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Weekly Message | May 10th, 2009
Passage: John 17:20-26
Key Verse(s): 22
Each year I used to say, “Happy Mother’s Day!“, and then move on to the message. This year I thought about the reasons for this special day. Here I quote five reasons in reverse order that Robert Roy Britt wrote: “(5) Mom Feels More Pain. Any man worth his salt realizes Mom deserves a lifetime of foot rubs for one simple reason: childbirth. She made you. And yeah, it hurt like hell. But that's not all. Women suffer more pain than men across the board. Among people over 65, women suffer 2.5 times more disabilities than men of the same age. Among the most common chronic conditions: painful arthritis; (4) Mom Gets No Help. Today's mom has a lot less help with childrearing and housecleaning, a study in 2006 found. Fathers help a little bit, but when their favorite games are on, they quit saying, `I will do this tomorrow’; (3) You Are Mostly Your Mother's Child. Scientists recently learned, Mom's genes have a greater effect on what you become. A child who has a strong relationship with Mom during preschool years tends to form closer friendships in grade school, the research revealed. (2) Raising kids never ends. And no matter how hard you try to be a good kid, the challenge — and the heartache and frustration that comes with it — sticks with Mom forever. (1) Mom Needs a Break. Women have less free time and feel more rushed than men, studies have found. A study out just this week found U.S. men report 40 minutes more leisure time every day than women.” These are some of the reasons that we all need to remember mothers today—if not always.
John 17 is Jesus’ comprehensive prayer for himself, his disciples, and for all Christians. Jesus’ prayer request to God is, “Glorify your Son, so that your Son may glorify you.” In the second part Jesus revealed the three pillars of Christian life: God’s revelation, protection, and sanctification. This is the process of the journey of each individual Christian: (1) God reveals to us his glory—his love, his power and most of all the reality of his existence. God exists and he rewards those who earnestly seek him (Heb 11:6). (2) God preserves his people by his amazing grace through toils and hardships. (3) God sanctifies us and make us all the more conformed to the image of Jesus Christ. Christian life, however, is more than journey on the individual level. We are together as believers. We gather and grow together. Then, what do we do together? Through this message we reflect on what we do together as Christians.
First, “May they be brought to complete unity” (20-23). Look at verse 20: "My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message." Jesus’ prayer now covers all Christians throughout the ages. With vision, Jesus sees that peoples of many nations will come to God through his disciples. Peoples of many languages will come to God through his disciples' messages and testimonies. It is by the power of the message that they carry.
In John 6:29 Jesus said, "The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent." Believing in Jesus is not the work of men, but that of God. If a man drowns in a deep sea and cannot find any way of deliverance, he is hopelessly lost. The distance between Holy God and sinful people is infinitely greater than the width of the Pacific Ocean. When a person dies, he is separated from those who are alive. There is nothing that can bridge this huge gulf between death and life. As the hymn "The Solid Rock" says, "My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness. I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus' name. On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand; All other ground is sinking sand. All other ground is sinking sand."
How do people come to believe in Jesus? It is through the messages about Christ. Read Romans 10:13-17. Verse 17 reads: “….Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.” Last week I was happy to see the family of Noah Chang in Edmonton, Canada. In 2005 he came to Canada at the age of 56. He left everything behind and started all over again. Then, within four years he settled down, started his business, purchased a house, and established a house church ministry. He and his wife, Grace, along with their children, David and Deborah, work together and welcome young students. About forty people attended last week’s service. What do they do? They share the message of Christ Jesus.
In the early years of his ministry, Dr. Samuel Lee once visited England. There he met an English woman. In her room, he saw numerous Bible notes that she had prepared during her life. She was a diligent Bible student and faithful Bible teacher to many. Upon his return, he encouraged student leaders to make Bible study notes. He trained them to teach other fellow students based on the notes they had prepared. Many trusted Christ Jesus for their salvation and the future of this world. We all come to believe in Jesus through the messages—the ministry of God’s word and prayer.
Look at verse 21: "that all of them may be one, Father, just as you 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." People with vast differences come together. Then, through Christ they become one. God displays the model of spiritual unity. The Father loves the Son. The Son honors the Father. The Spirit supports the work of the Son. This unity embodies peace, joy, and love.
What does the world see from the Christians that gather together in Jesus’ name? This morning I read an article in the Washington Post. It is about the struggles of people in the city of Toledo. People lost jobs. Many became desperate, lost peace, and became anxious and weary. In spite of all these worries, what does the world experience among Christians? They see peace and joy. In Colossians 3: 15-17 we read: “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”
In the book of Acts we read about the beautiful Christian life in the early church: "They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer...Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved" (Acts 2:42-47). The world also sees the love of Christians in action. This is what the unity is about.
Look at verses 22 and 23: “I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity to let the world know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.” The glory of Christians is in their unity. This complete unity is spiritual, not organizational. Christians do not merely belong to one huge visible church. Yet, Christians in perfect unity influence the world as the salt and light of the world. They practice love in this world: “Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited. Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.” (Ro 12:9-18). This is what unity is about. Therefore, by the grace of God, pray and practice peace, joy, and love as we gather together.
Second, “Father, I want those…to see my glory…because you loved me before the creation of the world” (24). Look at verse 24: "Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world." Jesus wants his people to be with him. Jesus wants to show the glory, which God gave him before the creation of the world. This glory is the heavenly and eternal glory.
God created us for glory. We yearn for something glorious. The glory of this world is in recognition, wealth, and honor. In this world we see only a glimpse of God’s glory. We do not see with our own eyes. Games on Sunday seem more exciting than any glory that Christians gathering together offers them. In this world we do not see the full extent of his glory. In ordinary times our eyes are away from the glory of God. This world is so good that we do not seem to need the kingdom of God. The pleasures of this world are exciting and satisfying. This life is so wonderful that we live as if God does not matter. But the time comes when all the offers of this world show their end results—emptiness, loneliness, and hopelessness. All the glory of the world is like the flowers of the field (Is 40:6-7). It quickly fades away. In the movie Ben Hur, slaves in chains were rowing in the bottom of a battle ship. Eventually, they all sank with the sinking ship. With all the glittering glory of the world, people eventually sink with this sinking world. Ultimately, there is no glory in this world. Then, we open our eyes to the glory of God.
Soon Jesus is to be crucified. What does the world see through his sufferings and death—its fear, selfishness, and agonies of sufferings. But Jesus demonstrates his faithfulness to God, forgiveness, and hope. We look up to heaven beyond the problems of this world. There we will be clothed with imperishable, glorious, powerful, and spiritual bodies (1Co 15:42-43). There we will reign with Christ (2Ti 2:12). There we will engage in tasks that will satisfy us forever. There we will meet God face to face.
Third, “I have made known to them…in order that the love you have for me may be in them…” (25-26). Look at verse 25: "Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me." The world does not know Christ. The world does not know the glory that Jesus offers.
Look at verse 26: "I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them." Jesus speaks about the love of God. This is not the love that we feel sometimes. Rather, this is the love that never fails. This is the love that passes the test of time—unfailing, eternal love. Love that has been nurtured and tested through many years has much greater depth and scale. The love of friends is great if it has been tested by time. Some of our students and friends will be going away during this summer. Diona Woods will be away from us for a mission. SunYoung Kim, Caleb Kim, Chang, and Hyerim Yoo will be going away. We will not see them for a while. Dr. James and Angela Roh have been with us for a while. They are not strangers to us because they had been here for the past six years. Time matters in our appreciation of love.
On Sunday morning, one son was on his way home from hundreds of miles away. After driving for a while he felt pain in his left eye. He returned to his apartment. He called to his mom. He kept saying, “I want to be with you today but I can’t. I am O.K. Don’t worry about me.” On this Mother’s Day, his mom drove down to deliver an eye dropper to her son. Until 10:00 P.M., the son was waiting for his mom without eating anything—hoping for her to come. His mom came. This world is happy because of the love of mothers. God in his grace helps us to experience the love of wonderful mothers. This world is dry and sad. But because of mothers—their love—we have reason to rejoice. Praise and thank God for the love that we receive from our mothers. Yet, this wonderful love of mothers is merely a reflection of the love of God in Christ Jesus. The full extent of his love is still unknown to us.
The love of God is so great and wonderful because he has known us before the creation of this world. God has loved us not since we were born again. God has remembered and loved us long before we were born in this world. This long-lasting, unfailing, and eternal love is what we will know fully. This is what Jesus wants to give to us. This is what we experience as Christians gathering together. This love is not something we experience alone. Rather, this is what we experience together because love is never effective when each of us is alone. Love is when we are together—together with God and together with others. Peace, joy, and love are the marks of Christian unity. This unity is perfected not as each of us remains alone but as we are together.
May 10, 2009; Dr. Paul Hong; Toledo UBF
Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.
