From the Father to the Son

And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was. John 17:5

Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. John 17:24

Wow – am I the only one who has never contemplated – these two things in this way until now: 1) That Christ’s glory is the manifestation of The Father wthin Him and 2) that Christ’s glory was given to Him by His Father, and further that it was a gift born of the Father’s love – before the foundation of the earth? I’ve pretty much always conceived of Christ’s glory as a self-existing expression of His character. This gift of glory to The Son as an expression of the Love of His Father – even before the creation of this world is a kind of mind-blowing thing of beauty.

From The Father to the Sons of Men

The first gift to the Sons of Men, is the gift of The Son given that we might have access to The Father.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” [John 3:16]

“…Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. …” [John 14:6]

From The Son to the Sons of Men

The Son not only desires for us to see the glory given to Him by the Father (John 17:24), but He extends His glory to those given to Him by the Father.

“I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me;…” John 17:6

“And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them …”  John 17:10

“And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them;…John 17:22…

Those given to Christ by The Father have the opportunity to reflect The Glory of God by receiving The Son and His glory. It’s the glory of The Savior on the inside that enables us to be The Light of (for) the World. It is The Christ who (can) reflects The Father to The World through us. We are joint heirs with The first recipient of God’s glory when we receive Christ. (This receiving is at once an historical act, and  a perpetual calling to continually submit to The Will of The Christ through humility, and obedience. This is an essential practice for activating and manifesting the substance of things hoped for and evidence of things not seen). Ultimately Faith might be considered an expression of God’s glory – but I digress.

Glory’s Perfect Work
But what is the goal of the glory transfer? What work is Glory intended to accomplish?

Answer – a demonstration of unity perfected in agape; an undeniable recognition of The Son’s commission and a testament of God’s love for His Son and for His Elect. For those in Christ, glory illuminates our unity with one another in Him, our unity with Him, and His unity with The Father. It’s intended to make Christ’s commission and The Father’s love for Him and for us transparent. It’s intended for the world to KNOW these essential unequivocal truths with such clarity and conviction – that they are understood with such clarity and to such a degree that they need not be speculated or debated…

“… that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.”… [John 17:23-24]

Glory Interrupted

But we don’t always handle God’s glory well, do we? We can do, say and think things that obscure The Light intended to establish koinonia among The Brethren, awaken the hearts of men to the knowledge of Christ’s commission, and to the love of The Father for His own. Oh dear – what must we do? Perhaps we begin (maybe again) by being thankful for a few of those other priceless gifts – free justification, grace, and redemption found only in The Son (For no one comes to The Father except by Me – Hmmm seems like God’s love charts a course for full circle access.

“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.” Romans 3:23-24

Original Art Inspired by A. Derevtsvo Photography