Seeing the Glory of Jesus

John 12:37-41

Rev. Min J. Chung

(Friday Large Group Service, September 15, 2006)

 

37Even after Jesus had done all these miraculous signs in their presence, they still would not believe in him. 38This was to fulfill the word of Isaiah the prophet: "Lord, who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?"[a] 39For this reason they could not believe, because, as Isaiah says elsewhere: 40"He has blinded their eyes and deadened their hearts, so they can neither see with their eyes, nor understand with their hearts, nor turn—and I would heal them."[b] 41Isaiah said this because he saw Jesus' glory and spoke about him.

 

Introduction

           Today we will talk about glory. In this passage, the prophet Isaiah sees the glory of Jesus. He is quoted twice in this chapter. John 12:38 says, Lord, who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? When Jesus was preaching to the people, they would not believe Him. John 12:39 says, He has blinded their eyes and deadened their hearts, so they can neither see with their eyes, nor understand with their hearts, nor turn—and I would heal them. Isaiah, who lived hundreds of years before Jesus, saw His glory and spoke about it.

 

I.              What Is Glory?

A.           Qavod: the Old Testament

1.            The most common Hebrew word translated glory is qavod. It basically means weight. Somethings value is compared to its weight. We see this in English when we say, you dont give me an ounce of respect. Respect or value is compared to weight. In Daniel 5, this man is proud and thus, worthless to God. The king is evaluated by God and a finger appears on the wall and writes this phrase, You have been valued or weighed by God and you are weightless. The value of someone is compared to weight. God, on the other hand, is weighty, heavy, and glorious.

B.          Doxa: the New Testament

1.            The New Testament is written primarily in Greek. The word for glory in Greek is doxa. It literally means opinion. When you say orthodox, it is the right opinion, paradox means contrary opinion. The etymology of the word was that it became the highest opinion one could give, or praise which we can give to God. We sing the doxology, the study of praise. We give praise to the Lord.

C.          The difference between the Old and New Testament usages

1.            Why is there such a difference between the Old and New Testament usage of the word glory? The Old Testament prophesies about Jesus coming. The New Testament writes about Jesus who has come. Hebrews 1:3 says, The Son is the radiance of Gods glory. The value of God is pictured through Jesus Christ. The weight, value, and glory of God that is invisible in the Old Testament, that has only been prophesied about, has now come. Glory has landed. Jesus Christ has come. We can see through Jesus Christ the exact representation of Gods glory. Once we see it, we praise, worship, and honor Him.

2.            St. Francis de Sales says, Some men become proud and insolent because they ride a fine horse, wear a feather in their hat or are dressed in a fine suit of clothes. Who does not see the folly of this? If there be any glory in such things, the glory belongs to the horse, the bird and the tailor. Whatever name or characteristics we possess, we try to glorify ourselves. We value ourselves so we can hear the praises of men. Glory belongs to God alone. He alone is to be praised, worshiped, honored, and glorified. All of our achievements are given by God.

II.            What Does it Mean to Glorify?

A.           Seeing the glory of Jesus

1.            God is already glorified. We cannot glorify Him more or make him any more glorious than He is now. What does it mean then, to glorify? John 12:41 says, Isaiah said this because he saw Jesus glory. Glorifying Jesus means to see His value. We understand it, feel it, and get it in our hearts. Then the praise He deserves cannot help but to gush forth from us. We end up making an imperfect attempt to give Him the praise and glory He deserves.

B.          The Great Commission

1.            Matthew 28:19-20 says, When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.

2.            My interpretation of the Great Commission is, Go and change the world one heart at a time. What does it mean to glorify? Verse 17 says, When they saw him. When they saw him, what did they do? They worshiped Him. The reaction to what they saw with their eyes, understood in their minds, and felt with their hearts was worship. The seed of the commandment came in the soil of worship. The seed of the Word of God came into their hearts. They were never the same again, because they saw Jesus glory. The rest is history.

3.            What does it mean to glorify? The objective authority of Jesus, his glory and his worthiness are realized subjectively. We see his beauty, greatness, and value. All of us see just a glimpse of His glory. We cannot see the wholeness of his glory. He is infinite. When we get to heaven, we see more of his glory every day. When we see a glimpse of his glory, we are seeing all different aspects of his glory, depending on what we see. For some of you it is perfection, for others, his worthiness, for others, his love. However, the reaction is the same: We recognize His objective worthiness in our hearts, and we worship, glorifying Him.

C.          Spirit and truth

1.            In order for us to worship in spirit and in truth, we need the Word and the Holy Spirit. The Word of God comes into our minds and the Holy Spirit uses those words to create a worshiping heart. By the help of the Word of God, we realize Gods authority, and we glorify Him. The realization that He is glorious causes an inevitable reaction in our lives—we glorify the Lord. Thus, we worship in spirit and in truth. The result is change; the result is fruit-bearing, feeding other people. We glorify God.

2.            My daughter was sick recently, so I thought about sick people. If a sick person is living in a palace, it does not matter if s/he has great food. It does not matter if s/he is standing in front of the king. S/he would not recognize nor appreciate the glory of the king. If were spiritually sick, but we cannot see God or appreciate His glory. We do not glorify the Lord, not because He isnt glorious, but because we are sick.

D.          The proof of glorifying: Worshiping

1 John 3:2 Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.

1.            Seeing leads to becoming. Seeing, perceiving, understanding transforms us. The proof of glorifying the Lord is worship overflowing from our hearts.

III.          Is Glory Worth It All?

A.           Two Natures
Galatians 5:16 So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature.
Romans 7:15 I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.

1.            As Christians, we have two natures, a sinful nature and the Spirits nature. Because of our sinful nature, we want to live for our own glory. We live for our own sinful pleasures. But because of our other nature, we have a desire to live for Gods glory.

2.            Our sinful nature wants to avoid suffering. The Christian life is so difficult. But our good nature, our glorious side, is willing to go through suffering for Gods glory.

B.          The Comparison
Romans 8:17-18 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.

1.            In verse 18, Paul compares the relationship between suffering and glory. Sufferings is a plural word. Glory, however is singular. There is one glory and there are many sufferings. I consider means Paul thought about it quite a bit. He understood suffering. He wasnt a novice to it. He considered and pondered on all the suffering Christians go through.

2.            Then he says, Our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. This could either mean that the glory will be revealed in us or to us. Theologians have argued furiously over the two interpretations. That the glory will be revealed to us means that when we see Jesus, were going to see His glory. That the glory will be revealed in us means that were going to be changed. I think both are true. Were going to see Him and we will be like Him; were going to become glorious.

3.            Verse 18 says, comparing to the glory that will be revealed in us. The Greek gives the idea of a scale. Its not worth putting suffering on a scale with glory on the other side, because suffering is not nearly heavy enough. Suffering is not worthy or valuable enough.

4.            Our present sufferings includes different hardships and difficulties—financial pain, even splinters in your finger. In 2 Corinthians 11:23-28, Paul mentions the many beatings, floggings, and other dangers he experienced. He may even have gone through more physical suffering than Christ, but Christ went through a lot more than physical suffering. He endured great spiritual suffering—many hells on the cross.

5.            The writer of Hebrews (11:26-29) describes martyrs in heaven. One look at the value of Jesus and one look of approval from Jesus, and all suffering is gone. Thats when its worth it all.

C.          The incomparability between suffering and glory

1.            Intensity

a)           Our suffering is a mere teardrop compared to the ocean of Christs glory that we will be a part of.

2.            Depth

a)           Suffering only affects our outer body. The worst thing that can happen to us is to be killed, but then His glory will be revealed in us.

3.            Duration

a)           Suffering lasts eighty years at most. Thats incomparable to the eternal, rapidly-increasing glory we will experience.

IV.         What Is the Relationship between Glory and Suffering?

A.           Isaiah 53
John 12:37-41 37 Even after Jesus had done all these miraculous signs in their presence, they still would not believe in him. 38 This was to fulfill the word of Isaiah the prophet: Lord, who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? 39 For this reason they could not believe, because, as Isaiah says elsewhere: 40 He has blinded their eyes and deadened their hearts, so they can neither see with their eyes, nor understand with their hearts, nor turn—and I would heal them. 41 Isaiah said this because he saw Jesus glory and spoke about him.

1.            In this passage, Jesus quotes two passages from Isaiah. Jesus was interpreting the book of Isaiah, saying that he saw His coming when he wrote those passages. John 12:41 says that Isaiah saw Jesus glory. Isaiah 53:1 says, Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? Thats the meaning of John 12:38. And who is it about? Jesus. When Isaiah was writing this, he saw the glory of Jesus in His sufferings. Isaiah saw us. He wasnt only talking about himself; he was speaking of every reader and their sins placed on Christ.

B.          Isaiah 6

1.            Isaiah 6:1 says, In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple. Isaiah saw the glorious king Jesus.

2.            Isaiah 6:2 says, Above him were seraphs. These seraphim, which are angels, had six wings. They used two of their wings to cover their faces. They used two wings to cover their feet, as a sign of humility. They had to cover their faces due to the glory of Jesus. Even holy angels cannot see Gods glory.

3.            Isaiah 6:3 says, And they were calling to one another: Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory. Holiness is the most basic attribute of Jesus Christ. When something was repeated three times in Hebrew, it means perfection. They were calling to one another. They were not praising God; they were declaring His glory. Declaration is needed in this sinful world. Redemptive history is not done yet. His holiness must be declared. Declaration is preceded by praise. They see, praise, and declare.

4.            Isaiah 6:4 says, At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke. This is like a rock concert. It was because of their praise.

5.            Isaiah 6:5 says, I live among a people of unclean lips. God is so holy that Isaiah sees his own sin and others sin as well. He sees sin in general. Some of us are only good at seeing other peoples sins. Some people are good at seeing their own sins, but they cant see other peoples sins. Isaiah saw sin in comparison to how holy God is. He sees Him as the King, the Lord Almighty and realized he deserved His wrath. He thought he was going to die. Im ruined. Woe to me. Im dead.

6.            Isaiah 6:6 says, Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. He must have thought that the angel was going to burn him to death.

7.            Isaiah 6:7 says, With it he touched my mouth and said, See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for. Instead of burning him, it just burns away his sin. In the Old Testament, sacrifices had no effect in themselves; they simply pointed forward to Jesus Christ. Isaiah saw this. He saw Jesus suffering, the one who would die for him. He saw the glorious Jesus who is coming again.

8.            Isaiah 6:8 says, Here am I! Send me! Isaiah could not help but to give himself to the Lord. This is the inevitable response to glorifying Jesus.

C.          Observations

1.            Because Isaiah saw the suffering of Jesus, he was able to live for His glory.

2.            Because Isaiah was able to suffer like Jesus, others were able to see the glory of Jesus.

3.            Suffering is a means to glory. Jesus suffered, so we can be raised gloriously. Through our suffering, we can display the suffering and glory of Jesus so others can come to know and see the glory of Christ.

D.          So what?

1.            Purpose of life: Love. I want to live for Your glory, honor, and praise. One look of approval from Jesus is enough.

2.            Daily battle: Faith. Learn how to say no. Learn to deny yourself. Learn to say Yes, I will carry the cross. Live a life of No, yes, wow.

3.            Future perseverance: hope. It will all be worth it. Listen to Paul. Listen to this verse. It will be worth it all.

 

Conclusion

           Id like to talk about what the pastors did recently. We have an annual fellowship time where we go to a baseball game. Among the pastors, there are two Chicago fans, two avid Cubs fans who hate the Sox, and a Minnesota fan. We didnt even know they had sports teams in Minnesota, or even where Minnesota was in the country before this pastor came. J So we all went to a Cubs game. Dont worry, the tickets were only $10 each.

           On the way to the game, we pray, discuss church, etc. No, actually, we talk about dumb things, joke around, sleep. We stopped by Jims on the way, a famous hot dog place. I didnt know it was in a dangerous neighborhood. I was trying to pay and took out all these bills. All the pastors surrounded me and said, Hide your money! I thought, Wow, it wouldnt be good if we all died here, and be in the newspaper for eating hot dogs. It wouldnt sound so good if we were martyrs eating hot dogs.

           The Cubs were playing the LA Dodgers. By the third inning, one baseball player had committed three errors. The Cubs were down 7-0. We were trying to be as godly as possible, but I saw the depravity of humanity through the comments of the other pastors. I was trying to calm them down; I said, Life is full of expectations and disappointments. But eventually, I joined them. However, in the seventh inning, the Cubs scored five runs. They got five hits in a row. They were closing their eyes and swinging and the ball was just falling everywhere. In the eighth inning, believe it or not, they went up 8-7. We thought, Life is full of expectations and disappointments, but there are some occasional surprises. However, the Dodgers tied it up in the ninth inning. We had to go to morning prayer the next day, but we decided to stay. Do you believe in miracles? In the eleventh inning, another guy closed his eyes and swung the bat and the Cubs actually won, 9-8!

           After the game, we had to walk a long way to our car. We parked really far away because we didnt want to pay for parking. We walked all across Chicago to get there. Coming home, everyone was so happy. I was thinking, what are we and all these people around us so happy about? We won. So what? Now were only one game behind the second worst team in the National League. The Cubs record is 27 wins and 92 losses or something like that.

           I got a spiritual lesson out of all this. Living for self-glory is just like that. Its just a days pleasure. There is no long-term purpose. The season does not matter. All the Cubs can do is live for the days pleasure. Living for Gods glory is like playing for His team. Every days battle matters. Pleasure, joy, suffering—it all matters because we are in a long-term battle. The battle for Christians matters today. We are participating in redemptive history for the glory of God.

           Every time I get tired, I have a tingling sensation in my ankles. Im thinking, Thank you that I can be tired for You. Do you want to be a candlelight that goes off or a star that continues to shine? Do you want to be faithful all your life?

           Isaiah is one of those people I want to talk to when I get to heaven. Hell probably say, Min, on that day when I saw Jesus, I said, Have you ever done something wrong and you thought you were going to get killed, but then you were forgiven? When the fire burned my lips, the hot love of Jesus touched my lips. After that, I didnt care what He asked me to do or who He sent me to or how long I had to do it. It didnt matter. I said Here am I. I said yes because I had to. I could not help but to say yes. I need to sing about it, talk about it, live for Him, and even die for Him. So I preached for sixty years after that. I had to talk about it because the hot love of Jesus touched my lips. Isaiah was not a candlelight, he was a star. How can we be faithful to the end? We must see His glory daily.

           We cant see Jesus physically like Isaiah did. But Isaiah saw the glory of Jesus, and we can too. As we meditate on the words Isaiah meditated on, we can see Jesus more than people who lived in the first century, who didnt see His glory. Through our eyes, minds, and hearts, by His spirit, we can see Jesus. We can see the glory of Jesus through His Word. The Suffering Servant who came the first time is going to return as the glorious king.

           We dont react. We are proactive because of the calling and the love we have for Jesus. Jesus is worthy.

 

Suggested songs:

These Things Are True Of You

I Can Only Imagine