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John 17 records Jesus’ great prayer to the Father just before the cross. He first prays for Himself, asking the Father to glorify Him so that He may glorify the Father (John 17:1–5). In John’s Gospel, that glory is tied especially to the cross, resurrection, and return to the Father (John 12:23; 13:31–32). Jesus speaks as the eternal Son who shared glory with the Father before the world existed (John 17:5). He also defines eternal life in deeply personal terms: not merely endless existence, but knowing “the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent” (John 17:3). Jesus has finished the work the Father gave Him to do in revealing the Father’s name and preparing to lay down His life for His people (John 17:4, 6; cf. John 1:18).
Then Jesus prays for His disciples, those whom the Father had given Him out of the world (John 17:6–19). He says they have received His words and believed that He came from the Father (John 17:8). Because Jesus is about to leave them in the world, He asks the Father to keep them, guard them, fill them with His joy, and protect them from the evil one (John 17:11–15). He does not pray that they would be taken out of the world, but that they would be preserved in the midst of it (John 17:15). They are not of the world, just as Jesus is not of the world (John 17:14, 16). So He asks the Father, “Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth” (John 17:17). God’s word sets His people apart, shapes them in holiness, and sends them on mission. Just as the Father sent the Son, the Son now sends His people into the world (John 17:18).
Finally, Jesus prays not only for the eleven, but for all who will believe through their word — including us (John 17:20). He prays for the unity of His church, not a shallow unity built on ignoring truth, but a deep, living unity grounded in the Father and the Son (John 17:21–23). This kind of unity becomes a witness to the world that Jesus truly was sent by the Father (John 17:21, 23). Jesus also prays that His people will one day be with Him and see His glory (John 17:24). The prayer ends with love: Jesus has made the Father known and will continue to do so, “that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them” (John 17:26). This chapter reminds us that our salvation, security, sanctification, unity, mission, and future glory are all held in the loving prayer of Jesus.
🌀 Reflection:
It is a comfort beyond words to realize that before going to the cross, Jesus prayed for His people — and not only for the disciples in that room, but for all who would later believe through their witness. Do you think of eternal life mainly as something future, or as a present relationship of knowing God through Jesus Christ? Let this chapter remind you that to belong to Jesus is to be deeply loved, carefully kept, and purposefully sent.
💬 Mission Challenge:
Pray John 17:17–21 for your church, your family, or a few fellow believers by name, asking God to grow you all in truth, holiness, and Christ-centered unity so the world may better see Jesus.
Continue reading in our NT260 plan in the rest of Phase 4 — That You May Believe.
Just Keith Harris 