With Christ in the School of Prayer, by Andrew Murray, excerpt 217

This post continues a series of excerpts from With Christ in the School of Prayer, by Andrew Murray. This is posted, not because I'm a powerful prayer warrior, but because I'm not. Murray was. I thank the Christian Classics Ethereal Library for making this public domain work available. To see their post of the book, go here. The previous post in this series is here. His book is based on Mark 11:22-24. As usual in this blog, long quotations are in this color. Murray's book is based on Mark 11:22-24. 

This prayer [in John 17] is ordinarily divided into three parts.  Our Lord first prays for Himself (v. 1-5), then for His disciples (6-19), and last for all the believing people through all ages (20-26).  The follower of Jesus, who gives himself to the work of intercession, and would fain try how much of blessing he can pray down upon his circle in the Name of Jesus, will in all humility let himself be led of the Spirit to study this wonderful prayer as one of the most important lessons of the school of prayer.

First of all, Jesus prays for Himself, for His being glorified, that so He may glorify the Father.  ‘Father! Glorify Thy Son.  And now, Father, glorify me.’  And He brings forward the grounds on which He thus prays.  A holy covenant had been concluded between the Father and the Son in heaven.  The Father had promised Him power over all flesh as the reward of His work:  He had done the work, He had glorified the Father, and His one purpose 216 is now still further to glorify Him.  With the utmost boldness He asks that the Father may glorify Him, that He may now be and do for His people all He has undertaken. Disciple of Jesus!  here you have the first lesson in your work of priestly intercession, to be learned from the example of your great High Priest.  To pray in the Name of Jesus is to pray in unity, in sympathy with Him.  As the Son began His prayer by making clear His relation to the Father, pleading His work and obedience and His desire to see the Father glorified, do so too.  Draw near and appear before the Father in Christ.  Plead His finished work.  Say that you are one with it, that you trust on it, live in it.  Say that you too have given yourself to finish the work the Father has given you to do, and to live alone for His glory.  And ask then confidently that the Son may be glorified in you.  This is praying in the Name, in the very words, in the Spirit of Jesus, in union with Jesus Himself.  Such prayer has power.  If with Jesus you glorify the Father, the Father will glorify Jesus by doing what you ask in His Name.  It is only when your own personal relation on this point, like Christ’s, is clear with God, when you are glorifying Him, and seeking all for His glory, that like Christ, you will have power to intercede for those around you.

With Christ in the School of Prayer, by Andrew Murray, excerpt 216

This post continues a series of excerpts from With Christ in the School of Prayer, by Andrew Murray. This is posted, not because I'm a powerful prayer warrior, but because I'm not. Murray was. I thank the Christian Classics Ethereal Library for making this public domain work available. To see their post of the book, go here. The previous post in this series is here. His book is based on Mark 11:22-24. As usual in this blog, long quotations are in this color. Murray's book is based on Mark 11:22-24. 

‘Father, I will;’ Or, Christ the High Priest 

Father, I will that they also whom Thou hast given me may be with me where I am.’—John xvii. 24. 214 In His parting address, Jesus gives His disciples the full revelation of what the New Life was to be, when once the kingdom of God had come in power.  In the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, in union with Him the heavenly Vine, in their going forth to witness and to suffer for Him, they were to find their calling and their blessedness.  In between His setting forth of their future new life, the Lord had repeatedly given the most unlimited promises as to the power their prayers might have.  And now in closing, He Himself proceeds to pray.  To let His disciples have the joy of knowing what His intercession for them in heaven as their High Priest will be, He gives this precious legacy of His prayer to the Father.  He does this at the same time because they as priests are to share in His work of intercession, that they and we might know how to perform this holy work.  In the teaching of our Lord on this last night, we have learned to understand that these astonishing prayer-promises have not been given in our own behalf, but in the interest of the Lord and His kingdom:  it is from the Lord Himself alone that we can learn what the prayer in His Name is to be and to obtain.  We have understood that to pray in His Name is to pray in perfect unity with Himself:  the high-priestly prayer will teach all that the prayer in the Name of Jesus may ask and expect.

With Christ in the school of prayer, by Andrew Murray, excerpt 208

This post continues a series of excerpts from With Christ in the School of Prayer, by Andrew Murray. I do this, not because I'm a powerful prayer warrior, but because I'm not. Murray was. I thank the Christian Classics Ethereal Library for making this public domain work available. To see their post of the book, go here. His book is based on Mark 11:22-24. The previous post in this series is here. As usual in this blog, long quotations are in this color. Murray's book is based on Mark 11:22-24.

As the disciples, when they saw Jesus pray, asked Him to make them partakers of what He knew of prayer, so we, now we see Him as intercessor on the throne, know that He makes us participate with Himself in the life of prayer.
How clearly this comes out in the last night of His life. In His high-priestly prayer (John xvii.), He shows us how and what He has to pray to the Father, and will pray when once ascended to heaven. And yet He had in His parting address so repeatedly also connected His going to the Father with their new life of prayer. The two would be ultimately connected: His entrance on the work of His eternal intercession would be the commencement and the power of their new prayer-life in His Name. It is the sight of Jesus in His intercession that gives us power to pray in His Name: all right and power of prayer is Christ’s; He makes us share in His intercession.

The use of the word, "world," in John 17

“World” occurs 19 times in John 17 (World English Bible, public domain), where Jesus prayed for His disciples, and for His followers which came after them. There are 59 occurrences in John, which is about 1/3 of the occurrences in the entire New Testament, and more than the entire OT. Apparently, the New Testament writers, and Christ Himself, were more conscious of the idea of the world, the doings of people on our planet, than the OT writers were. Greek: κόσμος, kosmos. See here for more on the use of this Greek word in the NT. Perhaps the first use of world, and the next to last one, in John 17, refer to the world as a planet, rather than as the doings of humans on the planet, but the other 17 occurrences all seem to relate to the doings of fallen humans.

John 17:1 Jesus said these things, and lifting up his eyes to heaven, he said, “Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may also glorify you; 17:2 even as you gave him authority over all flesh, he will give eternal life to all whom you have given him. 17:3 This is eternal life, that they should know you, the only true God, and him whom you sent, Jesus Christ. 17:4 I glorified you on the earth.* I have accomplished the work which you have given me to do. 17:5 Now, Father, glorify me with your own self with the glory which I had with you before the world existed. 17:6 I revealed your name to the people whom you have given me out of the world. They were yours, and you have given them to me. They have kept your word. 17:7 Now they have known that all things whatever you have given me are from you, 17:8 for the words which you have given me I have given to them, and they received them, and knew for sure that I came forth from you, and they have believed that you sent me. 17:9 I pray for them. I don’t pray for the world, but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours. 17:10 All things that are mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them. 17:11 I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them through your name which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are. 17:12 While I was with them in the world, I kept them in your name. Those whom you have given me I have kept. None of them is lost, except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. 17:13 But now I come to you, and I say these things in the world, that they may have my joy made full in themselves. 17:14 I have given them your word. The world hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. 17:15 I pray not that you would take them from the world, but that you would keep them from the evil one. 17:16 They are not of the world even as I am not of the world. 17:17 Sanctify them in your truth. Your word is truth.* 17:18 As you sent me into the world, even so I have sent them into the world. 17:19 For their sakes I sanctify myself, that they themselves also may be sanctified in truth. 17:20 Not for these only do I pray, but for those also who believe in me through their word, 17:21 that they may all be one; even 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. 17:22 The glory which you have given me, I have given to them; that they may be one, even as we are one; 17:23 I in them, and you in me, that they may be perfected into one; that the world may know that you sent me, and loved them, even as you loved me. 17:24 Father, I desire that they also whom you have given me be with me where I am, that they may see my glory, which you have given me, for you loved me before the foundation of the world. 17:25 Righteous Father, the world hasn’t known you, but I knew you; and these knew that you sent me. 17:26 I made known to them your name, and will make it known; that the love with which you loved me may be in them, and I in them.”

*The word, earth, here, is translated from a different Greek word than the word which is translated as world. 

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What is Christianity FOR? (as opposed to what is it against?)

Christians are all too frequently known for what they are against. In present society, we are held to mostly be against two sins that Christ, Himself, never mentioned.

Christianity should be for something, or more than one something. What should it be for, or what should it really be about? It strikes me that we should be for three things:

A remedy for sin. The world has a huge sin problem. I have a huge sin problem. You have  a huge sin problem. The Bible makes that clear. It also makes clear that Christ was our sacrifice for sin, that God will forgive sin, and that there is a way for God to, as Charles Wesley put it, "take away our bent to sinning." (in his "Love Divine, All Loves Excelling")

Making the world a better place, by bringing about Christ's kingdom in the here and now. There have been famous examples of this: Wilberforce and the end of the slave trade in the UK; Mother Teresa; the construction of mission hospitals; supporting woman suffrage; and more. In addition, Christianity, or individual Christians, have been responsible for a lot more. Some historians of science believe that a belief in an ordered universe, and a command to have dominion, were the motivating factors behind the great advances of science in the past. Galileo, Newton and Kepler were believers (although Newton's Christianity was rather unorthodox). Francis Collins, the former head of the human genome project, is a Christian. There are many more.

But I don't have to go to the slums of India, or to a gene sequencing apparatus, to make the world a better place. I can be friendly and unselfish to my family, my co-workers, my neighbors, to people I encounter commercially, such as checkout girls, repair persons, sales clerks, and phone tech support people, and people who are in situations where we find ourselves together, such as standing in a checkout line with me, being transported near me, or being close at some public event. Christ wants us to do such things. He did. Which brings us to . . .

Having a relationship with Christ. This one is harder to pin down, for me, but it's essential. In his Union with Christ: the Way to Know and Enjoy God, Rankin Wilbourne points out that two of the greatest prayers in the New Testament were for exactly that:

John 17:19 For their sakes I sanctify myself, that they themselves also may be sanctified in truth. 20  Not for these only do I pray, but for those also who will believe in me through their word, 21  that they may all be one; even 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.

Ephesians 3:16 that he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, that you may be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inner person, 17 that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, to the end that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may be strengthened to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and height and depth, 19 and to know Christ’s love which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

I hope I'm manifesting these three attitudes. Whether I am, or not, they are something worth living for.

Thanks for reading! 

Added December 27, 2017: A recent article by Tim Keller is related. He points out that, to all too many people, evangelical has become a synonym for "hypocrite," and briefly describes what should be fundamental characteristics of evangelicals. None of these four characteristics are political, and they aren't primarily negative. I'm an evangelical Christian, and evangelicals, for better or worse, have gotten lots of attention lately.

Does the Bible really say that? Excerpt from my book, 39

Believers have a relationship with Christ, and seek Christian fellowship.

John 15:1-7 ... uses the phrase “remain in me” or equivalent, seven times.

John 17:20 Not for these only do I pray, but for those also who believe in me through their word, 21 that they may all be one; even 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. 22 The glory which you have given me, I have given to them; that they may be one, even as we are one; 23 I in them, and you in me, that they may be perfected into one; that the world may know that you sent me, and loved them, even as you loved me.

Hebrews 10:24 Let us consider how to provoke one another to love and good works, 25 not forsaking our own assembling together, as the custom of some is, but exhorting one another; and so much the more, as you see the Day approaching.

There are about 20 occurrences of groups of Christians being together in Acts. (See here.) Sometimes they met to worship, sometimes as a prayer meeting, sometimes to consider policy or doctrine. It was Paul’s practice to establish churches wherever he went as a missionary. Christ refers to seven churches in Revelation.

To summarize the evidences given above for being a Christian, a Christian becomes more and more like Christ. The Holy Spirit works in the life of a believer to bring this about.

My conclusion is that as long as we remain in good relationship with God, we will keep Christ’s commandments, we won’t habitually sin, and our lives will bear fruit. Unfortunately, some people, who don’t follow Christ’s commandments, who do not have a relationship with Christ, who are persistent and unrepentant sinners, and whose lives show the wrong kind of fruit, are deluded by Satan into thinking that they are saved when they are not.

The above material is an excerpt from my self-published e-book, Does the Bible Really Say That?, which may be obtained free of charge, or purchased from Amazon for $0.99, which is the lowest price Amazon lets an author set. Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible, which is in the public domain.

The previous post in this series, on the characteristics of a true Christian, is here. God willing, the next post in this series will consider a new topic. Thanks for reading.

Does the Bible really say that? Excerpt from my book, 6

I have searched the New Testament for examples of prayer, which asked that unsaved people may become converted to Christ. The only example that I have found is the last prayer in the [previous excerpt, from Romans 10:1], where Paul indicates that he wishes that his fellow Jews would become believers.

Prayer for believers

Wasn’t Paul concerned about people becoming converted? Wasn’t Jesus? Weren’t the other disciples? Of course they were. But this concern didn’t seem to translate into making prayer for the conversion of specific people, or even groups, a high priority. Why not?

Based on prayers that are found in the New Testament, the answer is this: It’s more important to pray for believers. Here’s the longest prayer in the New Testament, with emphasis added:

John 17:1 Jesus said these things, and lifting up his eyes to heaven, he said, “Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may also glorify you; 2 even as you gave him authority over all flesh, he will give eternal life to all whom you have given him. 3 This is eternal life, that they should know you, the only true God, and him whom you sent, Jesus Christ. 4 I glorified you on the earth. I have accomplished the work which you have given me to do. 5 Now, Father, glorify me with your own self with the glory which I had with you before the world existed. 6 I revealed your name to the people whom you have given me out of the world. They were yours, and you have given them to me. They have kept your word. 7 Now they have known that all things whatever you have given me are from you, 8 for the words which you have given me I have given to them, and they received them, and knew for sure that I came from you, and they have believed that you sent me. 9 I pray for them. I don’t pray for the world, but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours. 10 All things that are mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them. 11 I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them through your name which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are. 12 While I was with them in the world, I kept them in your name. Those whom you have given me I have kept. None of them is lost, except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. 13 But now I come to you, and I say these things in the world, that they may have my joy made full in themselves. 14 I have given them your word. The world hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. 15 I pray not that you would take them from the world, but that you would keep them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world even as I am not of the world. 17 Sanctify them in your truth. Your word is truth. 18 As you sent me into the world, even so I have sent them into the world. 19 For their sakes I sanctify myself, that they themselves also may be sanctified in truth. 20 Not for these only do I pray, but for those also who believe in me through their word, 21 that they may all be one; even 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. 22 The glory which you have given me, I have given to them; that they may be one, even as we are one; 23 I in them, and you in me, that they may be perfected into one; that the world may know that you sent me, and loved them, even as you loved me. 24 Father, I desire that they also whom you have given me be with me where I am, that they may see my glory, which you have given me, for you loved me before the foundation of the world. 25 Righteous Father, the world hasn’t known you, but I knew you; and these knew that you sent me. 26 I made known to them your name, and will make it known; that the love with which you loved me may be in them, and I in them.”

Christ prayed for his disciples, and, explicitly, for those who would believe because of them, including you and me. If we are spiritually up-to-date, and doing what God wants us to, others will become believers because of us!

The above, except for the insert in brackets, which was put in for clarity in changing from a full book to a series of blog posts, is an excerpt from my recently published e-book, Does the Bible Really Say That?, which may be obtained free of charge, or purchased from Amazon for $0.99, which is the lowest price Amazon lets an author set. Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible, public domain.

The previous post in this series is here.

Thanks for reading!