“HE IS THE SOURCE”

7 “Now they know that everything that you have given me is from you.”

John 17:7

In His grace, God allows us to know Him and receive good things from Him. He takes pleasure in blessing us. And as recipients of God's goodness, we are expected to acknowledge God and show our gratitude to Him.

John chapter 17 is a heartfelt prayer known as Jesus’ “High Priestly Prayer.” After delivering His Farewell Discourse, Jesus now prays for Himself, the disciples, and future believers. This moment is also the start of Jesus’ “time.”

In our previous blog, we learned that Jesus showed the world who God is and what He’s like. Let's keep digging.

In verses 7-8, we can see a unique relationship between the Father and the Son and how that union is revealed to the disciples. Jesus addresses the disciples’ response to Himself. The Eleven, who are of God and given by the Father to the Son, recognized everything that the Son received from the Father and passed on to them. The term “everything” refers to Jesus’ teaching, which the disciples received. The disciples have recognized the Father as the ultimate source of Christ's power, words, and mission.

The disciples’ faith is imperfect, considering their desertion of Jesus revealed in the succeeding events. However, Jesus acknowledges that their faith has reached a decisive point. The perfect tense of the Greek verb denotes a permanent conviction. These eleven remaining disciples will not fall away, unlike Judas.  They have put their trust in Christ and stayed with Him even when everybody else backslid. While they have much to learn (which the Holy Spirit will eventually teach them), their faith is founded on solid rock. They believe in the essential truths about Christ, which proves they are true disciples. Now their faith is firm and secure.

What do we make of this? How should our understanding of Christ lead us to walk in step with God? Having a personal relationship with God requires a life centered on utter dependence on Him. We need the same awareness of God's role in our lives. When He allows us to experience success, we must recognize that it comes from Him and give Him the glory. As such, it is not our skills, job, or connections that provide for us. Whatever we have comes from God, and we must acknowledge the grace He's shown us.

Moreover, our identity is found in Christ, not our culture or religious affiliation. Therefore, our self-worth is rooted in Christ, not in people's opinions. And since God called and equipped us for service, we are free from the pressure of people-pleasing. We serve God and Him alone; His approval is the only one that matters.

Do you have this intimate relationship with God?

Pursue the Savior today!

Photo by Nick Night on Unsplash