The Prayer of Jesus (Part 1 of 2)

March 9, 2026·25 min·2 clips

Alistair Begg reveals that Jesus prayed for every believer in his high priestly prayer before the crucifixion.

1. Truth For Life presents the first episode of Alistair Begg's new series on John 17, titled 'The Prayer of Jesus,' with Bob Lepine hosting. 2. Alistair Begg is the teaching pastor of Truth For Life; Bob Lepine serves as the programme host and introduces Begg's new series. 3. The episode's hook is the claim that Jesus prayed specifically for every future believer in John 17 before going to the cross — a detail that frames the series' pastoral purpose. 4. Begg reads all of John 17 (21 verses) as the opening scripture before delivering the sermon. 5. The sermon takes the form of a structural preview or 'movie trailer' for John 17 rather than detailed verse-by-verse exposition, which will follow in subsequent episodes. 6. Begg notes approximately 21 prayers of Jesus are recorded in the Gospels, all but one addressed to God as 'Father'; the exception is Matthew 27:46, delivered from the cross. 7. John 17 is identified as the only continuous, extended prayer of Jesus recorded in the New Testament. 8. Begg contextualises the prayer as Jesus' response to completing his upper room discourse (chapters 14-16), which prepared the disciples for his departure and promised the Holy Spirit. 9. He quotes Archbishop William Temple calling John 17 'perhaps the most sacred passage in the four Gospels,' describing the experience of encountering it as standing on 'holy ground.' 10. Begg cites Calvin's application of Jesus' example in John 17 to all teachers: they must not merely sow the Word but mingle prayer with it to seek God's blessing on the work. 11. The apostles' commitment in Acts to 'prayer and the ministry of the Word' and Spurgeon's ministry at the Metropolitan Tabernacle are cited as historical illustrations of this principle. 12. Begg organises his overview around five words: mystery, security, sanctity, unity, and glory, describing them as a structural trailer for the series. 13. Under 'mystery,' Begg cites J.C. Ryle's admission that 'the wisest Christian will always confess there are things here which we cannot fully explain,' pointing to the Trinitarian language in verses 5 and 24. 14. John 17:5 — Jesus asking for the glory he had with the Father 'before the world existed' — is used to illustrate the second person of the Trinity praying to the first person about pre-incarnate reality. 15. Begg argues that a teacher of the Bible is not charged with explaining the inexplicable, but with presenting it faithfully and trusting that what cannot be resolved now will be clear in heaven. 16. Under 'security,' Begg draws on John 6:37-40 — 'all that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out' — as background to Jesus' prayer in John 17:9. 17. He traces the security theme through John 17:9, 11, and 14: Jesus prays specifically for those given him by the Father, asks the Father to keep them in his name, and acknowledges the world has hated them. 18. Begg pairs the disciples' security with the reality of external hostility, citing John 17:13 ('that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves') and Matthew 5 ('blessed are you when people say all manner of evil against you falsely'). 19. The episode's style is accessible and conversational, with analogies (movie trailers, Buckingham Palace) alongside Reformed theological citations (Calvin, Ryle, Spurgeon). 20. The series continues in the next episode, which Lepine previews as examining how it is possible to backslide in faith even with a Bible in hand.

As heard by us

A measured walk through John 17 that turns doctrine into prayerful practice.

John 17 opens this series with a clear look at Jesus praying for believers after the last Passover meal. Begg moves through the prayer without rushing it: glory, eternal life, and the work given to the Son all come into focus.

Read the full review in PlayNext →

Why you'd press play

A measured walk through John 17 and the high priestly prayer Jesus prayed before the cross.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

Listen to the show on

Apple Podcasts Spotify

Play clips from this episode More from Truth For Life