Gospel Outreach International

What does it mean to have eternal life, and how does prayer connect us to the heart of God? This Bible study on John 17, commonly known as the High Priestly Prayer, explores these profound questions by taking us into the intimate reality of Jesus’ heart just hours before His crucifixion. Rather than focusing on His own suffering, Jesus takes time to intercede for His disciples and all believers, revealing the depth of His love and the true nature of our relationship with the Father.

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 17:9

• John 17 is known as the High Priestly Prayer, where Jesus prays to the Father just hours before His crucifixion, revealing the intimacy of His heart and His intercessory role for believers.
• Eternal life is defined in verse 3 as knowing God the Father and Jesus Christ whom He sent, emphasizing that salvation is fundamentally about relationship and intimacy with God.
• Prayer takes multiple forms including formal corporate prayer, private prayer, and spontaneous prayers in the moment, and should include worship, praise, intercession, thanksgiving, and personal requests.
• The study identifies seven or eight “P’s” in John 17: prayer, practice, particularities, protection, position, prenatal, and perfect, which serve as themes throughout the chapter.
• Jesus’ prayer demonstrates the importance of being particular and specific in prayer rather than praying in generalities, as seen in how He prays specifically for His disciples.
• There is a notable omission in Jesus’ prayer in John 17 where He explicitly states He is not praying for the world at that moment, but specifically for those who believe in Him, highlighting times when believers should focus prayer on fellow Christians.
• The prayer emphasizes believers’ unity with Christ and the Father, expressed in the concept that just as Jesus is in the Father, believers are in Christ and therefore in the Father, creating a profound spiritual unity.
• Jesus prays for protection for believers, asking the Father to keep them in His name and protect them from the evil one, recognizing that believers remain in the world but need divine keeping power.
• Sanctification through truth is a key theme, with God’s Word identified as truth, and believers are called to be set apart and made holy through that truth.
• The glory Jesus received from the Father has been given to believers so that they may be one, and this unity is meant to demonstrate to the world that the Father sent Jesus.
• Believers should not expect to be taken out of the world immediately upon conversion, but rather to be kept and protected while remaining in it to fulfill God’s purposes.
• God’s love for Christ and believers existed before the foundation of the world, and the plan of salvation and redemption was established before creation began.

All mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them. John 17:10

This study of John 17 leaves us with a beautiful picture of Jesus’ heart for His people. Just hours before facing the cross, He didn’t focus on Himself but interceded for us, praying for our protection, unity, and sanctification. What strikes me most is how Jesus speaks of our relationship with Him and the Father—we’re not just servants, but we’re actually in Christ, united with Him, loved before the foundation of the world. That’s mind-blowing when you think about it! Jesus prayed that we’d be one just as He and the Father are one, and that through this unity, the world would see His glory. It’s a reminder that our connection to Jesus isn’t just about salvation—it’s about intimacy, about being so close to Him that we reflect His light to the world, just like the moon reflects the sun. And the best part? He’s the one keeping us. We don’t have the strength to hold on, but He holds us in His mighty hands, underneath those everlasting arms. Now that’s something worth praising Jesus for!

Bible References

• John 17:
• John 17:1-3
• Psalm 23
• Luke 11 (Lord's Prayer)
• Matthew (Sermon on the Mount/Lord's Prayer)
• 1 Thessalonians (pray without ceasing)
• Galatians 6:10