THE GLORY OF CHRIST, Part Two

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

When we consider the Lord Jesus Christ as the virgin-born, perfect and righteous Man, His disciples witnessed the most glorious human being who ever walked upon the planet. He was the only sinless Man who ever lived. He was the only true Prophet who spoke every word as the utmost truth of heaven. He was the only Son who ever wholly obeyed His Father. Jesus was singular among men and supreme above all. As the holy Son and chosen Messiah, Jesus was the very radiance of God’s glory and express image of the heavenly Father’s person (Heb 1:3); yet, as glorious as He was during His mission and ministry on the planet, this was still but a glimpse of God’s glory. On the night the Lord Jesus was betrayed, His prayer was to be restored to the glory He once had before the world was. When Jesus came to earth, He laid aside His glory as God to lead a life as Spirit-led, Spirit-empowered, and Spirit-enabled Man. Though He laid aside His glory as God, He didn’t stop being God; neither did He empty Himself of deity (as some sects wrongly suggest). Christ’s becoming a man didn’t take away from God’s deity; nor did it supply a lack in His godhead as if He was insufficient or imperfect (Phil 2:6).

Since Christ Jesus has ascended into heaven, He has been glorified with the eternal glory He owned equally with the Father and the Spirit. Were sinners to enter the presence of His glory apart from His saving grace and mercy, we would all melt like a wax figure thrown on the face of the sun; for our God is a consuming fire (Heb 12:29). As sinners saved by grace, however, we have a joyful stake in this truth. When Christ “appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is” (1 Jn 3:2).

The Son of God is glorified,
And also, we will be;
For Jesus came to earth die,
And rise to set us free.

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Today's M'Cheyne Reading Schedule: 3/27 - Ex 38; John 17; Prov 14; Phil 1

If you don’t have one, get a free PDF copy of Robert Murray M’Cheyne’s “Daily Bread” Bible Reading Calendar by Clicking Here.

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