17, the great prayer of the Lord
Jesus Christ which he made, which he prayed in the upper room before
the disciples went out into the night toward the Garden of Gethsemane
where the Lord Jesus was to be taken and and arrested and taken
to the high priest and then later to Pilate and there to be crucified
upon Mount Calvary but it is with particularly verse 24 that
I would like to draw your attention but also looking at the wider
context of this chapter because the the context actually begins
in chapter 13 and verse 1 but we will be concentrating later
on this verse 24 with the Lord's help Father I will that they
also whom thou hast given me be with me where I am that they
may behold my glory which thou hast given me for thou lovedst
me before the foundation of the world. I was in a service a few
days ago where the minister took part of this passage as his thoughts
and I have to and say that his exegesis of
the Word of God was completely contrary to the plain teaching
that is in this chapter. This chapter is the prayer of
the Lord Jesus Christ and he spoke about, in this prayer we
have the Lord Jesus speaking of his praying for his church,
I pray for them, that is the church, the believers, I pray
not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me, for
they are thine, and then verse 24 as we just read, Father I
will that they also whom thou hast given me, and he was trying
to say that had been given to the Lord Jesus
Christ and that he would save them. But of course we do not
see that this world has been saved. The whole of the world
is not saved. It is only those who have been
given to Christ Jesus that are saved for glory. And they are
called by grace in due time the grace of God is manifested in
their hearts and they come to see who the Lord Jesus Christ
is as the only Saviour of sinners. These are the ones who are given
to Christ, those who are drawn by the Spirit of God, those of
whom the Lord Jesus Christ was speaking when he spoke about
the building of the church, I will build my church upon this rock,
I will build my church and every one of those for whom the Lord
Jesus Christ shed his precious blood will come to him. But to
look a little bit at the context of this chapter, we are very
familiar of course with the words that are in the 17th chapter
of John's Gospel and the other couple of chapters beforehand,
but the actual scene is there where the disciples are there
with the Lord Jesus Christ in the upper room to celebrate the
Passover and for the Lord Jesus Christ to minister to them about
those things that were to shortly happen in the taking and arresting
and crucifying the Lord Jesus Christ. But of course the Lord
Jesus Christ was not overtaken by events. He walked in this
pathway every path of his life was ordained and that his life
was not taken from him, he gave his life a ransom for many. And this section of John's Gospel,
as I said earlier, begins with verse 1 of chapter 13, Now before
the feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour was
come, that he should depart out of this world unto the Father,
having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them too,
at the end. What a mercy it is that the Lord
Jesus Christ loved his people. He always has loved his people.
He has loved them from the beginning of time, from even before the
beginning of time. If we turn back to the book of
Jeremiah chapter 31, we read in verse 3, the Lord
hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee
with an everlasting love. therefore with loving kindness
have I drawn thee. And that word everlasting, it
means never ending, never beginning and never ending. It always goes
on. What a mercy it is. I can't think of the word I'm looking
for, but it is a mercy that he loved us from the beginning. And John goes on to write in
his epistles John chapter 4 and verse 10,
here in his love, not that we loved God, but that he loved
us and sent his Son to be the propitiation of our sins. And again earlier in that epistle,
in chapter 3 and verse 1, he writes, Behold, what manner of
love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called
the sons of God. Therefore the world knoweth us
not, neither because it knew him not. Beloved now are we the
sons of God and earlier in John's gospel in chapter 3 and verse
16 we read those most familiar words, for God so loved the world
that he gave his only begotten son that whoso believeth in him
should not perish but have everlasting life. And so the the Apostle
John as he writes under the inspiration of the Spirit of God he says
concerning the Lord Jesus Christ having loved his own which were
in the world he loved them to the end now where is that end? well that end is in eternity
to come it is in eternity to come it is not the end of his
earthly ministry it is not that he is speaking about it is not
the end of his incarnate life where the Lord Jesus Christ was
crucified upon the cross and his life was taken from him no,
his life was not taken from him he gave his life the Good Shepherd
gives his life for the sheep and the Lord Jesus Christ gave
his life a ransom for many. You remember in Luke's Gospel,
if memory serves me right, that on the Mount of Transfiguration,
Moses and Elias appeared to the Lord Jesus and those disciples
that were with him. And they spoke about his death
that he should accomplish at Jerusalem. We do not accomplish
death. Death takes hold of us when we
perhaps least expect it. with the Lord Jesus Christ he
accomplished his death his 33 years of his incarnation his
life upon earth it was all ordered to bring to this conclusion that
he gave his life a ransom for many having loved his own which
were in the world he loved them unto the end and then it seems
that there is a meal before the actual Passover supper
and after that meal he rose from supper and washed the disciples'
feet giving them an example of true humility if I then your
Lord and Master have washed your feet you also ought to wash one
another for I have given you an example that you should do
as I have done to you. Then there is the giving of that
sop of bread dipped in the wine or the vinegar and Judas goes
out and having received the sop went immediately out and it was
night. And then from verse 31 there
is that beginning of the final discourse of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now is the Son of Man glorified
and God is glorified in him. And he speaks about the future
of the people of God even though he is taken away from them. He
is taken away from them by the Roman soldiers and they have
crucified him and he gave his life for ransom for many. And
then he is taken away from them as he ascends into heaven but
the Lord Jesus speaks those words of comfort let not your heart
be troubled you believe in God believe also in me my father's
house are many mansions if it were not so I would have told
you I go to prepare a place for you and if I go and prepare a
place for you I will come again and receive you unto myself that
where I am there you may be also and so he speaks gently to his
disciples he speaks to them that that he will comfort them and
that the Paraclete, the Holy Spirit, the Holy Ghost will come
down and be with them but the comforter which is the Holy Ghost
whom the Father will send in my name he shall teach you all
things and bring all things to your remembrance whatsoever I
have said unto you and then he goes on to speak about bearing
fruits chapter 15, I am the true vine, my father is the husbandman,
every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away and
he purges the tree and he says that we're clean, the child of
God is clean but we are to abide in him and we are to bring forth
fruit. Now Paul goes on in Galatians to tell us of the nature of the that is to be brought forth in
the life of the child of God but the fruit of the Spirit is
love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
meekness, temperance, against such there is no law and there
Christ has crucified the flesh and the affections and thus if
we live in the Spirit let us also walk in the Spirit and that
fruit is singular but the fruit of the Spirit It has all these
various facets. If you look at a raspberry, for
example, you see there are globules of juice that have a seed in
them, but it is one fruit, the raspberry, that has many facets. Likewise an orange. You take
the peel off the orange and it has many segments with pips in
it. the seeds that will grow and
bring further fruit. And so there is that one fruit
which is exhibited in the life of the child of God as love,
joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance,
against such there is no law. And we are to bring forth that
fruit. were to walk in his way. So 16th
chapter again is a reminder of the coming again, coming again
of the comforter. For if I go not away, the comforter
will not come unto you. But if I depart, I will send
him unto you. And then we have the purpose
of the Holy Ghost in his work. When he has come, he will reprove
the world of sin and of righteousness and of judgment. because they
believe not on me, of righteousness because I go to my father and
ye see me no more, of judgment because the prince of this world
is judged. I have yet many things to say
unto you, but ye cannot hear them. When the spirit of truth
has come, he will guide you into all truth." And then he concludes
this final discourse by saying, that the Lord Jesus Christ has
overcome the world. But not only has he overcome
the world, but he has overcome sin, but he has also overcome
death. He has overcome all things, not
for himself because he had no sin. The Lord Jesus is holy,
harmless, undefiled and separate from sinners. He did no wrong.
He kept the law. in every jot and tittle, not
for himself because he needed not to keep the law because he
was holy and harmless as I just quoted, but he kept the law in
its fullness for his people. He kept the law for them so that
they might be justified and washed by the blood of the Lord Jesus
Christ which was shed upon Calvary. So he concludes this discourse
by praying. These words spake Jesus and lifted
up his eyes to heaven and said, Father, they are his cup. He
knows exactly what the future holds for him. He was not afraid of the future. He was afraid. He was terrified,
I suppose that's the right word, of sin. He knew no sin. But he was made sin for us, that
we might be the righteousness of God in him. And all, as the
hymn writer said, all my iniquity on him was laid. He nailed them
all to the tree. Jesus, the debt of my sin fully
paid, he paid the ransom for me. My sin, your sin, the sin
of the church, of the election of grace, was poured upon him.
And is there any wonder that when whilst in the garden he
prayed father if it is possible let this cup pass from me because
he knew not he had no experience of sin until that time when sin
was poured out upon him and then when the wrath of God was poured
out upon him the wrath of God that you and I deserve was taken
by the Lord Jesus Christ and so he prays first of all for
his disciples keep through thine own name those whom thou hast
given me that they may be one as we are and whilst I was with
them in the world I kept them in thy name those that thou gavest
me I have kept and none is lost but the son of perdition that
the scripture might be fulfilled and there is a remembrance and
reminder of Judas that he is lost what a dreadful state that
man was in we see something of his state and condition when
he realizes what he's done in betraying the Lord Jesus Christ
and he sought to hand back those 30 pieces of silver back to the
Sanhedrin but they wouldn't take it so he threw the money at him
and went out he hanged himself, he killed himself. None of them
is lost, that awful eternity through which he suffers. And
every one of those who die in their sin are lost into an awful
eternity. But on the other side there is
the blessing of the children of God that they have the eternity
to sing the praises of God and to worship and praise the Lord
Jesus Christ. So I want, in the remaining few
minutes that are with us, to look at this verse 24. Father, I will that they also
whom thou hast given me be with me where I am, that they may
behold my glory which thou hast given me, for thou lovest me
before the foundation of the world. And that opening word,
Father, that Father that word father, it reminds us that the
Lord Jesus Christ is the Son of God. He has always been the
Son of God. He is the eternal Son of God.
There are some theologians who will tell us that when our Lord
Jesus Christ became incarnate upon this earth,
that is when he became the Son of God. But no, Isaiah tells
us in the ninth chapter of his prophecy, that the Lord Jesus
Christ is the child that was born. Isaiah chapter nine and
verse six, for unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given,
and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall
be called Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting
Father. yes he was born he was conceived
in the womb of Mary and in due time in Bethlehem stable there
he was born the child that was born but he didn't become the
son of God he wasn't the son that was born to Mary he wasn't
the son that was born to Joseph no he was he is he was and is
the eternal son of God always has been. We go back further
in the scriptures to Psalm 2 where we read, Why do the heathen
rage and the people imagine a vain thing? And David concludes that
Psalm by saying, Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling. And you notice in our copy and
translation of the scriptures we have the word Lord there is
in capital letters indicating the Covenant God Jehovah serve
the Lord, serve the Covenant God with fear and rejoicing with
trembling kiss the Son, kiss the Son lest he be angry and
ye perish from the way his wrath is kindled but a little time
blessed are all they that put their trust in him, in the Son
the son going right back to the time of David a thousand years
before the incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ he is the son
that is given and he was given for one purpose and one person
at purpose only and that is to bring many sons into glory to
bring his people to glory for Christ loved the church and gave
himself for it and he ever liveth now to make intercession. He makes intercession, the Lord
Jesus makes intercession. Here he made intercession for
his people upon earth as he prayed first of all for his disciples
and as he prayed then for the church and he desires that they
also be with him through eternity. He says neither pray I for these alone, but for
those also which shall believe on me through their work. The Lord Jesus Christ prayed
for everyone and of his people, for you and for me. He died on
the tree, but he also prayed for us. Remember the prayer that
the Lord Jesus uttered as he was being crucified? Father,
forgive them for they know not what they do. Now there are many
who would say that he was praying for the Roman soldiers, that
he was praying for the Sanhedrin, the Council of Priests, that
he was praying for the Jewish nation. Well he may well have
been. It's not impossible that there
were those there who saw the Lord Jesus being crucified and
heard his words from the cross. and they were touched by the
Spirit and they became Christian believers. It's not impossible,
but we're not told that that happened. But I take the view
that when the Lord Jesus Christ prayed that prayer, Father forgive
them, for they know not what they do, that he was praying
for his people, every one of those who would come to faith. We as believers, we knew not
what was done, of that occasion, that our sin,
the sin that was on our shoulders, the sin of our black hearts,
of our deceitful and desperately wicked hearts, was laid upon
the Lord Jesus Christ. And so he prayed for them, prayed
for everyone who is an election of grace, that they might be
forgiven. Father, forgive them, forgive
the Church, for they know not what they do. It is the Father
that he is referring to and the implication there is that he
is the Son, the eternal Son of God. And then he goes on, I will
that they also whom thou hast given me be with me where I am. The Lord Jesus Christ prays for
us. that they were given. The church
of God was given to the Lord Jesus Christ. Now how were the
people of God given to the Lord Jesus Christ? Well they were
given in election. They were given in election. If we turn to the epistle to
the Ephesians, that first chapter of the Ephesians, we see how
God chose a people out for himself, grace be to you and peace from
God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be the
God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who has blessed us with
all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ according as
he has chosen us in him before the foundation of the world. This world was created possibly
four or five thousand years ago because the unbelieving geologists
will tell us it was millions and millions and millions of
years ago but according to scripture chronology it was around about
four to five thousand years ago but before this world came into
being before the whole of this solar system came into being
before the stars were placed in space and all the other planets
that were established Before all these things came into being,
the Lord Jesus Christ, God the Father, I should say, chose us
in the Lord Jesus, according as he hath chosen us in him before
the foundation of the world. And then he goes on to say, having
predestinated us to the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to
himself according to the good pleasure of his will. that predestination, that having
the will of God in our lives and leading us and guiding us.
Remember how Moses writes in the book of Deuteronomy chapter
7 and verse 7 and 8, the Lord did not set his love upon you
nor choose you because you were more in number. people, remember how, and I've
already quoted it, John 3.16, for God so loved the world that
he gave his only begotten son. He loved his people, he has loved
them in times past, he loves them now as he deals with us
and as he brings us away from sinful practices and causes us
to walk in his way, he will love us in eternity. for all the ages
of eternity. And then the children of God, those who
were given to Christ, were given by eternal love. I have loved
thee, as I quoted earlier, Jeremiah 31 verse 3, I have loved thee
with an everlasting love. love with everlasting love led
by grace, I'd love to know. Spirit breathing from above thou
hast taught me, it is so. And so the hymn writer goes on
to say, for I am his and he is mine, what a mercy it is. And
Medley writes in one of his hymns, he saw me He saw me ruined in
the fall, yet loved me notwithstanding all. He saved me from my lost
estate, his loving kindness. Oh, how great. And then we were
given to Christ in covenant bond, in that bond that David speaks
about in 2 Samuel on his deathbed. He says, although my house been
up so with with God, yet he hath ordered with me, I must turn it up, 2 Samuel 23
verse 5. Although my house be not so with
God, yet he hath made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered
in all things and sure, for this is all my salvation and all my
desire, although he make it not to grow. Given to Christ in covenant
bond, given to Christ in the sure mercies of David, Isaiah
55 verse 3 where Isaiah writes, incline your ear and come unto
me, here your soul shall live and I will make an everlasting
covenant with you even in the sure mercies of David, given
in the sure mercies of David. What are those mercies of David?
Paul speaks about them in the 13th chapter of the book of Acts.
He speaks about the incarnation of Christ being the sure mercies
of David. He speaks about the death of
Christ being the sure mercies of David. And he speaks about
the resurrection of Christ. the pure mercy of David. Everything
is in the Lord Jesus Christ. We are given to Christ in the
Lord Jesus Christ. What a mercy it is. We are given
to Christ by his manifestation. We of course think of the manifestation
of the Lord Jesus Christ in his incarnation. When he came down
to this earth he was found in fashion as a man. He humbled
himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the
cross. Wherefore God highly exalted him, and given him a name which
is above every name, that the name of Jesus every knee should
bow. But there is the manifestation
of Christ after he rose from the dead. He showed himself to
Mary in the garden. He appeared to the disciples
in the upper room, he spoke and drew alongside those two disciples
on the road to immense and then on the second Lord's day he revealed
himself and was made manifest to Thomas who confessed my Lord
and my God and he manifested himself to John on the Isle of
Patmos, and so we can go on with many examples of the manifestation
of the Lord Jesus Christ. But the important thing to us,
of course, is not only that which we know from the scriptures of
truth, but has the Lord Jesus Christ been manifest to us? Have
we met with the Lord Jesus Christ? Well there are many and varied
ways in which and the Lord Jesus manifests himself to people.
He did so to Paul in a cataclysmic vision whereby he fell off his
horse and was blinded by the light greater than the sun and
he met with the Lord Jesus Christ, who are thou Lord? I am Jesus whom thou persecutest.
Or there was Lydia whose heart the Lord opened gently and she or the Philippian jailer, an
earthquake had to move him in order to see the Lord Jesus.
Have we met with the Lord Jesus Christ? And what's the purpose
of all this? For thou lov'st me that they
may behold my glory which thou hast given me, for thou lov'st
me before the foundation of the world. It is that we should praise
and glorify and partake of the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. Is that hymn 1053 in Gatsby by
Charles Wesley? Carry on thy new creation, pure
and holy may we be. Let us see our whole salvation
perfectly secured by thee, changed from glory into glory. till in
heaven we take our place, till we cast our crowns before thee,
lost in wonder, love and praise. And that's where it ends. We
see the glory and the foundation of it all is in the last clause
of that verse. For thou lost me before the foundation
of the world. we love him because he first
loved us. O God grant then that we might
be amongst that number that are gathered into heaven when we
will hear the words of the Lord Jesus, come ye blessed of my
Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you. O God grant that we
might each one be assembled on that day with our eyes fixed
upon the Lord Jesus Christ and the crowns that we wear will
be cast before him and we'll sing his praises to the praise
and glory of the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.