They were yours; you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word.
Yesterday we looked at the first sentence in this verse. Jesus says, “I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world.” Those whom God gave to Jesus were not pulled from thin air. They already belonged to God.
Think about that for a moment.
God had already taken possession of his people. In giving them to Jesus he glorifies the Son so that Jesus may, in turn, glorify the Father. God has another reason to give his people to Jesus; it is the only way that they can be restored to a full relationship with God.
I find it comforting to learn that God has taken possession of his people even before Jesus died and rose again. This speaks to those who worry about what happened to people in the years before Jesus. They are God’s, too.
Our God is an awesome God.
Jesus goes on to say, “… they have obeyed your word.” I doubt Jesus is referring to the writings of the Scribes and Pharisees when he refers to God’s word. Instead, they intuitively understand the heart of God, they had their eyes and heart open to the arrival of the Messiah. They responded to his call.
Food for thought: What does it mean for us to be obedient to God’s word?
Partly it means that we trust His will for our lives. We trust that God’s plan is the best plan. It is also one way to show that we love Him (mentioned several times in John 14).
I think obedience is the general characteristic of those who follow Jesus. If you don’t actually believe and do what Jesus taught – walking/abiding in him then you aren’t a follower (you might be a fan and just think he is cool). This in no way means we follow perfectly, but we don’t think that way about following generally. (Military, sports, career, parents, etc.)