Tag Archives: glory

May 3 2013

Theology 101: Jesus is Glorified by the Father and the Holy Spirit

I love the doctrines of the Trinity because, as CS Lewis said, the idea of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit existing as Three-in-One essentially proves that Christianity is the one true religion.

CS Lewis points out that the mind of man could not come up with such an idea about God.  All other gods are man-made, except the One Triune God revealed in the Bible.  Many authors of the different books of the Bible, spanning over a thousand years remain consistent in this revelation!

That is amazing!

The Three Persons of God are all over the Bible, and once the believer understands this through the illumination of the Holy Spirit, he will understand how God relates to humans in His redemptive plan.

The relationship within the Godhead is such that the Father shares His glory with the Son.

“And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed.” John 17:5

Before the foundations of the world were laid down, the Son and the Father shared a perfect glory which we do not understand at this time.

But wait… How is that possible?

The famous verse from Isaiah 42:8 says:

“I am the LORD; that is my name; my glory I give to no other…”

The only explanation is that the Father and Son are One.  That is, They are One Being, yet distinct.  This glory between the Father and Son is reciprocal:

“glorify Your Son, that the Son may glorify You.” John 17:1

This is the only way possible that the entire host of Heaven is able to rightfully worship Jesus the Lamb in Revelation 5, as only God Himself is the One able to receive worship.

The Holy Spirit also attests to the divinity of Jesus because the Holy Spirit glorifies Jesus.

“He [the Holy Spirit] will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you.” John 16:14

We see that the Holy Spirit shares in the Son’s divine attributes (“what is mine“) and at the same time He glorifies the Son.

Why is it important that 21st century Christians understand these crucial biblical teachings?

It comes down to the plan of redemption.  We must understand how we are being saved, how the Persons of the Trinity each has a specific role in our redemption.

The Father did not die for us, but the Son did (John 3:16).  The Father’s wrath and justice had to be satisfied (in the substitution made on the cross), not the Son’s.  The Holy Spirit is the One who convinces us of our need for Jesus (John 16:7-10), and the Spirit is the One at work in our regeneration and sanctification (John 3:5, 1 Peter 1:2).  The Father is the One who draws us to believe in the Son (John 6:44).

And the list of complementarian roles of the Godhead for redemption continues…

But it all comes down to the glory of God.  The Father glorifies the Son.  The Spirit glorifies the Son.

Should not we, the redeemed, glorify Jesus every second of our lives?!

CS Lewis photo

Mar 18 2013

And Now, Father, Glorify Me…

We are quickly approaching the Passion Week which is the most important time period in Christendom, culminating with the en-bloc event of death and resurrection of Christ, the greatest event to grace the face of the universe.

Without the death of Christ there is no atonement, there is no substitution, there is no forgiveness of sin.  And without the resurrection of Christ there would not be any Christianity.

This Man left His mark on human history like none other.  Even secular folks will agree with that.

But this Man was infinitely more than just a mere man.  He was divine.  He was God Himself, the Son of God.

We know that Jesus spent long periods of time in prayer communicating with the Father, and in John 17 we are given a glimpse, a revelation, a majestic treat of  the content of one of His prayers.  This special prayer occurred Thursday night of Passion Week, before Jesus went into Gethsemane where His arrest happened, and one day before his death.

He started the prayer with the final motive and outcome of the entire chain of events which would take place, God’s glory: “Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you.”  John 17:1

The culmination of God’s redemptive plan brings Him the most glory via a most unlikely path, the death of the Son of God followed by His resurrection.  Such a method is contrary to any human approach.  That is why God’s thoughts are not our thoughts, and God’s ways are not our ways…

Things that Jesus communicates to the Father in this prayer are incomprehensible for us.  Attesting to His divinity, Jesus says: “And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began.” John 17:5

The same glory that will unfold in His death, resurrection, ascension, and return, the Son already had with the Father before the institution of time and the foundations of this world came to be!  This concept alone, under the revelation of the Holy Spirit, should make every Christian bow down in their spirit and worship God because He left that ultimate glory to come and die in our place!

But this is not the end of the story of glory…

Apostle Paul tells us that we will be glorified with Him, not because of us, but because He is in us: “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” Col 1:27

As we approach Passion Week, meditate on Christ’s unimaginable glory and the fact that He, by His grace will share it with us one day.