God Glorified

When he had gone out, Jesus said, "Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in him. If God is glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself, and glorify him at once (John 13:31-32).

Jesus was glorified through His death on the cross. [1] His death was the only atoning sacrifice acceptable to God for our sin (Colossians 2:14; Romans 3:25; 5:8-9; Ephesians 2:16; Hebrews 2:17; 1 John 2:2; 4:10). [2] He defeated Satan. The Lord prophesied that the ‘seed of the woman’ would ‘rush the head of Satan’, and He did (Hebrews 2:14; Isaiah 25:8; Hosea 13:14; 1 Corinthians 15:54-57; 2 Timothy 1:10; 1 John 3:8). [3] Because He defeated Satan, He also destroyed the power of sin that holds us in death’s grip. (Romans 8:3-4) For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. 

Jesus glorified God the Father through His death on the cross. [1] The power of God over the entire plan of salvation was fully displayed. The plan and power of Satan, the Chief Priests, and Judas, to destroy Jesus Christ were defeated when Jesus died, then rose from the dead 3 days later. But you denied the Holy One and the Just, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, and killed the Prince of life, whom God raised from the dead, of which we are witnesses (Acts 3:14-15). 

[2] God’s justice was satisfied. When Jesus cried out, It is finished!, it was not an announcement that He was dying. Rather, it was the announcement that sin’s debt had been paid in full by His sacrifice. The penalty for our sin against God had to be paid, and was paid by Jesus. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 6:23).

[3] The holiness of God was demonstrated. Never forget that at the height of His suffering, when Jesus became sin (2 Corinthians 5:21) and a curse for us (Galatians 3:13), God turned away from His beloved Son. Jesus cried out, My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? because God cannot look upon sin with any favor (Habakkuk 1:13). 

[4] The faithfulness of God was affirmed. God promised Adam and Eve that a deliverer would come to redeem mankind from sin. All through the Old Testament that promise never died out. That was the hope of the Hebrew people for 2 millennia. Even though it cost God His beloved Son, He kept His promise (Genesis 3:15; Isaiah 52:13 - 53:12; Matthew 1:21).

[5] The love of God could not be denied. (Romans 5:8) But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (1 John 4:10) In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Amen.

Pastor