John 17:6-19
Jesus Prays for His Disciples
Read the passage
6I have revealed Your name to those You have given Me out of the world. They were Yours; You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word.
7Now they know that everything You have given Me comes from You.
8For I have given them the words You gave Me, and they have received them. They knew with certainty that I came from You, and they believed that You sent Me.
9I ask on their behalf. I do not ask on behalf of the world, but on behalf of those You have given Me; for they are Yours.
10All I have is Yours, and all You have is Mine; and in them I have been glorified.
11I will no longer be in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to You. Holy Father, protect them by Your name, the name You gave Me, so that they may be one as We are one.
12While I was with them, I protected and preserved them by Your name, the name You gave Me. Not one of them has been lost, except the son of destruction, so that the Scripture would be fulfilled.
13But now I am coming to You; and I am saying these things while I am in the world, so that they may have My joy fulfilled within them.
14I have given them Your word and the world has hated them. For they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.
15I am not asking that You take them out of the world, but that You keep them from the evil one.
16They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.
17Sanctify them by the truth; Your word is truth.
18As You sent Me into the world, I have also sent them into the world.
19For them I sanctify Myself, so that they too may be sanctified by the truth.
Berean Standard Bible
Read aloud
Jesus prays for the disciples the Father has given Him. They have received His words and believe that the Father sent Him. As He prepares to leave them, He asks the Father to protect them and keep them united.
The disciples will still live among people who reject Jesus. He asks for protection from the evil one while sending them into that same world. Their belonging to God will shape how they live among their neighbors, even when it brings opposition.
Jesus asks the Father to sanctify them by the truth. To sanctify means to set apart for God and His purposes. The Father's word will teach them whose they are and what they have been sent to do. When Jesus says He sanctifies Himself for them, He is dedicating Himself to the Father's work on their behalf; He does not need cleansing from sin.
These are words Jesus wants His disciples to hear. He speaks so that His joy may be fulfilled in them. Before they face the shock of His arrest, they hear Him entrust them to the Father who will care for them.
Questions
1 What has Jesus given the disciples who came from the world?
AnswerJesus has given the disciples the Father's word. They have received it, know that Jesus came from the Father, and the world has hated them because they do not belong to the world.
2 Why does Jesus pray that the Father would keep them in his name?
AnswerJesus asks the Father to keep the disciples in His name so that they may be one as the Father and Son are one. He does not ask that they be taken out of the world, but that they be kept from the evil one.
3 How does Jesus ask for their sanctification in truth while sending them into the world?
AnswerJesus asks the Father to sanctify them in the truth because the Father's word is truth. He sends them into the world as the Father sent Him, and He consecrates Himself for their sake so they may be sanctified in truth.
4 How can our household live in the world without being shaped by its false loyalties?
AnswerAsk what truth your household needs to practice in public and private. Choose one way to protect one another from harmful pressure while remaining present and useful in the wider community.
What This Means for Us
Jesus' prayer gives a household a pattern for care. Protection is not the same as isolation, and holiness is not a license for contempt toward people outside the home. We are sent into real relationships while asking God to keep us truthful.
The word “sanctify” points to being set apart for God's purposes. Let that purpose become concrete through honest speech, faithful work, hospitality, and protection of people who have less power.
Ask what your household needs protection from and what good work it is being sent toward. Keep both answers in view.
Prayer
Holy Father, keep us close to You and shape our lives by Your word. Give us the joy Jesus desires for His people. Help us serve among our neighbors with faithfulness, even when following Him is difficult. Amen.