2/8/15- Revelation and Holiness

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.
 14I 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... 17Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. (John 17:6,17)

Thoughts: Jesus reveals God the Father to those who are chosen and given by God- picked out of the world.  Why are some eyes opened and others' eyes seem to be blind no matter how many miracles or clear evidences are before them?  To think our choices are simply made in a vacuum underestimates the effects of nurture, nature, and God.  Jesus reveals the Father to His own. In another place Jesus says, "He who has seen me has seen the Father" (Jn. 14:9).  When we look at Jesus we see what God is like.
      Jesus also talked in the same chapter of the word- referring to both scripture and his own words- as truth.  Jesus was not merely claiming that He alone was the word of God.  He gave the word to his disciples- both in terms of his message of love and the words he used of his own and from scripture.  It is the word of God that sanctifies us- makes us holy and better people.  It is the word of God that makes us different from animals and from giving into our base instincts.  While there is a part of us that pulls us into acting like animals- the word of God pulls us away into both toward self control and calls us to care beyond our selfishness.  The truth- the reality of life- pulls us away from fakeness and the illusions of life into living how we are designed and meant to live.  

Prayer: Lord, may your word- abiding in it and you make me a better person- more holy for you.  

11/4/14- Fortieth Day of Forty Days of Fellowship in the Fall

11/4- Tuesday John 17:20-21 20“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message,21that 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.

Bonhoeffer: “Jesus Christ alone is our unity.  ‘He is our peace.’ Through him alone do we have access to one another, joy in one another, and fellowship with one another.” 

Thoughts: This is Christ’s prayer for you and for me- the church today.  It is a prayer that we in the present and the future would be one.  Some downplay this by saying it is only a spiritual oneness.  Ultimately it is.  But it is also a visible oneness. The church is called to ideally be one both invisibly and as much as possible visibly.  The unity of the church is a great treasure- prayed for by our Lord.  So the things that divide us schism, pride, consumerism, and heresy are to be devalued and we are called to fulfill the prayer of Christ.  We are called to love one another in unity for love and unity of fellowship are eternal gifts of God.  One day we will truly be one in heaven.  But Christ prayed for this unity here.

Prayer; Lord, may we be one as you are one.  Give us grace to answer your prayer. 

4/4/14- Jesus Intercedes

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. 26I 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.” (John 17:24-26)

Thoughts:Jesus wants to be near those are His own.  Jesus wants us to know His father and His love.  He wants us to be with Him and His Father in heaven.  This earth is not where we are meant to stay forever.  It is not that this life is bad.  But this life is incomplete.  Here we must only see glimpses of what we will be.  Here we do not see our Lord or Father as we should.  God is never non-present, but His glory is not fully clear- marred by our sin and our blindness to Him.  Jesus asks the Father to let us in, and He also tells us of the Father.  He is the mediating priest- standing in the middle drawing God to us and us to God.  Jesus prays this mediating, priestly prayer interceding to the Father on our behalf, and dedicating Himself to making the Father known to us.  

Prayer: Lord Jesus, pray for me.  Intercede for me and for your people. Always draw me close to you. 

4/3/14- Jesus' Prayer for Oneness

20“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21that 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. 22I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— 23I 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. (John 17:20-23)

Thoughts: Jesus makes it clear He not only is praying for the disciples around Him who may be listening in, but He is also praying for those who will follow Him in the future (us).  His prayer is that we would be one.  Jesus answers many of our prayers.  We have the opportunity to answer Jesus' prayer by loving each other, and seeking unity beyond our differences in belief, differences in looks, differences in gender.  There are no caveats here.  Jesus does not say oneness except for when they are proud, or when they live in different places, or speak different languages, or believe different secondary things.  In the 21st century we are quick to divide the body of Christ as if we can cut off an arm.  Jesus separates the wheat from the chaff at judgment- we do not have to divide now (Mt. 13:24-30).  Jesus had said earlier (Jn. 13:34,35) that His disciples were to love each other, and He balances that love with His teaching on truth in the last chapters of John, He is the truth who calls us to love.  Oneness (unlike what "oneness" involves in some religions) is not being "one with yourself" but it is really being one outside of yourself- in one mind with God, and in one mind with others. 

Prayer: Lord, May your love and your truth abide in me.  Give me grace to love my brothers and sisters in Christ. 

  

4/2/14- Sanctify them by the truth

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. 14I 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. 15My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. 16They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. 17Sanctify them by^d the truth; your word is truth. 18As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. 19For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified. (John 17:13-19)

Thoughts: Jesus makes Himself holy that we might be made holy.  The truth makes Jesus holy in the midst of an evil world.  He will later tell Pilate this.  Pilate will respond, "What is truth."  Jesus prays that God will protect us from the evil one- the father of lies- by truth.  Truth- the truth of Jesus is our protection from evil, hurt, and harm.  A pure heart and a mind focused on truth keep us from straying off the narrow path or rebelling against the King of truth.  

Prayer: Lord, make me wholy yours- truly yours. Make me holy with your truth which fills me with purpose, hope, faith, and love.   

4/1/14- April Fool's Day

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. 7Now they know that everything you have given me comes from you. 8For 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. 9I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, for they are yours. 10All I have is yours, and all you have is mine. And glory has come to me through them. 11I 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. 12While 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. (John 17:6-12)

Thoughts: A fool is a person who spurns wisdom and therefore spurns God.  It is the fool who does not believe in God or does not follow in God's ways.  Judas was the fool who had not only turned away from Jesus- but betrayed Him.  He was, according to verse 12, "doomed to destruction."  There is a fool in every crowd, and perhaps on April Fool's Day we can remember the biggest real fool of all, Judas. 
      But this passage focuses on a prayer Jesus made.  He is praying not for everyone, but those whom the Father had given Him.  All those who follow Christ are given to the Father.  Just as a good Prince would give his men to the King.
    Jesus is concerned with their protection (vs. 11) because His disciples remain in a dangerous and evil place (vs. 10).  The goal of Jesus' protection is not individualism, but togetherness and fellowship.  His prayer is that they may be One as He is one with the Father.  Judas is the one who lost fellowship with the Lord and lost fellowship with the disciples.  

Prayer: Lord, protect me from evil hurt and harm that I may be a part of your Church and be one with you and my brothers and sisters.  

6/22/13- The Oneness of the Church

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.(John 17:21-23)

Thoughts: Jesus prays the church would be one.  In some ways that prayer has gone unanswered.  In other ways it is answered.
    The classical marks or signs of the true church are "One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic."  We will look at these signs now. 
    One- while the visible church may be diverse. spread out, divided by language, culture, theology, or personality, the invisible church is united.  John Leith says, "The unity of the church is easier to confess than conceptualize."  It is a matter of faith- more than a matter of geography, or the ability to recognize each other.  Just as a one dollar bill or a twenty dollar bill are all different but are all the same money- just different denominations. So the church is one though many- and is often labeled different denominations.  Each congregation is united to the next- not by a creed, or by a label,or even by recognized mission- but by God.
     It is very important in this post-denominational age that we recognize the oneness of the church.  This is not something that may happen in the future- but is happening now.  Today more than ever before a minister from one denomination may preach in another denomination's church (so Lutherans have agreements with Episcopalians and Presbyterians).  On the mission field ministers from various traditions have worked together for the common good for years.  "Non-denominational" churches look beyond an affiliation to obtain a minister.  Today there are more non-denominational churches in America than denominationally affiliated churches, and this trend is growing. Many old divisions came from the country-state churches people came from in Europe (Germany and Nordic was Lutheran, England was Episcopalian, Scotland/ Netherlands/ Switzerland was Presbyterian). Some of the things that divided Christians- whether there were elders or not; whether we sprinkled, poured, or submersed in baptism; exactly how old someone was when we baptized- have become what they should be- secondary.  New divisions center around ethics and basic beliefs- which are more substantial, but still not worthy of division. When we get to heaven- the invisible church will be seen for what it is- one.  We would do well to "make every effort keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace" (Ephesians 4:3).  May His kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven. 

Prayer: Help me, O Lord, to recognize the tie that binds us all- your self.  May your Spirit unite me in love with other believers.