Supreme Revelation
"So now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had in your presence before the world existed."
John 17:5
The cross of Jesus Christ gives us insight into the nature of deity. Jesus prays in this text for the Father to glorify Him with the glory He had before the world ever existed. Just stop and consider for a moment what the implications of this prayer are. Jesus is essentially saying that His pre-incarnational glory is the glory of a cross. Is it possible that at the heart of deity exists this supreme form of self-sacrifice? Is there within the Godhead, prior to creation, obedience and submission between the Father and His Son? Jesus, the God-man, is the supreme revelation of deity. It is in Him that the fullness of deity dwells for He alone is the exact representation of God's being. If Jesus in His prayer is telling us that the cross gives us our clearest vision of the glory of God, then the glory of God is ultimately not found in blinding light but rather in selflessness and self-sacrifice.The Father finds His glory in His Son (John 1:14) whose single orientation is to do the Father's will. The self-emptying life of Jesus culminated in His crucifixion. For Jesus to be glorified in this manner on the cross means that the world will see the nature of deity in crystal clarity and the consequential knowledge will be the salvation of mankind (John 17:3).
Adapted from Transitions, Sean Scribner
Links to this post:
Create a Link
Back to Blog