18 Apr What God is working for, part 3
As Judas walked into the night to betray him, Jesus chose that moment, before the cross, before the resurrection, before his ascension, to cry out, “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,” John 13:31-32
Why did he say this then?
This was his warrior’s cry, declaring victory as the engagement began in earnest.
Now is the Son of Man glorified: in that moment his spirit was fully surrendered and on board with what God was working for, and God’s glory suffused His son.
Jesus’ scourging and cross were not his humiliation, but his glorification of God. They were the fulfillment of the prophetic sign given at the beginning of history to Adam (Genesis 3:21), the fulfillment of a promise given at Sinai amidst thunder and fire in His betrothal to Israel (Exodus 24:6-8), the fulfillment of the blood of the covenant expressed in every Hebrew blood sacrifice down through time (Matthew 26:28) , the fulfillment of His word through Isaiah… But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed. Isaiah 53:5
As he endured, obedient unto death, he was securing redemption into human history — it was horrific but also magnificent for eyes that could see the glory of God sweeping across the black gulf home, completing its journey from God to Jesus and then back to Him again, achieving God’s purpose, fulfilling His plan.
Glory needs our obedience to what God is working for, if it is to shine through us, moving from eternity into time.
The glory of God shot a burning path against the backdrop of darkness, in Jesus’ obedience, in Elisabeth Elliot’s obedience, in the obedience of each of His, who recognize what He is working for. But there is both triumph and joy in the path of glory. It is not the desultory yielding of everything good “to suffer for God.” For the joy set before Him, Jesus endured the cross, scorning its shame. Peter promised us, “And after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself restore you, secure you, strengthen you, and establish you.” I Peter 5:10
My Daddy became “a Christian” late in life. He did not often recognize the divine dialogue speaking in him and unfolding before him. Daddy was one of the most principled men I have ever known, but deeply wounded as a child he was defensive and quick to take offense, wielding a repertoire of controlling behaviors that would protect him from ever being treated like that again. So many times, though he claimed to be a follower of Jesus, he was not. Daddy did not stop in difficult moments to ask, “What is happening here, what is God working for?” It broke my heart that I did not see the glory of a changed life in my Dad . . . until he learned his end was near.
When the doctor told him he had only months to live, light broke into his darkness. He understood the invitation being given to him, to walk that holy ground with his Lord. He made no more excuses. He told me this was the road Jesus had brought him to, and he determined that he was going to walk it out with him as a good soldier. He was eighty-three years old. Daddy never once complained. He stopped feeling sorry for himself. He didn’t allow himself to grow dark and morose, as had often been his weakness. He didn’t rail at the humiliations that came, but succumbed with dignity. He fought against the mindset that had crippled him all his life. He wasn’t baited by what had so often trapped him before, because his spirit was fully surrendered and keeping company with the one in whom glory resides.
I saw glory in my Daddy, more in his dying than in his living. There were magnificent moments when his thoughts surfaced like jewels out of the indigo water of the God-honoring within him. He adjusted to frailty with hidden valor. The glory of God was precious when it shone . . . it didn’t matter that it came late.