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LESSON 2
Finish the Work – v. 4-5
TALKING POINTS:
(4) I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which You have given Me to do. (5) And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.
1)Here is a brief summary outline of Gospel of John. Notice that this book does not contain a single parable. The writer seems to be concerned solely with the life and actions of Jesus, the Son of God.
Ch. 1
John the Baptist – a voice in the wilderness
Behold the Lamb of God
The first disciples
Philip and Nathaniel
Ch. 2
Water turned to wine – Cana of Galilee
Cleanses the temple
Discerner of hearts
Ch. 3
New Birth – Nicodemus
Ch. 4.
Samaritan woman at the well
The whitened harvest
Many were saved at Samaria
Nobleman’s son healed
Ch. 5
Man healed at pool of Bethesda
Ch. 6
Feeding the 5000
Jesus walks on the sea
Ch. 7
Jesus teaches in the temple
Promise of the Holy Spirit
Ch. 8
Light of the world
Defends His self witness
The truth shall make you free
Abraham’s seed
I AM
Ch. 9
Blind man receives sight
True vision and true blindness
Ch. 10
True shepherd
Ch. 11
Death and resurrection of Lazarus
I am the resurrection and the life
The plot to kill Jesus
Ch. 12
Anointing at Bethany – the triumphal entry
Ch. 13
Jesus washes the disciple’s feet
Jesus identifies His betrayer
The new commandment of love
Ch. 14
The Way, the Truth and the Life
The Father revealed
Jesus promises another Helper
Indwelling of the Father and the Son
Ch. 15
The True Vine
Ch. 16
Jesus warns and comforts His disciples
The Holy Spirit promised
Ch. 17
Jesus prayer for His disciples
Ch. 18
Betrayal and arrest in Gethsemanee
Jesus before the high priest
Peter denies Jesus
In Pilate’s court
Dies in place of Barabbas
Ch. 19
The soldiers mock Jesus
Pilate’s decision
The King on a cross
It is finished
Jesus buried
Ch. 20
The empty tomb
The apostles commissioned
Ch. 21
Breakfast by the sea
Jesus restores Peter
The testimony of the beloved disciple
2) Glorified you on the earth. To glorify God on earth is a feat in and of itself. It is hard to get the attention of people. Jesus targeted just one nation and He had trouble. Teachers and preachers target a single audience and have trouble. If we can only get the attention of one we are doing well. The difficulty lies in the differing interests, communication skills, personalities and prejudices of the speaker v. the audience. Jesus could not talk to the Pharisees because of their allegiance to human tradition and their preconceived notions regarding God’s doctrine. Paul could not talk to the Athenians because of their allegiance to pluralistic beliefs. We bring our own issues to the table, and for that reason it is difficult and sometimes impossible for even God to get through to us. Yet, glorifying God is exactly what Christ did.
How did Christ accomplish this? We could say that He remained spiritual in His focus, but this would be simplistic. We should add that His actions and words always pointed to God. He did not heal without giving God the glory. He did not journey to a new city without having a spiritual mission when He arrived. He did not fail to pray or go to the temple when it was time. He always presented God as the one who lifts up and strengthens the weak. God was always presented as the one who lifts the fainthearted and gives purpose to life. He did not hesitate to correct those who were wrong in their doctrine and condemn any teaching that distracted from Law of God. He presented God as the way, the truth and the life. No way, but His way. No truth, but His truth. No life, but His life. His glorifying God was through a very narrow portal. All were required to conform to Him. God was never expected to conform nor ever presented as conforming His terms of acceptance to the whims of man’s lifestyles. It did not matter what humane action, mission, person or civil district in which Jesus was performing the deed, He gave the glory to God and expected all to come to God.
Usage in John
Glorify: Jn. 11: 4; 12: 16;
Here is an exercise in faith: Give what you see are elements of Jesus’ actions that glorified the Father. (select discussion groups from within the class and ask them to read selected passages and identify the ways in which Jesus glorified the Father. Assign one topic to each group from the following categories: controversy; death; eternity; family; foreigners; God; history; miracles; parables; politics; responsibility; sickness; sin; tradition; worship; teaching. Have someone type the category headings on the overhead projector and then add under the headings each group’s observations.)
2) Finished the work. (See prophecies given before and at His birth.) Jesus had a responsibility to finish the work the Father started. The work was not continued by Joseph Smith; Muhammed; Mary Baker Eddy, et. al. The mission was His food and sustenance. He wasn’t happy ‘til His Father was happy. Jesus died successful having completed His mission. His death was His success. His happiness was not tied to popularity or dollars. Even though in trial Jesus was no longer in obvious control, the outcome was still in His control. Nothing happened in the trial that was not expected and its consequences were all anticipated and intertwined with God’s plan. Statisticians, the news media and gamblers would have placed the odds against Jesus. They would have played up the rumors of His stolen body. The establishment did not anticipate the series of Divinely inaugurated events that followed. They could not have squelched the news if they tried. They could not win. They were working against God. In the end everything happened as He planned. Jesus won. When the odds are obviously against us, Jesus will still win the battle for us. In death He did not fail – despite the ideas of premillenialists. He will not return to complete His work because the work is finished. The work of salvation is done (both in a prophetical and real sense). All OT prophecies are fulfilled in Christ. Only one other time Jesus spoke of His work being finished (John 19: 30) and that is when He died on the cross.
The definition of the Greek word for “finish” is profound in its implications. It refers to a work that is perfect and complete, carried through to its final end in such a way as to want nothing for fulfillment. It brings to a close the events and prophecies of scripture because they reached their goal. Hebrews 9: 28 (so Christ also, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time for salvation without {reference to} sin, to those who eagerly await Him) says Jesus was sacrificed “once” for all mankind – the work of offering sacrifices was completed once and for all. Hebrews 9: 9-10, “then He said, Behold, I have come to do your will.” He takes away the first in order to establish the second. By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” This was followed by the Gospel being revealed unto completion (1 Corinthians 13: 9-13, “For we know in part and we prophesy in part; but when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away. When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things. For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known. But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love.) and was so revealed the first time that it would never need to be repeated (Jude 3, “Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints.”). God stepped in to finalize the work. He personally fulfilled the Old Law prophecies. He was personally the final sacrifice for all mankind for all time. He personally revealed the Gospel to tell the story of the salvation of man for all time. The work was done in such a way that only God could have completed the task. Nothing was left to man to complete. It is finished.
If the Gospel is complete and the work of salvation is finished, then included in the work of what is finished are finished and complete benefits to believers. Those who obey are complete in Christ, lacking in nothing. They do not need to pursue another faith or wait for a future revelation. The Gospel has the power to cleanse the conscience and lift the fallen. It permanently removes past sins and provides power against the influence of future sins. It guarantees eternal life to those who walk in the light and not in the dark. It assures God’s chosen of freedom from sin, sickness, death and the devil in the future life. This allows us to come before the Lord with confidence and boldness and serve with all reassurance. It is finished. (cf. Heb. 13: 21; 1 Pe. 5: 10)
(see complete: 1 Cor. 1: 10; 2 Cor. 13: 9, 11; Ph. 2: 2; Col. 1: 28; 1 Th. 5: 23; Jm. 1: 4)
(see perfect: Mt. 5: 48; Rom. 12: 2; Col. 3: 14; 1 Tm. 1: 16; Heb. 2: 10; 7: 19, 28; 9:9, 11; 10: 1; Jas. 1: 4, 17, 25; 1 Pe. 5: 10)
Usage in John
Work: John 4: 34; 5: 16, 20, 36; 6: 28-30; 9:3, 4; 10: 17, 25, 31; 14: 10, 12; 15: 24
Cf. 2 Tm. 4:7; Heb. 4: 3; Rev. 10: 7
3) Glorify thou me. The request for the Father to glorify the Son was part of the plan. The path to glory was finely orchestrated for and by Jesus. First came humility; then service; then work; then honor. It was not just praise Jesus was looking for, but for the completion of His work to save man. The glory He sought was the same glory they shared before creation. If the glory to come equals the glory before, then this formula glimpses the doctrine of the Godhead. The glory shared is described as being given when Jesus is “together” with the Father. The “togetherness” also gives us a glimpse of the concept of the doctrine of the Godhead. To be “together” with the Father was to be at His “Right hand.”
The proof of when Jesus was glorified and the fact that it happened is discussed by Jesus in advance of His death and ascension. He told of something that would happen that would be a confirmation to all observers that Jesus had been glorified according to the plan. That event is described in John 7: 29 where Jesus says, “But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.” The first purpose of the Spirit being given was to affirm that Jesus had been glorified. When did this happen? In Acts 2, (v. 29-36) on the day of Pentecost. Peter affirms that what Jesus foretold had now happened. When the Spirit came down upon the apostles Jesus had already been glorified. Peter said, “Therefore having been exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured forth this which you both see and hear.” Jesus had been exalted. It was between His ascension and the day of Pentecost that Jesus sat down at the right hand of God and assumed the throne of David. The sending of the Spirit by Jesus and the receiving of the Spirit by the apostles is Heavenly proof that God’s plan was finished. The Spirit was to be given when Jesus was glorified. It happened. When Jesus was glorified? When He ascended upon high.
Usage in John
Glorify: John 12: 28; 13: 31; 15: 14; 21: 19
Glory Before the world was. There is no difference in the glory that had been and the glory that was to come. Claiming this glory is an all inclusive statement. It should be observed that whatever existed before would exist again and whatever was to be had already been. There is no difference in the bookends of Jesus’ life. If He was to be at the right hand, then He had already been at the right hand. If He was to be on throne, then He had already been on the throne. If He was to be King, then He had already been King. The glory before and after are equal. If the glory is equal glory and in the end show the nature of the Father and the Son to be identical, then the ramifications are extraordinary. It makes Him just as equal to the Father after the ascension as He was before. If He was to be equal to God, then He already had been equal to God. If He had already been equal with God, then He would again be equal with God. Whatever can be said about Jesus’ glory before His fleshly birth can be said of His glory after the cross. This equal glory implies an equality that looks and smells like the Godhead. As God, He descended, carrying with Him the nature of God in human flesh. He proved that God could be humbled to become human, and He proved that humans can be exalted to glory in the company of God. As a human, He ascended, carrying with Him the nature of human flesh in the identity and accomplishments of Jesus the Christ, i.e. Messiah, savior, mediator, sacrifice, intercessor, king, head, et.al. having carried the human nature !!to the throne, proving that man can ascend and be glorified. The work accomplished in His fleshly nature is now complete. After judgment, He will no longer be known as savior, mediator or intercessor. The human nature once associated with saving man will be surrendered into eternity and the power of the God-man-King will be surrendered to the Trinity, as it was, and is, in eternity.
In John 17 Jesus speaks of plans to ascend to sit in His throne of glory after His ascension. In Matthew 25: 31 He speaks of His sitting on the throne of glory after the judgment. He says, "But when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne.” But wait! This makes three points of glory – before birth, after ascension and after judgment! He left the glory to which He would return and which He would retain after judgment. He would come in His glory, return to His glory and keep His glory! Jesus’ glory is identical at all three points! He sat on the throne at the right of the Father before His fleshly birth. He sat on the throne at the right of the Father after His ascension. He will sit on the throne with God after the judgment! The remarkable conclusion is that one of the Godhead three did Himself come and die on the cross for you and me. God personally finished the work of salvation. (cf. Lk. 9: 26; 2 Tim. 3: 16; Heb. 1: 3; 13: 21; 1 Peter 4: 13, 14; 2 Peter 3: 18; Jude 1: 25)
Please follow this thought from scripture.
It was prophecied:
Isa 9:6 – “For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.”
NOTES: The names of the Son would include “Mighty God” and “Eternal Father.”
It was fulfilled:
Hebrews 1:5-14, “For to which of the angels did He ever say, "YOU ARE MY SON, TODAY I HAVE BEGOTTEN YOU"? And again, "I WILL BE A FATHER TO HIM AND HE SHALL BE A SON TO ME"? And when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says, "AND LET ALL THE ANGELS OF GOD WORSHIP HIM." And of the angels He says, "WHO MAKES HIS ANGELS WINDS, AND HIS MINISTERS A FLAME OF FIRE." But of the Son {He says,} YOUR THRONE, O GOD, IS FOREVER AND EVER, AND THE RIGHTEOUS SCEPTER IS THE SCEPTER OF HIS KINGDOM. "YOU HAVE LOVED RIGHTEOUSNESS AND HATED LAWLESSNESS; THEREFORE GOD, YOUR GOD, HAS ANOINTED YOU WITH THE OIL OF GLADNESS ABOVE YOUR COMPANIONS." And, "YOU, LORD, IN THE BEGINNING LAID THE FOUNDATION OF THE EARTH, AND THE HEAVENS ARE THE WORKS OF YOUR HANDS; THEY WILL PERISH, BUT YOU REMAIN; AND THEY ALL WILL BECOME OLD LIKE A GARMENT, AND LIKE A MANTLE YOU WILL ROLL THEM UP; LIKE A GARMENT THEY WILL ALSO BE CHANGED. BUT YOU ARE THE SAME, AND YOUR YEARS WILL NOT COME TO AN END." But to which of the angels has He ever said, "SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND, UNTIL I MAKE YOUR ENEMIES A FOOTSTOOL FOR YOUR FEET"?”
NOTES: Jesus sat down at the right hand of God; He created all things; the earth will cease to exist, but Jesus would not; Jesus will never change; He is not an angel.
1. The Father/Son relationship here is metaphorical:
a. the originator and transmitter of anything
1. the authors of a family or society of persons animated by the same
spirit as himself
2. one who has infused his own spirit into others, who actuates and
governs their minds
b. one who stands in a father's place and looks after another in a paternal
way
c. a title of honour
1. teachers, as those to whom pupils trace back the knowledge and
training they have received
2. the members of the Sanhedrin, whose prerogative it was by virtue of
the wisdom and experience in which they excelled, to take charge of the
interests of others
Compare our relationship with God. He is our Father, but He did not physically beget us. Our physical procreation was through a seed created thousands of years ago and passed down from Adam through our fleshly parents. Our spiritual procreation is through a spiritual philosophy that touches our heart and changes our lives, a philosophy introduced by Jesus, making Jesus is the Father of our religion. “Father” can, therefore, have more than one meaning. It does not always refer to a physical and tangible procreator. It is in this non-literal sense that God the Father is the Father of Jesus.
John 1:1-4 – “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men.”
NOTES: Jesus is God; has been God since before the beginning; is the creator of all things; co-exists with the Father; embodies the Godhead in the spoken and written Gospel.
Philippians 2: 5-11, “Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, {and} being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
NOTES: Jesus existed in the form of God (not man); this pre-existent form denoted equality with God; He became like man (a form separate from God); after the cross Jesus was highly exalted.
Revelation 22: 6, “And he said to me, "These words are faithful and true"; and the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent His angel to show to His bond-servants the things which must soon take place.
NOTES: The Lord God sent His angel to speak to the prophets.
Revelation 22: 12, 13, "Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to render to every man according to what he has done. "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end."
NOTES: Jesus is the Alpha and Omega; the Beginning and the End.
Revelation 22: 16, "I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star."
NOTES: Jesus is the Lord God who sent His angel.
Usage in John
“the glory which I had with You before the world was” is found only here in John.
Cf. Jn 1: 1-2; 5: 18
The work of God was finished by God. It is only through God that we will finish the work that He has given us to do.
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