Chad Coley
The Gospel According To John
Jesus Prays for His Disciples, Part 1
John 17:6 - 10
07 May 2023
Christ intercedes for His saints before the Father, because they belong to Him. In John 17, Jesus prayed aloud for His disciples to encourage them - because they belonged to God.
The disciples belonged to Jesus. They had a special privilege of seeing God revealed in Jesus Christ, and knew the Father through Him. No-one can know the Father apart from Christ, and it is His pleasure to make Himself known to His saints.
There is a divine aspect to salvation. Before the world was created, the Father chose believers to be saved and given to Jesus. God has a special love for those who are His - and we can have a special comfort in knowing ourselves to belong to God.
Jesus wants His saints to be steadfast in the midst of trial, remembering they are chosen by God. Trials come from the world because we do not belong to the world, and in this way we are shown to be children of God. Remembering this, we can be faithful to Him whatever comes, because we are His forever.