{"id":10618,"date":"2025-07-15T18:07:24","date_gmt":"2025-07-15T22:07:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/christskingdom.org\/staging\/8402\/?page_id=10618"},"modified":"2026-05-13T20:58:55","modified_gmt":"2026-05-14T00:58:55","slug":"the-lords-greatest-prayer-part-8","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/christskingdom.org\/staging\/8402\/the-lords-greatest-prayer-part-8\/","title":{"rendered":"The Lord’s Greatest Prayer, Part 8"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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The Lord's Greatest Prayer, Part 8 (By John MacArthur<\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Article 58<\/em><\/p>\n\n

By John MacArthur

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Note from Steve Hogan: John MacArthur was a man of God, a pastor of His people, an acclaimed teacher of His word, and a friend of my wife and mine. After a continually fruitful life of faithful service to our Lord Jesus Christ, he was taken home to heaven on July 14, 2025 <\/em>. “To live is Christ, to die is gain.”<\/em> Phil. 1:21. “Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”<\/em> Psalm 23:6

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This is the text of a sermon by John MacArthur, preached at the church he pastored for more than 56 years. I thought this message was appropriate because it is about being in heaven with Jesus, which is where John longed to be and now is. <\/em> This sermon i<\/em>s found at the Grace to You website: GTY.org<\/a>, and is sermon # 43-100, taught by John MacArthur on February 14, 2016. It is part of a series he preached on Jesus’ high priestly prayer in John chapter 17, specifically verses 24-26 where Jesus is praying to the Father about His desire that believers be with Him in heaven. Here is the link to the sermon with audio, video and text: The Lord’s Greatest Prayer – Part 8.<\/a><\/em> It is best to see and hear the video! May God be glorified and may He encourage your heart and mind as you read, watch and listen to this wonderful teaching from John MacArthur!
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We come this morning to our final look at\u00a0this marvelous seventeenth chapter of John.\u00a0You can open your Bible to that chapter right now.\u00a0We have covered the first twenty-three verses,\u00a0which leaves the three at the very end.\u00a0But I want to read,\u00a0starting in verse 20, just so that you have the setting for that final portion.

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John\u00a017:20<\/a>, \u201cI do not ask on behalf of these alone,\u201d\u00a0– that is the disciples,\u00a0the apostles – \u201cbut for those also who believe in Me through their word;\u00a0that they may all be one;\u00a0even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You,\u00a0that they also may be in Us,\u00a0so that the world may believe that You sent Me.\u00a0The glory which You have given Me I have given to them,\u00a0that they may be one,\u00a0just as We are one;\u00a0I in them and You in Me,\u00a0that they may be perfected in unity,\u00a0so that the world may know that You sent Me,\u00a0and loved them, even as You have loved Me.\u00a0Father, I desire that they also,\u00a0whom You have given Me,\u00a0be with Me where I am,\u00a0so that they may see My glory which You have given Me,\u00a0for You loved Me before the foundation of the world. O righteous Father,\u00a0although the world has not known You,\u00a0yet I have known You;\u00a0and these have known that You sent Me;\u00a0and I have made Your name known to them,\u00a0and will make it known,\u00a0so that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.\u201d

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The final request of our Lord,\u00a0in the last section of this chapter,\u00a0or the last portion of this prayer,\u00a0is given in verse 24: \u201cFather, I desire that they also,\u00a0whom You have given Me,\u00a0be with Me\u201d \u2013 \u201cbe with Me.\u201d That is the promise to everyone who is redeemed,\u00a0everyone who is justified,\u00a0everyone who is Christ\u2019s,\u00a0that we will one day be in heaven with Him.\u00a0On paper, on biblical paper to be sure,\u00a0that is the great end, the glorious end, the incomparable end,\u00a0the indescribable end to which all of us look and for which we long.\u00a0But in reality, we live our lives so earthbound,\u00a0that it\u2019s very difficult for us to experience real anticipation for heaven.

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How often do you actually think about heaven?\u00a0How often do you think about being free from sin?\u00a0How often do you think about being perfectly holy?\u00a0Beyond that, how often do you actually think about\u00a0being in the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ?

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Do you understand the anticipation of David in\u00a0Psalm\u00a016:11<\/a>\u00a0when he says,\u00a0\u201cIn Your presence is fullness of joy;\u00a0in Your right hand there are pleasures forever\u201d?\u00a0Do you really understand what Paul meant when\u00a0he wrote that \u201cMy desire is to depart and be with Christ,\u00a0for that is much better\u201d?\u00a0Do you understand the longing of his heart to\u00a0be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord?

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All of us as believers in\u00a0Colossians\u00a03:1<\/a>\u00a0have been told to keep pursuing,\u00a0\u201ckeep seeking the things above,\u00a0where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.\u201d\u00a0All of us as believers are headed to heaven.\u00a0I fear that we really don\u2019t grasp the reality of what heaven is.\u00a0Yes, it is a real place,\u00a0but it is not so much defined as a place as it is as a person.\u00a0David said, \u201cIn Your presence,\u00a0in Your right hand,\u00a0that\u2019s where joy lies,\u00a0that\u2019s where pleasures are kept.\u201d\u00a0Paul said, \u201cMy desire, to depart and be with Christ,\u201d\u00a0he said, \u201cto be at home with the Lord.\u201d\u00a0He told us to \u201cseek the things that are above where Christ is.\u201d

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We all know something about heaven.\u00a0We all know what the Bible says about heaven to one degree or another,\u00a0but it\u2019s easy for us to get caught up in descriptions\u00a0of a place and not understand that the heart of\u00a0heaven is the person of the Lord Jesus Christ.\u00a0We will never see God because God is invisible.\u00a0We will never see the Holy Spirit;\u00a0the Holy Spirit is invisible.\u00a0We will see Christ.\u00a0We as believers are headed to heaven.\u00a0We will see Him glorified there.\u00a0We will share His glory.\u00a0We will enter into love and joy and satisfaction\u00a0and fulfillment that is beyond comprehension.

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We actually should be living all the time in a full anticipation of heaven.\u00a0Our Father is there,\u00a0that\u2019s how we pray: \u201cOur Father who art in heaven.\u201d\u00a0Our fellow believers who have died are there,\u00a0the generation of those who are enrolled in heaven,\u00a0\u201cthe spirits of just men made perfect.\u201d\u00a0Our names are there,\u00a0which means there\u2019s a place that belongs to us; we have an entitlement.

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In\u00a0Luke\u00a010:20<\/a>\u00a0Jesus said, \u201cDo not rejoice in this,\u00a0that the spirits are subject to you,\u00a0but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven.\u201d\u00a0Our citizenship is there.\u00a0Our inheritance is there – an inheritance which is \u201cimperishable,\u00a0undefiled, will not fade away,\u00a0reserved in heaven for us.\u201d\u00a0Our holiness is there.\u00a0Our perfection is there. Our sinlessness is there. Our eternal reward is there.

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Our Lord said in Matthew,\u00a0chapter 5, \u201cRejoice and be glad,\u00a0for your reward in heaven is great.\u201d But most important,\u00a0our Savior is there,\u00a0standing at the right hand of God,\u00a0according to Acts\u00a07\u00a0at the end of the chapter.\u00a0When Stephen looked up,\u00a0he saw the Savior standing at the right hand of God.\u00a0He has gone there to prepare a place for us in the Father\u2019s house.\u00a0Heaven is all about being with Him; our Savior is there.

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God\u2019s purpose in salvation was to bring us to heaven.\u00a0God had an ultimate purpose from the very beginning.\u00a0From eternity past – when He chose who would\u00a0be in heaven – to eternity future – when all whom He chose will be in heaven –\u00a0God is fulfilling His plan.\u00a0God\u2019s purpose is simply stated in\u00a0Hebrews\u00a02:10<\/a>, \u201cFor it was fitting for Him\u201d\u00a0– that is God \u2013 \u201cfor whom are all things,\u00a0and through whom are all things\u201d\u00a0– which is to say He\u2019s in charge of everything \u2013 \u201cit was fitting for Him,\u00a0in bringing many sons to glory,\u00a0to perfect the author of their salvation through suffering.\u201d\u00a0The purpose of God is to bring many sons to glory.

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For those of you who haven\u2019t been with us, just a quick reminder.\u00a0We have been talking about God: the Father,\u00a0the Son, and the Holy Spirit – the triune God.\u00a0God is a trinity – one being and yet three persons.\u00a0God is love. Love can only exist where you have more than one person.\u00a0God is a trinity and God is love,\u00a0because God loves \u2013 Father loves the Son, and so forth.

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The Father is love and He loves the Son.\u00a0He loves the Son,\u00a0as we\u2019ve seen, with an infinite,\u00a0eternal, intimate love – incomprehensible to us.\u00a0God is satisfied in loving;\u00a0God is fulfilled in loving;\u00a0God is glorified in loving.\u00a0God wanted many more sons to love,\u00a0and He wanted to love them as He loved His eternal Son.\u00a0So the Father decided to create a universe.\u00a0If you wonder why we exist,\u00a0it isn\u2019t an accident.\u00a0It is because the eternal God is a God of love\u00a0and set out to create sons that He could eternally love.\u00a0He chose and prepared the creation.\u00a0He allowed for sin and the Fall to put His mercy,\u00a0grace, and salvation on display.\u00a0He sent His own Son to die in the place of the sons of His love,\u00a0to redeem them from judgment,\u00a0in order that He might have His justice satisfied\u00a0and forgive their sin and bring them to glory.\u00a0The Lord Jesus was the sacrifice for our sins; He purchased our salvation.

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He also is the Great High Priest who prays us into glory\u00a0\u2013 and that\u2019s what\u2019s going on in John\u00a017.\u00a0He not only lived for us a perfect life that could be imputed to our account;\u00a0He not only died for us to provide the sacrifice for our sin;\u00a0He not only rose for us to grant us life;\u00a0but He ever-lives,\u00a0making intercession for us,\u00a0praying us into glory against all attacks, all assaults,\u00a0all failures, all sin. He stands at the right hand of God the Father on our behalf,\u00a0the attorney for our defense,\u00a0praying us into glory. That is what Paul calls in Romans\u00a05\u00a0his \u201cmuch more\u201d work.

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As I\u2019ve been saying,\u00a0His death is a matter of hours on the cross,\u00a0His resurrection after a matter of days.\u00a0His intercession goes on as long as time goes on.\u00a0He is both the sacrifice and the Great High Priest of our confession.\u00a0In John\u00a017, we have the only biblical example of His intercessory prayer,\u00a0and the point of it all is to bring sons to glory,\u00a0all His sons. In order to accomplish this, He brings requests before the Father.

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Now as we come down to the text that I read you at the end of the chapter,\u00a0you will remember from last week that I told you there are two final requests.\u00a0Our Lord has two final requests of the Father.\u00a0The first is a prayer for the regeneration of believers.\u00a0The first is a prayer for the regeneration of believers,\u00a0that we would be one in the world \u2013 and that\u2019s verses 21-23;\u00a0and we talked about that in detail last time.\u00a0It is a prayer that they may be one,\u00a0not in some kind of practical outworking of visible unity,\u00a0but \u201cthat they may be one,\u00a0even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You,\u201d\u00a0which means that they are one in the sense that they possess eternal life,\u00a0that they may be one in the sense of regeneration\u00a0in life shared by the Father and the Son.\u00a0This is a prayer for internal life.

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To simplify it, it\u2019s a prayer for them to be given eternal life,\u00a0salvation, the eternal life that He spoke of back in verse 3.\u00a0This is a prayer that God would grant salvation and eternal life,\u00a0the very life of God to all who believe,\u00a0to all who believe.\u00a0And by the way,\u00a0He is asking for God to do what God already planned\u00a0to do and promised to do for all who put their trust in His Son.\u00a0The petition then is not that we would get along with each other.\u00a0The petition is the dead,\u00a0blind, deaf, alienated sinners who do not know God,\u00a0who belong to Satan,\u00a0who operate within the kingdom of darkness,\u00a0and who are given the ability to believe by the Holy Spirit.\u00a0Upon that believing will be granted life,\u00a0forgiveness, and become literally one with God and Christ and the Spirit.\u00a0He is not praying for some kind of progressive,\u00a0external unity of behavior,\u00a0He is praying for a perfected, instantaneous unity of being.

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Just to remind you that that is what is on His mind.\u00a0In verse 23 He said again,\u00a0along those same lines,\u00a0He\u2019s talking about making them one,\u00a0in the sense that We are one: \u201cI in them,\u00a0You in Me, that they may be perfected in unity\u201d\u00a0\u2013 \u201cthat they may be perfected in unity.\u201d\u00a0The original text here is what we call a perfect passive participle\u00a0\u2013 \u201chaving been perfected,\u201d\u00a0an already accomplished act.\u00a0\u201cI am praying that they will already have been perfected while they are in the world.\u201d

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So He\u2019s not talking about glorification.\u00a0He\u2019s talking about regeneration.\u00a0In other words, He\u2019s talking about us being redeemed;\u00a0being given new life,\u00a0regeneration; conversion, the unity of common, eternal life.\u00a0He wants that, of course, to take place in the world \u201cso that the world may believe,\u201d\u00a0the end of verse 21, \u201cso that the world may know that You sent Me,\u201d verse 23.

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So His first prayer is for the regeneration\u00a0of believers in the world so that the world can\u00a0see what transformation takes place by the power of God through the gospel.\u00a0We then, as we already know from this chapter,\u00a0are sent into the world to put that on display while we proclaim the gospel.\u00a0He is praying for the salvation of those who believe,\u00a0and that they would be granted the full eternal life that belongs to the triune God,\u00a0that we would be in every sense joined to God and joined to one another.\u00a0Like\u00a01 Corinthians\u00a06:17<\/a>, \u201cHe that is joined to the Lord is one spirit.\u201d

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Such transformation will be manifest.\u00a0It can\u2019t help but be manifest.\u00a0It\u2019ll show up in good works to which we have\u00a0been foreordained (Ephesians\u00a02:10<\/a>).\u00a0It\u2019ll show up in the fruit of the Spirit: \u201clove,\u00a0joy, peace, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, self-control\u201d\u00a0\u2013 all evidences of transformation and the indwelling of God.\u00a0So His first prayer is that God will bring eternal\u00a0life to all who believe in the world so that the\u00a0world may see the power of God in salvation and be drawn to it.

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Now there\u2019s one final request.\u00a0The first request was a prayer for regeneration and unity in the world.\u00a0The second and last is, and fittingly,\u00a0a prayer for glorification and one in heaven – that we might be one in heaven.\u00a0He wants us one on the earth,\u00a0manifestly possessing that eternal life which puts the gospel on display.\u00a0But His final prayer is that we would all be one in heaven.

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Here is the ultimate;\u00a0here is the ultimate:\u00a0the Son prays for the Father to bring all His chosen sons to glory.\u00a0Again, Jesus is praying us into heaven.\u00a0We\u2019re going to heaven;\u00a0that\u2019s a promise.\u00a0The reason that promise is fulfilled,\u00a0the means for that to be fulfilled,\u00a0is the intercessory prayer of the Lord Jesus Christ.

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Listen to the words of Paul to the Colossians in chapter 1: \u201cWe give thanks to God,\u00a0the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,\u00a0praying always for you,\u00a0since we heard of your faith in Jesus Christ and\u00a0the love which you have for all the saints;\u00a0because of the hope laid up for you in heaven.\u201d\u00a0Paul says, \u201cI\u2019m like Christ;\u00a0I\u2019m following His lead.\u00a0I have heard about your faith.\u00a0I\u2019ve heard that you believe the gospel,\u00a0and now I\u2019m praying on the basis of your hope that is waiting in heaven.\u00a0I\u2019m praying for you; I\u2019m praying for you to get to heaven.\u201d

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Our Lord is the one who prays us into heaven;\u00a0He wants us there.\u00a0Now go down to verse 24.\u00a0Here\u2019s His desire,\u00a0the ultimate desire of Christ: \u201cFather, I desire that they also,\u00a0whom You have given Me,\u00a0be with Me where I am.\u201d\u00a0We can stop there for a moment. What a statement.\u00a0He does not say,\u00a0\u201cI am willing to accept them into heaven because You cleaned them up.\u201d\u00a0He says, \u201cI desire that they also, whom You\u2019ve given Me, be with Me where I am.\u201d

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It is not difficult to understand that we would desire to be with Him.\u00a0It is staggering to think that He desires to be with us.\u00a0He wants us to be with Him.\u00a0He doesn\u2019t want everybody;\u00a0He just wants \u201cthose whom,\u201d\u00a0He says to the Father,\u00a0\u201cYou have given Me.\u201d\u00a0How many times have we seen that statement in this chapter?\u00a0Verse 2: \u201cAll whom You have given Me.\u201d\u00a0Verse 6: \u201cThe men You gave Me.\u201d\u00a0Verse 9: \u201cThose whom You have given Me.\u201d\u00a0Verse 12: \u201cWhich You have given Me.\u201d\u00a0He said the same thing, chapter 6: \u201cAll that the Father gives to Me will come to Me.\u201d

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What gives us value is not intrinsic to us.\u00a0It is because we are the Father\u2019s chosen love gifts to the Son.\u00a0I mean, you understand that in a simple way.\u00a0You go to a store and see something nice,\u00a0and you buy it and bring it home,\u00a0and it sits around and collects dust,\u00a0or it does whatever it does and serves a certain aesthetic or functional value for you.\u00a0But if that same object had come into your home\u00a0as a gift of love from the person who loves you most,\u00a0it takes on completely different significance.\u00a0It\u2019s treated very differently,\u00a0because somehow it personifies all that is bound up in that love;\u00a0and that is where we find our value.\u00a0It is not that the value that I have to Christ\u00a0that makes Him desire to have me in heaven with Him is intrinsic to me.\u00a0It is because of the Father choosing me as a gift of the Father\u2019s love.\u00a0It is the Father loving the Son and the Son loving the Father,\u00a0and I get caught in the middle, thankfully.

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In Ephesians,\u00a0chapter 1, and verse 3, we know those familiar\u00a0words: \u201cBlessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,\u00a0who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,\u00a0just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world.\u201d\u00a0What gives me value to Christ is that I have been chosen by His Father,\u00a0and I am a love gift from the Father to the Son. So are you if you\u2019re a believer.

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So our Lord has a desire,\u00a0in verse 24, and the desire is: \u201cI desire that they also,\u00a0whom You have given Me,\u00a0be with Me where I am.\u201d\u00a0And by the way,\u00a0He\u2019s certainly not talking about Jerusalem where He is when He prayed that.\u00a0He\u2019s not talking about Gethsemane where He\u2019s about\u00a0to be in a few moments after the prayer.\u00a0He\u2019s talking about heaven.\u00a0He\u2019s already anticipating heaven.\u00a0It\u2019s on His mind,\u00a0back in verse 11: \u201cI am no longer in the world;\u00a0yet they themselves are in the world,\u00a0and I come to You.\u201d\u00a0Verse 13: \u201cNow I come to You.\u201d\u00a0He\u2019s already anticipating heaven,\u00a0and His desire is for eternal fellowship with us, the chosen sons of God.

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As I said at the beginning,\u00a0God has more love to give than what He gave His Son.\u00a0So in infinite love,\u00a0He wants many sons.\u00a0That\u2019s why Ephesians\u00a01\u00a0also says,\u00a0\u201cGod chose us to adopt us as sons.\u201d\u00a0We are sons of God,\u00a0given as a collective bride to Christ.\u00a0We are headed for heaven – and please notice – \u201cto be with Me,\u201d\u00a0He said, \u201cwhere I am.\u201d Fellowship. Psalm\u00a023: \u201cWe\u00a0will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.\u201d\u00a0He strongly desires to be with us, because we are the Father\u2019s love gifts to Him.

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In 1 John, chapter 3, verse 1 we read,\u00a0\u201cSee how great a love the Father has bestowed on us,\u00a0that we should be called children of God;\u00a0and such we are.\u201d Who can measure this love?\u00a0All John can say is, \u201cSee how great a love.\u201d He doesn\u2019t even use a lot of adjectives.

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We have been so loved by the Father.\u00a0We haven\u2019t deserved it,\u00a0we haven\u2019t earned it.\u00a0Purely on the basis of God\u2019s uninfluenced choice and sovereignty,\u00a0we have been given to Christ,\u00a0we have become children of God – more sons.\u00a0The world doesn\u2019t know this.\u00a0Why? John says, \u201cBecause we are now the children of God,\u00a0but it doesn\u2019t yet appear what we will be.\u00a0But we know that when He appears,\u00a0we will be like Him because we will see Him just as He is.\u201d\u00a0That\u2019s heaven, seeing Christ just as He is. Heaven is seeing Christ, being with Him.

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And, again, as I said last week,\u00a0if you love anything in this world more than Christ,\u00a0then heaven is loss.\u00a0If your affections are more attached to any other\u00a0relation or any other possession on this earth than Christ,\u00a0then heaven will be loss.\u00a0Now, obviously, if you\u2019re a believer,\u00a0you don\u2019t totally love the world.\u00a0\u201cIf you love the world,\u201d\u00a01 John\u00a02\u00a0says, \u201cthe love of the Father is not in you.\u201d\u00a0But it\u2019s amazing how entangled we become in the world.\u00a0One of the reasons that in a lifetime of ministry\u00a0my desire has been to cultivate in you Christ,\u00a0constantly bringing Christ before you,\u00a0is to fill your life with the realities of Christ,\u00a0so that He draws out all your affections.\u00a0And if you love Christ most, then heaven will be fulfillment.

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Now, why does He want us there,\u00a0to be with Him for what reason? Two reasons.\u00a0Reason number one,\u00a0verse 24: \u201cSo that\u201d – that\u2019s a purpose clause – \u201cso that.\u201d\u00a0\u201cI desire that they be with Me where I am,\u00a0so that they may see My glory which You have given Me\u201d\u00a0\u2013 \u201cMy glory which You have given Me\u201d\u00a0\u2013 \u201cfor You loved Me before the foundation of the world.\u201d\u00a0He wants us there to see His glory. He wants us there to see His glory.

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When He came down to earth,\u00a0His glory was veiled,\u00a0right?\u00a0John\u00a01:14<\/a>\u00a0says, \u201cWe beheld His glory,\u00a0the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,\u00a0full of grace and truth.\u201d\u00a0What does John mean,\u00a0\u201cWe beheld His glory\u201d?\u00a0What do you mean you saw His glory?\u00a0He just looked like a man.\u00a0He looked like any other man.\u00a0What do you mean you saw His glory?\u00a0\u201cWe saw His glory revealed in grace and truth.\u00a0We knew that when we were seeing grace and truth,\u00a0we were seeing the glory of God.\u00a0We saw it manifest in those attributes.\u201d\u00a0His true glory was veiled,\u00a0but His attributes shone through.\u00a0There was only a moment when they glimpsed His glory on the Mount of Transfiguration,\u00a0Matthew\u00a017, and they all literally fell over in just a glimpse of His unveiled glory.

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The apostle Paul says in 2 Corinthians\u00a04\u00a0that the Lord Jesus Christ is,\u00a0is God, the glory of God\u00a0shining<\/em>.\u00a0Christ is the glory of God\u00a0shining<\/em>.\u00a0In fact, it even says, \u201cThe glory of God shining in the face of Jesus Christ.\u201d

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But now we only know that by faith,\u00a0don\u2019t we? We only know that by faith.\u00a0The disciples only knew that by faith.\u00a0Paul had some visions,\u00a0but they were blinding on the Damascus Road.\u00a0He went blind. He had some other visions,\u00a0but they were very indistinct;\u00a0and he even says when he went to heaven that he was not even permitted to speak of it,\u00a0and couldn\u2019t even understand whether he was in the body or out of the body.\u00a0It was just too supernatural for him to define.\u00a0But, when we get to heaven, I just read you\u00a01 John\u00a03:2<\/a>,\u00a0\u201cWe will see Him just as He is.\u201d

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What do you think you\u2019re going to see?\u00a0When you think about heaven and you think about Jesus.\u00a0Forget the nonsense in all the books written by\u00a0people who didn\u2019t go to heaven but said they did.\u00a0When you think about heaven,\u00a0what do you think about? You think about Jesus. What do you think about?

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Kind of an olive-complexioned man with long\u00a0hair and a nice robe with a rope around His waist maybe.\u00a0Or maybe, you come out of a Catholic background,\u00a0when you think in your mind about Christ,\u00a0you see Him on a cross,\u00a0because you saw that so long in your life.\u00a0You can\u2019t sort of get rid of it.\u00a0Or maybe there are a few of you who even when\u00a0you were kids saw Christ coming out of a tomb in a picture or something,\u00a0and maybe He had a glowing light around His head or halo,\u00a0and that\u2019s the Jesus you think of.\u00a0Or maybe some of you had a picture in your house\u00a0of Jesus hanging somewhere \u2013 supposed to be Jesus \u2013 and you grew up with that,\u00a0and that\u2019s your view of Him.

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You can forget all of that.\u00a0That isn\u2019t even close;\u00a0that is not even close.\u00a0When you see Him as He is,\u00a0you will see Him the way He is described in Revelation\u00a021.\u00a0So let\u2019s look at Revelation\u00a021.

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Now we can just kind of pick part of the description of heaven.\u00a0The material is jasper.\u00a0The city is pure gold like pure clear glass, a transparent gold.\u00a0And then there are precious stones adorning the foundation stones,\u00a0all beautifully colored stones,\u00a0mentioned in verses 19-20.\u00a0And then there are shining,\u00a0brilliant pearls that you know reflect the colors of the rainbow.\u00a0And the street is pure, transparent glass.

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Okay, now you\u2019re looking into the New Jerusalem,\u00a0the capital city of the infinite heaven, infinite heaven.\u00a0It has no boundary,\u00a0it has no end, the infinite heaven.\u00a0\u201cAnd there\u2019s no temple,\u201d\u00a0verse 22, \u201cfor the Lord God and the Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.\u00a0And the city has no need of the sun or the moon to shine on it.\u201d\u00a0You are now in eternal heaven and there is no, no light.\u00a0You don\u2019t need any light,\u00a0\u201cfor the glory of God has illumined it, and its lamp is the Lamb.\u201d

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There\u2019s one light in infinite heaven – it\u2019s Christ.\u00a0That\u2019s beyond comprehension.\u00a0\u201cAll the peoples will walk by its light.\u00a0Kings of the earth will bring their glory into it.\u00a0In the daytime, there will be no night.\u201d<\/p>\n\n

Down in chapter 22,\u00a0verse 3, \u201cThere\u2019ll no longer be any curse;\u00a0the throne of God and the Lamb will be in it…His bond-servants will serve Him;\u00a0they will see His face.\u201d\u00a0Oh, here we are: the glory of God shining in the face of Jesus.\u00a0\u201cAnd His name will be on their foreheads.\u00a0And there will no longer be any night;\u00a0and they will not have need of the light of a lamp or the light of a sun,\u00a0because the Lord God will illumine them.\u201d

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There\u2019s one light.\u00a0God lights up infinite heaven with one lamp,\u00a0and that lamp is Christ – full display, full display.\u00a0The glory of the eternal Son, incomprehensible to us.\u00a0We will see Christ in\u00a0all<\/em>\u00a0His glory – limitless.\u00a0Unlike Moses, who saw a little bit of glory when God tucked Him into a rock,\u00a0we will see the full, blazing glory.\u00a0And we will not be consumed, because we will be holy.

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Why does He want us to see this glory?\u00a0So that we \u201cwill see,\u201d\u00a0back to verse 24,\u00a0\u201csee My glory\u201d\u00a0– Why? – \u201cbecause I want them to see that You\u00a0loved Me before the foundation of the world.\u201d\u00a0How does that connect?\u00a0Again, all the glory, all the glory, all the glory\u00a0of God is shining in the face of Christ limitlessly.\u00a0It lights up infinite heaven,\u00a0and our Lord is saying,\u00a0\u201cAll that glory given to Me to become the Lamp\u00a0of an infinite heaven is an expression of the Father\u2019s love to Me.\u201d\u00a0When you enter heaven and you see the glory of Christ,\u00a0you will know how much the Father loved the Son to give Him that much glory.

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When we read, \u201cMy beloved Son,\u00a0in whom I\u2019m well-pleased,\u201d\u00a0we have such a small,\u00a0infinitesimal, puny concept of what that means.\u00a0Some day when you walk into heaven,\u00a0whether you go by rapture or by death \u2013 we\u2019re\u00a0all going to go there\u00a0\u2013 you\u2019re going to see such glory radiating from\u00a0Christ that He\u2019s the only lamp in the infinite, eternal heaven forever.\u00a0And that glory coming through Jesus Christ,\u00a0which you will see face-to-face,\u00a0that glory coming through Christ will demonstrate\u00a0to you how much the Father has eternally loved the Son to give Him such infinite glory.

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The Father loves the Son,\u00a0and all of redemption is to get us to heaven so\u00a0that we can see how much the Father loves the Son.\u00a0We are loved as well.\u00a0We are loved into heaven,\u00a0so that we can see how much the Father loves the Son.\u00a0We will see His staggering, incomprehensible glory;\u00a0and we will know the fullness of the Father\u2019s love for Him.\u00a0We will spend forever praising and honoring our\u00a0Savior and redeemer as we behold His glory.

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So, first of all, the Lord wants us into heaven to see His glory;\u00a0and, secondly, to know His love,\u00a0to know His love \u2013 not just to see that He is love,\u00a0but to experience it.\u00a0Look at verses 25 and 26: \u201cO righteous Father\u201d\u00a0– called Him \u201choly Father\u201d\u00a0earlier in verse 11 – \u201cO righteous Father,\u00a0although the world has not known You\u201d\u00a0– we\u2019ve seen that \u2013 \u201cyet I have know You;\u00a0these have know that You sent Me;\u00a0and I have made Your name known to them\u201d\u00a0– His disciples, apostles, those who believe \u2013 \u201cand will make it known.\u201d That\u2019s right.

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Christ says, \u201cI\u2019m going to continue to make Your name known,\u00a0and I\u2019m going to fill out the whole history of\u00a0redemption by gathering in all your beloved sons.\u00a0I will continue to make it known.\u201d\u00a0And He does that through His Spirit, through His Word.\u00a0Why? Here\u2019s the second \u201cso that,\u201d\u00a0the second purpose clause.\u00a0First, \u201cSo that they may see My glory\u201d\u00a0– here \u2013 \u201cso that the love with which You loved Me may be\u201d\u00a0– Where? \u2013 \u201cin them<\/em>, and\u00a0I<\/em>\u00a0in them. I want them with Me,\u00a0to see My glory. I want them with Me to know My love,\u00a0the love with which You love Me.\u201d It is just stunning.

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That\u2019s what was said at the end of verse 23,\u00a0right? \u201cYou loved them,\u00a0even as You loved Me.\u201d\u00a0That\u2019s why I try to help you to imagine how much the Father loves the Son.\u00a0If there is no light in heaven but Him,\u00a0He\u2019s the only lamp in the infinite glory of heaven;\u00a0and that He, being given all glory,\u00a0becomes the sole source of glory in all of heaven\u00a0is therefore on display as the One whom the Father loves –\u00a0loves so greatly that all glory is in Him displayed.\u00a0And now, He says, \u201cI want them here,\u00a0not only to see My glory,\u00a0but I want them here to experience My love,\u00a0the love with which the Father loves Me,\u00a0so that the love with which You loved Me may be in them,\u00a0and I in them.\u201d And, of course, that incorporates that we would love Him back.

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So if you want to define heaven,\u00a0you just got the definition.\u00a0It\u2019s all glory and all love,\u00a0all glory and all love.\u00a0God is love and eternally loved His Son – infinitely loved His Son,\u00a0intimately loved His Son;\u00a0and eternally, infinitely, and intimately loves all of His sons,\u00a0all of us. And His eternal Son wants to bring\u00a0us all to glory so that we can see the manifestation of how much the Father loves Him,\u00a0and so that we can also experience it ourselves.\u00a0God cannot love His Son any more than He does;\u00a0He cannot love us any more than He does. His mediatorial work,\u00a0to bring us to glory,\u00a0is to bring us into that incomprehensible love; and He will get us there.

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Hebrews\u00a07\u00a0says,\u00a0\u201cThe former priests existed in greater numbers\u00a0because they were prevented by death from continuing.\u201d\u00a0They all died. \u201cBut Jesus\u201d – on the other hand \u2013 \u201cbecause He continues forever,\u00a0holds His priesthood permanently;\u00a0therefore, He is able to save\u00a0forever<\/em>\u00a0those who draw near to God through Him,\u00a0since He\u00a0always lives<\/em>\u00a0to make intercession for us.\u201d He\u2019s able to get us to glory.

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Patricia and I were in Scotland some months ago,\u00a0and we were traveling around the borderlands in\u00a0the south of Scotland with Iain and Jean Murray.\u00a0And we were on a bit of a trip to discover some\u00a0of the locations of the great ministry of Samuel Rutherford –\u00a0obviously Iain Murray\u2019s theologian and historian without equal,\u00a0and had a special love for Rutherford.\u00a0So we were chasing around the borderlands of Scotland and eventually ended up in Anwoth,\u00a0a tiny, tiny village where Samuel Rutherford,\u00a0probably the second greatest figure in the Scottish Reformation next to John Knox,\u00a0had ministered so effectively for years.\u00a0Very, very small, small little church;\u00a0the walls were still there. We spent some time getting to know Samuel Rutherford.

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In preparation for that trip,\u00a0I read a biography of Rutherford,\u00a0and he died in 1661.\u00a0In that time of history, there was a very,\u00a0very looming reality in everybody\u2019s life,\u00a0and that was death.\u00a0People didn\u2019t live very long,\u00a0and there were all kinds of diseases,\u00a0all kinds of plagues,\u00a0all kinds of things that could take lives.\u00a0They lived without a lot of earthly treasure,\u00a0and they lived with a very stark reality that death was looming over everyone\u2019s life.\u00a0So they talked about that; they preached about that.

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Samuel Rutherford said a lot about death and heaven.\u00a0He talked about heaven;\u00a0and when talked about heaven,\u00a0he talked about Christ.\u00a0He talked about what theologians called the \u201cbeatific vision,\u201d the ultimate beatitude.\u00a0The ultimate blessing is the vision of Christ in glory. That was Rutherford.

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Two hundred years later, after Rutherford,\u00a0there was a pastor in a free church,\u00a0a Presbyterian church in Scotland,\u00a0whose wife Anne \u2013 Anne Cousin was her name \u2013 was a Scottish poet.\u00a0And Anne loved Samuel Rutherford\u2019s writings two hundred years later,\u00a0and she was writing hymns.\u00a0She would write hymns for her husband\u2019s church.\u00a0And in 1854 she wrote a hymn,\u00a0a poem, and the title of it was \u201cThe Last Words of Samuel Rutherford.\u201d

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That\u2019s an odd title for a hymn.\u00a0It was based on his deathbed saying as he anticipated seeing the Lord.\u00a0That hymn had nineteen verses.\u00a0Six of them are in our new hymnal under the title \u201cThe Sands of Time are Sinking,\u201d\u00a0which was the first line of the original nineteen verses.\u00a0The hymn is a reflection on seeing Christ.\u00a0The hymn ends with this line: \u201cThe Lamb is all the glory of Immanuel\u2019s land.\u201d\u00a0That\u2019s how it ends. That\u2019s the vision you have to have.

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John Owen, powerful English Puritan,\u00a0was a contemporary of Samuel Rutherford,\u00a0and he, like Rutherford and like many others,\u00a0thought a lot about seeing Christ in heaven.\u00a0John Owen wrote, \u201cGod in His immense essence is invisible to our corporeal eyes,\u00a0and it will be so for eternity;\u00a0we will never see Him.\u00a0As also He is incomprehensible to our minds,\u00a0for nothing can perfectly comprehend that which is infinite,\u00a0but what is itself infinite.\u00a0The blessed and blessing sight which we shall\u00a0see of God will always be the face of Christ,\u201d\u00a0so says John Owen, \u201cthe face of Christ.\u201d

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We will see the glory of God shining in the\u00a0face of Jesus Christ in lighting the eternal heaven.\u00a0We will see that glory and know that glory as a manifestation of divine love.\u00a0We will be swept up in that glory.\u00a0We will become reflectors of that glory.\u00a0That glory will shine on us and off of us.\u00a0We will radiate that glory through all of heaven,\u00a0and we will also swim in that same love.\u00a0We will be loved by the Father the same way He loves His eternal Son.

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Father, we thank You for a wonderful morning\u00a0and wonderful weeks looking in this chapter,\u00a0and feel like we\u2019ve been inadequate in grasping its immense realities.\u00a0Lord, just the smallest grasp of Your garment\u00a0is more than we could ever have hoped for.\u00a0Thank You for the grace that redeems us,\u00a0the grace that promises us this glorious heaven.\u00a0We pray for those who have not confessed Christ,\u00a0who resist, who hold out. Lord, may they see what awaits those who believe,\u00a0and may You fill their hearts with dread for what awaits those who reject.\u00a0Send us on our way,\u00a0rejoicing for what is prepared for them that love Him.\u00a0We ask and thank You for all these things in the name of Christ. Amen.<\/p>\n\n

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