Don Teichroeb spoke on John chapter 17, the longest prayer attributed to Jesus. Don showed how the prayer is divided into different sections. The first focuses on the glorification of God and also of Jesus, now that "the hour has come" and his mission was nearly complete. Jesus gave thanks for his friends/followers and for those who would eventually join the movement. Don noted that not all prayers are answered as we might wish, and that Jesus was not able to avoid the cross 24 hours later. The second section of the prayer reveals the relation of God and Jesus, and also how his followers fit into the picture ('they were yours, you gave them to me, and now they are ours'). Even though the understanding of the followers was hopelessly incomplete, and at times even wrong, God considered the followers to be within the faith. In the third section, Jesus asked that the disciples be protected by God from 'evil' spiritual forces, but not from physical harm (in fact, many suffered martyrdom). Finally, Jesus prayed for all believers, asking that they will be 'one', even as he and God sought to be one. His argument in favour of this oneness is that it would prove to the world that this faith actually works and is from God. Throughout his talk, Don interspersed read prayers which helped us worship while listening to his reflections on this prayer. [JEK]

Passage: John 17
Communion: No
Ecumenical or Event: Lent V
Potluck Lunch: No
Congregational Meeting: No

Speaker: Don Teichroeb
Worship Leader: Henry Klippenstein
Song Leader: Evan Kreider
Pianist: Sue Dudoward
Usher:
Zoom Coordinator:
Children's Feature Leader: Karl Brown

Bring Flowers: Annie Funk
Coffee Helper:
Sound Helper:

Child Care Volunteer: Krista Voth and Jeremy Schmidt