As John continues to record his account of Jesus’ life on earth, we become privy to a conversation between two persons of the Godhead. God the Son is talking to God the Father.
The immediacy of the Son’s mission is made apparent. Despite his status, the Son doesn’t ask that the Father will protect him or save him from this hour, but that the Son might glorify the Father. This same Son has authority over all, that he might save those whom the Father has given him.
The Son knocks human pluralistic thought for six, stating that only through his mission can we know the one true God. For we can only know the Father if we know Jesus Christ. He even specifically uses the title Jesus Christ to reinforce this, that he was chosen (Christ) to save his people from their sins (Jesus).
Yet, he had no reason to do this. The Son had glory before the creation of the world, he had no reason to do this. Yet, God the Father sent God the Son to save his people because of his great justice and his great love. If Christ is willing to glorify the Father, how much more should we be willing to glorify the Father instead of ourselves?
“Amazing love! How can it be that thou, my God, shouldst die for me?.” Charles Wesley
The pastor continued with his series in Ephesians this evening.
Here, the apostle Paul talks of the enabling power of those who believe in Jesus Christ. As Jesus himself said:
On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.” By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified. John 7:37-39
If we believe in Jesus Christ, he has promised the Holy Spirit to us. This is not we should actively seek, but someone we should allow to work in us. For the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Godhead, and will work in us and in our local church. The mark of a spirit filled church is threefold.
- Our fellowship will be guided by the Spirit, with our speech imbibed with the word of God.
- Our worship will be in spirit and in truth. Not necessarily in tune musically, but in tune with God’s word.
- Our relationships with each other in the church will not be self-centred, but God-centred.
For through all this, God may be glorified. (As mentioned previously at the end of chapter 3).
