our lives...!
Note: The main
idea and many points for this outline came from a book by Warren Wiersbe which I believe is now out of print.
Prayer:
Mark 16:15-16 - And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and
preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but
he that believeth not shall be damned. - Lord I truly thank
You for giving the opportunity to present these words to my brethrens. I pray that You will keep them in Your blessings and
accept them into Your heart - this I pray in the name of Thy Son, Jesus, the
Messiah, Your only begotten son which Ye sent to save mankind from themselves. Amen
Peace
be to the brethren, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Grace
be with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. Amen. - Ephesians 6:23-24
This sermon is in the Public Domain - Free for all to use with the only requirement: That it never
be used for profit.
