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THE SEVENTH SUNDAY OF EASTER May 17, 2026 Pastor Tom Steers Christ the Saviour Lutheran Church, Toronto -- A Confessional Lutheran Church Divine Service III – Pages 184-202 Lutheran Service Book OUR OPENING HYMN: 544 “O Love, How Deep” The Invocation Page 184 Confession and Absolution Page 184-185 The Introit Psalm 100: 1-5, Antiphon Psalm 101: 1 101 1I will sing of steadfast love and justice; to you, O LORD, I will make music. 1Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth! 2 Serve the LORD with gladness! Come into his presence with singing! 3 Know that the LORD, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. 4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name! 5For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit; as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen. 101 1I will sing of steadfast love and justice; to you, O LORD, I will make music. The Kyrie (Lord Have Mercy) Page 186 Salutation Page 189 Collect Prayer: O King of glory, Lord of hosts, uplifted in triumph far above all heavens, leave us not without consolation but send us the Spirit of truth whom You promised from the Father; for You live and reign with Him and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. Our Bible Readings: First Reading Acts 1:12-26 Psalm 68: 1-10 In front of Hymnal – read responsively Epistle Reading 1st Peter 4: 12-19, 5: 6-11 Alleluia & Verse Page 190 Our Gospel Reading John 17: 1-11 THE APOSTLES’ CREED Page 192 HYMN OF THE DAY: 526 “You Are the Way; Through You Alone” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0UwxModmaSw&list=RD0UwxModmaSw&start_radio=1 THE SERMON – In today’s Gospel text, our Lord stands on the edge of His suffering. Within hours, He will be betrayed by Judas, arrested, mocked, scourged, condemned, and nailed to the cross. And what does Jesus do just before all of this begins? He prays. John Chapter 17 is called the High Priestly Prayer of Jesus. Martin Luther described this chapter as a precious and holy treasure, saying that here we are permitted to look into the very heart of Christ Himself. Luther wrote that this prayer is “truly the Lord’s Prayer, which He Himself prays,” and that it reveals “what sort of thoughts Christ has toward us.” That is what makes today’s reading so important, so comforting. Jesus is not only preparing to die to pay for our sins. He is preparing to intercede. He prays for His disciples. He prays for His Church. And today He prays for you. “Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you.” Throughout John’s Gospel, Jesus repeatedly said that His “hour” had not yet come. But now the hour arrives. Not the hour of earthly triumph. Nor the hour of worldly glory. But the hour of the cross. This is the strange glory of God. The glory of Christ is not first seen in outward splendour, but in His sacrificial love for sinners. The world sees weakness in the crucifixion. Faith sees victory. The world sees shame. Faith sees redemption. The world sees a condemned man dying outside Jerusalem. Faith sees the eternal Son of God taking away the sin of the world. Jesus says, “Glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you.” The Father glorifies the Son through the cross and resurrection. And the Son glorifies the Father by perfectly completing the work of salvation. This is why Jesus says in verse 4: “I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do.” Notice the certainty of His words. The suffering has not yet happened, but Jesus speaks as though the work is already complete. Because the outcome is certain. The Lamb of God will not fail. The Good Shepherd will not abandon His sheep. The Saviour will complete the work given to Him by the Father. That means your salvation doesn’t rest on unfinished business. Or upon our worthiness. It doesn’t depend on our strength. It rests entirely on Christ and His finished work. This is the comfort of the Gospel. And then Jesus speaks words that lift our eyes beyond time itself: “And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed.” These words are plain and unmistakable. Jesus existed before the world did. Before creation. Before time. Before Adam. Before the stars were formed. The Son was with the Father in eternal glory. Martin Chemnitz frequently emphasized that passages like this clearly testify to the divine majesty of Christ and to His unity with the Father. Unity within the Trinity. Jesus is not merely a holy teacher. Not just a prophet. He is the eternal Son of God. True God from true God, as we confess in the Nicene Creed. Begotten of the Father from eternity. This is why the Church has always rejected the false teachings of those who denied Christ’s divinity. The Arian heretics in the early Church claimed that Jesus was a creature, rather than the eternal Son of God. But Athanasius, whose Biblical theology we see in the Athanasian Creed, stood firmly upon Holy Scriptures. And concerning today’s Gospel, Athanasius wrote: “By adding Himself to the Father, He has shown that He is of the Father’s divine nature.” That confession remains the confession of the true Church today. And in a few weeks, on Trinity Sunday, we will once again confess it clearly in the words of the Athanasian Creed. We worship one God in Trinity, and Trinity in Unity. Not three gods. Not one person wearing three masks. But one divine essence in three distinct Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And Jesus here reveals that eternal divine glory. Lutheran Theologian Johann Gerhard observed that Christ speaks here according to both His divine and human natures. According to His divinity, the Son eternally possessed glory with the Father. According to His humanity, He now goes to the cross and then enters into His exaltation. Gerhard also wrote that true knowledge of God is inseparable from Christ Himself. And that leads us to one of the most important verses in this chapter. Jesus says: “this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” Notice that eternal life is not described merely as something in the future. It’s not simply heaven later. It begins now. Eternal life is to know God through Christ. This knowledge is not mere intellectual information. The devil knows facts about God. Unbelievers can memorize Bible verses. But saving knowledge means faith. To know Christ is to trust Him. Cling to Him. To receive Him as Saviour, daily, and on Sunday, in the life of the Church, where His Absolution, His Word, and His true Body and Blood are given. We need to keep in sight two central themes here: First, to know God is eternal life. Second, knowledge of the true God cannot be separated from Christ, who alone gives access to the Father. There is no saving knowledge of God, apart from Jesus. No other path. No alternate road. No spirituality detached from Christ. Jesus Himself says: “No one comes to the Father except through me.” This is why the Church must never soften or compromise this confession. In our world today, many people speak warmly about “God” while rejecting Christ. But a god without Christ is not the true God. Jesus says eternal life is found in knowing “the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” And so, we must hear a warning. Whenever Christians neglect or avoid God’s Word, they cut themselves off from the very source through which Christ gives and sustains this saving knowledge. Faith comes by hearing. And hearing through the Word of Christ. The Book of Hebrews tells us that. To neglect the Scriptures is spiritually dangerous. To despise preaching and the Sacraments is spiritually fatal. For Christ comes to us through these means of grace. He reveals Himself through His Word. He strengthens faith through His gifts. He preserves us in the truth. This is especially important because the Church lives in a hostile world. Our Epistle from 1st Peter reminds us: “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you.” The disciples would soon face persecution. The apostles would suffer imprisonment, beatings, exile, and martyrdom. The Church throughout history has often lived beneath the shadow of the cross. And so do Christians today. Perhaps not always through violent persecution. But through ridicule. Isolation. Temptation. Pressure to compromise. Pressure to remain silent. Encouragement to abandon the truth. Yet notice what Jesus does in John 17. He prays for His disciples before they enter the storm, saying: “Holy Father, keep them in your name.” Jesus knows their weakness. He knows Peter will deny Him. That the disciples will scatter. And still, He prays for them. This is one of the great comforts of the Christian faith. Your salvation does not depend merely upon your hold on Christ. It rests upon Christ’s hold on you. Even now, the risen Lord intercedes for His Church. He prays for His people. He preserves His flock. Martin Luther once said that if we could hear Christ praying for us in the next room, we would not fear a million enemies. But the truth is even better than that. Christ is praying for us at the right hand of the Father. And His prayer never fails. We see this preservation also in today’s First Reading from Acts. After Christ’s ascension, the apostles gathered together in prayer. Judas had fallen away. The apostolic office needed to be filled. And Matthias is chosen. Notice what this reveals. The Church continues because Christ preserves it. The betrayer falls. The office remains. The Gospel continues. The risen Lord sustains His Church despite human weakness and failure. Psalm 68 also proclaims this confidence: “God shall arise, his enemies shall be scattered.” The enemies of Christ may rage. The world may oppose the Church. Yet Christ reigns. The ascended Lord governs all things for the good of His people. And because He lives, His Church lives also. Dear friends, this Gospel invites us today to look directly into the heart of Jesus. And what do we see there? Not reluctance. Nor uncertainty. Not indifference. We see love and mercy, the eternal Son willingly going to the cross for sinners. We see the Saviour praying for His weak and struggling disciples. We see Christ preserving His Church through His Word. And we see the promise of eternal life given freely through faith in Him. This world constantly offers counterfeit sources of life. Success. Pleasure. Wealth. Politics. New-age occultism. But none of these can conquer death. None of these can forgive sins or give you peace before God. Only Christ can. Eternal life is to know the Father through the Son. And you know Him because He has revealed Himself to you. In your Baptism, He placed His name upon you. In His Word, He speaks forgiveness to you. In His Supper, He gives you His true body and blood for the forgiveness of sins. And even now, Christ continues to pray for you. That is why you needn’t fear. Not death. Not suffering. Not the hostility of the world. Nor even your own weakness. For your Saviour has completed the work of redemption. The eternal Son has gone to the cross to pay for our sins. And has been raised by God the Father for our justification. As believers, Christ’s victory over sin, death, and the devil becomes our own. The risen Lord intercedes for His Church. Where He is present now. PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH SERVICE OF THE SACRAMENT Page 194 Sanctus (Holy, Holy, Holy) Page 195 The Lord’s Prayer Page 196 The Word of Our Lord Page 197 Agnus Dei (Lamb of God) Pages 198 (Our Communion Hymn is 636 “Soul Adorn Yourself With Gladness”) Nunc Dimitis (Song of Simeon) Page 199 Post-Communion Collect (Right-hand column) Page 201 CLOSING HYMN: 525 “Crown Him with Many Crowns”