Chapter Seventeen
Jesus’ Farewell Prayer
1. When Jesus spoke these words, He lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said, “Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You.”
When Jesus began His public ministry, He spoke about a final “hour” that would eventually be coming, but at an unknown time. Jesus first mentioned this final hour during a wedding celebration when His mother said to Him, “They have no wine.” In response, Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come” (John 2:3-4).
Two years later, around the time of the Feast of Tabernacles, Jesus’ brothers encouraged Him to go to Jerusalem for the annual celebration. At first, Jesus was reluctant to go. Therefore, He said to His brothers, “I am not going to this feast, for My time has not yet fully come” (John 7:8).
Then, in the last week of Jesus’ public ministry, just after His triumphal entry, Jesus said, “The hour has come, that the Son of man should be glorified” (John 12:23). And four verses later, Jesus said, “Now My soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save Me from this hour’? But for this purpose, I have come to this hour. Father, glorify Your name” (John 12:27).
Finally, at the end of His farewell discourse, Jesus says to His disciples, “Indeed, the hour is coming, yes, has now come, that you will be scattered, each to his own, and you will leave Me alone. And yet, I am not alone, because the Father is with Me” (John 16:32). Jesus then consoles His disciples with the encouraging words, “I have said these things to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But be of good cheer; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).
This is where this next episode begins. Jesus has just said that as long as He is with the Father, He can never be alone. It is most fitting, therefore, that Jesus now lifts His eyes to heaven and says, “Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that Your Son may glorify You” (John 17:1).
A reciprocal union
Jesus is speaking these words during the very evening when He will be captured and bound, brought to the authorities, and put on trial. In preparation for what He is about to go through, Jesus turns to the Father in prayer, asking to be strengthened so that He might undergo the coming trial with faith and courage. In this context, it is important to note that glorification is a two-way process. Jesus is praying that the Father may glorify the Son so that the Son, in turn, might glorify the Father.
On a deeper level, Jesus is speaking about a final and complete union between the love which is His divine soul and the truth that He has come to teach. Just as love fills truth with power, truth, in turn, gives focus and direction to love. It is a reciprocal process, each enhancing and glorifying the other. To put it another way, truth comes into its full glory when it is filled with God’s goodness. And goodness comes into its full glory when it acts through the form of truth. 1
This can also be applied to the reciprocal relationship between the soul and the body. The soul has no power to act without a body, and the body has no power to act without a soul. Both are necessary; the two must act together as one. Musicians, artists, and dancers must learn their craft before they can fully express their passion. Through the voice of a singer, the hand of a sculptor, and the movements of a dancer, the soul expresses itself. Similarly, truth sets us free to express the love that is in our soul. 2
As love comes into the world through truth, both love and truth are glorified. When these work together as one, truth eventually becomes wisdom, and love takes the form of useful service. In effect, they glorify each other through a reciprocal union. This then, is the inner meaning of the first verse of Jesus’ prayer: “Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that Your Son may glorify You” (John 17:1). Love glorifies truth; and truth glorifies love. It is through this ongoing and ever deepening union that the glorification process will be accomplished. It will be Jesus’ finest hour. 3
A practical application
The phrase “finest hour” might not be a specific moment in time, nor a specific hour on the hands of a clock. Rather, it refers to an event in which someone has displayed tremendous faith, courage, and perseverance. In this regard, our finest hour comes whenever we are challenged to rise above the promptings and desires of our lower nature. This is the time to turn to the Lord in prayer, call truth to mind, and then act according to that truth, knowing that God flows into His truth with love and power. As a practical application, then, reflect on Jesus’ words, “Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Son, that Your Son might glorify You.” Whenever your ego is injured, or self-interest is thwarted, or disappointment threatens to come in, say to yourself, “Father, the hour has come….” Let it be an opportunity to strengthen your relationship with God by fully receiving all that He is offering you in the moment, and then reciprocating by acting accordingly. This is how God builds a new will within you so that you might glorify God. 4
Love Draws Us to the Truth
2. As Thou hast given Him authority over all flesh, that [as to] everything which Thou hast given Him, He might give to them eternal life.
3. And this is eternal life, that they might know Thee, the only true God, and [Him] whom Thou hast sent, Jesus Christ.
4. I have glorified Thee on the earth; I have finished the work that Thou hast given Me to do.
5. And now, O Father, glorify Me with Thyself, with the glory which I had with Thee before the world was.
In this most holy prayer, Jesus prays that the Father might glorify Him, and that He might glorify the Father, especially as He anticipates the challenges, temptations, and torments of His final hour. It would be the last step in Jesus’ glorification process. Through this process, Jesus would achieve the final unity with the Father. As a result, it would open the way for all people to approach God in His risen and glorified humanity. From this time forward, they would be able to receive all that God desires to give His people if they would only choose to receive it. 5
As Jesus continues to pray to the Father, He says, “You have given the Son authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him” (John 17:2). In the literal sense, it is said that the Father gives people to the Son. More deeply, this means that love, which is called “the Father,” draws people to the truth, which is called “the Son.” 6
When we are drawn to Jesus and begin to put His truth into our life, a gradual transformation begins to take place. While we cannot say that we are “glorified” in the same way that Jesus is, we can indeed say that the insistent demands of our lower nature, which once ruled over us, no longer do so; instead, we rule over them. As it is written in the Hebrew scriptures, “They shall take them captive, whose captives they were; and they shall rule over their oppressors” (Isaiah 14:2).
This is how the Son has “authority over all flesh.” In this context, the term, “the flesh,” refers to the demands of our lower nature. And “the Son” refers not just to Jesus, but also to the divine truth that He teaches. It is divine truth, when united with divine love, that has the power to subdue the inconsiderate, self-centered drives of our egocentric nature. This powerful union of truth infilled with love, indeed, has authority over all flesh. 7
The love that draws us to Jesus is not complicated. Simply defined, it is the love of becoming a good person, not because it will enhance our reputation, or make us more popular, or increase our wealth, but simply because we want to become the person God intends us to be. Whether we say, “The love that draws us to Jesus,” or “The love that draws us to the truth,” it amounts to the same thing. As Jesus said earlier in this gospel, “the truth will set you free” (John 8:33), and three verses later He adds, “the Son sets you free” (John 8:36).
The love that draws us to the truth might be compared to the love that devoted physicians have for their patients. If they continue their medical studies or develop new therapeutic techniques, it’s not to increase their earning potential or achieve greater admiration. Rather, it’s to better serve the people in their care. The love that draws us to the truth might also be compared to the love of caring parents who acquire parenting skills. It’s not to control their children more effectively, but rather to help their children blossom into the people God has designed them to be. Similarly, the love that draws us to the truth might be compared to the love that faithful married partners have for each other. If they learn new communication skills, it’s not to prove their point or get their way, but rather to deepen their love for one another.
These, then, are some of the ways that love draws people to the truth. In other words, love wants to be united with the truth so that it can be as useful as possible. This kind of useful service is not about recognition or reward. Rather, it is about knowing God, believing in Him, and loving to do His will. Eternal life, then, is to know both divine love, which is called the “the only True God,” and divine truth which is called “Jesus Christ.” Therefore, in the next verse, Jesus says, “And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God and Jesus Christ whom You sent” (John 17:3). 8
These two, divine love and divine truth, are not two but one. They are one even as the heat and light of a fire are one. And when love and wisdom, or goodness and truth, are united in us as one, even in a finite way, we are no longer predominantly motivated by selfish desires. Instead, we are primarily motivated by the love of God and the love of the neighbor. When this becomes established as our essential character, and becomes a heavenly habit, a new nature is born in us. This new nature, which is made up of both a new understanding and a new will, is what Jesus calls “eternal life.” It is to know the love and wisdom of God by living according to the divine precepts. 9
The work that Jesus has finished
Up to this point in the divine narrative, Jesus has not allowed anyone to capture Him. That’s because He still had work to do. As He often said, “My hour has not yet come.” There were sermons to preach, people to heal, and disciples to instruct. Throughout this time, Jesus was fulfilling the scriptures thereby giving convincing proof that He was the promised Messiah.
Nevertheless, Jesus never exalted Himself above God. Instead, He always honored and glorified the Father, by attributing all things to Him. For example, Jesus said, “The Son can do nothing of Himself” (John 5:19), “The Father who dwells in Me does the works” (John 14:10), and “My Father is greater than I” (John 14:28). Therefore, in this culminating prayer, Jesus says to the Father “I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which You have given Me to do” (John 17:4).
In other words, Jesus has finished everything necessary to bring Him to this point in the divine narrative. And yet, there is still more to accomplish. All along the way, Jesus has been engaged in successive combats against the hells. We see glimpses of this when Jesus is confronted by the scribes and Pharisees who conspire to take His life. Meanwhile, beneath the surface, a fiercer battle has been taking place. Jesus has been undergoing severe and continual combats against the hellish influences that were threatening to overwhelm and destroy humanity. In fact, the most interior and grievous battles are still ahead. 10
While these impending battles will be the most severe, they will also be the means through which Jesus will complete His glorification process. Every hell that is vanquished will open the way for Jesus to achieve a closer unity with His divine nature which He calls “the Father.” In the end, there will be a glorious and complete unition of the truth He came to bring with the divine goodness which is His very soul. Therefore, Jesus prays, “And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was” (John 17:5). 11
Praying to the Father
It must be acknowledged that when Jesus prays to the Father, there is a strong appearance that there are two separate persons. Moreover, there is an equally strong appearance that they have been separate beings from the beginning, that is, from “before the world was.” As we have pointed out, the appearance of two persons allows Jesus to reveal not only the true nature of God, but also what it means to be a human being who turns to God in prayer. 12
This picture of Jesus at prayer is necessary. It is because Jesus has not yet completely cast off the fallen human heredity that He had taken on through birth. Because of the strong pull of that hereditary nature, it was necessary for Jesus to pray to the Father in the same way that each of us must pray. Deeply seen, Jesus was allowing hellish influences to attack Him so that He could overcome them, subjugate them, and thereby glorify His humanity. To accomplish this, prayer was essential. This is why there is such a strong appearance of two separate persons in the divine narrative, especially when Jesus prays to the Father. Nevertheless, we know from both reason and revelation that “God is one.” 13
This, then, is the beginning of Jesus’ farewell prayer. It is a picture of Jesus praying for a return to the glory that He had from the beginning when He first created the world, or, as He says here, “before the world was.” In order to make it through what lies ahead, He will need to summon up all the love that lies within Him, uniting it with the divine truth He came to teach. He will need to draw upon the divinity that is His very nature, and has been His very nature, even before the world came into existence. 14
A practical application
Sometimes our prayers can be last-minute, desperate cries for assistance during times of great difficulty. But Jesus demonstrates that there is another kind of prayer, one which might be called “anticipatory prayer.” This is the nature of Jesus’ final prayer as He approaches the time when He will be captured, bound, and put on trial. Jesus prays that God might be glorified in Him so that He might glorify God. As a practical application, you can bring honor and glory to the name of the Lord through your words and actions, especially as you go through challenging times. The key is to first lift your mind to the Lord before the time of difficulty. Perhaps it’s an upcoming meeting with your boss, or a difficult conversation with a friend, or the anticipation of medical news that might be devastating. Whenever you anticipate a challenging situation, pray beforehand that you might think from truth, and act from love. Then, you can say with the psalmist, “Glorify the Lord with me; let us exalt His name together” (Psalm 34:3). 15
Jesus Prays for His Disciples
6. I have manifested Thy name to the men whom Thou hast given Me out of the world; they were Thine, and Thou hast given them to Me, and they have kept Thy word.
7. Now they have known that all things, as many as Thou hast given Me, are from Thee,
8. Because the sayings which Thou hast given Me, I have given them; and they have received, and have known truly that I came forth from Thee; and they have believed that Thou didst send Me.
9. I plead for them; I plead not for the world, but for them whom Thou hast given Me, because they are Thine.
10. And all Mine are Thine, and Thine are Mine; and I am glorified in them.
11. And I am no longer in the world, and they are in the world, and I come to Thee. Holy Father, keep them in Thy name whom Thou hast given Me, that they may be one as We [are].
12. When I was with them in the world, I kept them in Thy name; those whom Thou hast given Me I have guarded, and none of them has been destroyed except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled.
13. But now I come to Thee, and these things I speak in the world, that they might have My joy fulfilled in them.
14. I have given them Thy Word, and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, as I am not of the world.
15. I plead not that Thou wouldest take them out of the world, but that Thou wouldest keep them from the wicked.
16. They are not of the world, as I am not of the world.
17. Hallow them in Thy truth; Thy Word is truth.
18. As Thou hast sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.
19. And for their sakes I hallow Myself, that they also may be hallowed in the truth.
In the first part of the farewell prayer, Jesus prayed that the Father might first glorify the Son so that the Son might subsequently glorify the Father. And as Jesus concluded this first section of the prayer, He said, “Glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory that I had with You before the world was” (John 17:5).
In both cases, Jesus was praying that He might be glorified so that He might be able to glorify the Father. That is, Jesus was praying that His truth might be filled with the Father’s love. This is according to order—not just for Jesus, but for each of us as well. In order to love one another, we must first receive God’s love. And we can only receive His love through first learning the truth and then persevering in living according to it. Only then, through our words and actions, can we bring glory to God. This is how the Lord’s glorification provides an image, although a remote one, for our own regeneration. 16
With this in mind, we can now turn to the second part of Jesus’ farewell prayer. After praying for His own inner strengthening, Jesus prays for His disciples. He says, “I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world. They were Yours; You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your Word” (John 17:6).
While the disciples did not understand everything that Jesus had been teaching them, they had a sincere belief in God. This is what Jesus means when He says to the Father, “They were Yours.” In other words, they were God’s own people to the extent that they believed in one God and were willing to live according to God’s commandments. As Jesus says, “They have kept Your word.”
Throughout their time with Jesus, the disciples were becoming increasingly aware that somehow Jesus’ words are divine. As Peter said to Jesus earlier in this gospel, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life” (John 6:68). In this regard, the disciples represent the part of us that senses that what Jesus says and does comes directly from God. As Jesus says to the Father, “They know that all things which You have given Me are from You” (John 17:7). In the language of sacred scripture, this means, quite simply, that all truth has its origin in love. We sense the love within the truth that Jesus speaks.
As Jesus continues to pray for His disciples, He says, “They have known surely that I came forth from You; and they have believed that You sent Me” (John 17:8). Earlier in this gospel, when people began to turn away from Him, Jesus said, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him” (John 6:44). This is why Jesus now says, “I do not pray for the world but for those whom You have given Me, for they are Yours” (John 17:9). Their love for God and their willingness to keep the commandments has drawn them to Jesus who has the words of eternal life.
The acknowledgment of Jesus’ divinity marks a significant turning point in the spiritual development of the disciples. They have begun to accept Jesus, not just as their Messiah, but also as the Son of God. As there understanding undergoes further reformation, and especially as they apply Jesus’ teachings to their life, they will come to see that the Father and the Son are one. Therefore, Jesus says to the Father, “And all Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine” (John 17:10). Furthermore, Jesus says that He must also be glorified in His disciples, even as the Father is glorified in Him. To put it another way, just as the Father’s love becomes glorified in the words and actions of Jesus, so does Jesus become glorified in the words and actions of His disciples.
For the disciples, the time to glorify Jesus has officially begun. There were, of course, many opportunities all along the way. But nothing would compare to the way they would respond to His arrest and crucifixion. Just as Jesus said that His hour has come, this is also true of the disciples. It can also be said that, for the disciples, their hour has come.
Therefore, Jesus focuses on the importance of their being unified, especially during the coming time of trial. Their unification, however, will only be possible to the extent that they remain focused on the divine qualities that are associated with God’s “name”— especially, faith, courage, compassion, and perseverance. As Jesus puts it, “Holy Father, keep through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one, as We are” (John 17:11).
In the world, but not of the world
As long as the disciples remain in the Father’s “name,” they will be secure. Even though they may still be “in the world” they will not be “of the world.” While they are still in the natural world, Jesus has kept them focused on living a more spiritual life. As Jesus puts it: “While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Your name. Those whom you gave Me I have kept; and none of them is lost except the son of perdition that the scripture might be fulfilled” (John 17:12).
The phrase, “son of perdition” is also translated as “son of destruction.” Perdition, and the road to perdition, is often associated with destructive choices that lead to human misery. In this context, it is a reference to Judas who has chosen to betray Jesus. As it is written in the Hebrew scriptures, “Even my close friend, someone I trusted, one who shared my bread, has turned against me” (Psalm 41:9).
The mention of Judas’ betrayal provides another glimpse of the nature of God. While God came into the world to save the entire human race, He can only save those who freely choose to be saved. The Lord never forces people to believe against their will or to follow Him if they choose not to do so. It is always a matter of free choice. Judas may be lost, but Jesus has not forgotten him. 17
As Jesus continues His prayer, He says that He has taught His disciples all these things so that His joy might be in them. As Jesus puts it, “These things I speak in the world so that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves” (John 17:13). This is an important reminder of Jesus’ primary goal. He came to teach the truth, that is, “to speak these things” so that people might experience His joy. Jesus’ joy, then, is directly related to His mission, which is to teach the truth that will lead His people away from destruction and into heavenly life. 18
Once again, it is important to note that in this closing prayer, Jesus does not mention His external miracles or His physical healings. Instead, His focus is upon the truths He has been teaching, and the inner miracles that can take place through living according to them. As Jesus says in the next verse, “I have given them Your word” (John 17:14).
The Word of God contains the fullness of God’s love and wisdom. As we strive to live according to the truths that are contained in the Word, we find that there is a higher way of being, an order of life that both encompasses and transcends worldly concerns. All of this is diametrically opposed to the desires of evil spirits. Evil spirits would prefer to keep us focused on this world alone, chasing sensual pleasures, and accumulating all that we can, without regard for anything that is higher or nobler. 19
We should, of course, tend to those things that pertain to our life in the world. We need to provide food and shelter for ourselves and our family. In addition, we need to make ourselves of service to the greater community, especially through the uses we perform. But we should not become so distracted by worldly concerns that we lose sight of higher goals and heavenly life. In brief, we should be in the world but not of the world. 20
Still addressing the Father, Jesus says, “I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world” (John 17:14). Jesus then says, “I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from evil” (John 17:15).
In Matthew and in Luke, when Jesus taught His disciples how to pray, He told them to say, “deliver us from evil” (see Matthew 6:13 and Luke 11:4). In John, however, as Jesus’ gives His farewell prayer, He says “keep them from evil.” In both Matthew and Luke, the emphasis is on getting out of a negative state. This is implied by the words, “deliver us from evil.” But in this final prayer, Jesus says, “keep them from evil.”
The difference is subtle, but significant. In some states, we might find ourselves caught up in selfish, self-centered patterns of thinking, feeling, and acting. At such times, we need to be delivered from these states. At other times, however, especially when we pray before a difficult situation, we might find that we are not so much in need of deliverance, but rather in need of protection. Beyond our conscious awareness, the Lord is continually holding us back from tendencies to revert to lower states and mechanical behaviors. He does this through keeping us focused on doing good through the truths that we know. 21
The words, “I do not pray that You take them out of the world,” remind us that we are in the world for a purpose. We are born to be of service to each other. In the process, we also undergo spiritual challenges. These challenges are necessary. It is only through meeting worldly difficulties, and dealing with the hereditary inclinations of our lower nature, that we can grow spiritually. This is why Jesus prays that the disciples not be protected from the world, but that they be protected from hellish influences. As Jesus puts it, “I pray that You should keep them from evil.” 22
Sanctify them by Your truth
The disciples will be facing many spiritual challenges. They will be hated and persecuted because they, like Jesus, are not of the world. As Jesus says, “They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world” (John 17:16). Nevertheless, the disciples must be in the world. And as long as they are in the world, they will need divine protection. That’s why Jesus says to the Father, “Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth” (John 17:17).
To the people of that time, the term “sanctify” meant holiness and purity. According to their understanding, holiness was achieved by being set apart from others, especially gentile non-believers. In fact, the Hebrew word for “to sanctify” comes from the root word Kadash [ קָדֵשׁ ] which means “to be set apart.”
Sometimes referred to as “the holiness code,” this idea of sanctification through separation is clearly taught in the Hebrew scriptures. As it is written, “According to the doings of the land of Egypt, where you dwelt, you shall not do; and according to the doings of the land of Canaan, where I am bringing you, you shall not do; nor shall you walk in their ordinances…. You shall be holy [set apart], for I the Lord am holy” (Leviticus 18:3-4; 19:2).
Jesus, however, provides a new idea of what it means to “be sanctified,” or “made holy.” It does not come about through separating oneself from others or from the world. Most deeply, sanctification takes place through truth—that is, learning it and doing it. This is why Jesus, in a dramatic departure from the understanding of the day, says to the Father “Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.” When truth is received in faith and in life, a person may be said to be “sanctified”—that is, set apart from the hereditary inclinations of one’s lower nature. 23
Jesus knows that if His disciples are to go forth to proclaim His message, they must do so as “sanctified” people. This means that they must go forth as individuals who are being reformed by the truth, and regenerated by a life according to it. In this way, they will be separated from their lower nature—not separated from others.
This does not mean that the disciples will be “holy.” Like all of us, they are a long way from being perfect beings. But through their faith, and through their efforts to put the truth they know into their lives, they will continue to grow in the spirit. Even as Jesus’ life on earth was spent in overcoming every evil that assailed Him, and thereby glorifying His humanity, the disciples will continue to grow spiritually through living according to the truth. They will become genuine emissaries for Jesus, not because they have achieved perfection, but because they are willing to spend eternity working towards it. 24
And so, this second section of Jesus’ farewell prayer ends with the words, “As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.” And then Jesus repeats His plea that the disciples might be sanctified by the truth, just as Jesus sanctified Himself by living according to the truth. As Jesus puts it, “For their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth” (John 17:19).
According to Jesus, then, sanctification does not come through separating oneself from others. Sanctification comes through believing in and living according to the truth of God’s Word so that we might receive the fullness of God’s love. 25
A practical application
In a previous practical application, we spoke about praying for our own protection before entering a difficult time. We called this “anticipatory prayer.” The focus was on our need for spiritual support and guidance. This time, as a practical application, pray not just for yourself, but also for others who might be facing difficulties in their lives. Rather than pray for a specific outcome in the natural world, pray that they might be spiritually strengthened and protected during this time. Pray that their faith may not waiver. Pray that they might be open to the Lord’s leading in their lives as they face these challenges—that is, that they, too, might be sanctified by the truth, and receive the fullness of God’s love. 26
Jesus Prays for All Believers
20. But I plead not for these alone, but also for those that believe in Me by their word,
21. That they all may be one, as Thou, Father, [art] in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be one in Us; that the world may believe that Thou hast sent Me.
22. And I have given to them the glory which Thou hast given to Me, that they may be one, even as We are one;
23. I in them, and Thou in Me, that they may be perfected into one, and that the world may know that Thou hast sent Me, and hast loved them, as Thou hast loved Me.
24. Father, I will that they also, whom Thou hast given Me, may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which Thou hast given Me, because Thou didst love Me before the founding of the world.
25. O just Father, the world has not known Thee, but I have known Thee, and these have known that Thou hast sent Me.
26. And I have made known to them Thy name, and will make [it] known, that the love with which Thou hast loved Me may be in them, and I in them.
After first praying for Himself, and then for His disciples, Jesus then goes on to pray for all believers. In this third and final section of the farewell prayer, Jesus’ love extends beyond the small circle of believers. It reaches out to all who will believe in Him through the word of the disciples. As Jesus puts it, “I do not pray for these alone, but also for all those who will believe in Me through their word” (John 17:20).
Just as Jesus prayed that He and the Father might be one, and that the disciples might be one, He now prays for the unity of all believers, that they also might be one. As Jesus puts it, “That they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one. I in them and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one” (John 17:21-23).
The theme of oneness continues throughout the rest of the prayer. The very essence of God’s love, then, is a perpetual effort to be received by His people so that they may be one in Him. This desire for oneness never ceases. It is, in fact, at the very essence of God’s love. He longs for His people to live together in unity and oneness, reciprocating His love by loving and supporting one another. This, of course, can only come about when people look to the Lord together, learn His truth and live according to it. There is no other way to bring about true unity.
In essence, it all comes down to this: No one can experience the depths of divine love without first going through the Son—that is, through learning and living the truth. In other words, the truth that Jesus teaches shows the way to receive the Father’s love. Then, by means of that truth, Jesus leads us into eternal life. As Jesus said, earlier in the farewell discourse, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6).
Whenever this takes place in us, God’s love flows into the truth we have learned and lived. It is then that we experience the blessings of heavenly life. This is what will bring about unity among all believers. And that unity, in truth and love, will be the answer to Jesus’ farewell prayer. It is a prayer that ends, most appropriately with the assurance that Jesus will continue to make known God’s name. That is, Jesus will continue to teach, and to manifest in visible form, the true nature of God. He will do this through both His teaching and His life. As Jesus says in the concluding words of this prayer, “I have made known to them Your name, and will continue to make it known, that the love with which you loved Me may be in them, and I in them” (John 17:26).
When Jesus speaks of the Father’s love in them, and “I in them,” He is speaking about the unity of love and wisdom, the unity of goodness and truth, and the unity of charity and faith in the lives of all believers. This is the ultimate and only kind of unity that can bring about oneness both within and among all people. This can only come about when we develop a new understanding and, by living according to it, receive a new will. While this new will might seem to be our own, it is actually the Lord’s will in us. This is what Jesus means when He ends His prayer with the words, “that the love with which you loved Me may be in them, and I in them.” 27
A vision of hope
It is noteworthy that although Jesus begins His farewell prayer with a prayer for Himself, He quickly moves on to pray for all those who will teach His message. And then, as He concludes this prayer, He prays for all those who will eventually believe His message through those who teach it to them. And yet, Jesus also says, “I do not pray for the world, but for those you have given Me” (John 17:9).
Taken literally, these words sound as though Jesus is limiting His prayer only to those who believe His teaching so that they might be strengthened in their faith. This is the literal sense of the Word. But we also need to look beyond the letter of the Word into the spirit. After all, it must be remembered that when Jesus first introduced the subject of prayer, far back at the beginning of the Gospel According to Matthew, He said, “Pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you” (Matthew 5:44). True prayer, then, is far from exclusive. It includes everyone—even enemies. 28
This was the first time that Jesus mentioned prayer, and the first time that the word “pray” appears in the series of the four gospels. Even as they crucified Him in the Gospel According to Luke, Jesus prayed, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34). This suggests that praying for others—including one’s enemies—is a most fundamental truth. Therefore, when Jesus says, “I do not pray for the world, but for those you have given Me,” He also says, “I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word” (John 17:20).
Through these words, Jesus is looking into the future with hope. He is visualizing a world in which all will come to belief. That’s why He says that He is praying for “all those who will believe in Me.” It is as though Jesus is saying, “I do not pray only for those who hear My words and teach them; I am also praying for everyone. I am praying that all might be open to receive My teaching and become believers.”
In this larger vision, Jesus’ prayer is not limited to a narrow group of disciples who followed Him while He was in the world. Nor is it limited to all who would eventually teach and preach His message down through the ages, or even to those who would believe those teachings. It extends far beyond this into a future world where everyone will be exposed to the truth contained in His words. In this regard, Jesus is praying that at some point in the distant future, all may hear His message, and choose to believe. When that belief is accompanied by a life according to the truth, there will be unity among all people, and all will live together in harmony, as one.
A practical application
Imagine how you might feel if you were complaining about someone, and then, suddenly, that person walked into the room. It would probably feel awkward, or even embarrassing. Then contrast this with how you might feel if you had been speaking positively about that person, sincerely wishing that person well. And then, suddenly, that person walked into the room. It would be a very different feeling. At an even deeper level, consider the fact that the spiritual world is quite real. Sometimes people say, “You know, I was just thinking about you when you called.” Whether it is called extra-sensory perception, telepathic communication, or thought transference, there is little doubt that things are happening beyond the conscious level of our lives. Just as fragrant aromas and foul smells have extension in the natural world, our thoughts about others have extension in the spiritual world. As a practical application, then, consider the power of your thoughts, and how they might have an effect on others. Just as Jesus prayed that all people might hear His Word and believe, you, too, can pray for the well-being of others—whether friend or foe. As you do so, see them receiving your thoughts and prayers. Finally, visualize ways that you might reach out and bless them, in your thoughts, in your prayers, and, when possible, with the actions of your life. 29
Footnotes:
1. Arcana Coelestia 9643: “Goodness acquires power through truth, and truth gives shape to good…. Although power resides potentially in good, this power cannot be exercised except through truth.” See also Arcana Coelestia 4592:7: “All power which good possesses is expressed by means of truth.” See also Arcana Coelestia 3910: “Good has power through truth, inasmuch as it is through truth that good performs everything that comes to pass.”
2. Arcana Coelestia 6344: “All the power in the spiritual world is from good through truth. Without good, truth has no power whatever.” This is because truth is like a body, and good is like the soul of this body, and in order that the soul may do anything, it must do so by means of the body. From this it is evident that truth without good has no power at all, even as the body without the soul has none at all. A body without its soul is a corpse; so too is truth without good.” See also Arcana Coelestia 10182:6: “All the power of truth is from the good of love…. Thought from a person’s will produces all the strength of one’s body, and if a person’s thought is inspired by the Lord through His divine truth, that person would have the strength of Samson.”
3. Doctrine of the Lord 35:8: “The reason that the Lord said … ‘Glorify Your Son that Your Son may also glorify You,’ is because the unition is reciprocal, being that of the Divine with the Human and the Human with the Divine…. It is the same with all unition. Unless it is reciprocal, it is not full. Such therefore must also be the unition of the Lord with a person, and the unition of a person with the Lord.”
4. Arcana Coelestia 3138:2: “A person is made new by an influx of charity and faith, but the Lord, by the divine love which was in Him, and which was His. Hence it may be seen that the regeneration of a person is an image of the glorification of the Lord. An individual’s regeneration pictures, although remotely, the process of the Lord’s glorification.” See also Arcana Coelestia 2004: “A person’s internal is not the Lord, and therefore is not life but a recipient of life. Between the Lord and Jehovah there was union, but between a person and the Lord there is not union, but conjunction…. It is this reciprocal union that is meant by the Lord, where He attributes what is His own to the Father, and what is the Father’s to Himself.”
5. Arcana Coelestia 1603:2: “After the Lord had cast out hereditary evil and so purified the organic elements of the Human Essence, these received life so that the Lord, who was already Life as regards the internal man, became Life as regards the external man as well. This is what ‘glorification’ means.” See also Canons of the New Church 47: “Unless a New Church comes into existence, abolishing a faith in three Gods while offering a faith in one God, thus in the Lord Jesus Christ, and which at the same time, conjoins this faith with charity into one form, not any flesh could be saved.”
6. Arcana Coelestia 2034:4: “By ‘glorification’ is meant achieving oneness…. Through this unition with the Father, He sought conjunction of Himself with all people, as when He said, ‘When I have been raised up, I will draw all people toward Me.’”
7. Arcana Coelestia 3704:14: “In the Word, divine good is called the ‘Father,’ and divine truth is called the ‘Son.’ The Lord, from divine good by means of divine truth, rules all things in the universe, in both general and particular. This being so, and it being so evident from the Word, it is astonishing that in the Christian world, people do not, as in heaven, acknowledge and adore the Lord [Jesus Christ] alone.”
8. Apocalypse Explained 460:2: “From the good of love and the truth of faith come salvation and eternal life.”
9. Arcana Coelestia 10143:4: “When good and truth have been conjoined in a person, that person has a new will and a new understanding, consequently a new life. When a person is of this character, there is divine worship in everything one does. That is because this person looks to the Divine in everything…. In a word, to do according to the precepts of the Lord is truly to worship Him, nay, it is truly love and truly faith…. As the Lord teaches in John, ‘He who has My commandments and does them, it is He who loves Me’ (John 14:21).” See also Apocalypse Explained 349:12: “To believe in God is to know, to will, and to do.” See also The New Jersualem and its Heavenly Doctrine 115: “The Lord came into the world to give eternal life to those who believe and live according to the precepts which He taught.”
10. Doctrine of the Lord 12: “It is known in the Church that the Lord conquered death, by which is meant hell, and that He afterwards ascended with glory into heaven. But it is not yet known that the Lord conquered death, or hell, by combats, which are temptations, and at the same time by these glorified His Human; and that the passion of the cross was the last combat or temptation by which He effected this conquest and glorification.” See also Arcana Coelestia 2819: “As regards the Lord’s temptations in general, some were more external, others more internal. The more internal they were, the more severe they were.”
11. Arcana Coelestia 1663:2: “The Lord underwent and endured the most grievous temptations. These temptations were more grievous than have ever been endured by anyone.” See also Arcana Coelestia 1787:2: “The Lord endured the most dire and cruel temptations of all.” See also Arcana Coelestia 2816:1-2: “The Lord underwent the severest and inmost temptations … in order that He might cast out from Himself everything that was merely human, doing so until nothing except what was Divine was left.”
12. Doctrine of the Lord 35:1-3 “The Lord had both a divine nature and a human nature—a divine nature from His Father Jehovah, and a human nature from the virgin Mary…. Now because the Lord initially had a human nature from the mother, which He gradually put off while He was in the world, He experienced two states…. One was His state of submission, also called ‘emptying out.’ It occurred whenever He was in a human state from the mother. The other state, which is called ‘glorification’ occurred whenever He was being glorified or united with the Divine called ‘the Father.’ In His state of submission, He prayed to the Father as though praying to another than Himself; in His state of glorification, He spoke with the Father as though speaking with Himself. In this latter state, He said that the Father was in Him and that He was in the Father, and that He and the Father were one. In His state of submission, however, He underwent temptations, suffered on the cross, and prayed to the Father not to forsake Him…. It was by means of these trials and subsequent victories that He completely subdued the hells and completely glorified His human nature.”
13. Arcana Coelestia 1745:2: “As long as the Lord was in a state of temptation, He spoke to Jehovah as though to another; but insofar as His human essence had been united to His divine essence He spoke to Jehovah as to Himself…. Insofar as that which was inherited from the mother remained, the Lord was, so to speak, absent from Jehovah. But insofar as that which was from the mother had been eradicated, He was present with Jehovah and was Jehovah Himself.”
14. True Christian Religion 110:3-4: “A mother cannot conceive a soul. That idea completely contradicts the divine order that governs the birth of every human being. Neither could God the Father have given a soul from Himself and then withdrawn, the way every father in the world does. God is His own divine essence, an essence that is single and undivided; and since it is undivided it is God Himself. This is why the Lord says that the Father and He are one, and that the Father is in Him and He is in the Father…. The Lord’s praying to the Father while in the world as if the Father were someone else and humbling Himself before the Father as if the Father were someone else followed the unchangeable divine order established from the time of creation, which everyone has to follow in order to form a partnership with God. That order is that as we forge our connection with God by living according to the laws of divine order, which are God’s commandments, God forges His connection with us and turns us from earthly people into spiritual people.”
15. Arcana Coelestia 8263: “It is said in the Word throughout that to God alone shall be glory and honor. He who knows not the interior things of the Word may believe that the Lord desires and loves glory like a person in the world; and also, for the reason that it is due to Him in preference to all in the universe. But the Lord does not desire glory for the sake of Himself, but for the sake of those who glorify Him. Those who glorify Him do it from a holy reverence for Him in that He is the Supreme One, and from a humbling of themselves as being relatively nothing; and because in the glorification of the Lord by people there is thus both holy reverence and humility. This because people are then in a state to receive the influx of good from the Lord, thus also to receive love to Him. It is from this that the Lord desires that people glorify Him.”
16. Arcana Coelestia 3138:2: “In order that the Lord might make His humanity Divine by a common, ordinary process, He came into the world. In other words, He chose to be born like anyone else, to be taught like anyone else, and to be reborn like anyone else. There was, however, a difference. People are regenerated by the Lord, but the Lord regenerated Himself. Moreover, the Lord not only regenerated Himself but also glorified Himself. That is, He made Himself divine. Another difference is that people are regenerated through the inflow of charity and faith. but the Lord was glorified by the divine love that dwelled in Him and was His own. From this it can be seen that human rebirth is an image of the Lord’s glorification. To say it another way, the process of the Lord’s glorification can be seen as it is reflected in the process of human rebirth, although remotely.”
17. Arcana Coelestia 1937: “The Lord never compels anyone; for a person who is compelled to think what is true and do what is good is not reformed, but thinks falsity and wills evil all the more.” See also Divine Providence 136:1-4: “Who can be forced to believe or to love? People cannot be forced to believe this or that any more than they can be forced to think that something is so when they do not think it is; and people cannot be forced to love this or that any more than they can be forced to will something that they do not will. Belief, too, is a matter of the thought, and love a matter of the will…. The internal self so refuses to be compelled by the external that it withdraws itself, turns away, and regards the compulsion as its enemy…. It is apparent from this that it is harmful to coerce people into divine worship by threats and punishments.”
18. Heaven and Hell 450: “Angels love everyone. They want nothing more than to help people, to teach them, and to lead them into heaven. This is their highest joy.” See also Apocalypse Explained 1179:4: “Every person who dies as an infant, is led by the Lord, and is educated by the angels. Those who from ignorance and from having been born in such a place where they lack religious instruction [nullus cultus], are after death instructed like little children, and according to their civil and moral life receive the means of salvation…. To instruct these people is the inmost joy of the angels. This is how the Lord provides that every person can be saved.”
19. Arcana Coelestia 4307: “Good spirits and angels are present with those who are in spiritual and heavenly love, and evil spirits with those who are solely in bodily and worldly love; and this so much that people may know the quality of the spirits with them by merely observing the quality of their loves, or what is the same, the quality of their intentions; for all people have as an intention that which they love.” See also Arcana Coelestia 59: “Evil spirits absolutely hate everything that is good and true, that is, every element of love and faith in the Lord.”
20. The New Jersualem and its Heavenly Doctrine 123: “It is believed by many, that spiritual life, or the life which leads to heaven, consists in piety, in external sanctity, and in the renunciation of the world; but piety without charity, and external sanctity without internal sanctity, and a renunciation of the world without a life in the world, do not constitute spiritual life; but piety from charity, external sanctity from internal sanctity, and a renunciation of the world with a life in the world, constitute it.”
21. Arcana Coelestia 8206: “People are held back from evil and falsity through being maintained by the Lord in goodness and truth.” See also Arcana Coelestia 2406: “All people without exception are withheld from evils by the Lord, and this by a mightier force than people can ever believe. For the endeavor of all people is continually toward evil, and this both from what is hereditary, into which they are born, and from what is actual, which they have procured for themselves; and this to such a degree that if people were not withheld by the Lord, they would rush headlong every moment toward the lowest hell. But the mercy of the Lord is so great that at every moment, even the least, people are uplifted and held back, to prevent them from rushing thither. This is the case with the good also, but with a difference according to their life of charity and faith.” See also Arcana Coelestia 8206:2: “People cannot be held back from evil and maintained in good unless they have received that ability through exercising charity in the world. A life of good, that is, a life led in accordance with the truths of faith, and therefore an affection for or a love of good, achieves this. As a result of the life they lead, people who have a love of and affection for good can be in a sphere of goodness and truth.”
22. The New Jersualem and its Heavenly Doctrine 126: “Many people believe that renouncing the world and living by the spirit rather than the flesh means rejecting worldly things, principally riches and honors, and going about continually meditating piously on God, salvation, and everlasting life, spending one’s time in prayer, reading the Word and religious books, and also mortifying oneself. But these things are not renouncing the world. It is rather loving God and the neighbor; and God is loved by leading a life in accordance with His commandments, and neighbors are loved by doing services for them. Therefore, in order to receive the life of heaven, a person has to live fully in the world, and engage in offices and business there. A life withdrawn from worldly things is a life of thought and faith divorced from a life of love and charity. Such a life destroys the will to do good and the doing of good to the neighbor; and when this is destroyed, spiritual life is like a house with no foundation, which in course of time either sinks into the ground, or opens up gaping cracks, or totters until it collapses.”
23. Arcana Coelestia 9229:2: “That the Lord alone is holy, and only that is holy which proceeds from the Lord, thus that which a person receives from the Lord, is plain from the Word throughout; as in John: ‘I sanctify Myself that they also may be sanctified in the truth’ (John 17:19); ‘to sanctify Himself’ denotes to make Himself Divine by His own power; and those are said to be ‘sanctified in the truth’ who in faith and life receive the divine truth proceeding from Him.”
24. Arcana Coelestia 894: “No definite period of time ever exists when anyone is regenerate enough to be able to say, ‘Now I am perfect.’ In fact, an unlimited number of states of evil and falsity exist with everyone, not only simple states but also varied and complex ones which have to be disposed of in such a way that they do not recur. In some states people can be called fairly perfect, but in countless other states they cannot. People who have been regenerated during their lifetime, and in whose lives faith in the Lord and charity towards the neighbor have been present, are in the next life being perfected all the time.”
25. AR 586:3: “[Jesus said] ‘I sanctify Myself that they also may be sanctified in the truth.’ To ‘sanctify Himself’ means making Himself divine by His own power. People who are said to be ‘sanctified in the truth’ are those who in faith and life receive the divine truth which proceeds from Him.”
26. Arcana Coelestia 8164:2: “Spiritual temptations are attacks made on one’s spiritual life. In this case, anxious feelings do not exist on account of any loss in their natural life, but on account of the loss of faith and charity, and consequently of salvation. Natural trials are often the means by which those spiritual temptations come about. For if a person is suffering natural trials—that is to say, sickness, sorrow, loss of wealth or position, and so on—and during these trials comes into doubts about the Lord’s help and Providence … then spiritual temptation is bound up with natural trial.” See also Arcana Coelestia 2535: “Prayer, regarded in itself, is speech with God, and some internal view at the time of the matters of the prayer, to which there answers something like an influx into the perception or thought of the mind, so that there is a certain opening of the person’s interiors toward God…. If the person prays from love and faith, and for only heavenly and spiritual things, there then comes forth in the prayer something like a revelation (which is manifested in the affection of the person who prays) as to hope, consolation, or a certain inward joy.”
27. Arcana Coelestia 10035:2: “Through regeneration a person receives a new will. This will, which is received through regeneration is not of the person, but of the Lord with the person.”
28. Arcana Coelestia 4857:2-3: “The spiritual sense lives within the literal sense as a person’s spirit does within the body. Also, like a person’s spirit, the spiritual sense continues to live when the literal sense fades away. Therefore, the internal sense may be called the soul of the Word.” See also Apocalypse Explained 644:23: “Charity towards the neighbor is to wish well and do good, even to enemies. This is described by ‘loving them, blessing them, and praying for them’…. ‘To pray’ [for enemies] signifies intercession for the reason that inwardly in charity there is the end to do good.”
29. Apocalypse Explained 493:3: “The ‘prayers’ with which the incense was to be offered do not mean prayers, but truths from good, by means of which prayers are offered; for truths with people are what pray, and people are continually in such prayers when they live according to truths.” See also Apocalypse Explained 325:12: “When people are in a life of charity they are constantly praying, if not with the mouth yet with the heart; for that which is of the love is constantly in the thought, even when people are unconscious of it.” See also Apocalypse Explained 837:2: “The affections, and thence the thoughts of the mind, extend and diffuse themselves…. The case here is similar to that which happens when the affections and thoughts of the angels diffuse themselves in every direction into heaven and its societies.”
