May 21, 2023 – The Seventh Sunday of Easter

Death is never an easy reality to face. It is often unexpected, but some of the most challenging situations arise when a group knows that a beloved member of their community will die. Such a dynamic is depicted in Lulu Wang’s The Farewell, in which the family goes to great lengths to hide a terminal diagnosis from their beloved grandmother. The film is a touching and comedic depiction of their efforts to avoid the reality that they will lose their matriarch.

In John’s story, Jesus takes the opposite approach. Throughout the story, Jesus makes explicit references to his coming death. Here, in his final prayer for his disciples, he offers them a final word of comfort and challenge. John’s Farewell Discourse is a lengthy address (taking up chapters 14-17) that serves as the culmination of a narrative that has always been forthright about the fate of its hero.

The Gospel’s early readers likely never knew Jesus on earth, and there are some clues that suggest they were mourning the loss of their own community leader. Read through this lens, Jesus’ prayer is good news for anyone who feels that God is distant, who finds themselves missing connection with the divine, or who is grieving the loss (or worrying about the potential loss) of a loved one.

Two things immediately stand out when reading this passage. First, there is an emphasis on unity or oneness. Throughout the Gospel John emphasizes the unity shared between Jesus and God. Jesus is introduced as the Word who was with God and was God (John 1:1). In this passage, where Jesus offers a final prayer for his disciples, the capacity of that unity expands to include Jesus’ followers. Jesus mentions this unity as a visionary hope that his followers would be “one” just as he is one with God (John 17:11). For those who continue reading past the lectionary section, this vision is reiterated in verse 21 “… that they may all be one. As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us.”

At the same time, there is also an emphasis on the world. The “world” has a prominent and complex place in John’s Gospel. It is the creation of God, (John 1:10a; 7:4; 11:27; 12:19), the object of God’s love and work (3:16), but it is often characterized as hostile to God’s work, or the realm that does not know God (1:10b). Jesus prays for the world (17:20-21) and sends the disciples into the world so that the world will no longer be separate from God (17:15-23). Jesus was sent to enlighten the world (1:9), to give life to the world (3:16-17; 6:33, 51), to save the world (4:42; 12:47), and to invite the world to join in the love he shares with God (14:31; 17:23).

We can see that “world” does not mean one thing in John’s gospel, rather, the range of meaning reveals a dynamic movement within the story. The world that was positive in relation to God as God’s creation becomes hostile, opposed to God when it rejects Jesus. But, as the Gospel shows, God works to break down the divide between God and the world as people who encounter Jesus are invited to believe.

This passage ends on a sobering note: “I am no longer in the world” (John 17:11a). Living with the loss of a loved one, a leader, is quite a burden to bear. Jesus’ disciples don’t know how to continue Jesus’ mission in the face of his death and departure. John’s readers are dealing with the very real challenge of trying to live out a mission of love for the world, while feeling the loss of their leader. The hope comes in at the second half of our final verse: “I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world” (John 17:11). We become the incarnate love of God. In our connection to God, we extend God’s mission.

I am reminded of a favorite scene in Disney’s The Lion King. Rafiki tells the adult Simba, who is grieving the death of his father, Mufasa, that he knows where his father is. He takes Simba to a pool of water, and tells him to look down. Simba complains, “That’s not my father, that’s just my reflection.” “No, look harder,” Rafiki says. As he looks, Simba begins to recognize his father in his own reflection. “You see?” Rafiki hums, “He lives in you.” 

The lesson aligns remarkably well with Jesus’ message in John 17, and the message reiterated in 1 John 4. When we feel lost, aimless in our mission, forgetting who we are—remember that we are connected to God. Remember that God lives in you. Remember that it is in living out God’s love for the world that we have the oneness with God that echoes throughout Jesus’ final prayer.