The Bible is not simply a guide for life, a collection of wise sayings and wonderful stories. It is both the meeting place and the instrument that brings you and God together.
(Woodrow Kroll, in How to Find God in the Bible (taken from the insight for living daily devotions)
Christ is glorified, in His human side, because He glorified the Father. God glorifies Jesus because Jesus glorifies the Father. Jesus goes on to say He finished what God the Father sent him to accomplish. Paul in his writings said he finished his course, his purpose. You and I have a purpose that is only experienced when we live to glorify God. Life’s purpose is not being happy, or finding more things to enjoy but to bring glory to God. God in return glorifies our life, not to bring glory to us, but to bring more glory to Him.
Verses 9, Christ is praying for us, His followers. Christ said, “I am not praying for the world, those who will not follow, but for them that will follow”. He prays that God will keep them. He prays that “My joy will be fulfilled in them”. He prays that we would be sanctified by God’s Word. Sanctified is to be set apart for God and His glory. Verse 20 is where the connection from His disciples to us is today, Christ is praying for us because we have believed through His Word. Through this wonderful prayer and our transformation in and through the blood of Christ we are made one. Christ is in us, God is in Christ and therefore we are in one another. We have the same Spirit. We are all of the same blood line! We are of the blood line that flows from Calvary. The world will not understand us but they should see an unusual unity between us.
The Chapter ends with God’s love being in us. We do not manufacture this unity with brain power or some determination of the will, but it is given to us through the Spirit of God when we received salvation. The love of God and unity of God is developed greater as we grow in sanctification through His Word. How can all this happen? Jesus Christ our Savior prayed that it would happen. If there is one person who gets their prayers answered it is Jesus. How will this prayer of Christ become hindered? Because we frustrate it by striving to live in the world, in our flesh and away from God’s Word.
God has so much more for you and me. We need to daily seek His glory and live in His Word so that the prayers of Jesus will be answered in our lives. I am excited to see how God will glorify Himself in your life this week.
Let us know if you have any questions or share your thoughts.
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