The Book of John

  John 17:18-19 To step into the world we must be sanctified.  Jesus modelled this for His disciples. Lord Jesus, please cleanse us and help us to be models of sanctification to those around us.  In Your mighty name.  Amen 

  John 17:14-17 The word causes folks in the world to hate us yet Jesus doesn't pray to take us out of the world.  He prays to keep us in the world but protected from the enemy and sanctified by the word which is truth. Lord Jesus, as churches wrestle with accepting everyone please help us to not water down Your truth, in Your word.  Sanctify us Lord, with Your truth, Your word and protect us from the evil one. In Your mighty name.  Amen

  John 17:13 Jesus wants the full measure of His joy within us!  He looks at who we are and what He has to do and determines that if He prays for us will experience the full measure of His joy within us.  May we model this in our prayers too; May those we pray for experience the full measure of His joy within them. Lord Jesus, You know who we're thinking of; please bless them with the full measure of Your joy!  May they see Your Kingdom come and Your will be done in their lives as it is in heaven!

  John 17:10-12 Jesus highlights a couple of things.  First of all He highlights that God the Father and Himself share everything, including the glory given to them through the disciples. Second He asks for their protection from the evil one.  He says this can be done through the power of the name of God the Father.  In asking for protection He also highlights that this protection brings unity amongst the disciples. Lord Jesus, we need Your protection.  Please encourage us and unify us by protecting us from the evil one. Help us to recognize the power of Your name as we gather and work together.  In Your mighty name. Amen

  John 17:6-9 Jesus listened to His Father and taught His disciples what He learnt from His Father and now He's about to leave them so He prays for them. Lord Jesus, please help us to listen to You, the Holy Spirit and God the Father.  Guide us in how we are to pray for each other.  Lord we pray for those who are seeking You.  Draw them to places like Alpha so they can find You.  Lord we pray for those that already know You.  Protect them from the evil one and draw them closer to You.  In Your mighty name.  Amen

  John 17:1-5 Jesus asked to be glorified by His Father so He could glorify Him back!  Jesus has given us eternal life through knowing Him and His Father and in doing so He has glorified His Father and now He is asking for His Father to glorify Him. Lord Jesus, this seems like a selfish prayer yet You know as You are glorified so is Your Father.  Help this to be true in our own lives; help us to glorify You and Our Father as You glorify us.  In Your mighty name.

  John 16:31-33 In the Christian faith walk there are ups and downs.  Sometimes we're on a spiritual high and sometimes we're afraid and have little faith.  According to Jesus this is to be expected.  The disciples have spent time getting to know Jesus but now Jesus is going to be taken from them.  This will scare them and have them hiding in their homes.  Jesus will be left alone but His solution to this is His relationship with His Father (although for a minute He even felt that He had lost this as He hung on the cross).  Jesus highlights the ups and downs so that we know God is still in control, so that we can have peace.  Remember Jesus as overcome the world! Lord Jesus, as we go through life's ups and downs please help us to remember that You have overcome the world.  Watch over those we love and protect them from the enemy.  In Your mighty name.  Amen Jesus never fails

  John 16:25-30 Jesus admits He's been speaking  figuratively but He will speak clearly; when they understand that God the Father loves them.  It is interesting that Jesus is saying here that there will come a time when He won't be an intercessor for us but we'll go directly to the Father because we know the Father loves us.  Jesus continues to prepare His disciples for His departure; probably because they have no idea what's coming and how hard it will be on them. Lord Jesus, when You don't answer our prayers please help us to listen.  Your ways are not our ways and it takes us time to understand Your ways.  Thanks for walking with us and for choosing to explain things to us.  You are an awesome God.

  John 16:23-24 Have you ever felt let down by God?  Imagine the disciples at Jesus's crucifixion ...the man they believed was the Messiah is now dead!  Yet Jesus is telling them here...when all is said and done ask and it will be given.  Sometimes are prayers aren't answered or God does something that we don't expect because He's all knowing and knows what is best for everyone involved; yet Jesus is clear here...we just have to ask! Lord Jesus we're asking first of all for Your wisdom.  We don't know what's best for everyone but You do so fill us with what You want us to ask for.  Take away our thoughts, other people's thoughts, satan's thoughts and leave us with Your thoughts.  Today we're asking for ... because You told us to ask.  We look forward to the answers to our prayers.  In Your might name.  Amen Ask, ask, ask

  John 16:16-22 Jesus continues to try to explain to the disciples what is going to happen to Him but they don't really understand what He means when He says He's going to the Father for a little while but He'll be back. He tells them it's like a woman in labour...they will experience pain but the joy will be like having a new born baby in your arms. Lord Jesus, please help us as You birth new things.  Help us to remember that changes come with labour pains but ultimately a new born baby appears.  Thanks for preparing the disciples for Your death and resurrection.  It shows Your compassion in action.

  John 16:12-15 It is tricky to understand the Trinity.  The explanation I like best is H2O; water, steam and ice.  Yet this passage explains a little bit more.  Jesus, in His finite body couldn't with everyone in the world so He had to go but He told His disciples He would send the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit would share with us what we can handled, when we can handle it.  He will speak the truth and guide us in truth.  He will share with us what Jesus tells Him to share with us and He will tells us what is yet  come.  We'll know it is the Spirit because He will glorify Jesus.  The way it works is everything that the Father owns belongs to Jesus and Jesus directs the Holy Spirit to guide us. Lord Jesus, allow the Holy Spirit to guide us, Your church, today.  Teach us from Your word and help us to apply it in real, practical ways.  Thank You for only sharing with us what we can handle.  Allow us to be Your instruments of...

  John 16:5-11 Jesus is teaching the disciples that His death is a good thing.  Unless He left the earth the Holy Spirit wouldn't have come and the judgement of God wouldn't be fulfilled and most importantly satan wouldn't have been condemned. Lord Jesus, thank You for coming.  You left so much behind to experience our lives yet You did it.  Thank You.  And thank You for going and sending the Holy Spirit and condemning satan so righteousness can rule.  You are amazing!

  John 16:1-5 Jesus is about to be killed and He knows it so how does He prepare His disciples?  He tells them to love each other and that He will send the Holy Spirit to help them because He knows they will be kicked out of the synagogue (church) and they will be killed by religious people. Lord Jesus, give us discernment.  Help us to be a church that accepts You.  Help us to be true to each other, loving and kind and help us to be sensitive to the leading of  Your Holy Spirit.  In Your mighty name. Amen

  John 15:26-27 The lies about Jesus are strong but the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth and the Holy Spirit will make the truth known.  This will be, in part, through the testimonies of us. Lord Jesus, help us to live in truth and help us to testify of Jesus's and His saving grace.  In Your mighty name.  Amen

  John 15:18-25 The world hated Jesus; if it hated Jesus, it will also hate us.  But there is hope; not everyone hated Jesus so no everyone will hate us. Lord Jesus, help us to love each other in a healthy way so that the hate from the world doesn't ruin us.  In Your mighty name.

  John 15:9-17 Jesus tells us to remain in Him, love Him and obey His commands and He sums all of this up with the command to love each other. Lord Jesus, I'm thinking of the different groups in the church. Help us to see what the other is doing and spur each other on to love and good deeds.  In Your mighty name break through our pre-judgements and bring us to the foot of Your cross...a model of giving up for the sake of love.  In Your mighty name.

  John 15:6-8 When You have access to infinite power you need to remain closely connected to the wisdom behind the power!  This is how it works.  Remain in the vine; Jesus, and then you can ask whatever you want and you'll get it.  This is how the fruit in the Kingdom grows. Lord Jesus, we want to remain in You.  Teach us how to do this.  Help us to grow the fruit of the Holy Spirit; especially self control  and help us to see Your Kingdom expand; especially amongst the younger generation.  In Your mighty name.  Amen

  John 15:1-5 To bear fruit we must remain connected to the vine.  That's Jesus.  We also must be prepared for the pruning so we can bear even more fruit. Lord Jesus, covid and Your Father have been pruning the church.  We're now asking for fruit. Fruit of love, joy, peace, kindness, goodness and self control.  Fruit of more people in Your Kingdom.  Will you intervene and fill our churches today.  Bring back those who are not connected into a church.  Reveal Your truths to each of us. In Your mighty name.  Amen