Who is praying for you?

But Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.

Acts 9:

Jesus comes to him in a light from heaven

Acts 9:4–5 ESV

And falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” And he said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.

Acts 9:

Ananias was told to go and meet Paul

What do you think wen through his mind?

Fear and doubt

But God tells him

Acts 9:11 ESV

And the Lord said to him, “Rise and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus named Saul, for behold, he is praying,

Prayer is essential to the Christian life - for Perseverance

Definition: steadfastness in doing something despite difficulty or delay in achieving success:

The Christian life is hard and sometimes we are tempted to give in and resist the work of God. But there is one important reason that we will never give in to this temptation:

Jesus

Let’s look

Jesus is praying for His sheep - He starts of by giving God all glory in his prayer-

Drama

Who Jesus prays for:

Jesus prays for Christians/Believers

John 17:8 ESV

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.

Disciples, those who believe

Those called out of the world, Sanctified and set apart has Holy

John 17:9 ESV

I am praying for them. I am not praying for the world but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours.

John 17:

What Jesus Prays for:

For the believers security - This is the main thee throughout this part of his prayer

For the believers unity

John 17:11 ESV

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.

John 17

For the believers Salvation

John 17:12 ESV

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.

For the believers continued faith

For the believer to have His joy

John

John 17:13 ESV

But now I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves.

Delight in doing the Lord’s work

For the believer’s protection from Satan

John 17:14–15 ESV

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.

For the sanctification of believers

Growing in Xp and in God’s Word

Doctrine

We are not of this world

John 17:16 ESV

They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.

Perseverance of the Saints

Jesus our High Priests prayed for God to keep us until the end

God is working toward that end

United to Christ

We share in the things that Christ experienced in this world

Sanctification

The process of growing in Christ that we are currently in

Jesus expects the believer to grow spiritually

This sanctification comes from God’s Word

John 17:17 ESV

Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.

The Westminster Confession of Faith: Edinburgh Edition The Shorter Catechism

Q. 35. What is sanctification?

A. Sanctification is the work of God’s free grace, whereby we are renewed in the whole man after the image of God, and are enabled more and more to die unto sin, and live unto righteousness.l

Doxology

We should thank God and praise Him for Jesus’ prayers for us

The whole Trinity - God the Father, Jesus the Son and the HS have you secure, your salvation secure,

Romans 8:31–39 ESV

What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8

God is answering Jesus prayer

Praise him today that He has you securely in His grip

Praise Him that He is sanctifying you and preparing you for that Day in Glory

Praise Him that there isn’t anything that can separate you from the love of God

Yes, being a Christian can be hard if your trying to do things on your own.

We should thank God that he has given us a means to address him through Jesus Christ

We should be on our knees praying to God and seeking his strength

We should thank God that he has given us a means to address him through Jesus Christ

God is a personal God: “if He is personal and I am personal, then it is most reasonable t believe that we can know each other.” - Kelly

Galatians 4:6–7 ESV

And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.

Gal 4:

God gives us his Spirit of Adoption and we too can cry out in this relationship with God.

Kelly - “though the book of Revelation tells us that in God’s ultimate purposes, the consummation of the marriage of the church of Christ will be in heaven, we do not nee to wait until then to enjoy an intimate relationship with Him.”

Let us trust God in this very fact, this prayer by Jesus has been answered.

God loved Jesus so much that he has answered and if you look at your own life just a bit, I bet you will se where God has upheld you, reminded you of your salvation, of it’s security.