John 17 Summary
How do you respond in crisis?
Jesus models this for us in his farewell prayer in John 17.
Right before Jesus lifts his eyes toward heaven to pray, he prepares his disciples for the approaching crisis and reminds them that he has overcome the world.
“Behold, the hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home, and will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone, for the Father is with me. I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” John 16:32-33
In his farewell discourse, after Jesus shared with the disciples his oneness with the Father and their privilege to commune with the Father in prayer, he prays for them in his hour of crisis and in their hour of crisis. He imparts peace and purpose to his followers in this farewell prayer that is filled with a desire for God to be glorified in himself, in his disciples, in the church, in the world and in the age to come.
John 13 began the section known as the Book of Glory in John. We see glory as a repeated theme throughout this section and the entire gospel (42x in the gospel of John). John 13-17 spans only a couple of hours, but the truth in these chapters presented in an intimate setting are full of Jesus teaching his disciples all that he wanted to impart to them before he was glorified on the cross. His very words to them in these last hours would influence them in the years to come as they would face times of crisis and persecution. This prayer spoken from the mouth of our Savior also impacts us today as the church faces times of crisis or persecution. It models for us how we can respond in times of crisis, by bolding approaching the throne of grace for help in our time of need.
Jesus sought to glorify the Father on this earth in his perfect obedience and sacrificial death. Because he set apart himself for our sake, we have been set apart to glorify his name on this earth. We will ultimately and completely be glorified with him in the future consummation and experience his glory forever.
From The Reformed Expository Commentary:
“He was from eternity the brightness of his Father’s glory...Christ undertook the work of redemption, not because he needed glory, for he had a glory with the Father before the world, but because we needed glory.” Matthew Henry
We see six distinct marks of the Church in Jesus' High Priestly Prayer (James Montgomery Boice):
1. Joy
2. Holiness
3. Truth
4. Mission
5. Unity
6. Love
As we walked through each section in this chapter, we looked at what it means to glorify God, what we learn about Jesus and the Trinity, what we learn about prayer, and what we learn about how the church glorifies God as we continue to accomplish the work he gave us to do.
John 17:1-5 - Jesus prays that he would glorify God - Our Justification
John 17:6-19 - Jesus prays that his disciples would glorify God - Our Sanctification
John 17:20-26 - Jesus prays that his church would glorify God - Our Glorification
As we move into Jesus’ arrest, trial, and crucifixion, may we remember these words that he spoke in tenderness as we see the pain, sorrow, confusion, and shame the disciples experienced during these last few days.
“And I give myself as a holy sacrifice for them so they can be made holy by your truth.” John 17:19 [NLT]
