Day 37 of 40 days to Resurrection day
Today’s suggestion:
Read Jesus’ prayer for Himself, His disciples, and for you. (John 17)
Once again today, Robin Howe visits from IGetUpTooEarly. Listen and be amazed that Jesus prayed for you!
“We read often in the gospels of Jesus going off to pray by Himself. He took time away from His disciples to be alone in the presence of His Father. He knew this time would renew His spirit and His flesh.
In John 16 Jesus told the disciples that they will be attacked, mistreated and abused by the world. He encouraged them to take heart as He said, “I have overcome the world.”
Then in the next chapter, John 17, we see the heart of Christ. He begins to pray.
First He prays for Himself. He knows what He is facing and He prays that God will glorify Him in the upcoming days and that God will be glorified in Him.
Second, He prays for His disciples, the men who have walked alongside of Him for three years. The men who saw Him heal the sick and wounded, raise the dead, preach and teach the scriptures, love on sinners, and encourage the discouraged. They have eaten together, slept on the hard ground at night, laughed with Him and cried with Him. Jesus loved these men. And they loved Jesus. So He prays for them.
Third, He prays for all of those who will believe after His death and resurrection, those in generations to come who will hear the gospel message that Christ is Lord and Savior. He prayed for those who would believe without witnessing what the disciples witnessed. He prayed for you and me.
What did He pray? That we would have an easy life and everyone would immediately believe the gospel message as soon as they heard it? That there would be no wars or fighting for all mankind? That life would be a bed of roses and no one would ever suffer?
Quite the contrary!
When Jesus prayed for us, He asked our Heavenly Father to dwell in us, just as He was with Christ. He asked God to bring unity among believers, that we will stand together for a common cause, to tell others about Christ. He asked God to use us to show the world His glory.
Oh, let that soak in for a moment.
He prayed for us, those who had not yet believed because we were not yet born.
He prayed for us, that we would not be alone on this earth.
He prayed for us, that we would be one as a body of believers.
He prayed for us, that we would be used by the Father to real His glory to the world.
This, dear friends, is one of the last things Jesus did before He went to the Garden of Gethsemane to begin the end of His life on earth.
Why? Because He loves us.
As we near the end of this journey together. let us see the events unfold before our eyes. Look at the scripture. Sing worship songs. Attend Easter services and musicals. Celebrate with family and friends. But most important, remember the reason for it all. Christ died for sinners. And He prayed for us.”
Peggy's Journal 