Witnessing, Belief And Prayer

Monday, April 4, 2011 Reading: John 17:20-26 http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=john%2017&version=NIV Reflection: Three things stuck out in my mind as I read verse 20 of John 17. The first is that Jesus assumes that His disciples will bear witness to what they have seen, heard, and come to believe. We know this because of His reference to "those who will believe in me through their message..." So, one of the functions of the disciple is to witness to the world concerning who Jesus is, why Jesus came, what Jesus has done, and why that matters not only to me, but to the world. I do this when I both tell the story of what Jesus has done for me (my story) and the details of the gospel that tell people how Jesus has saved the world (the gospel). As the season of Easter approaches, maybe I would do well to seek to tell someone about Jesus. Second, Jesus assumes that some people will come to faith as a result of the disciple's testimony. Jesus clearly states that some will believe through the witnessing of those who are His followers. So, while it is true that many people will choose not to believe, it is also true that some will come to faith. The difficulty is that I never know who is who as I share my faith...or maybe that's a blessing. Maybe my role is not to try to figure out who will ultimately come to faith...who is ready to hear the message...who is worth my time and energy in sharing the gospel. Instead, maybe I should share the gospel to every person who presents me with a door of opportunity, and let God lead them either to faith or to rejection. After all, He is certainly better equipped to do that than I am. Third, it is comforting to know that Jesus not only prays for me, but that He actually prayed for me before I ever became a believer. Here in John 17, some 2,000 years ago, when Jesus was at the edge of facing His own death, He stopped and prayed for me. That is a pretty amazing thing to think about. It is also true that Jesus is still interceding form me, and has given me His Spirit who leads me in my own prayers. So as I come to the Father in prayer, I come not on my own. I come in the name of Jesus who saved me and intercedes for me, and in the power of the Holy Spirit who searches me and intercedes for me as well. So how amazing is this. Jesus assumes that we, as His disciples, will share with others the good news of the gospel. As we do, Jesus will lead some to believe and so expand our faith family. And, when those people come into the family, they have already been prayed for by the very Savior who made their life possible. This is the link between witnessing, belief and prayer.