Jesus is Essential
John 17:25–26: O righteous Father! The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me. And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.”
In these verses, there are no petitions. Jesus simply reported to His Father about the ministry in the world, and He made several declarations that are important to us. He declared that the world does not know the Father, but that we believers know Him because the Son has revealed the Father to us. Our task as Christians is to bear witness to the lost world and share God’s saving message. He also declares the importance of truth and love in the church.
Jesus makes it clear that truth and love must go together. It has well been said that truth without love is brutality, but love without truth is hypocrisy. The mind grows by taking in truth, but the heart grows by giving out in love. Knowledge alone can lead to pride, and love alone can lead to wrong decisions. As you review this prayer, you see the spiritual priorities that were in the Saviour’s heart: the glory of God; the sanctity of God’s people; the unity of the church; the ministry of sharing the Gospel with a lost world. We today would be wise to focus on these same priorities. 1
Walking with Jesus
Will you please consider declaring, with greater frequency, the name of Jesus to those who are perishing? Since your life has been eternally enriched by the love of Jesus, don’t you feel compelled to invite others to know His great love for them?
But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God—and righteousness and sanctification and redemption. 1 Corinthians 1:30
To grow spiritually, love can’t be without truth, and truth can’t be without love.
Praying
Lord, I am praying right now that You would fill me with the fullness of Your love.
1. Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary. Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
