|
LESSON 1: It is Time
TALKING POINTS
John 17: 1-3, “Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said: "Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should F94 give eternal life to as many as You have given Him. And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” - (NKJV)
1) Lifted up His eyes. Think of the last time you rejoiced over a victory and raised your arms to Heaven and waved them in pride because of your accomplishments. Then, imagine the pride with which Jesus swelled when He reveled in a job well done. Your pride was likely from a sports event or from work. The contrast between your moment of pride and Jesus’ moment of pride are most likely strikingly different. His moment of greatest glory was when He was faced in the last hour of His life through His end-of-life actions and decisions. It was in how He could glorify His Father in this final hour. It is from Jesus that Paul learned to say, “But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry. For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.” 2 Timothy 4: 5-8 (NASV).
We think of Jesus lifting His physical eyes in this prayer, and it may well have been. But, remember that “eyes” are also metaphorically used for the understanding of the mind and to say that He lifted His eyes could be understood to mean that the eyes of His understanding were lifted up. Whether it was His eyes or His mind, He was firmly fixed on Heaven and His Father. It is clearly true that our fleshly eyes will not know to lift up to Heaven if our minds eye does not train it. To be so fixed is the best way to deal with life and death issues.
2) The Hour Has Come. There is a time and place for everything. In the great scheme of redemption, God had a plan for the time and place of man’s salvation. It was worked out according to God’s schedule. The terminology used here is for the final stage of things that are planned. All the preparations gone before are culminated in this final event. The “eye” of Jesus’ mind was fixed on this hour.
This expression is similar to other expressions like, “Our time has come,” or “The time is now.” The phrase in this verse occurs 9 times in the Bible. Jesus knew the events that led up to this moment. They were all familiar to Him. Nothing leading up to this event, and including this event, was an accident. Everything God had planned came to pass. All events of man in the interim were anticipated and weaved into God’s plan as a means of accomplishing His goal. Just as God knew Pharoah would harden his heart when confronted with the Divine message, He knew the Pharisees and Sadducees would plot against Jesus when their deceitfulness was revealed. Just as He knew king Saul would rebel against His law, He knew the High Priest of Jesus’ day would run Him through a mock trial in Pilate’s court. Jesus’ death was expected and planned. But, His death was not the end. The hour that had come was not the hour of His death, but the hour in which man’s salvation would be finalized through His death. It was the hour of the culmination of the Great Scheme of Redemption. The time will come when we die. Will it be the end for us, or the beginning or our glory? When will be the time of our salvation?
Jesus’ prayer consisted of familiar things, things that were dear to His heart. The two dearest things in His life are named in this prayer. He prayed for His Father’s glory and for the salvation of man. In order to accomplish both He knew that only one great history defining moment would satisfy both. Everything He did was looking unto this moment in history. He knew that He must die to give glory to God, to gain glory for Himself, and to share the glory with man. In a very selfless way, Jesus had already died before He came to the cross. He died first unto God, then unto self, then unto others. He died as He had lived – selflessly so that His life would be a means of gaining glory for others. In His death He did not think of Himself, but of you and me. The hour had come. Compare: Mk. 14:41; Jn. 12:23; 16: 21, 32; Rev. 14: 7, 15; 18:10.
Usage in John
Jesus alluded to His hour: Jn. 2: 4; 4: 21; 5: 25; 11: 9; 12: 23; 13: 1; 15: 19; 16: 2, 25
Usage elsewhere:
Mk. 14:41; Jn. 2:4; Jn. 12:23; Jn. 16:21, 32; Jn. 17:1; Re 14:7, 15; Re 18:10
3) Glorify your Son. Was Jesus’ request that the Father “glorify your Son” a request of selfishness? Arrogance? A plea for His turn in the spotlight?
Often when we seek glory it is for our own gain. Few have learned that the greatest glory comes in lifting up others and helping them become high achievers. Teachers, coaches and medical professionals are great examples of people who receive honor by pushing up others. Army generals and church elders are lifted up by honoring and serving the people they oversee. As to which type of glory we pursue depends upon how we answer the question of how much we want to give and what price do we pay. We can serve through flattering words or through self-sacrifice. If we choose to sacrifice, we can give as little as lip service or as great as service of the heart. Lip service or a sacrifice of the heart can be how we serve our fellow-man and how we serve the God of Heaven. We must choose.
The choice is not a light one. Jesus demonstrated the depth of the never ending sacrifice that must be made if the choice is to honor God. From the beginning of His earthly life He lived the sacrifice, becoming the embodiment of what it means to honor the God of Heaven through daily service. His was a continual sacrifice of the heart and soul in a way that would bring the greatest glory. He showed us how to bring glory to our friends by first bringing glory to the Father and amazingly accomplished exactly that. Jesus demonstrated that honoring God comes before everything. It came before funerals. It came before weddings. It came before friends. It came before parents. In honoring God first, He brought honor to those mourning at funerals. He brought honor to those getting married. His friends were honored. His parents were honored.
This honor comes from someone who had the audacity to announce that He had nowhere to lay His head, but asked others to trust Him enough to come and follow Him. He expected of His followers that they follow Him first instead of burying the dead or saying farewell to friends and family visiting at home. (Luke 9: 57-62). The idea is to put Him first. How successfully we do so depends upon how spiritual we are. Are we spiritual enough to miss our favorite family event, tv show or ballgame instead of missing a Bible study? Our attitude may be that there will always be a time to worship, but our friends don’t visit very often or this event only happens one or two times a year. Who will object if I only miss this once? After all, look how well I do everything else! Who and what we put first becomes the role model for how our children will serve Him. The question we must answer is whether this act would glorify God in the same manner as those Jesus did. When we abandon an opportunity to glorify God for a non-spiritual activity, we are forced to ask a second question, “What act of spiritual service did Jesus abandon so that He might participate in some non-spiritual function?” There is no precedence for abandonment. When we can answer that question is when we can justify pleasure without a guilty conscience. Until we learn what this means in our life, we will not fully know the power of seeking first the glory of God. This is not an effort unto futility, but an endeavor unto excellence.
If we choose to bring honor to the Son, we must first bring honor to the Father. Bringing honor to God brings honor to our family and friends as well. To lift up oneself we must lift up others first. Lifting up ourselves is not the Divine path to glory. Serving our pleasures is not the Divine path to glory. Sacrifice of self must be made first, last and always. Glory cannot be given without sacrifice. After sacrifice, glory comes naturally and automatically.
Jn. 12: 26 implies that Jesus sought the power to glorify God properly. It’s an interesting thought that true glory can only be given through the equivalent ability and power. The level of honor we bestow is equal to the amount of influence we have. We should understand that this ability and power to properly glorify God cannot be given without proper training and that this training is such that only He can provide. This power comes only in full respect of His word through knowledge and gives us the ability to ultimately do all things well in God’s service. We cannot sit idle and not seek His knowledge and power and have the ability to glorify God. The ability to glorify comes through appropriate knowledge and power, but glory itself comes only through that knowledge and power in action. It must come first and last in our relationship.
We will study more about glory in this chapter in the lessons to come. The first glory is the glory of God in verses 1-5. The second is the glory that God shares with man in verse 22. This study of God’s glory is a pursuit of excellence in Christian service.
Usage in John
Glorify: Jn. 12: 28; 13: 31; 15: 15; 21: 19;
4) You have given Him authority. The authority given to Jesus is in proportion to the glory He was given by the Father. It is authority that was given and not taken. This authority is not just the freedom of choice through physical and mental powers, but the power of rule of government. This power is universal and specific and possesses the authority, jurisdiction, and jurisprudence of a king. If the glory is that of God, then the power must also be divine. Jesus is not just king on His throne, but is God on His throne.
The authority given to Jesus is the authority that can be only be passed from one Divine being to another, and then because it was already rightfully His. God cannot abdicate His authority and this should not be interpreted as that. It is the authority of God who is King. No man can possess it. It is not a privilege that is earned through excellence, but a right that was already possessed by one who is God. It is not given as to empower a man as the head of God’s family. To give this power to a mere man would be to subject it to abuse. No mere man may own it nor claim its rights nor pass it on to others as an inheritance or right of passage. This authority was not given to Moses, allah, the pope or to any other religion or person. It is owned by God and He shares it with no one. "…there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved." (Acts 4: 12)
If Jesus has the authority of a king, then it must be true that He has a territory, a law, subjects and a throne. His territory is the kingdom, the church on earth; the law is the Gospel; His subjects are the Christians; His throne is in Heaven, from whence He rules the church on earth.
Jesus is self-authoritative since He is God. This is seen in John 1: 1-5, “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. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.” All authority is said to have been given to Him in Jn. 17: 2, but this is a return of that authority, not the initial gift. He emptied Himself when He came to this earth. After He finished glorifying the Father during His earthly ministry and returned to the throne, the glory with which He had been vested, then emptied was vested again. He Has all authority in heaven and earth and over all flesh because He is God. (cf. Romans 9: 5; Matthew 28: 18).
Usage in John
Authority: John 5: 27; 7: 17; 11: 51; 12: 49; 14: 9; 15: 13;
5) That He should give eternal life. Eternal life has been given by the Father to His saints gone before, but through laws that have come and gone. Eternal life was given to them because of their obedience to the laws under which they lived. It was never given because they were children of God after the image of Adam, but after the faith of Abraham. Eternal life is given to the obedient who glorify God. It is not a human right, is not automatic and is not earned. The ones in this verse to whom eternal was given were those who had given their life It is given to those who are given by the Father. It is Christ’s to give – not another’s. Also, He has the authority to deny eternal life to who He wills. Eternal life is our inheritance. Compare: John 5: 24; Gal. 6: 8; Tit. 3: 7;
Usage in John
Eternal life. Jn. 3: 16; 4: 36; 5: 39; 6: 54; 10: 28; 12: 25;
6) This is eternal life – that they may know you. Not in knowledge alone, but in knowledge of Jesus. This is not a passing knowledge or a acquaintance knowledge such as is gained by a casual reading of the Bible when there is nothing else to do, but a knowledge gained only through obedience that is driven by a demand of the heart that will not allow our lives to be satisfied until we have done the will of God. In knowledge there is power. In spiritual knowledge there is spiritual power. Knowledge in Christ is ultimate power. This power does not corrupt or destroy, but improves all lives it touches, especially the life of the one it saves. (Compare: John 3: 36; 1 Jn. 5: 20) To know God is the summary of the purpose of obedience. It is the mark of the perfection of life. (Compare 1 Tim. 3: 15; Titus 1: 16; 1 John 2: 5; 5: 20)
7) Jesus Christ whom you have sent. No one else has been sent by God since Jesus Christ. He is the final prophet and the last High Priest. All others who claim this honor are imposters. None other was sent by God. The word “sent” in this case indicates origin. Jesus is “sent” from the presence of God because He is God. Jesus here calls Himself “Christ” equating Himself with the Messiah and is sent making Himself the apostle of apostles. Compare: Acts 3: 23;
Usage in John
Sent: Jn. 1: 5, 19, 33; 3: 27; 4: 34; 5: 23, 24, 30, 33; 6: 29, 38, 57; 7: 16, 18, 28; 7: 32; 8: 16, 18, 26, 42; 9: 4; 10: 35; 11: 3, 42; 12: 44-45; 13; 16, 20; 14: 24, 25; 15: 21; 16: 5; 17: 23; 20; 21
Usage in John
Know: Jn. 1: 10, 31; 2: 9; 3: 10; 4: 22; 5: 41; 7: 17, 25-27; 7: 16; 8: 14; 8: 28, 32, 52-54; 10: 4; 12: 35, 50
8) Jesus Christ. This is the first time Jesus used this expression in reference to Himself, otherwise it is used 232 times in the NT. Sometimes His testimony is not accepted because the witness is not believed. Jesus called upon the strongest witness possible. How is it that someone who can give life by raising another from the grave can have His testimony rejected? Be careful what you reject from God’s word!
“Christ” is used 496 times in the New Testament.
Usage in John
Jesus Christ: Jn. 1: 16, 20, 25, 41; 3: 28; 4: 25, 29, 42; 6: 69; 7: 25, 27, 31, 41; 9: 22; 11: 27; 12: 34; 17: 3; 20: 31
Witness: John 1: 7, 8, 15, 32, 3: 10, 28; 5: 31-40; 8: 13-18; 10: 25; 12: 17; 15: 27; 18: 23; 18: 37.
|
