Praying for You

He is risen (He is risen indeed!).

Believe it or not we are still in the season of Easter and so I think that its still appropriate that we proclaim Jesus’ resurrection. So when are we finished with the season of Easter? I think that in one sense we should never leave the season of Easter, as we are children of the resurrection. But in relation to the formal church season, this is the final week that Easter is celebrated. This past Thursday the church celebrated the Ascension of our Lord, and then the day of Pentecost is celebrated next weekend. I was told that I am to remind you to wear red to symbolize the coming of the Holy Spirit and the beginning of the church. Alright, enough with the church calendar.

Let me ask you this: how do you know you are protected? In other words, how do you know that you are shielded from exposure, injury, damage, or destruction? Wouldn’t it be great if we could have a bubble or a little force field that surrounded us and kept us from all harm? Then we wouldn’t have to worry about the bumps and bruises and other stuff that happens that causes some type of injury, [although I think it might get problematic if we are trying to be affectionate with our friends or spouse]. Given the fact we do not have the “bubble of protection”, what do you do to shield yourself? Do you drive defensively? Do you wear a seatbelt? Do you have someone with you when you climb a ladder? Do you wear the proper garments when you are doing yard work or cutting the lawn? Do you use a hot pad when you are pulling something out of the oven? ? Do you have insurance on yourself, your house, or the rest of your possessions? What about your identity? Are you safeguarded if someone steals your identity? In today’s gospel lesson, Jesus is praying for our protection, not only for protection from those physical mishaps, but also for our very souls.

If you remember from two weeks ago I mentioned that we are in the middle of John’s passion narrative. Jesus and the disciples have left the upper room, passed through the vineyard and have arrived in the Garden of Gethsemane. In the other gospel stories we hear of Jesus praying in the garden but his words are not recorded. The only thing we know from those passages is that the disciples fell asleep, that Jesus prays for God’s will to be done in this time (Matt 26:36-43), that Jesus was agitated during his prayer time (Mark 14:33), and that his agitation caused him to sweat so much it became like great drops of blood falling on the ground (Luke 22:44). It is in today’s lesson and in fact all of chapter 17 that we get the content of Jesus’ prayers. Verses 1-6 are about Jesus praying for himself, of which we get some glimpse in the other 3 narratives. Our lesson today is then centered on Jesus praying for his disciples. It is in this then we get a glimpse into the conversation Jesus had with his father. It is in this discussion that we are overhearing the good news.

Now I realize upon hearing these verses that it might sound like theological bafflegab. I hope that your eyes did not glaze over too much upon reading them. But what is here is important. In the first 3 verses Jesus says that the God the Father has been revealed to the disciples through his incarnation. Not only that but the disciples have been given to Jesus by the father. And that in the giving and revealing they now understand that Jesus was sent by the father for the salvation of the world. Even so Jesus is praying on behalf of the disciples and not on behalf of the world. Do you remember two weeks ago when I asked you if you were a disciple? However you answered, know that these verses state that Jesus is praying for you. The Father has given you to Jesus. In your baptism you have been named and claimed as a Child of God. You are an heir in the inheritance of God’s Kingdom. This is why Jesus is praying for you.

Did you know that you smell? The Apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians 2:15-16a says this: “For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing; to the one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life”. You smell of death to those in the world and the world hates you for it. Jesus himself says this in verse 14 “I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world”. This is not the first time Jesus has said this. Right after the gospel lesson you heard last week [In chapter 15:18-19] Jesus tell his disciples this: "If the world hates you, be aware that it hated me before it hated you. If you belonged to the world, the world would love you as its own. Because you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world-- therefore the world hates you.” But what exactly is "the world?" It should not be defined to mean a place adverse to the goodness of creation. Rather, it is the persons and forces opposed to or indifferent to the things of God embodied in Jesus. This is why Jesus is praying for you.

It isn’t just the normal hazards of daily living that this prayer is for. Jesus asks his father matter-of-factly not to take us out of the world but that we have protection from the evil one. You see the real danger that we are in is that the world wants to steal our identity. The world wants us to forget that we are Children of God. The world wants to make its own claim on us, in the hopes that we forget where our salvation comes from. The evil one, that is Satan, is the father of lies. The evil one wants to convince us that we can obtain salvation on our own. The evil one says that we are like God and that we do not need the fear or the knowledge of the Lord to find our way. Just look at what the world, the culture, considers right or beautiful or just. Look at how many self-help books are out there. Look at the advertising that says that we can be the better than anyone else by driving the fastest car, drinking the better tasting beer, eating the tastiest brat, or even have the best smelling house or the cleanest toilet. Look at the television programming that says only the biggest, strongest and quote ”most beautiful” unquote are given the limelight. Why do we allow our identities to be wrapped up in how flat our stomachs are, or how shiny our hair is, or how long we can prolong our sexual activities? Notice what all of these claims are making. It’s about the individual. It’s about how we can exalt ourselves above others. It’s about winning at all costs to the detriment of others. But Jesus says that we do not belong to the world, to the culture. Because we have been given to Jesus, we are not opposed to the things of God. Quite the contrary, in our confessions of faith we acknowledge that there is only one to be exalted. We acknowledge that at great cost we have been saved, redeemed and freed from sin, death, and the power of the devil. We acknowledge that it is Jesus, through the Holy Spirit who comes to us, keeps us in true faith, and fully forgives our sins. Therefore our identities are not wrapped up in some superficial definition of what we are supposed to look like be like or act like. No, our identities are wrapped up in the one who died for us. This is why Jesus is praying for us.

Jesus asks his father not to take us out of the world, buts wants us protected. Why? It is because we have been sanctified, that is set apart, to be sent into the world, into this culture to proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ. Do we really get how radically different and counter-cultural the message of the cross is? The message of the cross is anti-individual. The message of the cross is that love transcends the individual to take of care of the community. We heard last week from Jesus that the greatest command is to love each other as I have loved you. The world does not want to hear this. Nevertheless we are set apart and sent, just as Jesus was sent, to proclaim this very fact. Why? We get our clue form the verses that come after this text: John 17:20-23 "I ask not only on behalf of these [that is, his disciples], but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one. As you, Father, 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. The glory that you have given me I have given them, so that they may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.” Not only is this vine language, but it is also love language. Even if the world is opposed to the things of God and Christ, God still loves the world so much that he sent his Son to die for it. And so we too are sent, set apart to carry on the gospel with our gifts and talents, no matter how counter-cultural it may seem. Our mission is to transform the culture. This is why Jesus is praying for us.

I remember as a kid I was always getting bruised or nicked up in some way. I remember that band-aids were my best friends in those early years (no comments from the peanut gallery!). And no matter how hard my parents or grandparents tried to protect me, they couldn’t do a thorough job unless they locked me up in the basement. This obviously was not a workable situation. But I also knew that my parents and grandparents loved me and that they wanted the best for me. I know that on many occasions that they would tell me that they were praying for my safety. This is what Jesus is praying for, for us. He knows that we are not to be locked up in the basement, and that we will have bumps and bruises. Jesus knows that we will have car accidents, that the ladder may not be fully secured, that we will burn ourselves, and that we will forget to wear long pants when cutting the lawn. Jesus knows that we will endure hardships of many kinds and even death. But Jesus also knows that no matter how hard the world tries to define us by its standards, our identities are safe and secure because we have already been named and claimed by him because God has given us to Jesus. And so with our identities intact, and God’s guiding and protecting hand, we as his disciples, can boldly go forth into the world proclaiming the love of Jesus Christ. Amen.

And may the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, keep our hearts and minds on Christ Jesus. Amen.