Jesus has set Himself apart for us

 

13)  “And now come I to thee; and these things I speak to them in the world that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves.”  

He prays for their joy; that they might experience His joy within them.  This is the joy that is independent of earthly circumstances; it is the joy of doing the Father’s will in the face of worldly opposition.  Even in the face of world hatred toward them, they can know this joy of heaven’s approval.  The Lord here speaks of inward joy-yet in a few hours He would experience the trauma of the cross, and there is no joy in that.  There is, however joy in knowing that He was accomplishing the will of the Father, and that overpowered any earthly sorrow.  He prayed they would have His joy fulfilled in themselves, and this also is a major biblical theme.  Joy is not in conformity to a godless world but in following the pathway of obedience to the will of God, no matter the earthly loss.  The bible does not deny there are pleasures in sin, but they do not last.  Real joy comes from following the pleasures at the right hand of God which are eternal-Psalm 16v11 “Thou wilt show me the path of life; in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.”  Jesus lived it, we can live it too. 

14-19)  “I have given them thy word, and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.  I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world: sanctify them through thy truth, thy word is truth.  As thou hast sent me into the world, even so also have I sent them into the world.  And for their sakes I sanctify myself that they also might be sanctified through the truth.”

He prays for their sanctification

This is a much misunderstood biblical word:  it does not mean sanctimonious-holy sounding; nor does it carry the idea of physical separation-hence not monastical or exclusive.  As one has said it is not spacial separation which is in view, it is moral separation.  The Christian life is to be lived in close quarters to the people of the world, but different to the world.  It simply means “apart”-different in the moral sense, godly in a godless world; salt that halts corruption; light that shines in darkness-Matthew 5.  This we do not have without Divine help, but the medium by which we achieve this is the word of God, that can separate us from the evil of the world while living in it.  The sanctifying power of the word of God is proven, as can be seen from scriptures like Psalm119v9; Hebrews 4v12, and others.  This is not a “holier than thou” attitude-Isaiah 65v5.  God described people like this as “smoke in His nostrils”, an unwelcome irritation.  True sanctification is a sincere and honest separation from evil.  It is only the word of God which can define evil from which we are to turn away.  Jesus set Himself apart to the task of sanctifying the believers in the service of God.  He is wholly engaged in the progressive sanctification of His people, He constantly intercedes for us-Hebrews 7v25 and Romans 8v34.  He is committed to our sanctification by cleansing us from all unrighteousness-1^st John 1v9.