What Jesus Prayed Over You Before the Cross

Well, family, we're diving in today into the book of John. In fact, this has been the longest journey through any book of the Bible in Journey's history. And today, we come to John chapter 17. And we're going to cover the entire chapter. If you're joining us for the first time, we've been looking at the life of Jesus through the book of John. John writes about the life of Jesus as one who walked with Jesus, as one who talked with Jesus, one who was there to witness the life of Jesus. He records for us who Jesus is. In fact, he tells us in Johnap 11 that Jesus gave us a new commandment. And it's been our theme and our vision for 2025 to love like Jesus. The new commandment from Jesus mouth is to love one another as I have loved you. You ought to love one another. So, so, so Jesus, he commands us to love like him.

And the only way to love like Jesus is to be loved by Jesus. And today it's as if John opens up a window for each of us to see the heart of Jesus. Not through the teaching of Jesus, but through prayer. And what do we see with the heart of Jesus as he prays? Who does he have on his mind before he goes to the cross? You. He's thinking of you. And what's his desire before he suffers on the cross for the sin of humanity? He has unity on his mind. He wants you to give God glory in your life. So today, I want you to see the longest recorded prayer of Jesus. It's found right here in John chapter 17. Now, I don't know about you, but if you can just get a glimpse of what Jesus is praying, that would be pretty special. And John actually writes

it down for us to see what Jesus prays. It's powerful enough that quite frankly we could spend a year just studying this prayer. It's enough that it's as if God took a hand grenade and threw it into your heart and it should just explode everything that you know about God right here in this prayer. It should teach us to pray. It should show us what's on God's heart and his mind. And today we're going to cover the entire chapter and I'm going to give you some brief overviews and then we're really going to focus on one particular application that if we actually do this together, it will transform this region. We will see central Oregon saved. Not not by our might and not by power, but by the spirit of the Lord. So would you stand for the reading of God's word?

I've got a lot to read to you. So I need you to really work with me. Would you just tell your neighbor, work with the pastor? Come on. I just need you to stay alert. Stay alive. I'm going to read the text if you're following with me. I'm in John chapter 17. Uh the version I'm reading to you today is from the English Standard Version. I'm going to go quickly uh but I'm going to read the whole thing and then we'll better break it down together. John 17 starting with verse one all the way through verse 26. When Jesus had spoken these words, he lifted up his eyes to heaven and said, "Father, the hour has come. glorify your son that the son may glorify you since you have given him authority over all flesh to give eternal life to all whom you have given him and this is eternal life that they know you the only true God and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. I

glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do. And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed. I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world. Yours they were, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. Now they know that everything that you have given me is from you. For I have given them the words that you gave me and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you and they have believed that you sent me. I am praying for them. I am not praying for the world but for those whom you have given me for they are yours. All are mine. All mine are yours and yours are mine and I am glorified in them. And I am no longer in

the world but they are in the world and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name which you have given me that they may be one even as we are one. While I was with them, I kept them in your name which you have given me. I have guarded them and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction that the scripture might be fulfilled. We're halfway there. Pop quiz. Who is the son of destruction? Come on, somebody. Judas the betrayer. All right, just making sure you're alive, awake, and still following with me. Verse 13. But now I am coming to you that these things I speak in the world that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves. I have given them your word and the world has hated them because they are not of the world just as I am not of the world. I do not ask that you take them out of the

world, but that you keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth. Your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. And for their sake, I consecrate myself that they may also be sanctified in truth. I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may be all one, just as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you've given me, I have given to them that they may be one even as we are one. I and them and you and me that they may become perfectly one so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me.

Father, I desire that they also whom you have given me may be with me where I am to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world. Oh righteous father, even though the world does not know you, I know you and these know that you have sent me. I may know to them your name and I will continue to make it known that the love with which you have loved me may be in them and I in them. This is the word of the Lord. Hey, while you're taking a seat, tell your neighbor you're loved. You're loved. You are so loved. Jesus shows us, he tells us in this prayer, you are loved. This prayer naturally falls into three sections. As Jesus is is praying, we see three things, and I want to just break

them down, and then I I want to really camp on the idea of what Jesus is praying for you today. Number one, we see that Jesus is praying for himself. In verses 1-5, he's he's praying that God will get the glory. And he he's praying for himself, that the the father would not only use him, but who he is would point to who he is. And if there's one theme for the first five verses that we read about in Jesus prayer, it's glory. Everyone shout glory. Glory. Jesus is simply saying, God, I want you to be glorified. I want the son to be glorified. and and not for his own sake, but that the the world would see who he is. He tells us that he's come into this world not just to be a religious teacher or a religious figure in this world. He's come to offer

us verse two tells us eternal life. And then he defines for us what eternal life is in cha in chapter 17:3 when he says this is eternal life. It's not what the movies make eternal life to be. It's not what you conjure up in your own imagination. Eternal life is knowing the one true God. Now the Bible says that God is love. The Bible says that God is completely holy. The Bible says that God created the world perfectly before sin entered into it. So if eternal life is to know the one true God, how awesome is eternity going to be to get to know this great God. This is eternal life. Now how do we get this eternal life? It's found in Jesus. He says in verse four, I glorified you on earth, having

accomplished the work that you gave me to do. Jesus then completely wakes up our imagination to how God works and who he is, that he's eternally existed for Jesus says that he he's going back to the father before the world existed. Verse 5, before anything was, God has always been. I'm not going to pretend that our minds can fully grasp that because we find ourselves within time and matter. And yet we have a God that exists outside of both time and matter. And Jesus says, "Oh, I just can't wait to get back to how things used to be for for glory." And he's explaining to us that his whole purpose has been to simply glorify the father through his

mission. And so as he's praying these things, he transitions in verse six. And the second thing Jesus prays for is his disciples. In fact, he spends a great deal of time praying for them in verses 6-9. If there was a theme in this prayer as he's praying for his disciples, it's for them to be sanctified. Everyone shout sanctify. Sanctify. It's a good church word that you ought to understand. Sanctify means to to be set apart. And once you've believed in Jesus, you've been justified, meaning your sins are forgiven. You're good with God because you believed in Jesus. So his righteousness becomes your righteousness. You're set free from your sins. But once you're justified, you start the process of sanctification. And sanctification is this idea of of becoming who God made you to be, who he created you to be. He created you to be

made in his image. But sin has marred that image. So to be sanctified means to be set apart for his purpose. It's similar to the word holy, which is to be completely set apart. And Jesus is praying that his disciples would be sanctified. How? In the truth. Earlier in John 14, Jesus says, "I am the way and the truth and the life." And Jesus says that we will be sanctified in the truth. And as he's praying for his disciples, the one he's been teaching for three years, they're about to do this on their own. And Jesus lets us know that he he doesn't just leave us to our own conclusions to wander or wonder what does God have for us. In fact, we learned this last week. He says,"I have said all these things to you that his

teaching has a purpose. It's so that you'd be sanctified, you'd be set apart, you'd actually fulfill what he has for you." Now, h how do you do that in a world that doesn't accept his ways? Jesus prayed for his disciples and said in verse 15, "I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one." There's a real enemy of your soul. And we'll speak about that more in just a moment. They are not of the world just as I am not of the world. Here's that word sanctify. Everyone yell sanctify. Sanctify them in the truth. Your word is truth. So, how do you know who God wants you to be? You've got to get into the word. Now, it's not enough just to get into the word and know the word. You've actually got to apply it to your life. Jesus continues in verse 18, "As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world." We make disciples.

We get into the word of God. We learn all that Jesus has commanded us. So in short, Jesus has prayed to the father that his disciples would be protected, that they would be sanctified in the truth, and that the word would be the truth. And then finally the third portion of this prayer, Jesus prays for all believers. He prays for you. He prays for the church. Jesus is praying for all future believers in verse 20 through 26. And the theme in this prayer is unity. Everyone shout unity. Unity. This is our secret weapon. It may not sound so sexy, but we're going to see very clearly today. God desires unity in the church. Jesus highlights that there will be many that will believe in him.

And it's not just for the sake of of religion. God never created religion, but it was for a a living relationship with him. Unity with God and unity with each other. This is the central theme that we'll see here is just as the father and the son are united, so he wants to be united with you and then he wants us to be united as well. This is his heart. This is his prayer. This is the last thing that he leaves us is his heart is praying for us that we would be united. Jesus doesn't just pray for some people in some places. He's praying for all believers all over the world. Amen. Now, when we get this, we understand that God has a great plan and we can experience a great awakening and it can happen in our lifetime and it can happen with you. Look at verse 22 as Jesus is praying the glory. Everyone

shout glory. The glory that you've given me. Jesus is praying. The glory you've given me, I have given to them that they may be one even as we are one. Now, if you're familiar with the Bible, you get into the the book of Exodus and there's a man named Moses that goes on a mountain and he experiences God's glory. It's his prayer, the prayer of Moses. Show me your glory. I want to know the weight, the seriousness of who you are. And that glory was given to Jesus. And one day on the mountain with Peter, James, and John, he's on the mountain and he's transfigured, meaning he's transformed completely and perfectly in God's glory. His clothes were completely shining. He was radiating God's glory.

And on his right was Moses. And on his left was Elijah, representing the the law and the prophets. And Peter, James, and John see it and they're absolutely in awe. And God speaks over his son Jesus. That glory is yours. Glory is found in Jesus. He's He's praying that you do not live an ordinary life, but you experience glory. This is no like safe religion. This is not casual Christianity as you know it. This is not about celebrating the traditions of Christmas. This isn't about an encounter with a living God who's always been glorious. He will forever be glorious. And he prayed for you to get that glory.

It's yours. We've got some mindblowing prayers here. Jesus just did not pray like, "Lord, one day they're going to believe in you. I hope they find a good church with some good kids ministry and a good preacher with some good music. I hope one day they have Bible studies where they meet with people like them and get to know a little bit more about the Bible. No, no, no. That's not his prayer. There's no like American Christianity in here. This is I want you to experience eternal life which is knowing the one true God.

And and when you get that, you just can't contain it. You want to be united with other people that believe that you want God to to work through his believers. I I want us to spend the remainder of our time in verse 23 because this is the game changer. No matter how long you've been a Christian or today if you've not yet believed in Jesus, today is your day of salvation. I I want us to look at this verse because if we get this, this is the game changer. Jesus says, I in them. This is a gamecher. I in them. This is the Messiah, the Christ in Hebrews, Hamashiach, the one God destined in Genesis chapter 3. He spends millennia speaking forth that there will come a savior unlike any

other. Jesus now is praying a prayer for every one of us that he would live and rule in you. I in them. Look at verse 23. I in them. Jesus doesn't want to just be around you. He wants to be in you. This was one of Paul's favorite verses or phrases rather when he writes his letters. Paul wrote more books in the New Testament than any other author. And he constantly used the word in Christ. The two words in Christ. In Christ. In the book of Ephesians. He says it almost 40 times. In Christ, in the Lord, in him. It's so significant that this theology changes your identity when you understand what's in you.

There there this isn't like a Sunday religion that I go meet with Jesus at church. This isn't I call myself a Christian and I go to church sometimes. This isn't I just I believe in God. I'm not quite sure what that looks like. No, no, no. This is a living relationship with an eternal God who is now in you. When Paul describes this to the Colossians in chapter 1 verse 17, he says he is the the king of glory. He is the hope of glory. Christ in you. You have the hope of glory. This is not like casual. This is not like singing some song about hope or singing some song about glory. Christ in you is the hope of glory.

That where you go, hope goes. That where you go, God's glory goes. Just think about this for a moment. The same God that created the world, came into the world. The same God that walked on water, turned water into wine. The same God that healed any and every infirmity. The same God that casts out demons. The same God that forgives the most unforgivable of sins. That God wants to live in you. That's wild. that when you walk in the room, everything changes because Jesus just walked in the room. This is significant that you see yourself through the lens of Jesus prayer. That when you forgive somebody, it's not because you mustered up the

strength to forgive. It's because you're demonstrating who's inside of you that you can't keep living the same. He forgave you. He's in you. Now you start forgiving other people. So good. So all of a sudden your actions start to define who he is. When you start making decisions not to do the things you used to do, it's not because you're you're living self-righteous or you're trying to be oh holier than other people. You've got the holy one in you. So you can't keep doing the same things anymore. You used to have sex with people that you're not married to. I don't do that anymore. I've got Christ in me. I used to cuss all the time. Listen, I want to honor God with my lips now. So, everything changes because I have Christ

in me. And there's a war. Be not mistaken. That that old man will want to keep coming back. But you got to remember, greater is he who is in us than he who is in the world. I'm not going to live like the world anymore. I want to live like Jesus. And so, when you make a mistake, don't allow guilt, shame, and your past to try to tell you that's who you are. Who you are is who is inside of you. That's what it means to be a Christian. I've got Christ in me. The enemy is not happy with this reality. If we take this word seriously, I want to just make sure that you understand this very clearly. You have an enemy of your soul. We we've been looking at the life of Jesus and he's been so clear. John 10:10, Jesus said

that he's a thief and he wants to steal, kill, and destroy what God's doing in your life. He is a thief. I I need you to understand this. The moment you were conceived, the devil declared war on your life. And he does not want you to experience who God is. He's a thief that wants to steal God's joy in your life. He wants to rob you of God's peace. He wants to take away the purpose of of God's destiny upon your life. But I will just tell you this, the devil, he's not afraid of church attendance. You can come to church and that doesn't cause his knees to shake. [snorts] Hella is not worried when there's a full church

because church attendance does not mean that we actually understand and operate our identity that Christ is in us. The enemy is terrified when we understand that we have Christ in us. When you understand who's living inside of you, everything changes. Jesus himself said, "Even the gates of hell shall not prevail against the church." Now, the word church is a Greek word that actually at the time when Jesus said this was not even a spiritual word. It was a secular word. It's the Greek word eklesia. It means the called out ones. If there was an army and and and a king or an emperor wanted to to gather the army, he would eklesia. He would call them out and they would gather together as an army. They were the eklesia, the called out gathered ones.

Church was never meant to be a building or a cute and clever name. We are meant to be the ones that are called out to storm the gates of hell. And when we see a gate, we break it down and rescue people and we bring them to the hope of eternal life found in Jesus. That's what starts to terrify the devil. When you understand what the church is, it's Christ in us. Jesus says, "I am them." That's my prayer is that when they understand who I am, that I came to this world, but I died, I was crucified, buried, but I defeated the devil. I defeated death. That same one that defeated the devil is in you. The same one that defeated death is in you. That's what terrifies the enemy.

When you understand who Christ is in you, you're more dangerous than you think, my friend. You have all authority over the devil and every demon. You are not held captive to any stronghold or sin. You're not held captive to any generational patterns that your family has experienced. In Christ, it changes everything. Look at John 17:23. I in them and you in me. Jesus prays that they may become perfectly one. Perfectly one. Perfectly one. Unity is our anointing. Perfectly one. Unity is our anointing. Listen, Jesus did not say, "I hope they get along." He prayed that we would be perfectly

one. of all the things Jesus could have prayed over you. He said, "God, I want them to look perfect." Some of you be like, "Amen, Lord. I wish I looked a little better." But that's not what he prayed. He didn't pray that you would look perfectly. He didn't pray that you would have a perfect personality. He didn't pray that we'd be perfect in our politics. He didn't pray that we'd be perfect in our preferences, uh, contemporary service versus traditional service, or I like this music or that music. No, the declaration for believers is to be perfectly one. This is what God has always desired. Some translations don't use the word become. It's actually the word made. God is making us perfectly one. He He's on a

journey of of taking what he created and right now today is the church and he is making us who he destined us to be. In Psalm 133, we have the most mind-blowing understanding of God's picture of unity when the Psalmist says this, "How good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell together in unity." So, we're told that unity is good and pleasant. Now the opposite is is true as well and that is division is not good and it's not pleasant. Can I just get an amen? That that if a marriage is divided, it's not good and pleasant. When you go to work and your co-workers are not united at work, it's not good and pleasant.

When you go to a church that's divided, it's not good and pleasant. Do you know what I mean? When our nation is divided, come on. It's not good and pleasant. Yeah. But God tells us how good and pleasant it is when there's unity. And then we read in verse two and three that here here's what unity is like. Verse two tells us it's like anointing. Now now in the days of old, God set apart the Levites to be the priests, the ones that would point people to a right relationship with God. And they were given all the power and authority to be a priesthood. Now, because of Jesus, it's no longer the Levites. We are the royal priesthood. And as we read in the Old Testament, unity is like the anointing of oil going

down Aaron's beard. He's the priest, the high priest, and then down his robe. Starts at the top with God, and it continues to flow down. Anointing represents the Holy Spirit. You're set apart for a purpose. You don't act like everyone else. You're a royal priesthood. You're meant to be like Aaron. You're meant to have the Holy Spirit anointing your life from the top to the bottom. And where do you get that anointing? Shout it out if you know. Unity. If you're divided, hard to show up with the anointing power of the Holy Spirit. God's presence is welcomed when we're united, when it's good and is pleasant. The third thing we see in this scripture in verse three, it's like the refreshing of dew.

Mount Herman is the highest peak in Israel. They don't have a lot of big mountains like we do in the United States, but you go to these high peaks and early in the morning, you've got this dew and there's refreshment. There's life that happens in unity. Once again, from the top down, when we are united, there's anointing, there's refreshment, and there's the commandment of God's blessing upon his people. God commands a blessing. And where does he command it? In unity. So, what is the one thing the devil wants to do in our world? Divide us. He's the author of division. Think about this. It's what got him kicked out of heaven. Instead of being united and giving God the glory, Satan said, "I want some of that glory." And all of a sudden, there's division in heaven. And a third

of the angels go with him. And that's what he's still longing for today is division. But when you understand that God is for us, it shapes and changes everything. We want to be united. A divided church is a weak church. A united church is the weapon in the hand of God. He gets to use us however he wills. Do you know long before the kids started saying 67, God created that whole idea. I mean, no exaggeration with it. It didn't come out of a rap song or the height of any athletes. I'll tell you, it's found in God's word. Proverbsap 6:16 tells us 67. Here's what it says. I'm I'm serious. It says it right here. Kids aren't going to like this, but I'll just teach you this right here. 67. There are six things the Lord hates.

Seven that are an abomination to him. Do you see it? 67. I'm serious. When the whole world says 67, they're actually saying God's word. Six things he hates. Seven are an abomination. Just you can start saying it. 67 67 6. You don't let the devil get a hold of that thing. Six things he hates. Seven things are an abomination. I'm telling you, the kids are going to quit saying it now that the pastor preached it. Six things he hates. Seventh abomination. So he he goes through the six things. What's the seventh thing he hates? Let me tell you right here. Verse 19. The seventh thing that's an abomination. The one thing that makes God sick to his stomach, one who sews discord among brothers. Division is an abomination of God. He wants parents and kids to be divided. He wants marriages to be divided. He wants churches to be divided. He wants nations to be divided.

That's what the devil desires. But when husbands and wives come under Christ, when generations of young and old are completely united, when a church is not defined by races or color of a skin or even politics, all of a sudden, hell has a problem because we're united with the sole purpose of King Jesus ruling over all. It is true that John 17:23 shows us that we are better together. Just just preach to your neighbor. We're better together. Turn to someone. We're better together. We're better together. We're better together. We're better together. That's not meant to be cute and cliche. That's a kingdom principle. Unity is not a vibe that we just come together and hold hands and sing kumbaya.

Listen, we can be united in Christ even if we're different because unity is not uniformity. God's not asking everybody to dress the same, to look the same, to act the same, to sound the same. That's not unity. That's religion. Unity is when we come from all kinds of different backgrounds, but we come together under the name of Jesus, and he is supreme over all, and that's what we we're united in. It's not just tolerance of one another. We try to live peaceibly as much as we can. Romans 12:18, we we try to live peaceibly with all, but we also recognize that we're at war in a spiritual realm that doesn't understand what we're united in. John 17:16, they

are not of the world, Jesus prayed, just as I am not of the world. So unity is recognizing I'm made for something greater. So unity is a decision. I choose to forgive instead of being angry and bitter. You know how many church folk are angry and bitter? They hold on to an offense. The word in our generation for that is called church hurt. It's not biblical. The Bible says that you actually forgive those who have hurt you. You don't have the right to say, "I'm upset now at the church because I've been hurt by the church." Wherever there are people, there are problems. So, you can't escape it. You're going to be hurt somewhere. Your parents are going to hurt you. Teachers are going to hurt you. that that by the way I just a little legal preface in the legal language that's not a justification to be hurt. God loves

you enough he doesn't want you to be hurt. He wants to heal that hurt is my my emphasis here. He wants to heal that that that doesn't define you but you're defining in unity that I forgive those who hurt me. Unity is not allowing gossip. Do you know how what the devil does is he loves to slip in gossip everywhere we go and we justify it. I'm just telling somebody the truth. I'm just giving them information about somebody else. If they're not there to defend themselves, you can call it whatever you will, but the Bible calls it gossip. And if we would just not gossip in the church, all of a sudden we would see people the way God sees us, which I know people have problems. I've been in the people business a long time. They're way more messed up than I think.

Every time I think I've heard it all, I get a phone call and I haven't heard it all. And you know what that just tells me. People need a savior and you're not it. So you you don't got the right to go judge somebody else. You you're looking at that little teeny bit of splinter. And Jesus said you got a big old log in your own eye. It's time for us to just be united. United and choose our mission over our preference. Unity. And I'm just going to declare it because I believe it's possible. But I will just say this. It's rare. It's possible, but it will not happen by accident. It's all about Jesus. We have to work hard to do this.

I would love to see it in our day because a great awakening is coming when we're united. Because here's why Jesus prayed this. He says, "I am them." Verse 23, "I am them and you in me." Jesus is praying that they may become perfectly one so that the world may know. So that the world may know. Why are we united? So that the world may know that what we have they can have. That they see what's in us and they actually want what's in us. Could you imagine what would happening when the streets of Ben start whispering what's happening at Journey Church? They're a little terrified but also very intrigued because what's happening there is absolutely awesome. People of different backgrounds, people of different places and spaces are coming together so that the world may know unity is our billboard for the world to see Jesus.

The world's not impressed with any of the things that we have here. It's not a platform or lights or some LED wall. That that is not even like Christian jargon and trying to come up with some new clever music or something that will reach this generation. Those things don't impress. They come and they go. The one thing that will change the world is Jesus. And when the world sees Jesus in us, they need what we have. And that's why all of a sudden, even this week in in the prison at Deer Ridge, uh I I saw Mike Vogle here. Did I see Mike? I saw Mike. Wave your hand. Yeah, I saw Mike right there. This guy Mike right here. He's fe featured in the Deeridge uh newspaper, a huge newspaper that's written by prisoners uh that are incarcerated. And Mike takes up maybe two pages of interviews. It's a beautiful uh interview. And

what's incredible is in this interview, you guys have been married what? 44 years. 48 years. Wow. 48 years Mike and Marsha have been married. So here you got a guy who's uh seasoned. Can we say that? Uh yet what he has is so desirable by inmates. They they want the whole prison to know what's inside of this person. That's Jesus. There's not something sexy like, "Well, we created this program that's going to really make you who you need to be." No, no. All we have is what's been eternally. It's Jesus. That the world may see Jesus in us. This changes everything. That the world may know.

Look, look, look at the whole verse here. that the world may know that you sent me. Not not that the world would have a a religion that Christians would be the biggest religion that the world may know that you sent me. Christmas time is all about the birth of Jesus. It it's a time that we love to have traditions. Just one more pop quiz to see if you're still listening. What town was Jesus born in? Bethlehem. Well done. One more question to this. I'll leave the pop quiz here. The last one. What was the name of his mother he was born to? Mary. Mary. All right. So, few of you are listening. If your neighbor didn't shout it out, just wake them up, please. All right. Jesus says that the world may know that you sent me. I need you to see the difference between Jesus and you.

Jesus was sent here and he was born of a virgin. You were not sent here despite what false religions have tried to create that somehow the story of Jesus is somewhat like ours. And you'll find this in in false religions like the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. But this is what's important about doctrine and getting into the scriptures is is Jesus is the only one that's been sent by God that's always eternally existed. It's been his plan from the beginning. He was born and that's what we celebrate at Christmas, but he's God's plan. It's it's not our plan. We didn't come up with this idea that God promised a Messiah that was spoken of for many a millennia. And 700 years before he was born, the prophet Isaiah would say, "You can look for the Messiah because this is

what will happen." Isaiah 7:14, "Therefore, the Lord himself will give you a sign." So you want to know who the Messiah is? Look for this. Behold, the virgin, which is impossible, shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Emmanuel. So God will be with us when a virgin bears forth a child, and his name is Emmanuel. God with us. So we we will show the world what's inside of us when the world gets to see that Jesus is preeminent. He's always been God. He's always been supreme overall. He did step into the world, but before he stepped into the world, he's always existed. When John writes about the life of Jesus, he starts off in an unorthodox way because he doesn't start with the Christmas story. He says, "In the beginning, John chapter 1 verse one, in

the beginning was the word and the word was with God and the word was God." He's taking us back to Genesis 1. In the beginning, the God that created all things. John 1:2, he was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. That's quite the introduction to Jesus as you start off a book. He's always been. He created everything and everything exists because of him. Jesus even said later in the book of John chapter 8:58 when he's speaking to some religious Jews who are challenging his authority. Jesus answered them saying truly truly I say to you before Abraham was the father of faith who lived so many thousands of years earlier. Jesus says actually I am. And he uses the sacred holy name of God Yahweh. I am.

Before Abraham was Jesus says I am is standing before you. So why didn't they just bow down and worship in them? Because he didn't look the way they thought he should look. God's glory can be right in front of you and you miss it. Colossians 1:16 and 17, Paul the writer is speaking of Jesus and says, "For by him all things were created in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authority, all things were created through him and for him. And he, Jesus, is before all things. He's always existed. And in him all things hold together. That's who you have in your life when you believe in Jesus. Not an ordinary human, almighty God. And he was sent from heaven, the son of God,

to show you how much he loves you. Not because we deserve it, but the very love that Jesus has is the very love you get. Let me just show you as we conclude here. so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me. This could be the most staggering thing Jesus says in this prayer. Here's the mind-blowing truth. The father loves you the same way he loves Jesus. Do you think the father loves Jesus? We have proof of it. before his earthly ministry. The father says of Jesus, "This is my beloved son whom I'm well pleased." And now Jesus says that love that the father

has, he has for you. The same love, the same delight, the same pleasure, not a lesser version, not a version with conditions, not a diluted version, not a probationary version that one day you can get this love if you're good enough. That love is yours when you're in Christ. The father loves you with the very love he has for the son. Not because you deserve it, but because he deserved it. And when you believe in him, you've now made your identity in him. You're no longer defined by your past or your sin. The eternal God that perfectly obeyed the eternal son that obeyed the father and pleased the father. That's the love God has for you. This this is not a poetic exaggeration that Jesus is praying hoping to capture your attention. This is the trinitarian reality.

This is a love that rewrites our stories. It's our identity. It's who you are. You cannot be more loved right now than you are in Christ. If this is true your whole life and this should wreck you and save you a lot of money in counseling. If this is true and Jesus prayed it and we put this into practice. Our identity is not rooted in performance. Our identity is not rooted in your past failures. Our identity is not rooted in other people's approval of our lives. Our identity, and this could be the hardest one, is not based on our own self assessment of who we are. That's right.

But it's who God says we are. Our truest identity according to Jesus prayer [music] is that God the Father loves you with the same love he has for Jesus. You do not work for this love. You cannot work for this love. You work from this love. So if you do anything good in your life, it's not to get the love of God. It's not to earn God's pleasure for your life. It's simply to say, "I can't believe I'm so loved. I can't believe I get to [music] do this." This is what we learned last week that we don't fight for victory. We fight from victory. It's already been done and won. But now this is most important because there are so many

Christians who know that God loves them because you know John 3:16 for God so loved the world. So I I get it. God loves us. But there are so many people that know it in their heads but now it's just got to do a little move down into your heart. It's got to shift from knowing that God loves me to this is who I am. I am a beloved child of God. Yeah, I can do nothing to get more of that love. I can do nothing to to earn the affection of God. If I'm going to be affectionate to God or if I'm going to obey God, it's simply because he loves me. John 17:23 [music] shatters so many lies that many of us believe. God [snorts] does not tolerate you. God does not endure you. He delights in you.

God that is love, that loved the son so much, he delights in you. One of my favorite verses in all the scriptures is by the prophet Zephaniah in chapter 3:1 17 when he says, "The Lord your God is in your midst. He is a mighty one who will save. [music] He will rejoice over you with gladness. He will quiet you by his love. He will exalt over you with loud singing." Amen. Now, if this kind of love seems impossible, that God has a love song that he sings over you all night long while you're sleeping [music] and you don't even know it because you're so busy that you're not quiet enough to hear that love song. Listen, if that feels impossible, he is the God of possible. All you have to do is believe.

This love is found only in Jesus. And there's a huge shift in many of our hearts. I don't know if you grew up in church or not, but a lot of times church [music] teaches us that following Jesus is about behavior. Following Jesus is not about behavior. It's about identity. And when you have believed in Christ, it [music] shapes your behaviors. Are you tracking with me? I heard Mike, but that's all I heard. I just want to make sure that before we leave here, this is the application that transforms everything. This is the game changer. Christ in me. united with each other, operating in the love of Jesus. When the church does that, when Jesus is actually alive in our hearts, when unity is guarded, when we

run towards Jesus every week, the world changes. Central Oregon shall be saved. It's not a it's not a matter of it might be or maybe, but it shall be. And it starts right now. If you're uncertain of your salvation, the Bible says, "Today is the day of salvation." You can know with confidence that you're not only saved, you're set free from your sins, and you have the hope of heaven right now. And here's how it happens. You believe in Jesus. See, the [music] Bible says that we're all born in sin. Every one of us, we're born in sin. Now, the Bible also warns us that the wages of sin [music] is death. Meaning, if you don't do something with that sin, it's death. It's separation from God. Not just now, but when you die, it's eternal separation from God. But the Bible also continues and says, "But the [music]

free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus." That you're forgiven of your sins in Jesus. You have the hope of heaven in Jesus. You are loved by God in Jesus. And so today, if you want to be loved and receive that, you believe in Jesus. If you want to be forgiven today, believe in Jesus. So, with all eyes closed right now, if you want to receive that love and be forgiven of your sins, would you just throw your hand up nice and high and say, "Yes, that's me. I I want to believe. I want to [music] be saved today." Keep your hand up. We'll give you a booklet of your next steps. This is not the end of a journey. It's the beginning of your journey. [music] Praise God. Yes. Praise God. Yes. Praise God. Let's go. God sees you and he loves you. This is the beginning of greater things. Who else today? Just [music] raise your hand nice and high. Keep it up. This is your

day. You don't have to be ashamed. You could be set free of what anyone else thinks about you. All that matters is what God thinks about you. Is there anyone else? Just right where you are, just throw your hand up. Say, "This is my day. This is your day [music] of salvation. From this day forward, when you follow Jesus, it starts with identity. I want Jesus to live in me. The Holy Spirit in me." So, we have one God and three persons. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Not three gods. You get the Father with the Son. You get the Holy Spirit. This isn't three gods. This is one God perfectly united as one, and they're yours in Jesus. Anyone else just want to raise your hand and say, "Yes, I want

this. I want this [music] hope. I want this God. The one true God. That's eternal life." I thank God for those who raise your hands today. And I want to lead you in a short prayer. Prayer is talking to God. It's listening to God. You could pray anywhere [music] and everywhere. And God hears your prayers. He loves them. It's a sweet smell to [music] God when you pray. And we want to be a praying people, a praying church. So would you pray with me out loud? Just everyone who's ever believed in Jesus, let's join those doing it for the first time today. Out loud, say, "Jesus, Jesus, I believe in you. You died for my sins. and rose again. Forgive me of my sins. I need your grace. Wash me today. Sanctify me. Jesus, live in me. Be my [music] savior. Be my Lord.

Be my king. In Jesus name we pray. In Jesus name. Someone shout amen today. Amen. Amen. Amen. Well, [applause and music] if you prayed that prayer, may I just say welcome to the family. Uh we are brothers and sisters in Jesus and we're so grateful that you came today. I want to just ask before you leave, I want to pray over you. [music] Would you just stand to your feet and I've got one last declaration that I would like you to repeat with me. I would like you to repeat with me and I I'm going to tell you when to say it in just a [music] moment. Say, "Lord, make us that church." Wait, wait. I'm going to tell you when to say it. I'm going to say that because [music] I want this to be our prayer together before we leave today. This is going to be our prayer. Lord, make us that [music] church. That that church I'm referring to is what Jesus prayed in John 17. You can go study that more. Please don't just leave

what the preacher said. You go take God's word and be a student of God's word. Be a disciple as you you study [music] it and put it into practice. So, we're going to pray in just a moment. Lord, make us that church. I want to remind you of a couple things. We have [music] lead the journey training at 1:45. Uh we've got Christmas Eve coming up. We would love for you to serve one and sit [music] one. Finally, don't forget also about the Sabbath Sunday that we're going to take a break that Sunday, but we will still have church in [music] your home or online wherever you uh find yourself to be. So, is anyone excited for a revival that's coming? It's coming and it's going to happen when we're a praying church. So, together we're going to say say, "Lord, make us that church." On the count of three, let's all pray that together. 1 2 [music] 3 Lord make us that church. God bless you. Go have a great day in Jesus