The Divine Mutual Prayer

After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him. Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. I have brought you glory on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do. And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began” (John 17:1-5).

The world’s most cherished communication is between a dying person and a relative. Most bereaved families desperately want to hold on to the whispering so they can hear something to remind them of that person forever and wish the interlude would never end. The hour before Jesus offered himself as a sacrificial lamb to the world, he lifted his eyes towards heaven and prayed the above prayer to the Father.

Jesus spoke of the very close relationship he shared with the Father. We read in the early chapters of John that, in the beginning was the Word, the Word was with God and the Word was God. Jesus possessed and manifested this glory with God before he became flesh. Before any purpose of creation and redemption, the goal of the Father and Son was to glorify one another. As Christians, it should delight us to simply contemplate the love that the Father and Son share for each other. 

Have you lately questioned how intimate your relationships with God and your loved ones are?  Your spouse, children, close friends and relatives? The knowledge of God is the beginning of all wisdom, and leads to loving and caring for the people God puts in our lives. Jesus also mentioned the accomplishing of his work, the atonement for our sins, which will glorify God. We often pray to conform God to our agenda, but Jesus flips it over and prays to conform himself to God’s will. We need to adopt Jesus’ model of prayer and start thanking God for his will in our lives rather than asking him to fix our problems or bless our plans.

The repeated phrase in the prayer is eternal life. “Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent” (John 17:3). Meaning one can obtain eternal life only through Jesus Christ and by developing an intimate relationship with God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

Who is entitled to eternal life? Everyone! The salvation of mankind through Jesus Christ glorifies God. So dear brothers and sisters in Christ, let us glorify God through Jesus Christ with the gifts and talents given freely to us.

Prayer: Dear Lord Jesus, we confess our sins and ask for your forgiveness. Please come into our hearts, take complete control of our lives and help us to walk in your footsteps daily through the Holy Spirit. Above all Father, we pray for your will to be done in our lives. Amen.