Ease-Dropping on Them Again

Posted on April 28, 2015 by America's Keswick in Freedom Fighters

Ease-Dropping On Them Again

“O righteous Father, although the world has not known You, yet I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me; and I have made Your name known to them, and will make it known, so that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.” John 17:25-26 (NASB)

This morning I would like to continue with the ease-dropping on a dialogue that The Father and The Son are having on the night The Son first shared what is considered to be THE most important meal in Christendom and then was betrayed by the son of perdition. The last time I looked into this I was seeing ourselves as being beyond just “believing ones” and seeing ourselves as one of the disciples that would have been sitting around the table on the night Jesus was betrayed but today I would like to look at the last part of this Priestly Prayer just as Jesus would be praying it. That’s to say for those of us who would be numbered as followers in the years to come.

“That they may be one” is something that Jesus prays for five times in the entirety of His prayer. There was one time for the disciples but the rest are meant for all believers. In the community of believers that I am encircled by we have those that would gladly welcome a day where all of the Greater Egg Harbor Region would be under one building, under one denominational name, under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. We would not only stand on the promises of God but we would up hold a constitutional value system. (Until Jesus comes back that day may not come.) Sure this makes for a good union but it doesn’t really exhibit “That they may be one” does it? It is also far off the mark of what Jesus would want to see as unity isn’t it? 

To repeat something that Matthew Henry said was that Jesus especially prayed that all believers might be as one body under one head, animated by one soul, by their union with Christ and the Father in Him, through the Holy Spirit dwelling in them. I think the key to this statement is “by their union with Christ and the Father in Him” In verse 24 of the 17^th chapter of John’s Gospel we read, “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!” Now if you wanna disagree with me on this next statement my e-mail will be at the bottom of this Freedom Fighter but to me this sounds like it ain’t only gonna be James and John sittin’ with Jesus…it’s gonna be us who know Jesus as Lord and Savior!!

And there’s an interesting wrinkle in the fabric of this prayer that is seen in John 17:9, “My prayer is not for the world…” Some may think that Jesus’ concern is only for those who accept Him as Lord and Savior, after all, The Father’s righteousness would forbid Jesus to leave His Saints to the evils of this world but it would only be hours later that Jesus would pray “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.” (Luke 23:34) So it is that there is concern for this broken world to receive forgiveness and see unity, “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.” (John 17:21)

The 17^th chapter of John’s Gospel can only give us a glimpse into what it must be like to perfect union with the Trinity and even though we will see it in its entirety when we get to heaven, folks we gotta get some things right down here. Sometimes we can get bogged down in our walk with the mundane and trivial of what is in this world. It is true that these things can impend on our unity with each other because our responses to them are so different from person to person. But Christian, don’t forget…He that is greater in you is better than he who is out in the world. Because when “The World” see’s us dispute about the lesser things in life, the more they throw doubts upon Christianity and that is just a sad but true statement isn’t it? Amen?

Daily Bible Reading: Numbers 3-4; Revelation 15

Think About This: “Let us endeavor to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace, praying that all believers may be more and more united in one mind and one judgment. Thus shall we convince the world of the truth and excellence of our religion, and find more sweet communion with God and His saints.”—Matthew Henry

This Week’s Verse to Memorize: The righteous who walks in his integrity— blessed are his children after him! Proverbs 20:7