“Holy Father, Protect Them”
John 17:6-12a (NIV)
This reading comes from what some call the “real” Lord’s Prayer where Jesus prays for the disciples. As I read this scripture, I remembered classes I took in Scotland on worship and the Trinity. Much of the professor’s lectures centered on John 17.
I recall the time Professor Torrence opened class with a question: What is Jesus doing today? Is He retired? That received a few chuckles. But he was serious. His point was to ask what essential role does Jesus play in our living. He was not talking about how we pray to Him or go to church to hear a message about him. Too often we fall into the trap that religion is what we do before God. But is that “real” Christian worship?
The essential essence of Christian worship is rooted in the words Jesus spoke in vs. 11: “Holy Father.” This is the only time this form of address is found in the New Testament, and it is Jesus who prays it. The Father’s holiness is what makes possible the preservation of the church through our relationship with Jesus. God’s holiness claims believers as God’s own, calling us to a life of obedience to the Father’s words that were given to Jesus and given to us for our acceptance.
What Torrence was saying is that what is essential to the church is the gift of participation in worship with Jesus, for Christ is the True Worshipper in Spirit and truth. He called this a double grace! God the Father reaches out in Jesus the Christ, and Jesus reaches out for us, praying for us and our protection from a hostile, threatening world.
What strikes me about his scripture in the midst of our Covidity crisis is the realization that Jesus prays for our protection, for our preservation, to keep us firm in faith, to guard us and maintain the unity of His church by the power of God’s name. As Hebrews teaches, He is our Great Priest. That is what He is doing today! Praying for us, sympathizing with our weaknesses and giving us grace to help us persevere in times of need. As Professor
Torrence declared: Get down and pray, “Lord, you are the only minister here!” Don’t know about you, but I think this is – essential!
We remain grateful to the “essential” workers and services helping us get through this, but I confess a little frustration with how church has been rendered basically “non-essential” by secular definitions. From a faith perspective, we hold certain tenets to be essential for the people of God. One is the Perseverance of the Saints. Basically, it is what Jesus prayed for: God will keep us, preserve us, protect God’s own, with the caveat that they are not to “neglect the means of their preservation” (Westminster Confession); namely, obedience to the Word and unity in worship and fellowship and service, for these enhance each other to give glory to God.
This unity that God preserves is not just any unity. Not like a club or association. Not
simply having one’s name on a church roll or paying ones “dues.” It is not a oneness the world knows or understands. because it is only experienced by a spiritual participation in relationship with the Holy Father and Glorified Son who prays for us who are “still in the world” with its violence and viruses.
Pastor Rinkart served a Reformed church in Eilenburg, Germany during the 30 Years War and the plague of 1637. Army after army marched through his city, leaving devastation and disease. When a tribute was demanded of his poor people by an occupation army commander, Rinkart pleaded for a reduction in the tribute. Seeing no help coming, he and the people knelt before the official as he called them to prayer, saying: “Come, my children, we can find no mercy with man; let us take our refuge with God.” The tribute was reduced.
Talking about essentials, read again v. 10. The first question in one of our catechisms defines the most essential purpose we have: to glorify God and enjoy Him forever!