John Bible Study - Lesson 44
Read the passage
below using the 2 different Bible translations:
John
17:20-26 New International Version (NIV)
Jesus Prays for All Believers
20 “My prayer is
not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their
message, 21 that all of them may be one, Father,
just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the
world may believe that you have sent me. 22 I have
given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— 23 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.
24 “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.
25 “Righteous
Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that
you have sent me. 26 I have made you[a] known to them, and will
continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in
them and that I myself may be in them.”
John
17:20-26 New Living Translation (NLT)
20 “I am praying
not only for these disciples but also for all who will ever believe in me
through their message. 21 I pray that they will all
be one, just as you and I are one—as you are in me, Father, and I am in you.
And may they be in us so that the world will believe you sent me.
22 “I have given
them the glory you gave me, so they may be one as we are one. 23 I
am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect unity that the
world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me. 24 Father,
I want these whom you have given me to be with me where I am. Then they can see
all the glory you gave me because you loved me even before the world began!
25 “O righteous
Father, the world doesn’t know you, but I do; and these disciples know you sent
me. 26 I have revealed you to them, and I will
continue to do so. Then your love for me will be in them, and I will be in
them.”
Note:
Here are the 3
questions for you to answer. I have given some basic answers below the
questions to help you understand the passage. Answer the questions first
yourself before you look at my answers. Take a moment before you begin and ask
God to help you understand what you are reading.
3
questions to answer:
1. Content: What
is this passage about?
2. Lesson: What
do I learn from this passage?
3. Application: How
can I apply what I have learned to my life?
Answers
to the questions above and some background:
Content: What is this passage about?
·
Jesus prays for all believers
Lesson: What
do I learn from this passage?
·
Jesus prays for all believers
·
Jesus prays for unity among all believers
The
Apostle Paul in his letter to the Ephesians also exhorts believers to be
unified:
Ephesians
4:3-6 Living Bible (TLB)
3 Try always to be
led along together by the Holy Spirit
and so be at peace with one another.
4 We are all parts
of one body, we have the same Spirit, and we have all been called to the same glorious
future. 5 For us there is only one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 and
we all have the same God and Father
who is over us all and in us all, and living through every part of us.
·
When Jesus prays He is also praying for people to believe
that He is the true Messiah sent to save His people.
·
I believe this prayer of Jesus continues with our generation.
We have lots of proof from God’s Word, God Himself, and testimony from many
people that Jesus really is the Messiah. Check
out this link below and look at all these prophecies that Jesus fulfilled: https://www.thoughtco.com/prophecies-of-jesus-fulfilled-700159
·
Jesus states that He has given His disciples the same glory
given to Him.
·
This glory Jesus speaks about is a special unity that unites believers
with the God head (Father, Son and Holy Spirit). Like a tree, Jesus is the vine and we are His branches.
In Him and through Him we can bear fruit and bring glory to God. The glory that
believers share is that they can bear fruit for God’s Kingdom when they remain connected
to the Vine, Jesus Christ:
John
15:1-8 New Living Translation (NLT)
Jesus, the True Vine
“I
am the true grapevine, and my Father is the gardener. 2 He
cuts off every branch of mine that doesn’t produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit
so they will produce even more. 3 You have already been pruned and purified
by the message I have given you.4 Remain
in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is
severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me.
5 “Yes, I am the
vine; you are the branches. Those who
remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can
do nothing. 6 Anyone who does not remain in me
is thrown away like a useless branch and withers. Such branches are gathered
into a pile to be burned. 7 But if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for
anything you want, and it will be granted! 8 When you produce much fruit, you are my true
disciples. This brings great glory to my Father.
·
Also,
believers are a new creation in Christ which can be deemed as a way believers
share in God’s glory:
2
Corinthians 5:17 New Living Translation (NLT)
17 This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a
new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!
Ephesians 4:22-24 New International Version (NIV)
22 You were taught, with regard to your
former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by
its deceitful desires; 23 to be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24 and
to put on the new self, created to be like God in true
righteousness and holiness.
So, if believers
are created to be like Christ then they share in His glory. But Christians know that if we share in His glory,
they will also share in Jesus’ suffering:
Romans
8:17 New Living Translation (NLT)
And
since we are his children, we are his heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God’s glory. But
if we are to share his glory, we must also share his suffering.
We need to understand
how Jesus suffered:
Jesus suffered severely throughout His trials,
torture, and crucifixion (. His suffering was physical: Isaiah 52:14 declares,
“There were many who were appalled at Him—His appearance was so disfigured
beyond that of any man and his form marred beyond human likeness.” His
suffering was emotional: “All the disciples deserted him and fled” (Matthew 26:56).
His suffering was spiritual: “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us” (2 Corinthians
5:21). Jesus had the weight of the sins of the entire world on Him (1 John 2:2).
It was sin that caused Jesus to cry out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken
me?” (Matthew 27:46).
Jesus’ brutal physical suffering was augmented by His having to bear the guilt
of our sins and die to pay our penalty (Romans 5:8).
(From Gotquestions.org)
Followers of
Jesus suffer because they bear His name and identity. And they know that the unbelieving world hates
Jesus and because of this Jesus tells them that they will be hated as well.
John
15:18-19 New Living Translation (NLT)
The World’s Hatred
18 “If the world hates you, remember that it
hated me first. 19 The world would love you as
one of its own if you belonged to it, but you
are no longer part of the world. I chose you to come out of the world, so it
hates you.
·
Again
we see those who share in Jesus’ glory also share in His suffering.
Here is the good
news about suffering for Christ:
Romans
5:1-5 New International Version (NIV)
Peace and Hope
Therefore,
since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with
God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom
we have gained access by faith into
this grace in which we now stand. And
we boast in the hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only so, but we also glory in our
sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character;
and character, hope. 5 And
hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out
into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.
James
1:2-5 New International Version (NIV)
Trials and Temptations
2 Consider
it pure joy,
my brothers and sisters, whenever you
face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4 Let perseverance finish
its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. 5 If any of you lacks
wisdom, you should ask God, who
gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.
John
16:33 New International Version (NIV)
“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 new creation in
Christ believers have received the glory that comes with the inheritance of
eternal life and the gift of faith. We are part of God’s glorious kingdom. We have
received the Holy Spirit. We are given spiritual gifts to use for God’s glory.
We are ambassadors for Christ.
John
3:5 New Living Translation (NLT)
5 Jesus
replied, “I assure you, no one can
enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit.
John
1:10-14 Living Bible (TLB)
10 But although he
made the world, the world didn’t recognize him when he came. 11-12 Even
in his own land and among his own people, the Jews, he was not accepted. Only a
few would welcome and receive him. But
to all who received him, he gave the right to become children of God. All
they needed to do was to trust him to
save them. 13 All those who believe this are reborn!—not a physical rebirth resulting
from human passion or plan—but from the will of God.
14 And Christ became
a human being and lived here on earth among us and was full of loving
forgiveness* and truth. And some of us have seen his glory*—the glory of the
only Son of the heavenly Father!*
Believers
have been given a special purpose which includes serving God, sharing the hope
they have and reflecting the love of Jesus and making an appeal to others to
become followers of Jesus.
2
Corinthians 5:17-20New International Version (NIV)
17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new
creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! 18 All
this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19 that
God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins
against them. And he has committed to us the message of
reconciliation. 20 We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making
his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be
reconciled to God.
Matthew
28:18-20 New International Version (NIV)
18 Then Jesus came
to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to
me. 19 Therefore
go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the
Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and
teaching them to obey everything I
have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end
of the age.”
Acts
1:8 New International Version (NIV)
But
you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in
Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
Jesus’
prayer includes these important statements:
·
“Father,
I want these whom you have given me to be with me where I am”
·
“your
love for me will be in them, and I will be in them”
Jesus
wants to be connected to His followers in a supernatural way and that is why
the Holy Spirit was given to His people when Jesus left to be with the Father
in heaven. The Holy Spirit is not only the sign, seal and assurance of
salvation, but is also the way Jesus lives in His people, transforms their
hearts and minds and works through them to share His message of salvation. The truth is, believers are with Jesus and His
love remains in them for eternity.
John
14:15-21 New International Version (NIV)
Jesus Promises the Holy Spirit
15 “If you love me,
keep my commands. 16 And I will ask the Father, and
he will give you another
advocate to help you and be
with you forever—17 the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it
neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. 18 I
will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.19 Before
long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live,
you also will live. 20 On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you
are in me, and I am in you. 21 Whoever has my
commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will
love them and show myself to them.”
John
14:23 New International Version (NIV)
Jesus
replied, “Anyone who loves me will
obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and
make our home with them.
Finally:
God
in an amazing supernatural way is connected to the true followers of Jesus. For
those who are connected to Jesus have a new life and a new purpose to live for
the glory of God!
Application: How
can I apply what I have learned to my life?
·
Do
everything you can to stay connected to the Vine, Jesus.
·
Bear
fruit for God’s kingdom by allowing the Holy Spirit to guide your thoughts and
actions.
·
Pray
for the non-believing world to come to know and receive Jesus as Lord and
Savior.
·
Share
your faith and the hope you have in Jesus.
Don’t forget:
John’s main
purpose in writing this Gospel:
·
To
tell the world that Jesus is the Messiah for the Jews and Gentiles
·
The
events were recorded so that we might believe and have eternal life
John 20:30-31 New International Version (NIV)
The Purpose of John’s Gospel
30 Jesus performed many other signs in
the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. 31 But these are written that you may believe that
Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have
life in his name.
Questions
to ponder:
·
Are
you praying for non-believers to receive Jesus as Lord and Savior?
·
In
what ways are you supernaturally connected to God?
·
Does
the Holy Spirit have access to your thoughts and actions?
·
What
are you doing to break down the barriers that still keep you from fully living for
God and His purpose?
·
How
can you better reflect the love of Jesus in a world that hates Him and you because
of your faith?
Have a great week…………….Dave
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