The High Priestly Prayer

Use these materials to go deeper into this message on your own, or with your small group. 
Passage Breakdowns, SOAPS Format & Instructions (Weeks 1-12)
Passage Breakdowns, SOAPS Format & Instructions (Weeks 13-26)

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8:40 Service | 10:00 Service | 11:20 Service | Sermon Audio

Good morning Chapel family. I have an exciting update for you today: for years, we’ve had a specially-equipped room down in our Chapel Kids area, for people with special needs—we call it the “Ark Room.” As that ministry has grown, we’ve realized that it’s challenging to serve 5-year-olds and 25-year-olds in the same room. So we’ve been building out a second Ark room, upstairs, specifically designed for teens and adults. And here’s the great news: that new room is opening today. Isn’t that awesome? Just like the downstairs room, it has an adjoining sensory room; it has a great team of volunteers serving in it. So there will now be more families who can come to church, knowing that their loved ones with special needs are finding a place of belonging, and a place where they can worship in meaningful ways. So thank you to Ingrid Flannery for her leadership, and thanks to all the volunteers who help make the Chapel a place where everyone is welcome.

Alright—we are continuing our verse-by-verse study of the Gospel of John, and we’ve come to chapter 17. Jesus is with his disciples in the upper room; he knows all hell—literally—is about to break loose—the arrest, the trials, the torture, the crucifixion—and he’s preparing them for his departure. And today we’re going to look at the very last thing he says to them. John 17, and let’s start by reading the first 8½ verses:

1 After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. 2 For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him. 3 Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. 4 I have brought you glory on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do. 5 And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began.
6 “I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world. They were yours; you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word. 7 Now they know that everything you have given me comes from you. 8 For I gave them the words you gave me and they accepted them. They knew with certainty that I came from you, and they believed that you sent me. 9a I pray for them. Let’s pause right there.

After three years of training his disciples, what’s the last thing Jesus wants them to hear coming out of his mouth? Prayer. He looks toward heaven and prays, and he prays out loud, because he wants them to hear it. He prays for them. And can I tell you something that should thrill your soul? He’s praying for you, right now. The obvious question is: what exactly is he praying for me? That’s what we’re going to talk about today.

But first, look how he sets up this prayer. Verse 4: 4 I have brought you glory on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do. What is the work that God had given Jesus to do? Look at verses 2 and 3: 2 For you granted him (Jesus is talking about himself) authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him. 3 Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. So the work that Jesus finished was bringing people eternal life. And did you catch this: he defines eternal life not quantitatively—like, you get to live forever—I mean, yes, there is that—but he defines it here qualitatively: this is eternal life: that they know you. So the work Jesus has completed—and of course that work includes the cross and the resurrection, which is just about to happen—is to bring people into a relationship with their Creator. Because that’s eternal life. Knowing God.

A couple of weeks ago, I walked into the home of a woman who just went on hospice care. Her body is filled with cancer. She’s in her 80s, but her mind is sharper than mine. I sat down and said, “How are you doing.” And she said, “Well, God is here. He’s with me, so I’m doing great.” Guys, that’s eternal life. It’s not just the fact that when her heart beats its last, she’ll go on living. It’s the fact that, right now, she knows the one true God. She has a relationship with him.

Jesus says, “That’s what I came to do: to give people life that has the quality of eternity. And now I’ve done my part. And I’m coming back home.”

And then he turns his attention to the disciples—verse 8: 8 For I gave them the words you gave me and they accepted them. They knew with certainty that I came from you, and they believed that you sent me. The disciples had accepted Jesus’ message; they believed in him. So Jesus was handing the baton to them—he was counting on them to continue this mission of giving people eternal life. And he knew they needed supernatural help, so he says 9a I pray for them. 

This passage is sometimes called The High Priestly Prayer. Because the essential function of a priest is to stand between God and people—to be a bridge between God and people. So Jesus looks up to his Father and he prays for his disciples. And here’s the amazing thing: he hasn’t stopped praying. Romans 8:34…Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Jesus is still praying for us! Hebrews 7:25…Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them. Guys, Jesus is still praying for us!

And when you understand what he’s praying for you, it will change the way you live. So let’s continue where we left off, John 17, starting in verse 9. This is God’s Word for us today…


9 I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, for they are yours. 10 All I have is yours, and all you have is mine. And glory has come to me through them. 11 I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name, the name you gave me, so that they may be one as we are one. 12 While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled.

13 “I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them. 14 I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. 15 My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. 17 Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. 18 As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. 19 For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.

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 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.” This is the Word of the Lord.

So let me say it like this: In order for us to continue his mission, Jesus is praying for us. And he’s praying for three things. First, he’s praying for our…

Protection. Verse 11: 11b Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name, the name you gave me, so that they may be one as we are one. 12 While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled. Who was the one disciple who was lost? Judas. He fell away from Jesus, which showed that he was never a genuine believer in the first place. So Jesus says, “Father, I have protected these disciples. I’ve guarded my sheep. But now I’m leaving, so I’m asking you to keep protecting them.” But what kind of protection is Jesus talking about?

Have you ever been to a church event, and someone gives a closing prayer, and they finish the prayer with those classic words, “Lord, give us a safe trip home.” Nothing wrong with that prayer; I’ve prayed it many times. But is that the kind of protection Jesus is praying for? Well, when you trace the lives of these disciples after this night, most of them did not have a safe trip home. In the coming years they were persecuted, and in many cases put to death for their faith. So did God not answer Jesus’ prayer? Or maybe Jesus is asking for a different kind of protection.

When I read the New Testament, I find maybe one prayer for physical health and safety. In the whole New Testament! You know what I find instead? Prayers for, and the assurance of, spiritual protection. That’s what Jesus is praying for. He’s praying that we won’t lose our faith. That we will persevere, and stay faithful to him, no matter how hard it gets. That we will not follow in the footsteps of Judas. So if Jesus was praying for the spiritual protection of the eleven men in that room, was that prayer answered? It was. Through the persecution and the threats and the hardships, they held on to their faith in Jesus.

Look at verse 15: My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. There is a real Satan who the Bible says “prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.” He wants you to deconstruct your faith. He wants you to be captivated by money. He wants to enslave you with porn. He is gunning for your soul. And I have to tell you, as a pastor: every time I hear about a pastor who’s had 25 years of faithful ministry…30 years of faithful ministry…and then they fall for the trap and get into some stupid affair…it scares me to death. Because there but for the grace of God go I. And I’m so grateful for a Savior who prays for me. Aren’t you?

Jesus says, “Father, protect my people. Protect them from falling away like Judas; protect them from the attacks of the evil one.” Guys, we have the power of Jesus’ prayers surrounding us. What more security could we want? This is not a promise of physical safety and physical health; it’s Jesus saying, “No matter how hard things get, I’m going to call down the protection of heaven on your soul.” And just knowing he’s praying that for us should remove all fear and give us the courage to carry out the mission of Jesus with confidence.

Secondly, in order for us to continue his mission, Jesus is praying for our Sanctification. What does that mean? It’s actually really simple: to be sanctified means “to be set apart.” In our dining room, we have a cabinet with a drawer, and in that drawer is a set of real silverware. If I walked into the kitchen on a Tuesday morning, and I saw one of my kids eating a bowl of cereal with a spoon from that set of real silver, I would say, “What are you doing? Don’t use real silver to eat a bowl of Cheerios! Put that away, and use a cheap spoon.” Because that real silver spoon is…what? Sanctified. It’s set apart.

And if you think about it, when something is set apart, it’s set apart from something, and for something. Right? That silver spoon is set apart from common use like eating Cheerios on a Tuesday. And it’s set apart for special occasions: Thanksgiving. Christmas. Birthdays. On those occasions, we do pull out the silver, and we use it. And if you want to eat Cheerios on your birthday, you may use a silver spoon.

So look what Jesus prays, beginning in verse 14: 14 I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. 15 My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. 17 Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. Jesus prays, “Father, sanctify them. Set them apart.” Okay…what does he want us to be set apart from, and what does he want us to be set apart for?

He wants us to be set apart from the world. If you believe in Jesus Christ, you are not of the world. Your deepest identity—your true citizenship—lies elsewhere. Look at verse 14: I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. Jesus says, “I’ve given them your word.” And here’s the thing: the more you allow your heart to be shaped by the Word of God, the more you will become aware that you don’t belong here. Do you know that feeling? The things that the world values and promotes and goes after are different from what you value. In fact, if you find yourself right in step with culture—if you scroll social media and watch Netflix and walk through Times Square, and you find yourself in agreement with everything you see there—you have should seriously question if you’re really following Christ. Romans 12:2 says do not conform to the pattern of this world. Are you just conforming? Or do you feel that distinct difference?

But now here’s the problem. Some people have understood this, and they say, “We need to separate from the world.” In extreme cases, they become monks, or they move into communes. But more commonly, they say, “We need to create Christian versions of everything the world has! So that we can live our lives separate from the world.” So if you want to, you can listen to Christian radio all day, and watch Christian TV at night, and go to a Christian café, and attend Christian schools, and watch Christian movies, and you can even take your family on vacation at a Christian theme park. Those are all out there. And you will be set apart from the world! You know what the problem is? You’re forgetting what you’re set apart for.

Verse 18—let’s read this together: As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. Guys, Jesus has sent us into the world! To continue his mission! To be living parables of him! To feed the hungry. To visit the sick and the prisoners. To set the captives free. And mostly, to help people find eternal life in Christ. And if we don’t know any unbelievers, and we’re not involved in the lives of people in our community, it’s impossible for us to carry out that mission.

We are set apart from the world, for the world. And if you’re living this right, you will always feel a certain tension. In the world but not of it. And anytime we feel tension, there’s a temptation to relieve the tension. So you can relieve the tension by pulling out of the world, and living in a Christian cocoon. Ahhh—no more tension. But now there’s no one for you to influence. No unbelievers anywhere in sight! Or you can relieve the tension by just giving in to the world and doing everything the world does. Ahhh—no more tension. But now you have all these unbelievers around you, but your life doesn’t demonstrate anything distinct to offer them. Are you following me? So learn to live in the healthy tension of being in the world, but not of it.

And if that’s confusing to you, look at Jesus. Verse 19: He says For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified. So Jesus says, “This whole ‘setting apart’ thing—that’s how I lived! I sanctified myself!”

Look what it says about Jesus in Hebrews 7:26: Such a high priest truly meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners… Jesus was set apart from sinners. He didn’t adopt their values or get sucked into their mold. He was set apart from them.
But then look at Luke 15:1-2: Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. 2 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” So wait a minute: was Jesus set apart from sinners, or did he welcome sinners? Yes. Because Jesus was in the world, but not of it. He didn’t adopt the values of the world, but he deeply loved the people of the world.

And Jesus says, “Father, I’m praying that my followers will live like that.” I am so grateful that when I was an impressionable college freshman, pledging a fraternity, there were a couple of guys in that frat who took these words to heart. They knew they didn’t belong to the world, but they also knew they were sent into the world. And right in the midst of that hard-core party atmosphere, they represented Jesus. If it weren’t for them, I don’t know where I’d be today. And right now—today—there are college freshmen, and high school freshmen, and somebody who just moved onto your street, and somebody who goes to the same lake as you this summer, whose spiritual destiny hangs in the balance. And Jesus is praying for you—that you will step into your calling of being set apart to get to know them and care about their lives and point them to Jesus.

Jesus prays for our protection, and he prays for our sanctification. Lastly, Jesus prays for our Unity. Starting in verse 20: 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. So Jesus prays for his people. And he specifically says, “I’m not just praying for those who believe in me now; I’m praying for all the other people who will come to faith in me through the testimony of these disciples.” Because Jesus knew that this was just the beginning! He knew the gospel would go out to the ends of the earth, and there would be Christians from every country and every ethnic group. And he knew that with that kind of diversity of people, there would be the potential for all kinds of conflict. So he prays this really necessary prayer: “Father, I pray they will be brought to complete unity.”

Historically, Christians have a pretty spotty track record on this. We have this tendency to make a big deal out of little differences. “We are Calvinist; you’re Arminian. We’re obviously right, so we can’t fellowship with you or join with you in mission.” And that breaks the Father’s heart. “We believe in the pre-tribulational, premillennial return of Christ; you believe in the mid-tribulational, postmillennial return of Christ? You are so wrong! I’ll pray for you.” That breaks the Father’s heart.

But man, when we keep those differences in perspective, and keep the main thing the main thing, it is so beautiful. We just had a Chapel team return from Cali, Colombia, where they served alongside dozens of Christians from all kinds of denominations, but they had this one thing in common: they were proclaiming the hope of Jesus Christ. The Father loves that. Every month we have a Chapel team that serves the homeless in Paterson, and we work alongside people from churches that are definitely different than ours—some of them much more Pentecostal—different styles of worship. But that doesn’t matter, because we have Jesus in common.

The other day my 27-year-old daughter was telling me about some car trouble she was having—her AC wasn’t working (bad timing). And she doesn’t know anything about cars; she was afraid she’d get ripped off at the mechanic. So I texted her the next day—“Hey, what are you going to do?” And she said, “Oh, it’s fixed!” I said, “How did that happen?” She said, “Ben went with me” (Ben is my 22-year-old son, and he knows a lot about cars). So she said, “Ben went with me to the dealership, he talked to the guy there, and convinced them this was covered under a recall, and they fixed it for free.” And I have to tell you: as a dad, that melted my heart. Because—parents, you understand this—I love when my kids get along.

And here’s the thing: God loves when his kids get along. God loves when his kids get along. When we keep the mission of Jesus the main thing. When we stop looking at other churches as competition, and realize that God needs all of us to accomplish his mission. I encourage you: look for opportunities to join with other Christians—from different churches; different denominations; and work together on the mission. Join together to start a Bible study in your office, or your dorm or your frat. Join together on a mission trip. It’s what Jesus is praying for! Because he says when we walk in unity, the world will know this is for real.

Years ago, when George Schultz was Secretary of State, whenever the U.S. appointed a new ambassador, they would have an interview with George Schultz. And at the end of every interview, he would point to a big globe in his office. And he would say, “Prove to me you can identify your country.” So the new ambassador would go over and spin the globe, and put their finger on the country they were being sent to. They would always pass the test.

But one day, a guy named Mike Mansfield was appointed ambassador to Japan. And at the end of his interview, Shultz said, “Show me your country.” So he went over to the globe; he spun it and put his finger right on the United States. He said, “That’s my country.” And George Schultz said, “I had never thought about it that way before.” And he said, “Since that time, I’ve told that story to every ambassador going out. ‘Never forget you’re over there in that country, but your country is the United States. You’re there to represent us.”
And Jesus says to us, “Never forget that you belong to the kingdom of heaven, and to King Jesus. That is your truest identity and your true home. And I’m sending into the world to represent me. So go out in my name and in my power, and never forget I’m praying for you.”