I ask on their behalf. I do not ask on behalf of the world, but on behalf of those You have given Me; for they are Yours.I pray for them. I don’t pray for the world, but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours.I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine.I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for those whom thou hast given me; for they are thine:
3 sermons cite this verse
has invested people into our lives. We are surrounded by people in our spheres of influence who we have the opportunity to impact for the glory of Christ. He's given us the words. He's given us the authority to share the word with them. Now I want you to see how part of sharing the word with them involves showing the word to them. And I want us to think about people that God has entrusted in our lives to show the word to. And what that means, first of all, I think it means that we display his character to them. I want you to see how this unfolds in this prayer that Jesus is praying. From the very beginning in verse 6, you go back up there and it says, I have revealed you to those whom you gave me. I revealed you to those whom you gave me. Now, some of you in your translations, it might have, I revealed your name to those who you gave me. …
IN the very opening of this subject one feels inexpressibly delighted to see the wondrous love of our Savior towards His people. He here promises that He will intercede for each of them before His Father's Throne and He declares that this intercession also rises for those who are yet uncalled, unconverted and unregenerated! Mark the depth of His affection— He spends all His time in continually interceding for His people. I marvel at the condescension of Jesus Christ, that His people's names are always on His lips. When we consider that notwithstanding all His exceeding Grace and affection towards them, they transgress and rebel, it appears amazing that He should mention their names, or that He should regard their persons! But when we remember that, day by day, in that land where there is no night, He who stands before His Father's Throne bears perpetually on His breast their names deeply cut in the precious jewels and stones of the breastplate, and always with outspread hands, pleads for them, we cannot but admire His love for them and feel a deep veneration for that Divine Grace which makes Him declare, "For Zion's sake will I not hold My peace and for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest until the righteousness thereof goes forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that burns." You must also note here the peculiar knowledge which our Savior, Jesus Christ, has of all His people, as well as His particular love for them, for He says He prays for those who are yet uncalled. Now, none of us who have faith in God, none of those called and led to believe in Jesus, are unknown to Him. He knows His redeemed as well in one condition as another. He knows which of two drunks shall turn and become one of His family. There are none so sunk in the depths of sin and wickedness that if they are His by the Covenant of His Grace, do not even now share in His intercession! He knows His Beloved when there is no visible mark by which to know them. He discerns His sheep when, to other people, they seem like wolves or goats. He recognizes His family when they are black as the tents of Kedar and He knows they shall be fair as the curtains of Solomon! He knows His children when they do not know themselves to be His, when they fancy they are lost beyond rescue, or when they foolishly conceive that they can save themselves. Yes, and when all hope fails them—when it seems that the Lord does not know them and the Gospel does not know them—when no Christian knows them and the minister can give them no comfort—Christ knows them even then, for it is still written, "I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for those whom You have given Me out of the world; those who have not yet believed; but who shall believe through the word of those who are already called." …
Fifthly. This electing love of God is singly of every particular person. Some deny a particular election, and say that there is no other election than a general determination, that all that believe and obey shall be saved. Some also own no more than an absolute election of nations. But God did from all eternity singly and distinctly choose, and set his love upon, every particular person that ever believes, as is evident by Gal. ii. 20. “Who loved me and gave himself for me.” God set his love from eternity upon this and that person, as particularly as it there were no other chosen than he; and therefore it is represented as though they were mentioned by name, that their names are written in the hook of life. Luke x. 20. “Notwithstanding, in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven.” Rev. xiii. 8. “And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.” Sixthly. In election, believers were from all eternity given to Jesus Christ. As believers were chosen from all eternity, so Christ was from eternity chosen and appointed to be their Redeemer, and he undertook the work of redeeming them. There was a covenant respecting it between the Father and Son. Christ, as we have already observed, loved them before the creation of the world; and then he had their names, as it were, written in a book, and therefore the book of life is called the Lamb’s book. Rev. xxi. 27. “And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life.” And he bears their names upon his heart, as the high priest of old did the names of the tribes of the children of Israel on his breastplate. Christ often calls the elect those whom God had given him. John xvii. 2. “As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him.” In the 9th verse, “I pray for them; I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine.” In the 11th verse, “And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.John xvii. 11. ” …