TEXT TO REFLECT
“Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you, since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do. And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed."
John 17:1-5
REFLECT
“Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you, since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him”. Paraphrased, Jesus was saying to God,
“Father, it’s time.
Display the bright splendour of your Son
So the Son in turn may show your bright splendour.
You put him in charge of everything human
So he might give real and eternal life to all in his care.”
(The Message)
This was a coronation prayer, or the moment of the ‘Great Reveal’ – “Now that I am put in charge of everyone in the world, let them see how glorious I am!”
In almost every situation, this prayer would have been followed by great pomp and grandeur – a king preparing to be crowned, a president of a country to be sworn-in, a conqueror to address his subjects, a head prefect of a school to be installed at the school assembly. Such events would be characterised by large crowds attending to pay homage or to show support, speeches to list the great accomplishments of the Person, the finest ceremonial costumes, a ceremony befitting the office of the Person to be honoured.
For Jesus, that crowning moment would be when he would face a jeering crowd baying for his blood, wearing a crown made from twisted thorn branches, the stripping of all his clothes, the rejection and desertion of all his admirers and followers, and an ignoble and excruciating death as the worst of criminals. Such was Jesus’ greatest moment of glory.
In almost every situation, a climax such as what Jesus experienced would have been laughable. That the greatest glory of God would be his humiliation. That the ‘Great Reveal’ of God, what the Almighty God had planned for all His subjects to witness, was His public humiliation at the hands of mere humans and the evil forces that controlled them.
It made no sense at all. Yet it is the wisest thing an all-powerful ruler would do. How else would God win the allegiance of all His creation, that “at the Name of Jesus, every knee will bow and every tongue confess, that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of the Father.” No monarch could ever win the allegiance of all his citizens by ruling with an iron rod. They could instil fear (as dictators do); they could buy votes (as corrupt leaders do). But who can win the hearts of every person? I ask myself, who would I really honestly bow my heart to? I might be forced to bow my knee to a dictator when threatened with death or loss; I might for a while serve a ruler if he offered me enough incentives to do so. But I could only bow my heart to a King who would suffer the greatest humiliation so He could spare me that same humiliation.
I will never in this life fully grasp the glory and splendour of such an act of self-giving to creatures who deserve only condemnation.
RELATE
We are addicted to counterfeit glory and fake love. From Donald Trump obsessing over the size of the crowd at his inauguration, to the display of our titles and degrees and accolades, to the ceremonial pomp of clergy ordination services, we erroneously believe that such displays of glory will win us the hearts of those placed under our authority.
Jesus’ prayer to His Father, “Glorify Your Son!” brings us to the realisation of what glory truly is: that one would love another so much, that they would give their lives to the other.
And so I am brought back to this truth: that there is no greater glory, no greater splendour than that we love one another as Christ has loved us.
REST
From heav’n You came, helpless Babe
Entered our world, Your glory veiled;
Not to be served but to serve
And give Your life that we might live
This is our God, the Servant King
He calls us now to follow Him
To bring our lives as a daily offering
Of worship to the Servant King
There in the garden of tears
My heavy load He chose to bear;
His heart with sorrow was torn
‘Yet not my will but Yours,’ He said
This is our God, the Servant King
He calls us now to follow Him
To bring our lives as a daily offering
Of worship to the Servant King
Come see His hands and His feet
The scars that speak of sacrifice;
Hands that flung stars into space
To cruel nails surrendered
This is our God, the Servant King
He calls us now to follow Him
To bring our lives as a daily offering
Of worship to the Servant King
The Servant King by Graham Kendricks 1983
Chiu Ming Li
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