Lent #5 Love Prays
Series: Lent Love Wins
Preacher: Phil Swain Reading: John 17:1, 13-23
We are coming towards the end of our Lenten journey to the cross, and after seeing examples of generous love, love that serves, and love that abides … this Sunday we reflect on how prayer can be an act of love. Our bible reading comes from John 17 – just before Jesus is arrested he pauses and prays … for himself, for his friends and for the world … and all from a heart of love. We are going to reflect on how this might be a useful pattern for us when we pray.
Sermon Text
We have been moving through Lent by looking at some different expressions of Love which Jesus’ and others show in the gospel of John.
We have seen love stand with us and weep with us in our darkness moments. We have seen the affirmation of extravagant love as it was poured out on others. We have seen Jesus give an example of servant-hearted love, serving others to make a difference in this world. And last week we received the invitation to abide in love, to draw close to Jesus and remain in his love.
And today, as we move into John chapters 16 and 17, we see that another way love can be expressed … is through prayer. That love prays.
Now before we jump into the reading, I want to acknowledge that the idea of prayer can stir up a wide range of thoughts and feelings. That’s because we all come with different experiences.
For some, prayer has been deeply meaningful — something that has strengthened our faith and brought us comfort. But for others, sometimes we have found prayer confusing, or even disappointing at times. So, before we explore how prayer is an expression of love, let’s briefly reflect on what prayer is.
The most common experience of prayer for people is intercession. Philippians 4:6-7 encourages us to “not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God…” Intercession is presenting our requests to God – asking for help. It is trusting that God hears us, that God knows us, and that God can be at work in our lives and in our world.
And when you have experienced answered prayer… it can be quite extraordinary. Have I told you the story of how it was a spectacular answer to prayer that brought me to faith. Do you wish to hear that story?
As a 13-year-old, I was very distracted by girls and thought I had fallen in love with someone who ended up moving from the Central Coast where we were living to Goulburn. Around that same time, my father was finishing his training to become a Uniting Church minister, and we knew we would likely be moving somewhere—anywhere—in the state. So I decided to test things.
I remember lying in bed, looking at the ceiling, and saying,
“God, if you are real… could you organise it so that we move to Goulburn?” The next evening, my dad told me that a church had approached him to talk about possibly becoming their minister. I asked, “Where?” He said, “Goulburn.”
I remember lying in bed that night with my mind blown … that yes, God was real … but more importantly, God knew about me, listened to my prayer and could interact in my life. That is huge.
The problem with intercessory prayer is the reality that not every prayer is answered as clear-cut as my 13-year old prayer. While sometimes our prayers are answered, most of time the answers seem less direct, or delayed. And sometimes they feel like they are not answered at all. And that can raise real questions.
If a clear answer once affirmed that God hears me and is at work… what do I do when things don’t turn out that way?
And it becomes even more complex when we pray for the world. Like many of you, over the past few weeks I have been praying for peace in the Middle East—for leaders to find a way forward. And sometimes I wonder… what difference do my prayers from Australia really make?
I also believe we are called to be part of the answer to our prayers—to work with God in the things we pray for. But when we are praying for the world we can feel so small in the face of these big problems.
And yet… these questions don’t stop me praying. I still pray and will continue to pray. Maybe it goes back to that prayer as a 13 year old … if God heard my prayer and intervened then … then it is still worth praying today!
But prayer is more than intercession. As Kevin shared last week, prayer is also about abiding—drawing close and simply being in God’s presence. Just as a family delights in being together, whether there is conversation or not, the same is true with God.
When I was at around 19-20, I read Psalm 84:10, “Better is one day in God’s house than a thousand elsewhere” and decided that I wanted to spend 1000 hours in God’s presence over the next few years. (I was studying at university so I had plenty of spare time).
I would go to church in the mornings and just sit—sometimes praying, sometimes journaling, sometimes listening to God, sometimes reading Scripture. I never did get to the 1000 hours but I learnt the joy of just being in God’s presence. That prayer is also simply being with God.
And maybe you’re wondering why I’ve shared those stories. Because we find in John 16 and 17 and even into his prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane … that Jesus also experiences pray in different ways. At the same time, Jesus shows that prayer can be an expression of love.
Kevin finished last week with Jesus’ command from John 15:17 – to “Love one another”. And then in chapter 16, Jesus prepares the disciples for what is to come:
- The world may resist or even hate this kind of love
- But the Holy Spirit will come as an advocate to help them
- And they are invited to also pray… just as Jesus prayed to the Father, so can we. “Ask and you will receive.” (John 16:24)
And then… Jesus does exactly that. John 17:1 says:
“After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed…”
Jesus practices what he has been teaching. In the moment just before he is arrested and the shadow of the cross looms large … Jesus takes time out to abide with the Father and prays.
Jesus’ prayer in John 17 has three different parts – I want to step through each one as I think they are a great example or pattern for us to follow when we pray. As one commentator put it:
This prayer has a foundation of love – Jesus’ love for the Father, his love for his friends and his love for the world.
This pattern of love expressed through his prayer:
Jesus prays inward, outward, and onward.
Let’s look at each step and how it reflects love.
1. Love prays inward – “Align me” (vv.1–5)
Jesus begins by praying for himself. He draws close to the Father—“Father… Abba”— and acknowledges the weight of the moment: “The hour has come.”
I am a big believer in honest prayer … to be real before God with our feelings and our worries. Jesus does this here and then and then he asks for help to complete the work given to him, so that God would be glorified.
One article I was reading said that Jesus’ first step was to make sure he was ‘aligned’ with God … and the best way to do that was to draw close to God, to rest in God’s love. Before Jesus carries the weight of the sins of the world, he rests in the Father’s love. Before Jesus prays outwards or onwards … he looks inwards and prays for himself.
And we are invited to do the same. To come honestly before God.
To ask for help or strength. To seek alignment with God’s purposes … and the best way to do this is to rest in God’s presence and be held in God’s love.
2. Love prays outward – “Hold them” (vv.6–19)
Then Jesus turns his attention to those closest to him — his disciples and friends … those travelling with him. And his prayer is deeply personal. “I pray for them…” Not because he doesn’t care about the world — but because in this moment, Jesus is focusing his love on those right in front of him.
Jesus prays three things for the disciples:
- Protection – that they will be kept safe when Jesus is arrested; that they would be protected in this difficult time.
- Unity – That they will be one. That in the chaos and confusion, in the hate and pain, that they will hold onto each other, help each other, love each other.
- That they will be sanctified. This could mean two things. We often understand sanctification as the process of being shaped or moulded into being like Jesus … i.e. Jesus was praying that the experience of that first Easter weekend might help them be shaped by love. But Sanctification could also mean “set apart for a holy purpose” … that Jesus is praying the disciples might understanding their calling to continue Jesus’ ministry of love.
Jesus’ prayer is one that sees deeply. Jesus prays not just for comfort—but for growth, purpose, and faithfulness.
And it raises a question for us:
When we pray for others, do we only pray for immediate needs…
or do we also pray for who they are becoming and what God is calling them into?
3. Love prays onward – “Reach the world” (vv.20–26)
Finally, Jesus lifts his eyes beyond the immediate moment.
My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message… [that’s us! Jesus is praying for us!] that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you.
The heart of Jesus’ prayer for us is that … we may be one.
Not just getting along. Not just avoiding conflict.
But a deep, committed, costly unity— where we belong to each other, carry each other, forgive each other, and refuse to let go of each other. A unity that reflects the very relationship between the Father and the Son.
And why does this matter? Because Jesus says: “so that the world may believe…” Our oneness is part of our witness.
Jesus prays that the whole world may know love.
How? How will the whole world … which seems so fixated on division and hate … how will the world know love? In us.
The world will see love… in us. Through us.
Can you see the pattern?
Love draws close to God and says, “Align me.”
Love holds others before God and says, “Hold them.”
Love looks to the world and says, “Reach them.”
Love prays.
Jesus draws close to God in prayer, he rests in God’s love and asks for personal help. Then he prays for the immediate situation, for those around him whom he loves. Praying for their protection, for their community and for their calling to continue Jesus’ ministry of love. And lastly he prays for all future believers … that we also be of one heart and mind … and prays for the world – that they might know love … and particularly know love through our example.
It is a good example of how to approach prayer – and each part is a reflection of love. Love prays.
I am wondering whether we now practice what I preached. I am going to invite the music team and Sue to come and lead us in a longer time of prayer …
- A song to help us draw close to God
- Some silence to allow us to pray and present our own honest thoughts and needs to God.
- Sue will then lead us in prayer – praying for those around us and the immediate situations that are causing us concern, and prayer for the world and that they might know love.
Let us follow the example of love that Jesus showed,
Let us pray.
Prayers for Others
Loving God,
we thank you that Jesus shows us what love looks like.
A love that draws close,
a love that carries others,
a love that reaches out into the world.
And so today, we come to you in prayer—
following the pattern that Jesus has shown us.
(Personal Prayer – Silence)
Gracious God, we begin by drawing close to you.
You know our hearts—our joys and our struggles,
our hopes and our fears.
In this moment of quiet,
we bring ourselves before you…
(Silence)
Lord, align our hearts with yours.
Hold us in your love.
Give us strength, clarity, and peace.
Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.
(Prayer for Others – Near Us)
Loving God,
we lift before you those who are close to us—
family, friends, neighbours, those we care for deeply.
We pray especially for those who are struggling,
those who are hurting, those who feel lost or alone.
Surround them with your protection.
Draw them into community and connection.
Shape them in your truth and your love.
And help us to be people
who support, encourage, and walk alongside them.
Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.
(Prayer for the Church – Unity)
God of love, we pray for your church—
for this community here at Turramurra,
and for your people around the world.
Make us one.
Not just in words, but in heart and in action.
Teach us to love deeply, to forgive freely,
to carry one another with grace and compassion.
May our life together reflect your love,
so that others may see… and believe.
Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.
(Prayer for the World)
God of all creation, we lift before you this world that you love.
We pray for places of conflict and division,
especially where there is war, fear, and suffering.
We pray for leaders,
that they would seek wisdom, justice, and peace.
We pray for those on the margins—
the vulnerable, the displaced, the forgotten.
And we ask that your love would be known—
in real and tangible ways.
Use us, we pray, as part of your answer.
Help us to live out your love
in the places you have called us.
Lord, in your mercy, hear our prayer.
Loving God, draw us close,
help us to carry others,
and send us into the world in love.
We pray this in the name of Jesus,
Amen.