The High Priestly Prayer
It Is Finished + Repentance x Mercy Culture
Tetelestai. It is finished.
At the ninth hour after dawn, the crucified Savior breathed His final breath. With His death came eternal life— a beautiful oxymoron showcasing the wonders of a sovereign God. His blood spilled to wash us clean and white as snow. The power of sin crushed by nails hammered into holy hands and feet. Humiliation and brutal suffering endured for the sake of glorification and exaltation. Neglect and loneliness endured for the sake of reconciliation and relationship. He was wounded for our transgressions— torn flesh representing superficial offenses against God that rest on the surface of our lives. He was bruised for our iniquities— blood trapped under the skin to represent deep-rooted offenses that harden our hearts and perverse our thinking.
Tetelestai. It is finished.
Though He endured much, He received more. For the joy set before Him, He endured. The joy was greater than the cost. His last words were not spoken from a place of despair. “Tetelestai” is a declaration of victory, not of defeat. This was the culmination of a plan set in motion since the beginning of time. “Tetelestai” ruminated in the mind of God for generations. While those on Earth began to grieve a man, the elders and saints in Heaven continued their cries of “Holy, Holy, Holy.” They knew something we wouldn’t know until Sunday morning. They bore witness to something we wouldn’t believe without Sunday morning.
Tetelestai. It is finished.
How much more significant are these words when you consider the fact that Jesus Christ is our High Priest? The Levitical High Priest would be responsible for entering into the Holy of Holies, where the presence of God remained. Before entering, he would atone for his own sins. Then, he would go before God to make a sacrifice and intercede on behalf of the people of his priesthood. Our High Priest is Jesus Christ— a man without sin and with the unique privilege to not only enter the Holy of Holies but dwell within the Holy of Holies. He became the sacrifice and interceded on our behalf. “Tetelestai” is more than a statement. It’s intercession. He was signaling to God that the atonement was complete and the people of His priesthood could be forgiven. “Tetelestai,” — the reign of sin amongst His people is finished. But the intercession did not begin on the cross. The intercession began in John 17.
“After saying all these things, Jesus looked up to heaven and said, ‘Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son so he can give glory back to you. For you have given him authority over everyone. He gives eternal life to each one you have given him. And this is the way to have eternal life—to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, the one you sent to earth. I brought glory to you here on earth by completing the work you gave me to do.’” (v. 1-4)
Jesus, facing the climax of His assignment, gazes up to His transcendent Father— the One who sits on His throne above all yet is still mindful of His own. As Jesus looked up, the Father leaned forward and looked down. Knowing His Father’s eyes are locked on His, Jesus presses in. The hour has come. The hour He and the Father planned for. This plan, which would unfold throughout a three-day period and be drenched in intense agony and distress, is described as a short interval of time by the Man who would endure it. It would be an hour of darkness but an eternity of glory. Jesus was not interceding in pain or despair. He prayed in a posture of confidence, knowing the core of His assignment— receive glory to return glory. Through Him alone, reconciliation with the Father could be found and experienced. The Father had given Him authority to do so. And the Son did not disappoint. He brought glory to the Father, meaning glory had already gone forth through His life and would continue on the cross.
‘“Now, Father, bring me into the glory we shared before the world began.’” (v. 5)
Jesus counted His assignment as completed— though it would continue— because He had confidence in His obedience to the Father. The assignment was complete, it just had to be done. And Jesus’ “yes,” would remain “yes,” despite the reality of what would unfold. Therefore, He looked beyond, yearning for the bond of glory once shared. He is a member of the Trinity who delighted in a harmonious relationship with the other persons of God— the Father and the Holy Spirit. Jesus admits He is God, as the glory of God cannot be shared with man. And He requests the glory He’s relinquished to become the Son of Man— fully God yet fully man and living amongst mankind.
“‘I have revealed you to the ones you gave me from this world. They were always yours. You gave them to me, and they have kept your word. Now they know that everything I have is a gift from you, for I have passed on to them the message you gave me. They accepted it and know that I came from you, and they believe you sent me.’” (v. 6-8)
Jesus turns His attention to His disciples. Those whom He lived with, traveled with, mourned with, laughed with, and celebrated with. Those He taught and commissioned. He was more than their Rabbi. He was an ambassador of the Kingdom of God; on assignment to not only teach the ways of God but to reveal the true nature of the Father. Through Him, the disciples came to intimately know the Father. Though they always belonged to the Father, they were released to the Son for three years. Within those three years, they were exposed to a new sense of belonging and given insight into mystery. The Father chose and gave, knowing the Son would steward well over what was given to Him. The Son indeed stewarded well as the disciples received the Father through faith in Jesus’ identity. Jesus affirms their belief, acknowledging that their physical presence was a gift from the Father but their salvation through faith is the greatest gift.
“‘My prayer is not for the world, but for those you have given me, because they belong to you. All who are mine belong to you, and you have given them to me, so they bring me glory. Now I am departing from the world; they are staying in this world, but I am coming to you. Holy Father, you have given me your name; now protect them by the power of your name so that they will be united just as we are. During my time here, I protected them by the power of the name you gave me. I guarded them so that not one was lost, except the one headed for destruction, as the Scriptures foretold.’” (v. 9-12)
Jesus continues His prayer for those He had trained up, knowing they would be used as instruments to further advance the plan of the Father upon His departure. By giving them power by His name, He gives the world power. By protecting them by His name, He protects His ministry and His message. The disciples would carry a great responsibility that they likely did not yet know the weight of. But Jesus, the High Priest, stood in the gap before His departure from the world would create one. Jesus’ request stands the test of time as it also covers us— the remnant who have received Christ and the revelation of His identity. By giving us power through His name, He gives the world power. By protecting us by His name, He protects His ministry and His message. His name keeps us because we must be kept. In this world, we will face waves and high waters that will sweep us off the shores of grace and drown us in the sea of bondage. Only if we are not kept. We are redeemed from the sea but must be kept on the shore. Our strength alone is not enough to withstand the intensity of the waves. It is only by the power of God that we can be soaked and yet not be consumed. The protection of the High Priest fortifies our feet and strengthens our faith. The High Priest guards those He’s been given with His life. He has never lost one. Rather, one lost themselves— willingly choosing the path of destruction. One was predestined to be lost, as the scriptures foretold. However, the Father chose to use the lost one for His glory to be found.
“‘Now I am coming to you. I told them many things while I was with them in this world so they would be filled with my joy. I have given them your word. And the world hates them because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. I’m not asking you to take them out of the world, but to keep them safe from the evil one. They do not belong to this world any more than I do.’” (v. 13-16)
Not only did Jesus pray for keeping power, but He also prayed for sustaining joy. How could it be that the Man acquainted with sorrow and suffering was filled with so much joy that He would pray to share it? Could it be that the joy of the Father which filled Christ existed outside of circumstance? Jesus would only be praying for the impartation of this joy if He knew it bore the power necessary to be kept in this world. He shared His word, which not only imparts wisdom but also imparts joy. When rooted in His word, we are rooted in fellowship with the Father, who fills us with joy as He filled Jesus with joy— despite the bitter cup Jesus was assigned to drink from. Joy is the fruit of true faith and trust in the word of God and it persists in suffering. Jesus, the Father’s Messenger, warns of what faith in Him would bring forth. Though He has the power to remove us from the world, He chooses not to; instead praying that we experience what can only be found in Him while existing in a world that’s turned against Him. Perhaps this is the greatest scenario for the believer: to experience the power, protection, and joy of God in the midst of those who hate Him. For can those blessings fully be experienced in isolation? However, we must not be marked by the world we’ve been called to live in. Though we must remain, we must not adapt.
“‘Make them holy by your truth; teach them your word, which is truth. Just as you sent me into the world, I am sending them into the world. And I give myself as a holy sacrifice for them so they can be made holy by your truth.’” (v. 17-19)
The truth of God, which is the Word of God, refines us to the holiness of God. We are only able to be sanctified purely and wholly through the sacrifice of the High Priest. His blood not only washes but also stains, marking the hearts of the Father’s chosen and consecrating them to His will. Jesus prayed that those He’s been given would be devoted and committed to the will of the Father. The more truth they digest, the more devoted they will be. The more devoted they are, the more separated from the ways of the world they become. Once made holy, they are to be sent back into the world, to shine the light of refinement and stain the lives of others with the blood of Christ— coloring the world red. They are to live as Jesus lived, love as Jesus loved, teach as Jesus taught, celebrate as Jesus celebrated, mourn as Jesus mourned, and suffer as Jesus suffered— all to the glory of the Father whose truth brings forth holiness.
“‘I am praying not only for these disciples but also for all who will ever believe in me through their message. I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one—as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. And may they be in us so that the world will believe you sent me.’” (v. 20-21)
The High Priest knew His priesthood extended beyond the eleven He’s been given. Again, His requests stand the test of time for they cover the entire remnant. He foresaw the ministry of His apostles and the legacy of the early churches. His message would travel to more nations and tongues. But the work continues until His message reaches every nation and tongue. The High Priest prays that our lives and work will be unified with the lives and work of His apostles— as modeled by the Trinity. Through our unity, the world will be pointed to God. This prayer covers us today and covers generations beyond us.
“‘I have given them the glory you gave me, so they may be one as we are one. I am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me. Father, I want these whom you have given me to be with me where I am. Then they can see all the glory you gave me because you loved me even before the world began!’” (v. 22-24)
The High Priest prays for yet another blessing: for us to see the glory of the Father as He has seen it. The Father’s glory— the weight and manifestation of His presence— would enable us to model the harmony of the Trinity. The glory given to the High Priest was displayed through great suffering and sacrifice. Therefore, we are not exempt from the Father’s methods of glorification. The glory of God exists in complete surrender and obedience to the point of death. The glory of God persists during trial and tribulation— for the joy set before. The glory of God does not contribute to the self-serving nature of the flesh and is hidden from those committed to pride. The glory of God is made manifest in the presence of love, humility, and unity. As we travail for love, humility, and unity within ourselves, may we be open to witnessing God’s glory in the lives of others travailing in the same. That way, we may know, and the world may know, that Christ is King. Glory exists beyond this world and we will witness the fullness of the Father’s glory when we are reunited with Him and our High Priest in the place of Their existence.
“‘O righteous Father, the world doesn’t know you, but I do; and these disciples know you sent me. I have revealed you to them, and I will continue to do so. Then your love for me will be in them, and I will be in them.’” (v. 25-26)
The High Priest, concluding His prayer and about to begin the process of atonement, decides to focus on the righteousness of God. O, righteous Father. A cry of love and honor to the Father, whose will is for His Son to be sacrificed but whose righteousness is not diminished by the suffering the Son would endure. The world would not know or understand, but the High Priest does. And He has passed along this knowledge to those the Father has given Him. They know the Father intimately and have been given insight into His mysteries.
The High Priest acknowledges that He has finished His work and will see His assignment to the end. For “Tetelestai” marks the indwelling of the Father’s love, the Father’s protection, the Father’s power, and the Father’s glory.
Tetelestai. It is finished.
Did you know you have a High Priest? Not only did He intercede then but He continues to intercede on behalf of those who put their trust in Him. Receive His first gift to you, the gift of salvation, so that you may experience all the others. To receive this gift, simply pray the guided prayer below:
“Jesus, my High Priest, I thank You. I thank You for sacrificing Your life as an atonement for my sins. I thank You for praying for me and pleading before the Father on my behalf. In praying this prayer, I’m answering Yours. I accept You as my Savior and Lord— acknowledging You as the One who delivers from bondage but also sanctifies and makes holy. I’m Yours. Amen.”
The High Priest is overjoyed that you’ve made this decision! All of Heaven began to rejoice at the sound of your voice and the commitment of your heart.
Please complete the form below if you’ve prayed this prayer. I’d love to know you by name and provide resources that’ll guide you on your journey with Jesus.
