Epicenter to Edge: The Widening Circle

Last night when I was washing dishes, I had filled a pancake-battered bowl with water to soak while I scrubbed pots in the dishpan next to it. Greasy scum coated the batter-water (yuck), and I tried to ignore it. As I washed the other dishes, some soapy water slopped from my dishpan into grease-topped water.

Okay, class, predictions. What happened? Yes, Johnny, very good. The grease scattered. The tiny spot where the soap had hit blew outward in a perfect circle like a shockwave, immediately clearing the surface of the water and sending the sheen of grease to the edges of the bowl. 

That single, tiny spritz of cleansing Dawn dish soap cleared the entire surface of the dirty water.

Obviously I'm going for the metaphor. Let's get to it. John 17 gives us Jesus' longest recorded prayer. I remember flipping through my red-letter edition Bible when I was young and stopping on this page (and the Matthew 5, 6, and 7 pages) because all the letters were red; there were no black letters (except the section headings, but details). Simple things fascinate me. :)

Jesus divides up His prayer into three neat little portions like one of those divided plates that are super handy at potlucks. There's a compartment for the first part of His prayer: the one He prays for Himself: "Father, the time has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son may glorify You."

The time has come. Jesus begins his ministry at the wedding in Cana, where He performs His first recorded miracle: "Woman, why do you involve Me?" Jesus asks His mother when she tells Him that the wine has run out. "My time has not yet come" (John 2:4).

Jesus has done a lot of work over the three years of His ministry. Now it is finally drawing to a close, and He prays out loud: "Father, the time has come." Like the second hands on a clock only He and the Father can see, the time has counted down to this moment, and the weight of it rests heavily in the upper room.

"Glorify Your Son, that Your Son may glorify You." Throughout the words Jesus gives a heartfelt cry for unity. In the first part of His prayer, He asks that the Son glorify the Father, just as the Father has glorified the Son. Unity between: an interesting word which denotes a two-way street. Both/and. Not one-way. While the Son points to the Father, the Father is also pointing back to the Son. There's reciprocity in the idea of between.

The soap spreads outward; the second compartment in the potluck plate is now open for business. Jesus prays for His disciples. "I have revealed You to those whom You gave Me out of the world. They were Yours; You gave them to Me and they have obeyed Your Word."

And here, He issues another cry for unity; it's almost like the idea of unity in His body is important to Him. It's almost like it's essential. Huh. Imagine that. "Holy Father," He pleads -- appealing both to the awe-inspiring Ancient of Days (Holy) and His intimate Parent (Father) -- "protect [my disciples] by the power of Your Name -- the Name You gave Me -- so that they may be one as We are one."

Just... stop the coach. Look at that. Let's sit on it for a sec. 

"The power of Your Name -- the Name You gave Me." There is power in the Name of Jesus!

Philippians 2:9-11: "Therefore, God exalted [Jesus] to the highest place and gave Him the Name that is above every Name, that at the Name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father."

That verse gives me chills! Power to exalt the Father, power to heal the sick, power to raise the dead, power to beat back the enemy and all his hordes, power to overcome sin and darkness, power to redeem us through His blood, power that makes the demons shudder when they hear His Name, power that will make every last knee, every single one, in heaven, and earth, and under the earth bow in amazement and awe at the sound of that Name!!!

Hallelujah! 

Whew!

Okay, coach, start rolling again.

The soap has spread, now it nears the edges of the bowl. We've gotten to the final part of that potluck plate. Jesus looks beyond the eleven others in the room and peers through time and centuries to all who have ever belonged to Him and all who will belong to Him in the future, and He sees every journey, feels every pain, understands every sorrow, rejoices with every exultation, and comforts every hurt. He knows our journeys. He knows Tamara, already. There in the upper room, He sees her shortcomings, her grievous failures, her inconsistencies, and her fears. And He prays for her. 

He prays for me. He brings me before His Father, in discussion. He has me on His mind. He has me on His heart.

It makes me weep. Put your name in there. "He prays for [name]." Take it to heart. He saw you in the upper room, and He sees you now, arms outstretched, all the love in the universe offered in His nail-scarred hands.

"I pray also for those who will believe in Me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as You are in Me, and I am in You. May they also be in Us, so that the world may believe that You have sent Me."

And that's where the soap reaches the edges. All believers, who know their Savior, will beckon to the world: Look at the Amazing Grace. Look at the Way, the Truth, the Life. Look at the Good Shepherd. Look at the Lamb of God Who takes away the sin of the world! Look!

Look!