John
17:1,2 "Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may
glorify thee: as thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should
give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him."
When God purposes to do a thing it is as good as done.
He is Alpha and Omega. He knows the end from the beginning. Therefore Christ knew He was born into this
world to die. Furthermore He knew
it in eternity when He became the believer’s surety.
All believers who died BEFORE Christ's earthly ministry died knowing
the hour would come when Christ would actually die as that spotless Lamb of
God in place of spiritual Israel just as believers AFTER Christ's ministry. This was that hour discussed in the covenant
in eternity. We get a glimpse at the eternal covenant through this prayer
of Christ Jesus.
How does God glorify Christ? By giving Christ power over all flesh. During
the Lord's work on earth He made the deaf to hear the blind to see, the lame
to walk. He spoke come forth and the dead became alive. He made it known that no man would take His life but rather He would
lay it down. None can do Him harm
for He has power over ALL flesh. Even
now, seated at the right hand of His Father, it is Christ who makes the deaf
to hear the blind to see, the lame to walk.
It is Christ who speaks and the dead become alive.
How does Christ glorify God? By giving eternal life to as many as the Father
has given Him. This was the Son's
promise to the Father, to earn righteousness for those who knew nothing but
sin and rebellion, for those who, by their own obedience, were not and could
not be as holy as God is holy. All glory from God has been and always will
be given to His only begotten Son. Likewise
all glory from Christ has been and always will be to the Father.
The Father and Son are, in all ways, one.
How did Christ give eternal life to as many as God
gave Him? God will do nothing at the expense of His holiness. God loves His Son and as many as He gave the
Son, there is no greater love, but His love is holy. Therefore because His law has been broken by all those that He gave
to the Son then the penalty of that law must be exacted upon each and every
lawbreaker else God is no longer just. He
did not give a people to Christ and simply declare them justified.
In order for God to justify, His law must be justly satisfied.
So then, Christ promised in the covenant to have the sin of as many
as God had given Him imputed to Himself and to bear the just judgement of
God on their behalf. By letting no part of His broken law go unpunished God
remains Just. By providing His only
begotten Son as the true, spotless, sacrificial Lamb He is also the justifier. This gives greater meaning to Isaiah
9:6 “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son
is given: and THE GOVERNMENT SHALL BE UPON HIS SHOULDER: and his name shall
be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The
Prince of Peace.” The government
upon the shoulder of Christ was the government of God.
Christ fulfilled THE LEGAL OBLIGATION agreed upon in the covenant between
God the Father and God the Son. By
the finished work of Christ Jesus the Lord, God is the righteous just judge
and the justifier of all who believe.
Consider what Christ accomplished by laying down His
life for those that God gave Him. Christ did not give them the mere, possibility,
that their sins be blotted out; nor did He give them the mere, possibility,
that they might obtain righteousness before God. Instead Christ the Righteous Servant PRESENTS
THEM SPOTLESS to God. According to
God's record they never sinned. Therefore,
according to the holy character of God, all those He gave to Christ, all those
that Christ washed white as snow, MUST be given faith to see this grace wherein
they stand—anything less would mean God declares Christ's work worthless. His name is Jesus for He SHALL, SHALL, SHALL,
save his people. Christ did not make
his people acceptable; He made them accepted.
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