The Great Intercessor Prays for this Own
A Sermon by
The Rev. S. Randall Toms, Ph.D.
I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. (John 17:14-16)
This week we have been following the events in the life of our Lord culminating in his passion, crucifixion, death, and burial. But one portion of this account we often forget is our Lord’s prayer for his own just before he began the most intense agonies of his suffering. Knowing that he is about to die, he prays for his disciples. Does it not cause us all to wonder at his grace and mercy toward us, because on that night that he was betrayed, he prayed for you and for me, as well? As he prays for those gathered around him, he thinks of us as he says, “Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word” (John 17:20). Those of us who are gathered here are, by the grace of God, numbered among those who have believed what the apostles have told us about Jesus. When our Lord offers this great intercessory prayer to his Father, his Holy Father, he had us in his heart and mind.
When our Lord prayed for his own, there were so many things that he requested that the Father would do for us. It would take many years for me to preach a series of sermons on John 17, because the requests he made on our behalf would fill many volumes, and we could probably never exhaust the wealth of blessings that he procured for us in this prayer–prayers still being answered today down through the corridors of the centuries.
On this occasion that brings us together at this time, I want us to look at how the Lord interceded for us in one particular area. One of his requests was this: “I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.” The word translated “evil” in this verse should probably be better translated as “the evil one,” referring to Satan. The disciples needed that prayer to be answered that night, and we need that prayer of our Lord to be answered in our lives at the present time. He says, “I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world.” Oddly enough, Jesus is about to go out of the world. He has just said in verse 11, “And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee.” Jesus is leaving this world to return to his Father, but these disciples will be left in the world. He is praying for them, because it will take the power of God to keep them faithful in the midst of a world like this.
The disciples think that they will be able, without much difficulty, to remain committed to Christ. After they had participated in that first Lord’s Supper, Mark’s gospel tells us that Jesus said, “You will all desert me tonight. You will all forsake me.” But Peter, with great confidence says, “Though everyone else may desert you, I never will.” Then Jesus tells him that before the cock crows twice, Peter will deny him three times. Peter, one again brimming with even more confidence says, “Even if it means I have to die for you, I will never deny you.” Then we are told, “Likewise also said they all” (Mar 14:31). All of them were so sure that they would stand by the Lord until the very end. But then in Mark 14:50, we read, “And they all forsook him and fled.” They all deserted him! And yes, Peter denied him three times. First, Peter deserts his Lord, and then he denies his Lord. Do you see why our Lord prayed for them? They were so confident in their dedication and their devotion. But they were not strong enough to overcome their fear of the world. Because of their innate weakness, our Lord prayed that the Father would keep them, because they will have to continue to live in this world–a world that always has been and always will be opposed to Jesus and his disciples.
The disciples of Jesus had already experienced something of the hatred of the world. They had been with Jesus for three years. They had seen how the scribes, Pharisees, and Sadducees had opposed his teaching. They had heard the opponents of Jesus say that he was demon possessed, and that he cast out demons, not by the power of God, but by the power of the devil.
But though they had experienced something of the hatred of the world, they were not prepared for what the world was about to do. They had encountered verbal opposition, but when the world shows up with swords and clubs, that is a different matter. They had seen nothing yet. They were about to see what the world was capable of doing when all its hatred is unleashed. The world was going to take the Son of God, condemn him to death, scourge him, put a crown of thorns on his head, and nail him to a tree. Now the disciples will see what the world really is. When God comes to this world in the flesh, the world murders God. We hate God so much that given the chance we would torture him and kill him. If Jesus came to Baton Rouge, it would be the same story. The world would kill him. It would not matter where Jesus might show up. Whether it was San Francisco, New Orleans, New York, Washington D. C., London, Paris, Rome, Beijing, Moscow, Rio, or Johannesburg, it would be the same story. The Son of God would be put to death, because the world is still the world, and the world hates God.
Why did the world hate him so much–hate him enough to crucify him? Jesus said that the world hated him because he was not of the world. What did Jesus mean when he said he was not of the world? Certainly, he was in the world. He came down from heaven and was born of a virgin into this world. He lived as man in this world. But he was never of the world. We must be careful when we are reading the apostle John to be aware of the different ways in which he uses this word “world.” Sometimes, when he uses the word “world” he means the physical universe. Sometimes, he means the people in the world. But sometimes, when he uses the word “world,” he means that philosophy of life that is opposed to God and his commandments—that way of life that is characterized by pride, lust, greed, selfishness, sexual immorality, hatred, constant debate and warfare, and the desire for money and power at any cost. Those are the characteristics of the world. Or, we could define the world simply as “American culture 2021.” Jesus described himself as not of the world because he was not characterized by any of these characteristics of the world. The world sought after power and glory. Jesus taught service and humility. The world seeks freedom from God. Jesus taught absolute submission to God. The world preaches, “Fulfill all your desires.” Jesus said, “Deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow me.” The contrast between Christ and the world is as different as darkness and light. As a matter of fact, he condemned everything that the world thought was good and right. In his teaching and in his life, he exposed the world for what it is. We read in John 3:19, “And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.” He was the light, and when his light shone on this wicked world, the world was determined to extinguish that light. The world still hates our Lord, because everything that the world thinks is beautiful and good, Jesus exposes as being deformed, perverted, twisted, and evil. No wonder the world committed the most barbaric murder in the history of humanity—the murder of the Son of God! No wonder the disciples ran and fled in terror from the cruelty of the world. No wonder that after the crucifixion they were huddling and hiding for fear of the Jews. They had just seen what the world could do when you offend it. It is not surprising, then, that our Lord prayed for them, because he was not going to take them out of the world. He was going to leave them in the world to face all the hatred that he was about to encounter.
So, our Lord lifts his eyes to heaven and he prays, “I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.” We are not of the world in the same sense that Jesus was not of the world. We do not share this world’s values, dreams, and desires. One of the first things people realize when they become Christians is that they are strangers and pilgrims in the earth. We are in the world, but we have nothing in common with it. The world is opposed to God, and we desire to live in obedience to God. St. John writes in his first epistle, “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever” (I John 2:14-16). John gives us this description of the world—”the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life.”
No matter where you live, all you need to do is look around and you will see the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. Most people find the world attractive. But John says if lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life appeal to you, then the love of the Father is not in you. If you love the world, then you are no Christian in any sense of the word. Therefore, we need to ask ourselves an extremely important question: “Can it be truly said of us that we are not of the world?” Can we say that Jesus Christ has captivated our hearts and minds to the degree that we know that we belong to him and not to the world? Can we say we love him above all things, or is it true of us that we love the world and the things that are in the world? Can we say that we have chosen Christ rather than the world? If you have chosen Christ, you need this intercessory prayer that our Lord prayed on this night nearly two thousand years ago, because the world is going to hate you.
Just before Jesus prays for his disciples here in John 17, we remember that this prayer comes immediately after some important teaching he gave them in John 15, and all the teaching he gave them as they were gathered there in the upper room just before he would be led away to die. In John 15, he had brought up this same issue about the world hating them. He said, “If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you. If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you” (John 15:18-19). Jesus tells us that if you want to have a nice and comfortable life, if you want to get along with everyone and never offend anyone, then love the world. Live the way everyone else lives. Join them in all their lusts, pleasures, and greed for money and power. If you join the world in its loves and lusts, the world will love you back. The world loves its own. But if you love Christ and follow him, just be sure, the world will hate you.
One of the first things you must decide when you are contemplating whether you will become a follower of Jesus is whether you want to continue being of the world. This renunciation of the world is contained in our baptismal covenant, is it not? In the baptismal service, the candidate is asked, “Dost thou renounce the devil and all his works, the vain pomp and glory of the world, with all covetous desires of the same, and the sinful desires of the flesh, so that thou wilt not follow, nor be led by them?” The candidate answers, “I renounce them all; and, by God’s help, will endeavour not to follow, nor be led by them.” The first step in becoming a Christian is renouncing the world and all the glory of it, all the covetousness, and all the lust. But this initial commitment is only the beginning. This renunciation of the world continues daily, because the evil one is always offering it to us. It is the same offer our Lord had to refuse when the devil took him up to a high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them. Satan tempted our Lord with the words, “All of this I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.” In similar fashion, each and every day the evil one offers us the world. But Christ has asked his father to keep us from the evil one–to keep us from choosing the world that the evil one offers us. Have you renounced the world? Have you chosen to come out of the world to become a part of the hated and despised people of God?
I remember the story Martyn Lloyd-Jones told of how he had chosen to be part of the people of God rather than the world. He said that he had attempted a play in Leicester Square in London. After coming out of the theater, he saw a Salvation Army band playing some hymns, and he suddenly realized that these were his people, and he was going to belong to them. Not that Lloyd-Jones joined the Salvation army, but he was saying that they were Christians, and he was going to belong to those people. He went from attending a play in Leicester square and a lucrative career in medicine to joining the poor, despised people of God. Why did he do it? Something happened to him that happens to very few people–he had really come to know Jesus Christ. Martyn Lloyd Jones did not know what the Lord had in store for him at the time. He did not know that in 1939 he would be called to be the pastor of Westminster Chapel in London where he preached to thousands of people each week and saw hundreds of people come to Christ during his ministry.
The life of Martyn Lloyd-Jones also illustrates why our Lord did not pray that we should be taken out of the world. Christians have a great work to do in the world. When we encounter the hatred of the world, our impulse is to withdraw from the world. We would rather hide in a monastery or just be taken home to heaven, but Jesus says that he wants us to stay here. He has work for us to do. The world will hate us, but by staying here, he will use us to rescue people from this world. He has given his word, and he wants us to take that word into the world. After his resurrection he will tell his disciples, “As my Father hath sent me, even so send I you” (John 20:21). In effect, our Lord is saying, “Don’t ask me to take you out of the world. Do not get discouraged and ask to be taken home to heaven. No, as my Father hath sent me, I send you. I send you to be despised and rejected of men. I send you to be people of grief and acquainted with sorrow. But I will give you my peace, and my father will keep you from the evil one.”
We, like the disciples, are prone to think that we will not fold when we face the hatred of the world. The disciples thought they could face it, but they lasted barely two hours before they wilted and ran. Jesus prayed that we would be kept from the evil one. He does not pray that we will be kept from the hatred and the violence of the world. He was not kept from it, and he does not promise that he will keep his followers from it. But he does pray that we will be kept from the evil one. What does the evil one want us to do? He wants us to love the world. He wants us to be afraid of the world. He wants us to make us cave in to the world. He wants to lure us back into the world. Our Lord’s prayer for us is that we would never be so overcome by the evil one as to go back into the world. Christians are going to face trials and temptations, and they may fail from time to time, but Christians do not go back into the world, for Christ has prayed for them, that they would be kept from the evil one.
You will remember that when Peter boasted, “I will never deny you,” Jesus said, “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren” (Luke 22:31-2). Notice again, the intercessory prayer of our Lord for his own. I believe that Jesus refers to Peter as “Simon,” because in just a few hours, Peter was not going to be Peter, ”the rock.” He was going to be a coward. In a moment of weakness, out of fear of the world, Peter denied his Lord. But though Peter had failed, his faith had not failed. Deep down inside, he still believed in Jesus. Deep down inside, he still loved Jesus, and he proved the reality of his faith by weeping bitter tears of repentance. Jesus said to him, “After you have denied me, you will be converted. You will repent. You will turn back, and when you do, I still have work for you. After you have come through this sin, this failure, this trial of your faith–strengthen your brethren.” Like Peter, we may fail from time to time, fall into sin as Peter did, but our faith will not fail. Christ has prayed for us. We may fail, but after failure we can be converted, and we can continue our work to rescue people from this evil world.
Have you made the decision to leave the world? You may be saying, “The pull of the world is too strong. I cannot resist its attractions. Even if I decide to follow Christ, I’m afraid the world will pull me back.” But remember that when our Lord prayed this prayer, he was thinking of you. He has work for you to do. He has given you his word. He wants you to spread his word amid a hostile world. He prayed that the Father would keep you from the evil one. Trust him to do so. Yes, the world is a frightening place, filled with evil men who will hate you for the way you live and for what you believe. The world is a terrifying place, and it also a tempting place. The evil one says, “Look at all the mighty men of the world. Look at the presidents, congressmen, senators, and prime ministers. Look at all the film stars and musicians who are indulging all the pleasures of the flesh without restraint and making millions of dollars. Don’t you want to join them and be like them?” But God’s word reminds us, “They are all grass.” Fifty, seventy, one hundred years from now, where will they be? They will be rotting corpses, dust, and ashes. No matter how attractive the world may seem to be to you, remember that it is all going to come crumbling down and turned to rubbish. Rather, remember the words of St. John, “And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.” If you choose Christ, rather than the world, you will be kept by the power of God in the midst of dangerous and alluring world, because Christ has prayed that we would be kept from the evil one, and his prayer will be answered. Amen.
