LAST WORDS - ETERNAL PRAYER
Acts 1: 12-14; 1 Peter 4:13-16; John 17: 1-11a
Last words.
Last words are important to us. They fascinate us; they’re things we can take to heart, things we consider worth remembering. We always want to get the last word in, don’t we? Getting the last word in can be petty, but oh so satisfying. To us it means that we won, we were right, what we said will be remembered and will be acted upon.
Last words are important words . . .
In a court of law deathbed statements, even though they are unsworn and the person no longer present to validate them, are admissible as evidence. And in the arena of our lives what we last said to someone before they leave us, and in turn what they may have said to us, are very often the occasion of much joy and encouragement - and sometimes, unfortunately, of much regret and remorse.
We normally take very seriously the last words that our loved ones have uttered to us; we turn those words over in our minds; we consider them carefully; we store them up in our hearts and ponder them - much as Mary stored up the words of the angel and of the shepherds and of the magi in her heart after her encounters with them.
We attach significance to a person’s last words, especially if that person has lived a notable life. Last words spoken as death approaches often afford a final insight into the essence of a person’s life: what was important to him or her. Sometimes those last words can inspire us to emulate whatever was great or heroic in that person.
Last words are important words.
In today’s Gospel, the start of the seventeen chapter of John, we hear some of the last words Jesus would speak before his death on Golgatha. They express the essence of Jesus’ life. His life, as we know it from the gospels, was lived in union with God the Father. His last words reflect that same union, for they are a high priestly prayer, a kind of intimate family conversation. So today’s Gospel is a very difficult one to preach on. Why? Because we’re not hearing Jesus proclaim his profound, life-changing teachings. We’re not witnessing his compassionate heart as he brings healing to sick people and food to the hungry. We’re not experiencing his power revealed in raising the dead. His words aren’t even addressed to us but to his Father. It is as if we’re eavesdropping on Jesus. Here, rather, we are allowed to glimpse into Jesus' very soul. We hear Jesus in prayer. We never get any closer to someone than when we know about their prayer life. So it is not overstating anything to say that when we come to this chapter, we are entering holy ground and we should come in a spirit of reverence and humility..
And so, today’s Gospel is not so much one to be proclaimed, broken open, dissected and analyzed as it is to be listened to reverently, to be meditated on and internalized. So rather than commenting on what Jesus says, maybe it would be more beneficial for us to observe what he does and how he does it. He prays. So what are the lessons we can take from today’s gospel? I’d like to suggest three:
- You Can Pray Aytime: In the gospels, Jesus prays -- in the morning, in the evening, in the middle of the night. On a mountain, on the plain, when it’s dark and when it’s light. Inside, outside, alone or with friends. In thanksgiving, in distress, and toward all kinds of ends. He prays frequently and fervently. He prays even now, knowing full well what the next day will bring. He forgoes the opportunity for a last minute cram session of his most important teachings with his Apostles and instead, he prays. The point being: prayer isn’t only for church, or for mealtime, or for before bed. You can pray anytime, anywhere, for any reason … and God is always eager to listen. Driving your car to work or the kids home from school. While brushing your teeth in the morning or your hair at night. While doing errands or playing golf. Before a meeting for work or with friends. You can pray anytime. Sounds simple enough, of course, and it is. But that’s part of what many of us are missing in our prayer lives - the sense that prayer wasn’t intended to be extraordinary, saved for certain places or times or reserved only for really important moments. Prayer was meant to be ordinary, part of the fabric of our daily lives.
- Prayer Is About What’s On Your Mind and In Your Heart: Again, so simple. And, again, so easy to forget. When you read Jesus’ prayer in John, it’s easy to get a bit hung up on all the highly relational language of “mine” and “yours” and “they are in me as I am in you” and all the rest. But all of that language simply signifies the tremendous intimacy Jesus shares with the Father and that he is inviting his disciples (and us) into. Beyond that, this prayer is simply Jesus sharing what is most deeply in his heart at the moment -- that he is coming to the end of his earthly mission, that God would see him through to the end, and that God would take care of his friends now that he has to leave them behind. “What should I pray about?” some of you may at times wonder. The answer is easy: whatever you’re worried about, or thankful for, or need support with. In short, whatever is on your mind or in your heart.
- We Never Pray Alone: If you read a little bit beyond the point where today’s Gospel ends - to verse 20 - we hear Jesus say, “And I ask not only on behalf of these” -- that is, his disciples -- “but also on behalf of all those who believe on their account” – that’s all Christians since then . . . including us! When we pray -- whenever we pray -- we do not pray alone but know that Jesus is praying with us and for us. At the Last Supper Jesus prayed for us. He interceded to his Father on our behalf. He still does.
Earlier in the gospels, we know that when the Apostles approached Jesus and asked him to teach them to pray, he responded, “When you pray, say: Our Father, who art in heaven . . .” In a way, Jesus is saying, “When you pray, do as I say.” In today’s passage, it is as if Jesus is saying, “When you pray, do as I do.” So no, today John doesn’t recall any profound teachings of Jesus for us to break open, dissect or analyze. Maybe John intended that today’s passage be a late turning point in his Gospel. Just maybe, starting with this prayer of Jesus and continuing on through the accounts of Jesus; death and resurrection, John wants to get across to us that Jesus was truly the Master Teacher. That words were no necessary. That sometimes the greatest lessons aren’t heard, they’re observed. Maybe as Jesus’ disciples, we need to listen just as much, but watch even more.
