Jesus Prays for His Disciples, Part 2

John 17:11-19

     We come to this most marvelous chapter, chapter 17, which has so enriched our hearts already in the last few weeks, this chapter is known as "The High Priestly Prayer of Jesus Christ." It is His intercession for His own as the Son of God, Christ Himself, speaks to the Father on the behalf of those whom He loves. And as I've told you in past weeks, it is a pre‑cross preview of a post‑cross work. That is, when Jesus had finished His work on earth and ascended to the Father, He then began to intercede for those who are His, that is to constantly plead to the Father on our behalf. Though that didn't officially begin until His ascension, we have here in John 17, hours before His crucifixion, a preview of His intercessory work and some insights into how it is that Jesus prays for those who are His own.

     Now, we have seen the chapter fall into three categories. In this prayer, verses 1 to 5, are concerned with Jesus praying for Himself. For He must accomplish His own work on the cross before He can ever expect the Father to do anything for the disciples who will follow. And so, first of all, He prays for Himself that His glory will be accomplished on the cross. Then in verses 20 to 26, He prays for all the believers who will live throughout the church age of years to come. But for our study, in verses 6 to 19, He prays for the disciples gathered around Him who were alive at the time that He prayed this, and particularly for the eleven Apostles. So, verses 6 to 19, which we're studying currently, are very specifically the prayer of Jesus Christ directed to the disciples who were alive at the time He prayed it, more particularly the eleven Apostles gathered about Him. And the pervading thing that I gain from this entire chapter, and I've studied it now for hours and hours for several weeks, the thing that I keep seeing over and over again is the tremendous love of Jesus Christ for His own. Here He is anticipating His own death and yet not anticipating it, aware of it and yet seemingly unaware of it, as He is not preoccupied with His own suffering but is totally preoccupied with making sure that those who love Him, that beloved little flock of disciples, are going to be well taken care of while He has to go to the cross and be a sacrifice for their sins. Not only does His care drive Him to the cross but His care drives Him to His knees before the Father that the Father would care for them while He goes to bear their sins.

     And I'm reminded of chapter 13 verse 1 where it says, "Now before the feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that His hour was come, that He should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved His own which were in the world, He loved them unto the end." He loved them utterly, totally, completely. And here we see Him moving right toward the hour of His death and indeed His care is for them, His love is directed toward them.

     In chapters 14, 15 and 16, He gave them all the promises of His love. Now in chapter 17, He prays out of a heart full of love that the Father will make these promises all come true in His perfect will. And so, we see Jesus Christ praying for His little lambs about to be let loose amidst the wolves of Satan in the world. And fully aware that for a time He is unable to cradle them in His own loving arms, He commits them to the tender care of the Father and asks that the Father take over the work of shepherding them until He can complete His work and rise to the right hand of the Father and intercede for them and send the Holy Spirit to dwell within them.

     And so, if you really want to know the truth, people say that I Corinthians is the love chapter in the Bible, I say John 17 is the love chapter. Because, you see, I Corinthians 13 is more of a definition of love whereas John 17 is a total expression of love. And I can get along real well with definitions but I like expressions a lot better. And I hear about love in John ... in I Corinthians 13 but I begin to really experience it in John 17, because I see how much Christ loves me. And when I sing the song: "The King of love, my shepherd is," all I ever think about is John 17. In a framework of such passionate care and undying love then Jesus prays for His own. And you see His love here displayed in a beautiful, beautiful way, equaled only by the display of love on the cross. It's that kind of love, you know, that Paul talked about in Ephesians when he said that we might know the height and depth and the extremities both ways, the length and breadth, of the love of Christ which passeth knowledge. And here we get as close an insight into the depth of His love as anywhere and you're going to learn some really, really exciting things this morning.

     Because of His love for us He never ceases to pray for us. And that's why the writer of Hebrews says in chapter 7 verse 25, "He ever lives to make intercession for us." He never stops praying for us. That's how much He loves us. And He didn't begin that ministry officially as I said, you see, until He ascended, but here we have a little preview of it so that we might get an insight into His intercession and He does this in time and space and left it to be recorded for us so we might see how it is that He intercedes on our behalf.

     Now, last week we considered the first two points of this one message and we said that point number one was the subjects of His prayer; you have an outline probably in your bulletin and if you'd like to look you'll be reminded that it's there. The subjects of His prayer in verses 6 to 8, now His prayer encompasses the whole chapter but this specific part is geared to a special group of individuals, as I mentioned, the disciples alive at that time particularly the eleven Apostles. Notice in verse 8, and I'll just read it, "I have manifested Thy name unto the men whom Thou gavest Me out of the world."

     Now, there they are, those are the ones that He's praying for, right there, those that the Father has given Him who are the disciples at that time particularly the eleven. And then He gives the two reasons why He had the right to pray for them. He is going to ask for the Father to care for them, He is going to put them on divine welfare for a little while. He's going to assign them to the care of the Father and He now gives two credentials which really give them the right to claim that divine welfare. The first one is this, verse 6, "Thine they were and Thou gavest them to Me." Before He ever asks anything for them, He reminds the Father that they have a right to the Father's care because after all they were the Father's to begin with. They're Your's, You just gave them to Ale. And so all He's really asking is that the Father care for His own which is consistent with the character of God, He always cares for His own.

     And so, Jesus says then ‑- the first credential that permits them to receive divine welfare is that they were Yours to begin with. The Bible says He chose them before the foundation of the world.

     Then He gives the second reason that they are to be blessed with the Father's care in verse 6, "... and they have kept Thy word." You see, that's the balance. Thine they were ‑- is the divine choice; they have kept thy word ‑- is the human response. That's both sides of the mystery of salvation. They had credentials for divine welfare because they were the elect and because they were the believing faithful to the Word. And so, from both sides they were to be recepients of the Father's welfare.

     And then He goes on to define their faith. "They have known that all things," verse 7, "whatever Thou hast given Me are of Thee." They believe that, that's saving faith. "For I have given unto them the words which You gave Me, they received them and they've known surely, number one, that I came out from God." They knew His origin was divine. Number two, "... and they have believed that Thou did send Me." They knew His mission was divine. And so they believed in Him, that He was God and that He was sent by God to accomplish a mission. Their faith validated their right to divine welfare. So, both the elective sovereignty of God and the faith of those disciples accredited them to receive the Father's care. And so, Jesus then introduces the Father to the subjects of His prayer and gives their credentials to receive His care.

     All right, then we saw the second point last week, the reasons for His prayer in verses 9, 10 and just a little bit into verse 11. Why is He praying for them? First reason, verse 9, "I pray for them, I pray not for the world," remember that Christ does not intercede for unbelievers. He may pray ‑- Father, forgive them for they know not what they do, but He doesn't pray for their welfare, He doesn't intercede on their behalf. "I pray for them," that is these disciples, "I pray not for the world, but for them whom Thou hast given Me." Why? Here's the reason number one, 11 ... for they are Thine and all Mine are Thine and Thine are Mine." We'll stop there.

     The first reason that Jesus prayed for His disciples was they were the personal property of both He and the Father. And since they were the personal property of both He and the Father, it was only normal that they would be cared for by He and the Father ... and thus does He pray.

     Then the second reason that He prayed for them, as we saw last week and this is a quick review, was: "... and I am glorified in them." And He goes on to explain what He means. "And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world and I come to Thee." In other words, I'm leaving, Father, and the world seeing My glory will depend upon seeing it through them ... so, I'm leaving and, Father, I want You to guard them because they're going to be left to display My glory, I'm glorified in them.

     And you know, it is true that when Christ gains glory, when men give Christ glory, it is because they have seen clearly His beauties through the life of one of His own. They have no other way to Him discern Him, do you see? And so, Jesus prays for them: number one, because they're personal property of the trinity and number two, because they are glorifiers of Christ because He's leaving and they are left to display His glory. All right, so that's the ground work.

     Now, let's look at the requests, and oh, are these exciting. The third aspect of Christ's prayer ‑- the requests in His prayer. And this will be verse 11 to 19. What does He specifically ask for? I mean, they've got ... He's established the right to divine welfare, He's established the reason that He prays, it's important because they're the personal possession of the trinity and it's also important because they are the glorifiers of Christ. But what is it that He asks for? What does He expect from them?

     Well let's see ... first of all ... what He doesn't ask, verse 15 ... and I want to set this off against the others. Verse 15 says, "I pray not that Thou shouldest take them out of the world." Did you get that? He doesn't pray that they be taken out of the world. That's what He doesn't pray for. Now you've learned two things that Jesus doesn't pray for in this chapter. Number one, He doesn't intercede for unbelievers ... we saw that, didn't we? ... in verse 9, He doesn't pray for the world. Number two, He doesn't pray that Christians be taken out of the world. That would make an interesting study sometime to just chart the things that Jesus doesn't pray for. But He does not pray that believers be removed from the world. Jesus never prayed that His disciples would find an escape, He only prayed that they might find victory, you see. Jesus never prayed that they might find a cop‑out, He only prayed that they might be conquerors. And the kind of Christianity so called which buries itself in a monastery or which buries itself in a convent is not the kind of Christianity that Jesus desires, if indeed it is Christianity at all. The life that is withdrawn from the world is a sad confusion of what Jesus intended for His own, He never intended that. He says ‑- I pray not that Thou shouldest take them out of the world. Either remove them from being involved with the lost or to remove them by just taking them away all together in death, He doesn't pray for that.

     Now, of course, there are times when prayer and meditation and withdrawing into the presence of God are needed but that's not the end, that's the means to the end. We withdraw into God's presence for meditation and prayer alone with God that we might be strengthened and empowered to go back into the world with an effective message ... and an effective life. And so, Jesus never offers His disciples an easy peace, He only offers them a triumphant warfare. He never tells His disciples to abandon the world but always tells them to win the world. Jesus Christ never attempted to establish a holy club, "Us four, no more, shut the door," isolated and stuck up in the boonies somewhere where nobody can touch them. Jesus Christ wanted a people who would move into the world and confront them with His claims and His truth. All right, so that's what He doesn't pray for ... keep that in mind, we'll come back to it in a little while.

     Now, what does He pray for? Four specifics, and may I add that this is for all of these disciples but particularly for the eleven that has special import. He prays for their oneness in the world, their joy in the world, their protection in the world and their sanctification by the Word... four tremendous things. And these are just exciting, there's ... we could do a whole study on each one of them but we won't.

     First of all, He prays for their oneness in the world, verse 11: "And now I am no more in the world but these are in the world and I come to Thee." Now, that's ... that's kind of introducing the problem. Jesus is saying ‑- I am about to leave and they're going to be left here without My physical presence. Jesus was going to the cross and then He was going to ascend to the Father and they would be left alone in terms of the physical presence of Christ. But may I hasten to add, they would not be left without a supernatural care because Christ had already promised them that when He went away He would send the Comforter who would dwell within them. But even before the Comforter came, when Jesus went to the cross, there would be a period of time in there wouldn't there? At least a period of time of several days when they would be without Him. And so, in view of that and in view of the continuing time that they would be without Him physically, He prays for the Father to take care of them. The Father ... the Savior then reminds the Father that His beloved little flock that were given Him by the Father will be deprived of His personal care and be exposed to the world and it was now up to the Father to activate all the promises of 14, 15 and 16 and secure these ... these believers. Now notice what it says in the middle of the verse, verse 11, beginning with Holy Father, those two words very, very important. They set the pace for the rest of the passage.

     "... Holy Father," emphasis on holy, Holy Father, "keep through Thine own name those whom Thou hast given Me that they may be one as We are."

     Now, here the wicked world is contrasted to the Holy Father and I'll show you what I mean. Jesus is expressing the Holy Father for a very important reason. You know, in the New Testament, that expression, I don't think, appears anywhere else. The holiness of God is a great emphasis in the Old Testament but it's not so emphasized in the New Testament ... more of the love of God, the Fatherhood of God and so forth. But here the combination of holy and Father are put together for a very express reason. The power of the Holy Father is being set as sufficient to off‑set the influence of the world's system. He says ‑- Holy Father -‑ emphasizing His holiness. Now the word holiness, hagiŏs, holy, simply means to be set apart, or to be separated. And He is saying ‑- separate Father. What does He mean? Separate from what? What is it that God is separate from? From sin, Holy Father, separate from sin, guard them. Guard them from what? Guard them from sin. Separate Father, keep them separate. That's all He's saying. And the holy is the whole emphasis of this passage. God is holy and separated from all evil. He is of purer eyes than behold iniquity and canst not look upon sin. And here His holiness is emphasized because Christ wants Him to keep His disciples holy and separated from all evil. Separated Father, keep them from the same thing that You're separated from. Guard them against the unholiness of the world. The word to keep is tērēson, it means to watch over, it's kind of a divine surveillance, you know. For three years Jesus had kept them and now He commits them to the care of the Father with the prayer that the Father will fulfill His will and guard them from the unholiness of a polluted, godless, Christ‑hating, persecuting world.

     Now it's kind of a beautiful little exchange. I was looking back at verse 6 and at the end of the verse it says ... and they have kept Thy word." Jesus tells the Father ‑- They have kept Thy word. And in verse 11 He says ‑- You keep them ... fair exchange. And so, He says ‑- Holy Father, keep them from the unholiness of the world.

     Now, notice ... continuing in verse 11 ... He says, "Keep them through Thine own name." Now, don't you remember last week, we talked about what it means when it says in the Bible -‑ the name of God? It's not just talking about Yahweh, or what His name is as a title, it's talking about His entire character and His entire nature, right? I have kept them through Thy name -- He means, I have kept them according to Your character and nature. In other words, by Your power, by Your holiness, by Your love, by Your grace, by Your mercy, by all that You are, I have kept them, guarded them, according to the holy character of God. He has done it and He says ‑- Father, now You do it.

     Verse 12 ‑- While I was in the world, I kept them through Your name ‑- now, back in verse 11 ‑- You do it, through all Your attributes, through all Your essence of holiness, keep them in Your holiness, keep them in Your love, keep them in Your grace, keep them in Your mercy, etc., right? Wisdom, right on down the line. By all Your character, by all Your nature, keep them ... keep them. And so, Jesus prays that they be guarded from unholiness.

     Now watch this. I began to look at this and I began to say to myself -‑ You know, it's a strange thing that Jesus is so concerned about us. I mean, let's face it, when you come right down to it, we're valueless, right? I mean, we're vile sinners. Why does He get so concerned about hanging on to us? Why is He so intense about praying to the Father to care for us? I mean, where do we get all this value all of a sudden? What makes us such a hot commodity to Jesus Christ?

     And then I read a little further in the verse and my heart jumped because I saw what it was. Listen to this. "Keep through Thine own name those ... here it comes ... whom Thou hast ... what? ... given Me." Do you know why we're so valuable to Jesus? You know why? Because we are love gifts to Him from the Father. That's why. In ourselves we're not that valuable, but because we have been given to Christ as an expression of the Father's love, we are priceless. Now you don't receive ... for Christmas, you received a lot of stuff, right? And a lot of it was very nice stuff. But, you know, it's interesting, when you look back of all the things that you received from dear friends and family, you know the things that mean the most, aren't the specific objects, but what is valued is valued on the basis of the love that you have for the individual that gave it to you. Parents, you realize that. Every year your kids bring weird things for you for Christmas from school, strange little things, can't ... so you realize some teacher probably stayed up a week figuring it out and you've got to stay up another week figuring out what to do with it ... strange little strange things that you say ‑- Oh, it's beautiful, kid. You don't know what to do with it. But you know something? You look back, and I look back at Christmas, and I see all the little things that kids brought. Now in themselves they're not worth anything ... nothing ... sawed ... off Joy soap bottle with some sprinkle on it, you know, what are you going to do with it? And you've got all of these kind of little things that they bring home and they're not worth anything ... but you know something? Of all the things you look back on, they're the most priceless treasures you have because they're expressions of the love. And so you see, the gift is valued in the sense that you love the giver, right?

     Do you know why Jesus now loves you so much? Not because of your own intrinsic value but because you were given to Him by the Father and He loves the Father infinitely. You want to know something exciting? Consequently, He loves you to the same degree that He loves the Father. That's why you're so valuable. You see, that's why when Jesus goes to the cross, He stops to pray for you because He loves you so much, not for you own sake, but for the sake of the Father who gave you to Him. I mean, that's exciting, isn't it? That will show you the depth of the love of Christ for you... it's not limited. His love for you is as unlimited as His love for the Father. For you represent to Him, the love of the Father, for indeed you were the Father's love gift to Him. Now that's why Jesus is so concerned about praying for US. That's why the ministry of intercession is what it is. That's why He really cares ... He really cares.

     So, our high priest looks on us with a love and a delight that we really don't deserve but that becomes ours because the Father conditions that love. And so, He says ‑- Father, guard them. Guard them from what? Guard them from unholiness. Holy Father, guard them that they might not be defiled, being fouled up with the world, falling into worldly patterns, behaving in a worldly manner, guard them, don't let it happen, Father.

     You say ‑- Why? I mean, a little worldliness couldn't really be that bad. Watch this, at the end of verse 11, this is really a heavy thought, here's the reason, hina, purpose, the reason: ... in order that they may be ... what's the next word? ... one." Now, I want you to catch this, now I'm going to tell you something that's very important. Jesus says ‑ Father, keep them, keep them from unholiness. Why? That they may be one. Now think about it. If there is one prayer that Jesus prays again and again, and that we read in the New Testament over and over again, it is a prayer for oneness, isn't it? Paul said to the Philippians, "My ... I want you to be of one mind, of one love, of one accord." Peter said, "unfeigned love of the brethren.'

Unity is the cry of the New Testament, the body, the unity of the body, every member caring for the other member ... all of the unities that are prescribed in Ephesians 4, 1 Corinthians chapter 12, constantly through out the New Testament, love for each other and oneness. And Jesus says Oh, Father, You've got to keep them from unholiness in order that they may be one. Now watch thi s, friends, that means that there's only one thing that ever violates oneness. What is it? Unholiness, sin ... sin. When anyone believer gets sucked off into the world, oneness is destroyed because we automatically, at that point, lose the unity of our testimony.

     Now, there are all kinds of people in the ecumenical movement, and all kinds of liberals, who use this verse to teach denominational union. That's ridiculous. Jesus is not saying ‑- I pray that all denominations sometime become one mammoth world denomination. That will happen but it's not going to be an answer to the prayer of Jesus. When He prayed there weren't even any denominations. Denominations, evidently, were the human idea. They thought I was great at the time and now they're thinking it wasn't so good. Jesus is not praying that. He is praying that His disciples may be one in love, in will, in deed, in holiness. One in a composite, collective unity standing against the world in defense of the faith in a pure kind of love bond. And the only thing that destroys unity is sin, unholiness. And so Jesus says -‑ If they're going to be one, You're going to have to keep them pure. Every time a believer falls into worldliness, the unity is broken, the oneness is broken and you get friction, you get problems, you get a discontent Christian, you get wrangling and it all comes from unholiness, all of it.

     One writer said, quote: "It is the divine unity of love that is referred to here, all wills bowing in the same direction, all affections burning with the same flame, all aims directed to the same end, one blessed harmony of love." That's what Jesus prayed.

     And you know, the beautiful part of it is that His prayer was answered. You remember what it said in Acts 4:32, it says those early Christians got together and they were all of one mind and one soul. He prayed that they would be one in a holy separation in the world. None of them hindering the united testimony by fooling with the evils of the world. They were separated. Did you know that God wants separated believers, did you know that? He doesn't want believers who are defiled by the world, they are a disastrous testi­mony and they destroy the united testimony of a holy oneness. And that's our problem. I mean, Paul wasn't just batting the breeze when he said -‑ Come out from among them and be ye separate and touch not the unclean thing. He knew exactly what he was saying. A unity of love in holiness that separates us from the world is Jesus prayer. Jesus prayed for separated disciples.

     And so many disciples today are worldly, let's face it. I mean, we're so trapped into this thing by our own desires, the desire for fame, the desire for money, for prestige, for social acception ... acceptance for fashion, for fulfillment of lust, whatever it is, you know, we get sucked into this world deal and we ... we ... we look, act, dress and smell like the rest of the world ... and it's very difficult to tell us apart. Now, they shouldn't be able to tell you apart because of how you smell, we want to clear that up. But anyway, there should be some distinctions. We were chosen out of the world and it's a little bit ridiculous to go back into the world and confuse the issue. But, my friends, the one great damaging thing that continually is thrown up in my face and in your face when we attempt to give a testimony for Christ is always the messed up lives of other so‑called Christians and the demise of a unified holiness has cost us an effective testimony in the world.

     Someone says ‑- Wow, man, I mean, you can't just, you know, be weird, I mean, you've got to fit in, you've got to just be like them and just kind of slide in and sneak up on them. Oh, garbage! And we have this idea you've got to fit in. I don't read that in the Bible anywhere, where does the Bible say ‑Fit into the world? The Bible says ‑- Don't fit into the world, be not conformed to this world. Don't be ... you say ‑- Well, I mean, you can't be different. Yeah, you should be different. You say -‑ Well, you don't want to be odd. Yes you do. God called out a peculiar people, some of us are more peculiar than others but we're all peculiar, called out and we are to be separated from the world. We're not to be sucked into the system. And this idea that you've got to become what they are so you can reach them is not true at all. You've got to e the opposite of what they are, then you'll reach them.

     I'll never forget, one night, in a big rally, a youth rally deal, there were a bunch of rock bands playing and I was suppose to be the speaker. It's always hard for me, you know, to do that cause that stuff makes me nervous anyway. And it was just ... oh wild, ripping and tearing, snorting going on up there and I was sitting in the back saying ‑- Lord, why do You get me into these things? And a couple of kind of, you know, hippie‑type kids came in the back and they just really looked like they'd been through it, dope and the whole thing, and they really looked serious minded and they sat down ... I'll never forget what happened ... they sat down and about five minutes later one of them said ‑- Well, let's get out of here. They got up and walked out and one of the guys at the door stopped them and said ‑ Where are you going? He said -‑ Ahh, ‑- he says, ‑- We thought this Christianity deal was something different, I mean, we can hear this anywhere. They were gone.

     You see, the very dynamite of Christianity is its uniqueness, you see. And that's why it's so insidious today when ... when all of the attempts of Satan are to blend in Jesus Christ and Christianity with the rest of the system, see ... so that you can't see the difference anymore. Because our testimony, my friends, is separation. And this is what Jesus wants, that we be one in a holiness, none of us slopping around being defiled in the system.

     Now, let me teach you something at this point, that I think is important ... by illustration. In the Old Testament, God called out a special people, Israel. And He wanted Israel to be His witness in the world, right? So He didn't say to them ‑- Israel, you're My witness, so sneak around and just kind of look like everybody else, do what they do and then grab them in a corner and, you know, let them have it. No. He said ‑- You're going to be My witness so here's how it goes, you will dress different, eat different, work different, plant different, marry different, worship different, have holidays that are different, cook different, sacrifice different, everything you do from the time you're borrn till the time you die will be different than every other nation in the world, right? He didn't say -- Blend in and sneak up on them ... He said ‑- You will be different. And I mean, they were different. They looked like opposites to the human race. They didn't fit in anywhere.

     You want to know something? Every time they tried to fit in, they went right down the drain and their testimony was wiped out. And every time they stood in difference and every time they obeyed God and were unique, God honored their testimony and blessed them. And every time they tried to blend in, inter‑married, fooled with false idols, they went right down the tubes and that's what brought about finally their dispersion. When God chooses a people to be a testimony to Him, He wants them different, separated and distinct, not blending in. And, dear ones, the church is called out of the world just like Israel was called to be a unique testimony. Your patterns, your behaviors, your life style should be different than the system.

     Listen, only people that ever come to Jesus Christ are the people who are desperate for a change anyway. They don't offer them the same thing they've got. Most Christians just go along and the testimony of a holy unity is non‑existence ... non‑existent because we've all fallen into the patterns of the world, see. We're all concerned with money, prestige, fame, fashion, ta‑dit‑ta‑da and all the way down the line. And so Jesus prays that there would be a holy oneness.

     You say ‑- Well, I mean, I've got to stay in the world, right? How you going to figure this out? I've got to be in the world because Jesus didn't pray that I'd be taken out, but I don't want to get into the system itself? That's right. It's like a boat, it's okay when the boat's in the water, it's great, but when the water's in the boat, you've got problems. The same thing with a Christian. Nothing wrong with a Christian in the world, just something wrong with the world in a Christian. So, Jesus prays for our united, holy separation from the world.

     And I love this next verse. "While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Thy name." He says ‑ Father, I've been looking after them, now You're going to have to help Me a little bit. And He says: "Those that Thou gavest Me," and that's seven times in this chapter, He refers to Christians as gifts from the Father ... seven times. Because, you see, that's the basis of His care for us.

     Okay, He says ‑- "Those that Thou gavest Me, I have kept them, none of them is lost." We'll stop there. Jesus says -‑ I haven't lost any of them. You can go back to John 6:39, "All that the Father gives to Me, who come to Me, I'll lose none of them but raise them at the last day." He never loses one love gift that the Father gives Him, never. There's no such thing as a Christian ever losing His salvation, that's a non‑existent, can't happen ... no way. He says ‑I have kept them all and none of them is lost. And somebody would immediately blurt out Ah, ah, ah ... Judas. Right? You can hear the objection already, can't you? So could the Holy Spirit, look at the next line. "But the son of perdition," which is a name for Judas, "that the Scripture might be fulfilled." Hmm, what about Judas?

     Judas here is called the son of perdition. Jesus ... is Jesus saying, as some have said, Jesus is saying that He tried His best but He couldn't hang on to Judas? He tried His best but He miserably failed in the case of Judas? I'll tell you, I don't want a Christ who can fail 'cause if He failed in the case of Judas, He just might fail in my case. Judas is no exception, my friends. And you must understand the construction of this verse or you can get a little bit confused. He is not saying this ... He is not saying ‑- None of them is lost except the son of perdition ... eimē does not mean except, it means but, and it's a straight transition. None of them is lost ... period. But the son of perdition is that the Scripture might be fulfilled. Did you get it? Judas was never given to Christ as a love gift. The phrase ‑- son of perdition -‑ indicates that from birth, he was going on a straight line to perdition. Do you see it? Jesus said it would have been better for that man if he'd ... what? ... never been born because once he was born, perdition was the only possible end to it all. He was a son of perdition. He was designated for that, by his own will. And so He is saying ‑- None of them is lost ... period. But the son of perdition is that the Scripture might be fulfilled.

     And you'll remember Psalm 41:9, Psalm 109, verses 4 to 13, both of those prophesy in detail the betrayal of Judas Iscariot. That's all in the plan of God. Jesus knew that before the foundation of the world, the Father never gave Judas as a love gift to Christ. That wouldn't have been a very nice love gift, frankly. And you know the Father knew what Judas would do, you know that. And you know the Father would never give Jesus a love gift, a Judas for a love gift. And so, He's making a clear transition ‑- None of them is lost. And then to answer the skeptic ‑- But the son of perdition is lost, not because I couldn't keep him, but because the Scripture had to be ... what? ... fulfilled. And there's a big difference.

     Now, the term ‑- son of perdition -‑ means the utterly lost one. It means the one with no hope of being saved.

     So, you see what He's saying? He's saying -‑ The Father's will was accomplished in the case of the eleven, and it was also accomplished in the case of the one. Judas never was saved.

     This ... this comes as a strong comfort to me and to the disciples. I mean, aren't you glad to know that Jesus wasn't surprised by what Judas did? That Jesus was not a victim, aren't you glad to know that? Aren't you glad to know what it says in John 10, that Jesus said No man takes My life from Me, I lay it down ... what? ... of Myself? And so, He says -‑ I'm praying for their oneness. Father, I've kept them one, I've kept them together from being tainted with the world, and, Father, you do it. And you know, that first of a group of disciples, their will agreed with the Father's will and they were one in a holiness of uni ... in a unity of holiness. And the testimony was unbelievable. People were being saved every day. But today, the Father still desires it, the Son still desires it, but unfortunately, our wills don't always desir