Chambersburg Bible Church

Having recently concluded our Fall Missions Conference here at the Bible Church, I am amazed at what the Lord has done for us. It was a “good” conference and one through which I was personally encouraged and blessed. But “good” hardly seems an appropriate description for the spiritual impact of those special meetings. The full value of the conference cannot be calculated through the addition of its individual parts, even though many of the parts were outstanding in their own right.

Yes, the Lord brought together a diverse group of missionaries. The Aaron Shipe family, new appointees under Gospel Furthering Fellowship to the Datooga people of Tanzania, exuded the kind of excitement we have come to expect of those called to missionary service. Veteran missionaries, Charlie and Bonnita (Bo) Frink, spoke with the authority and conviction gained through over twenty years of faithful service in New Zealand. Dr. Curtis Young and his wife Lori of International Partnership Ministries challenged us to think outside of the proverbial “box” by sharing what the Lord is doing through national pastors around the world. God’s promise to bless and honor His Word was the theme of Source of Light Ministries International under the direction of Dr. Bill Shade.

And yes, there were other features of the conference which stand out in my mind as being excellent. I would be remiss if I did not mention the wonderful time of food and fellowship shared during our international banquet on Sunday afternoon. Our ladies out-did themselves by providing a table set with culinary delights from around the world.

But the full weight of the Lord’s blessing is seen through the messages preached during the conference. The Spirit used each message to reinforce our personal responsibility and commitment to the great commission which was in keeping with our planned theme, The Missions World Starts Here. That part was obvious, but there was also an underlying theme present in each message. This “unplanned” (by us) theme gave a continuity to our week of mission’s emphasis which, I believe, was of the Lord. The thread that held these messages together was the need for faithfulness because we are living in the last days. The imminent return of Christ became a dominant theme during our conference. Each speaker mentioned the need for evangelistic faithfulness out of a firm conviction that Christ’s return could be just around the corner. Please do not misunderstand by thinking that we are date setter here at the Bible Church. We are not! But, we do believe that the next great event on God’s calendar is the rapture of the Church. It could happen at any moment. The Church of the Lord Jesus Christ is certainly closer to His appearing than it has ever been before. Our 2009 Missions Conference has motivated me to serve the Lord more faithfully with eyes looking to heaven (Titus 2:13Titus 2:13
13 Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; glorious...: Gr. the appearance of the glory of the great God, and of our Saviour Jesus Christ  
).

Text: John 17:1-5John 17:1-5
17 ¹ These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee: ² As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him. ³ And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. ⁴ I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do. ⁵ And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.  

Topic: Understanding how the Lord Jesus prayed for our greatest needs

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One of the greatest dilemmas that Christians face today is how they are to relate to the world in which they live.

• Philippians 3:20Philippians 3:20
  20 For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: conversation...: or, we live or conduct ourselves as citizens of heaven, or, for obtaining heaven  
  – Our citizenship is in heaven
• Romans 12:2Romans 12:2
  2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.  
  – Be not conformed to this world
• I John 2:15John 2:15
  15 And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers' money, and overthrew the tables;  
  – Love not the world
• James 1:27James 1:27
  27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.  
  – True religion and undefiled is to remain unspotted by the world

The word “world” is used in three (3) different ways in the Scripture

• Can refer to the physical earth
• Used to describe mankind (John 3:16)
• Frequently, used to describe the world system which is in organized rebellion against God – Domain and influence of Satan (2 Corinthians 4:4)

Galatians 1:4Galatians 1:4
4 Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father:  
states that Jesus gave Himself for our sins in order to save use from this present evil world.

• John 17:6-26John 17:6-26
  6 I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word. ⁷ Now they have known that all things whatsoever thou hast given me are of thee. ⁸ For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me. ⁹ I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine. ¹⁰ And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them. ¹¹ 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. ¹² While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled. ¹³ And now come I to thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves. ¹⁴ I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. ¹⁵ I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. ¹⁶ They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. ¹⁷ Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth. ¹⁸ As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world. ¹⁹ And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth. sanctified...: or, truly sanctified ²⁰ Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; ²¹ That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. ²² And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: ²³ I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me. ²⁴ Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world. ²⁵ O righteous Father, the world hath not known thee: but I have known thee, and these have known that thou hast sent me. ²⁶ And I have declared unto them thy name, and will declare it: that the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them.  
  describe what this deliverance looks like
• John 17 has been called the High Priestly Prayer of the Lord
• Verses 1-5 Jesus prays for the mutual glorification of the Father and the Son
• Verses 6-26 Jesus prays for the believer’s deliverance from the world

• A request for the preservation of the saints
  • That the Father would protect them from the hatred of the world
    • There is an attitude of open hostility in the world
      • John 17:14John 17:14
        14 I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.  
        – We are not of this world!
      • John 17:6John 17:6
        6 I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word.  
        – Although, we used to be!
      • At salvation that all changed! (Colossians 1:13Colossians 1:13
        13 Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: his...: Gr. the Son of his love  
        )
    • Not to be taken out, that they Father would keep us

Have you ever wondered why God did not decide to take the converted sinner immediately to glory? Wouldn’t it be better just to go to be with the Lord (John 17:18John 17:18
18 As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world.  
)

In light of the world’s contempt for the believer, Jesus prayed for our personal preservation. If it is true that the world hates us, why are so many believers embracing the world? James 4:4James 4:4
4 Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.  
refutes this lifestyle for the believer – The world is at enmity with the believer.

• • That the Father would protect them from the power of the world (John 17:15John 17:15
    15 I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.  
    )
    • “The evil” is probably better “the Evil one.” (1 John 5:191 John 5:19
      19 And we know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness.  
      )
    • Jesus asks the Father to keep us from the evil one because we are in a spiritual battle.

What must we do in light of this truth? (2 Timothy 2:3-42 Timothy 2:3-4
3 Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. ⁴ No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.  
)

• We must not allow ourselves to be conformed by the world
• We must not allow ourselves to be comfortable in the world

Robert Murray McCheyne once said, “If I could hear Christ praying for me in the next room, I would not fear a million enemies.  Yet distance makes no difference.  He is praying for me.”

Trusting the Lord for material needs is, perhaps, one of the most difficult challenges of the Christian life.  Many people find sufficient faith to trust the Lord for spiritual deliverance, but find trusting Him for daily sustenance a struggle.  Relying on the benevolence of the Lord is further complicated when the economy is weak and we find ourselves groping to make ends meet. Our self-sufficiency is exposed as anemic and ineffective in meeting even our most basic needs.  The Bible reveals that the Lord not only anticipated that this would be the case, but He designed it to be so.  The Lord knew man’s tendency toward self-reliance.  He knew man “would go it alone” if he could.    The omnipotent, omniscient, and eternal God ordained that all attempts at independence would result in defeat and disappointment (Psalm 127:1Psalm 127:1
127 A Song of degrees for Solomon. for...: or, of Solomon ¹ Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the LORD keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain. that...: Heb. that are builders of it in it  
).  The Word of God reminds us that even on our best day our attempts to meet our own needs are doomed for failure (Matthew 6:25-34Matthew 6:25-34
25 Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? ²⁶ Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? ²⁷ Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? ²⁸ And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: ²⁹ And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. ³⁰ Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? ³¹ Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? ³² for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. ³³ But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. ³⁴ Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.  
).  In light of these truths, what is the believer to do?

Trust – Proverbs 3:5Proverbs 3:5
5 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.  
instructs the believers to “trust in the Lord with all thy heart.” The command means to trust the Lord with one’s total inner being.  The extent of trusting the Lord is revealed in the phrase “lean not unto thine own understanding.” Together these phrases communicate an unwavering and uncompromising trust in God and an unwillingness to trust in self.  Trusting the Lord is always the appropriate response for the believer in times of trouble.

Pray – Philippians 4:6-8Philippians 4:6-8
6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. ⁷ And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. ⁸ Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. honest: or, venerable  
admonish the believer to pray in everything.  Notice that verse 6 begins with a universal prohibition against worry.  No matter how difficult the situation, worry is never an option for the believer.  Instead, the believer is commanded to pray in everything.  Prayer is always the appropriate action for the believer in times of trouble.

Be content – In Philippians 4:11-13Philippians 4:11-13
11 Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. ¹² I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. ¹³ I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.  
, Paul tells how he too had endured difficult times.  He learned how to abound and how to be abased.  As he reflected on his life, Paul remembered both times of “feast” and “famine.”  He found the Lord faithful in both.  There was something else Paul found.  He found contentment.  Believer, we need to remember that God is sovereign.  He is in control.  He has not forgotten us (Hebrews 13:5Hebrews 13:5
5 Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.  
).  God knows our needs (Matthew 6:25-34Matthew 6:25-34
25 Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? ²⁶ Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? ²⁷ Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? ²⁸ And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: ²⁹ And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. ³⁰ Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? ³¹ Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? ³² for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. ³³ But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. ³⁴ Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.  
).  Contentment is always the appropriate attitude for the believer in times of trouble.