Lesson #8, 1000 Days
When Jesus Prays for You / John 15; John 17

Good Questions Have Groups Talking
www.joshhunt.com

When Jesus Prays for You

OPEN

Let’s each share your name and where do you live? Where is your house?

DIG                                           

1.       John 15.1 - 17. Circle every occurrence of the word “abide” or “remain.” How many did you find?

So how do we pray in Jesus’ name, that is, in conformity to his nature? Jesus himself says, “If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you” (John 15:7). This “abide in me” is the all-inclusive condition for effective intercession. It is the key for prayer in the name of Jesus. We learn to become like the branch, which receives its life from the vine.… Nothing is more important to a life of prayer than learning how to become a branch.

As we live this way, we develop what Thomas à Kempis calls “a familiar friendship with Jesus.” We become accustomed to his face. We distinguish the voice of the true Shepherd from that of religious hucksters in the same way professional jewelers distinguish a diamond from glass imitations—by acquaintanceship. When we have been around the genuine article long enough, the cheap and the shoddy become obvious.… We know even as we are known. This is how we pray in Jesus’ name. —RICHARD J. FOSTER, from Prayer: Finding the Heart’s True Home / Thomas Nelson, A Daybook of Prayer: Meditations, Scriptures and Prayers to Draw near to the Heart of God (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2006).

2.       What exactly does it mean to abide in Christ?

When you abide somewhere, you live there. You grow familiar with the surroundings. You don’t pull in the driveway and ask, “Where is the garage?” You don’t consult the blueprint to find the kitchen. To abide is to be at home.

To abide in Christ’s love is to make his love your home. Not a roadside park or hotel room you occasionally visit, but your preferred dwelling. You rest in him. Eat in him. When thunder claps, you step beneath his roof. His walls secure you from the winds. His fireplace warms you from the winters of life. As John urged, “We take up permanent residence in a life of love” (1 John 4:16 MSG).

You abandon the old house of false love and move into his home of real love. — Come Thirsty / Max Lucado, Grace for the Moment® Volume Ii: More Inspirational Thoughts for Each Day of the Year (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2006).

3.       A helpful practice is to turn a passage like this into a prayer. How would you respond in prayer from a passage like this?

Jesus, when I was still without strength, You died for me, the ungodly. The Father who did not spare You, His own Son, but delivered You up for me, how shall He not with You also freely give me all things?

In You, Jesus, dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; and I am complete in You, the head of all principality and power.

So I abide in You, Jesus, and You in me. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can I, unless I abide in You. You are the vine, I am a branch. I abiding in You, and You in me, bear much fruit; for without You I can do nothing. To will is present with me, but how to perform good I do not find. To me grace was given according to the measure of Your gift.

If I abide in You, Jesus, and Your words abide in me, I will ask what I desire, and it shall be done for me. May Your word, Jesus, dwell in me richly in all wisdom. — David Jeremiah, Life-Changing Moments With God (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2007), 111.

4.       John 15.7. What does it mean for Christ’s words to abide in us? Is this different or the same thing as abiding in Christ?

“And my words abide in you.” Another region of piety spoken about here by Christ which is a requirement for successful praying is the matter of the Scriptures abiding in you. Your abiding in Christ and the Scriptures abiding in you are inseparable, but it is wise to consider each separately to help us better understand this abiding.

At least three things are involved in having the Scriptures abide in you. They are affection for the Word, attentiveness to the Word, and application of the Word. — John G. Butler, Jesus Christ: His Praying, vol. 6, Studies of the Savior (Clinton, IA: LBC Publications, 2004), 321–322.

5.       Open your Bible to Psalm 119—anywhere in in Psalm 119. Look for emotion words. How did David feel about God’s Word?

Affection for the Word. To have the Word of God abide in you, you must have a great affection for the Word of God. David is a good illustration of one who has great affection for the Word. In the Psalms He says, “O how love I thy law! It is my meditation all the day” (Psalm 119:97). His love for the Word kept it in his mind all day. Repeatedly in Psalm 119, David expresses his great love for the Word of God. “Thy law do I love” (Psalm 119:113). “I love thy testimonies” (Psalm 119:119). “I love thy commandments above gold” (Psalm 119:127). “I love thy precepts” (Psalm 119:159). “Thy law do I love” (Psalm 119:163), and “I love them [thy testimonies] exceedingly” (Psalm 119:167). Note that David’s love for the Word of God included the commandments and the law. We often limit our love to the promises, but the David so loved the Word that he loved even the commandments of God. This is the kind of affection we need for the Scriptures if our piety is to help our prayer life. — John G. Butler, Jesus Christ: His Praying, vol. 6, Studies of the Savior (Clinton, IA: LBC Publications, 2004), 322.

6.       What benefits come to those who allow God’s Word to abide in them?

Attentiveness to the Word. If the Word abides in you, you will be attentive to the Word. That is, you will read the Word, study the Word, and be in church when the Word is taught and preached. Paul said, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly” (Colossians 3:16). The Word is to be in us abundantly, not sparsely. Some folk know a little of the Scripture here and there, but we are to know it in great amounts. The Word richly suggests deposits. It is banking language; it is financial terminology. If you are going to have a lot of money in the bank, if you are going to be rich, you will have to make many deposits of money in your account in the bank. That is the lesson of this exhortation by Paul. If you would be rich in the Word you will have to make many deposits of it in your heart. You will have to study the Word of God frequently. — John G. Butler, Jesus Christ: His Praying, vol. 6, Studies of the Savior (Clinton, IA: LBC Publications, 2004), 322–323.

7.       What practical steps can we take to allow Christ’s Words to abide in us?

Few professing Christians show much attentiveness to the Word of God. They do not read the Scriptures with any regularity. Reading the Bible through in a year is something almost unheard of among many professing Christians. In fact, you hardly see these folks with a Bible. Go into their home and you will see magazines and newspapers and TV guides strewn all over the house, but you will have to look hard to find the Bible or anything that pertains to the Bible. They may have book shelves filled with books, but the nature of the books will seldom be spiritual. They simply are not interested in the Word. And many church members manifest this sad condition by what they are interested in at church. Have a pot-luck and people will come out of the woodwork to the meal. But have a Bible Conference and you have difficulty getting church officers to the meetings. Some pastors, unfortunately, are like politicians who play to the wishes of the people. They have adjusted the program at church to be more carnal than spiritual. Musicals and drama are replacing the preaching and teaching of the Word at church, and many other meetings and “fellowships” go on at church in which a Bible is never opened let alone taught or preached. It is no wonder that in these churches, the emphasis on prayer is also lacking. To have a vibrant and successful prayer life, one must be attentive to the Word of God. To encourage a good prayer life, the church must have an emphasis on the Word of God. — John G. Butler, Jesus Christ: His Praying, vol. 6, Studies of the Savior (Clinton, IA: LBC Publications, 2004), 323.

8.       What do we learn about abiding in Christ from verse 10?

Application of the Word. Abiding in the Word also involves obedience to the Word. If the Word abides in you, it will guide your conduct. If the Word abides in you, you will live the Word. You will make application of the Word of God to your life. The Bible is not just a book of knowledge, but a book to guide our lives. Some treat the Bible simply as a source of knowledge, but they fail to apply the Word to their everyday living. The Bible is not antiquated so that it does not apply to our day; but it is the most up-to-date book in print. Nothing is so applicable to our life as the Word of God. And if the word abides in you, you will apply it to your life. And this is so essential for a good prayer life, for one who does not live according to the Word of God will not do well in praying. — John G. Butler, Jesus Christ: His Praying, vol. 6, Studies of the Savior (Clinton, IA: LBC Publications, 2004), 323–324.

9.       What good things come to the obedient?

Satan asked God, “Does Job serve God for nothing?”

Implication: if you serve God for reward—that is bad.

Notice it is Satan that asked this question. God is all about reward. The original covenant with Abraham emphasizes that God will bless Abraham. In Genesis 15.1 we read that God is Abraham’s great reward. The promise of reward and blessing is repeated in Genesis 18.18 and 22.17. It is repeated again to Abraham’s kids and grandkids.

My favorite verse teaches that you cannot come to God unless you believe that He exists (most people do) and that God is a rewarder (most people don’t). (Hebrews 11.6)

God is a rewarder. God is good. It is good to follow God. It is always in our best interest to live the Christian life. It is always good for us to follow God. There is no conflict between what is good for me and what is good for God. You must believe that God is a rewarder or, according to Hebrews 11.6, you can’t come to God.

I don’t think this is saying God will reject you if you try to come to Him. It is just stating the nature of things—you won’t try to come to God unless you believe it is good for you to do so. — Josh Hunt, Following God

10.   What keeps us from obedience? What keeps you from obedience?

Suppose I suggest you pray the “Whatever” prayer:

Lord, whatever you want me to do, I will do.
Wherever you ask me to go, I will go.
Whoever you ask me to love, I will love. Whatever you ask me to give, I will give.

If that makes you nervous, it reveals something you believe about God. You don’t believe—really believe—God is good. You don’t believe He is a rewarder. (Hebrews 11:6) You don’t believe He has plans to prosper you and not harm you. (Jeremiah 29:11)

Some won’t surrender to God because they are afraid that God will send them to the deepest, darkest part of Africa. He might. But, I will tell you what God will do if He does call you to Africa. He will give you a love for Africa and her people.

When you surrender to God, you surrender to His best. Who under Heaven does not want God’s best? “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” Jeremiah 29:11 (NKJV)

I have never heard anyone say these words: “I surrendered my life to Christ and it was the worst decision I ever made in my life.” I have heard countless people say, “I wish I had surrendered sooner.” — Johnny Hunt, Changed (Pulpit Press, 2014).

11.   John 17. Overview. How does Jesus’ prayer differ from most prayers you hear?

Prayer is not the way to get God to do our will in heaven. Prayer is the way to get man to do God’s will on earth. Once this is understood, you will find yourself praying in an entirely different manner. And that’s what Jesus is doing here. “Glorify Me,” He prays, “so that You might be glorified—even if that means that I will be pinned to the Cross of Calvary.”

“That sounds sadistic,” you say. But it isn’t because on the other side of the Cross is a crown—joy unspeakable, full of great glory. We only see five months or ten years down the road. But God sees the next ten zillion years. You see, Jesus’ allowing the Father to be glorified through Him ultimately bought a bride for Him for all eternity.

It’s so radical when a believer finally gets the big picture and stops saying, “God do it my way.” God is not Burger King. We can’t give orders about how things should be done, and then complain when we don’t get the lettuce and onions we asked for. God is not Burger King—He’s the King of kings, and He sees what is going to be absolutely best in the long run. — Jon Courson, Jon Courson’s Application Commentary (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2003), 572.

12.   How is this prayer organized? (Your Bible may have subheadings.) What are the main topics of Jesus’ prayer?

Jesus’ prayer is organized in three basic sections. In verses 1–5 we find Him praying for Himself; in verses 6–19 He prays for His disciples; and in verses 20–26 Jesus prays for His church. As we read John 17 and try to understand what is important to Jesus, what are the burdens on His heart? Four things stand out above all others. — David Jeremiah, Prayer: The Great Adventure (Sisters, OR: Multnomah Publishers, 1997), 196.

13.   John 17.1 – 5. What do we learn about Christian living from this first section?

First on the heart of Jesus is that He might be glorified. John writes, “These things Jesus spoke; and lifting up His eyes to heaven, He said, ‘Father, the hour has come; glorify Thy Son, that the Son may glorify Thee’” (verse 1). A few verses later Jesus says, “And now, glorify Thou Me together with Thyself, Father, with the glory which I had with Thee before the world was” (verse 5).

We are taught from the Word of God and from the church creeds that the chief end of man is to glorify God. As we read this prayer and see the heart of the Lord Jesus in it, we discover His intense desire that He be glorified with the same glory He displayed before He left heaven for earth. His request reminds us that our top priority must be to glorify our Lord. We would be wise to ask ourselves, why do we do what we do? What is our purpose behind our work, our play, our service, our relationships? John 17 reveals that the top item for us on Jesus’ agenda is that we bring glory to Him. — David Jeremiah, Prayer: The Great Adventure (Sisters, OR: Multnomah Publishers, 1997), 196–197.

14.   What are some practical ways we can glorify God? We use that phrase a lot in church world. What exactly does it mean to glorify God? How do we glorify God?

And how do we do this? We do so by making sure our actions reflect well on our Savior. When people gain a taste of heaven by sampling the righteous deeds and attitudes we serve up, Jesus is glorified. Just the other day I heard of one such divine snack. An elderly woman in a small Minnesota town had just lost her husband to a long illness. Her neighbor, a Christian, took it upon himself to clear the snow choking her sidewalks. She didn’t ask him to do it and he didn’t wait for an invitation. He simply saw the need, he had the time and the snowblower, and he went to work. And right there, in the teeth of a frigid Minnesota winter, that woman got a whiff of heavenly cooking. And Jesus was glorified. — David Jeremiah, Prayer: The Great Adventure (Sisters, OR: Multnomah Publishers, 1997), 197.

15.   Verse 6ff. What was Jesus’ main prayer for His disciples?

In verse 11 Jesus says, “And I am no more in the world; and yet they themselves [Christians] are in the world, and I come to Thee. Holy Father, keep them in Thy name, the name which Thou hast given Me.” Also note verse 15: “I do not ask Thee to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one.” Repeatedly throughout His prayer we find that the heartbeat of Jesus is for God’s people to be sanctified. — David Jeremiah, Prayer: The Great Adventure (Sisters, OR: Multnomah Publishers, 1997), 197.

16.   Verse 17. What exactly does it mean to be sanctified?

Allow me to de-Christianize that word “sanctify.” When I was growing up, people used to get up and testify, “I’m just thankful that I’m saved and sanctified.” I didn’t know what they meant. I found out later their testimonies were false. Some of them weren’t sanctified, for the word “sanctified” means “to be holy.” And these folks were anything but.

Isn’t it interesting that at the heart of the Lord’s High Priestly prayer is His desire that the people of God should be holy, righteous, sanctified, and set apart from the world? — David Jeremiah, Prayer: The Great Adventure (Sisters, OR: Multnomah Publishers, 1997), 197–198.

17.   How does a sanctified person look different from an unsanctified person? How could you tell if a person were sanctified or not?

If ever a prayer were needed in our world, it’s this one. We have become so like the world and we’ve invited so much of the world into the church that it’s hard to tell the difference between the two. A few years ago authors James Patterson and Peter Kim published a book titled, The Day America Told the Truth: What People Really Believe About Everything that Really Matters. Consider some of their startling conclusions:

What is going on in congregations, parishes and synagogues across America? The news is good and bad.

God is alive and well. But right now in America, fewer people are listening to what God has to say than ever before.

Ninety percent of the people we questioned said that they believe in God. It would be the logical conclusion then to think that God is a meaningful factor in today’s America. But we reached a different conclusion when we dug deeper with our questions.

In every single region of the country, when we asked how people make up their minds on issues of right and wrong, we found that they simply do not turn to God or religion to help them decide about the seminal or moral issues of the day. For most people, religion plays no role in shaping their opinions on a long list of important public questions. This is true even for questions that seem closely related to religion: birth control, abortion, even teaching creationism and the role of women in the clergy. On not one of these questions did a majority of people seek the guidance of religion in finding answers. Most people do not even know their church’s position on the important issues.

…Only one in 10 of us believe in all of the Ten Commandments. Forty percent of us believe in five or fewer Commandments.

We have established ourselves as the authority on morality. We now choose which Commandments to believe and which ones not to believe. Clearly, the God of the 1990s in America is a distant and pale reflection of the God of our forefathers.

I wish Patterson and Kim’s conclusions were inaccurate, but they’re not. The evidence is everywhere. Not too long ago a friend told me he spotted a car sporting a chrome “fish” symbol with the name “Jesus” inside it, a “dove” sign on the bumper and the name of a Christian college plastered on the rear windshield. Hanging from the rearview mirror inside the car was an air freshener in the form of a Playboy bunny.

Obviously, this is not what Jesus was praying for. The prayer and heartbeat of Jesus is that the church of Jesus Christ might be holy and sanctified. It’s a prayer which we must echo with increasing urgency. — David Jeremiah, Prayer: The Great Adventure (Sisters, OR: Multnomah Publishers, 1997), 198–199.

18.   Verse 21. Is this saying that it would be a good thing if we were all a part of one church or denomination?

In verse 21 Jesus prayed, “that they may all be one; even as Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be in Us.” He says repeatedly in verses 21–23 that He desires His church to be unified. What does He mean?

I’m frequently asked, “Do you believe in the ecumenical movement?” I usually respond with a saying of C.S. Lewis: “There is no clever arrangement of rotten eggs that will ever make a good omelet.” The ecumenical movement is a misguided, human attempt to take all organized churches—regardless of what any individual denomination believes—and force them together into some sort of outward unity. I don’t believe in that, and neither does the Bible.

That’s not what Jesus is talking about here. He doesn’t have in mind ecumenical unity, but the spiritual unity of all true members of the body of Christ. The problem today is that Christians—genuine, blood-bought believers in the Risen Christ—can’t get along with each other. We somehow lack unity among believers of like, precious faith. It’s no longer a matter of whether the saved Baptists get along with the saved Methodists or the saved Presbyterians or the saved Lutherans. The saved Baptists don’t even get along with the saved Baptists! — David Jeremiah, Prayer: The Great Adventure (Sisters, OR: Multnomah Publishers, 1997), 199–200.

19.   How have you seen disunity in the church harm the church?

Perhaps you’ve heard how a couple of old church hymns have been rewritten to reflect this ungodly antagonism:

“Amazing grace, how sweet the sound
that saved a wretch like you.”

“The strife is o’er, the battle done
the church has split and our side won.”

I believe the Lord’s heart is broken by what He sees. His prayer isn’t being answered right now, because the body of Christ has chosen to fracture and fragment itself. It doesn’t have to be that way. — David Jeremiah, Prayer: The Great Adventure (Sisters, OR: Multnomah Publishers, 1997), 200.

20.   Let’s think of the positive side. Describe a time when a church displayed unity.

Some time ago I spoke to a group of Christians in the Seattle area who had gathered to find biblical help for their families. On a Thursday, Friday and Saturday, I and some others ministered to some two thousand people from every kind of church imaginable, all of them committed to the historic Christian faith. For three days nobody asked about denominational affiliation. Nobody cared. We came together in our mutual faith in Christ to learn from the Word of God anything that would help us be better fathers and mothers and parents. We enjoyed a sweet oneness in Christ.

Something like that needs to happen on a much larger scale in the body of Christ if we’re going to fulfill the prayer of Jesus. He wants us to be unified, not through some bogus organizational structure, but through our mutual faith and trust in Him. If God is our Father, then we’re all brothers and sisters in Christ. And it’s about time we started acting like it. — David Jeremiah, Prayer: The Great Adventure (Sisters, OR: Multnomah Publishers, 1997), 200–201.

21.   Verse 18. Why does God leave us on planet earth?

There’s one last request, found in verse 18: “As Thou didst send Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.” Why did Jesus come into the world? Answer: To seek and to save that which was lost. And why are we sent into the world? Answer: To seek and to save that which is lost.

Jesus’ heartbeat was evangelism and missionary outreach. He had a passion that all men and women might be saved. That’s what He prayed about in this remarkable prayer. So what does that mean to us? If we’re going to operate on the agenda of Jesus, we will strive to discover and fulfill our part in the evangelization of the world. And what is that part? It varies for each of us, but all of us have a part, no matter what our age or gifts or backgrounds.

Not long before he died, Donald McGavran, the famed church growth expert, was speaking to a group of senior adults. At ninety-three years of age, he said, “Many people think their lives stop when they retire, that their real work has ended. When I retired at age sixty-eight, the most important work of my life began. Let me assure you, my friends, that your real life has begun and probably your most important contribution will be made in the coming years. But see to it that you deal with important matters. See to it that you deal with the church. See to it that you deal with bringing people to Christ.”

So you’re not a church growth expert? You’re not an evangelist? Not many are. But if you’re a Christian, you’re an ambassador for God. Woodie W. White tells this story about how he came to faith:

In the fall of 1953 I met a young woman at a soda fountain. At the time I was having severe difficulty with organized religion. She was an articulate and dedicated Christian. She knew how to talk about her faith. The more I railed against the Church, the more she talked about Jesus. The more I talked about the hypo-crites in the Church, the more she talked about Jesus. The more I pointed to the failure of the Church, the more she talked about Jesus. She won. Praise God!

Maybe we are using our evangelistic witness to talk about the wrong things. Perhaps we are giving answers to questions no one is asking. It may well be that people are looking for bread and we are giving a stone. The Good News is: Jesus is Lord! Whatever else may follow, and there is much, this is where the Story begins.

Jesus has a passion for the salvation of men and women, boys and girls, a passion expressed in His High Priestly prayer. If we wish to operate on His agenda, we will see what part we can play in bringing people to Christ. — David Jeremiah, Prayer: The Great Adventure (Sisters, OR: Multnomah Publishers, 1997), 201–202.

22.   What do you want to recall from today’s conversation?

23.   How can we support one another in prayer this week?