Jesus' Prayer

Jesus spoke these things; and lifting up His eyes to heaven, He said, “Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Son, that the Son may glorify You, even as You gave Him authority over all flesh, that to all whom You have given Him, He may give eternal life.  This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. I glorified You on the earth, having accomplished the work which You have given Me to do.  Now, Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was. John 17:1-5

“These things” spoken by Jesus were the instructions and promises, given over the past 24 hours to his disciples; chapters 13-16 of John’s gospel. It has been a crash course in Church age doctrine, before the Church was actually born. These eleven men were the nucleus of that Church-to-be. Jesus spoke this prayer in their hearing, apparently to be included in the words of faith and assurance they would store in their souls for the coming transitional period, and for the rest of their lives.

Looking up, as if into the face of the Father, he acknowledged that His final hour had come. This final period of earthly incarnation would be characterized by intense physical, spiritual and emotional agony, but in this moment those things were not foremost in His mind. He was eagerly looking forward to His own glorification, and the resulting glorification of the Father through His work. The Father had authorized the Son to do this work, and to make the work known to all humanity. Those who belong to Jesus have been given to Him by the Father, and the Son has given them eternal life.

Eternal life means knowing the only true God (Father) and Jesus Christ (Son) whom He has sent. Jesus referred to Himself here in verse 3 by His full title: Jesus (Savior) Christ (Messiah, anointed one), making clear again that there is only one way of salvation and He is it.

In these words to the Father on that night, Jesus seems to have already spiritually and mentally departed from the earth. He spoke of His assigned work having been accomplished. In the eternal realm, we know it was. His public ministry was over. He saw the work as done, and His Father and Himself as glorified. He saw Himself as already back in the eternal state He had left to come and purchase our salvation. The upcoming hours of agony were apparently just details that He would deal with as they arrived. In His mind, it was a completed fact. He was feeling close to home; close to the glory He shared with the Father “before the world was.”

God the Son came to be the propitiation for our sins; the only possible sacrifice acceptable to the Father. In these opening words of this prayer, He anticipated the completion of that work and the total acceptance by the Father of that perfect sacrifice. This was a precious comfort to Him in these final hours. It would be over soon.

“Father, I’m coming home.”