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I. The Gospel of John, a full revelation of Christ as the Word of God defining God and revealing God, is composed of two sections:
А. The first section, from 1:1 to 12:19, unveils:
1. Christ’s becoming flesh in His incarnation.
2. And His earthly living and ministry in His humanity.
B. The second section, from 12:20 to 20:29, unveils:
1. Christ to be glorified by God with His glory.
2. And the issue of His glorification through death and resurrection, as the many grains produced by the one grain in 12:24.
II. The glory of God is God Himself expressed — Acts 7:2.
III. God the Father has given His glory to the Son, and this glory is the sonship to express God in His fullness — John 5:26.
IV. The glory of the Father was concealed in the shell of Christ’s humanity, His flesh.
V. He glorified the Father by manifesting Him in His earthly living and ministry — 17:4.
VI. The Son prayed that the Father would glorify His name, and the Father answered Him, “I have both glorified it and will glorify it again” — 12:28.
VII. The Son has given the Father’s glory to express the Father in His sonship to His believers (17:22), who are the many sons of God (Heb. 2:10) and share the same divine sonship with Him.
VIII. The Son, as the grain of wheat (John 12:24), expected that He would die (Luke 12:50) to have His shell of humanity broken in order that His divine glory might be released with His divine life to produce many grains, that is, many believers as His increase for the constituting of His Body for the glorification of the Father.
IX. At His last entry into Jerusalem under the exaltation of the people of Israel, some Greeks came to exalt Him, but He told them that that was the hour for Him not to be exalted by man but to be glorified by the Father, that is, to die to have His divine glory and life released in His resurrection — John 12:12, 20-24.
X. It is in the second section of this book, from 12:20 to 20:29, that the Son was crucified to have His human shell broken and His divine glory and life released in His resurrection for the dispensing of His divine life to His believers with which they could glorify the Father also. This matter is referred to in 12:23, 28; 13:31-32; 14:13; 15:8; 17:1, 5, 10, 22, and 24. It is also referred to in 7:39 and 12:16.
XI. The Son prayed to the Father, “Glorify Your Son that the Son may glorify You” — 17:1.
XII. The Father’s house in 14:2, the vine in 15:5, and the child in 16:21, which imply the Body of Christ, are all the issues of this glorification of Christ through His death and resurrection.
XIII. God is glorified in Christ and in the church in the church age — Eph. 3:21.
XIV. When the believers express God in their behavior, God is glorified — Matt. 5:16.
XV. When the believers as the branches bear much fruit, the Father is glorified — John 15:8.
XVI. The believers who suffer with Christ in this age will be glorified in the kingdom age, that is, will reign with Him as His co-kings — Rom. 8:17; 2 Tim. 2:12; Rev. 20:4, 6.
XVII. Peter was martyred so that God would be glorified — John 21:19.
XVIII. Eventually, all of God’s chosen people will participate in the glory of the New Jerusalem, that is, will be glorified with the glory of God for eternity — Rev. 21:11.
The Gospel of John, a full revelation of Christ as the Word of God defining and revealing God, is composed of two sections.
The first section is from 1:1 to 12:19. This section tells us what Christ is and what Christ would do. It reveals Christ’s becoming flesh in His incarnation and His earthly living and ministry in His humanity.
The second section is from 12:20 to 20:29. It unveils that Christ is to be glorified by God with His glory and also unveils the issue of His glorification through death and resurrection, as the many grains produced by the one grain in 12:24. In this section the words glory, glorify, and glorified are used a number of times. Even in chapter 1, unveiling Christ’s incarnation, the glory of the only begotten Son of God is mentioned. John says, “We beheld His glory, glory as of the only Begotten from the Father” (v. 14). Three disciples saw His glory when He was transfigured on the mount (Matt. 17:1-2; 2 Pet. 1:16-18). His glory was concealed in His human shell, that is, His humanity. But on the mount, that concealed glory came out.
John is very strong to unveil the glorification of the incarnated Jesus, that is, the glorification of Christ by God with His glory. He was not self-glorified by His own exaltation, but He was glorified by God. In His being glorified, He as a grain of wheat passed through death unto resurrection, and that is glorification. His glorification was to produce us as many grains. He is the one grain; we are the many grains. A stalk of wheat with many grains is the produce of one grain being sown into the earth. The many grains are the totality, the aggregate, of that unique grain. When Christ was resurrected, He was glorified to produce us as His many grains to form and constitute His Body.
The glory of God is God Himself expressed (Acts 7:2). Abraham was called by “the God of glory.” God manifested Himself to Abraham in His glory, and Abraham saw the expressed God. The glory of God was the “motor,” the motivating power, for Abraham to leave Chaldea and journey to the good land. When God appears in His glory, we are attracted, charmed, and captivated by Him.
God the Father has given His glory to the Son, and this glory is the sonship to express God in His fullness (John 5:26). Fullness means the expressed riches.
The glory of the Father was concealed in the shell of Christ’s humanity, His flesh. Many who saw and heard Him despised Him and said, “Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? And are not His sisters here with us?” (Mark 6:3). Isaiah 53 says that He did not have any outward beauty for people to desire Him (v. 2). The Father’s glory was concealed in His humanity.
He glorified the Father by manifesting Him in His earthly living and ministry (John 17:4). When we live to express God, to manifest God, that is our glorifying God. If we live God and speak God, both our living and ministry are God’s glory.
The Son prayed that the Father would glorify His name, and the Father answered Him, “I have both glorified it and will glorify it again” (12:28).
The Son has given the Father’s glory to express the Father in His sonship to His believers (17:22), who are the many sons of God (Heb. 2:10) and share the same divine sonship with Him.
The Son, as the grain of wheat (John 12:24), expected that He would die (Luke 12:50) to have His shell of humanity broken that His divine glory might be released with His divine life to produce many grains, that is, many believers as His increase for the constituting of His Body for the glorification of the Father. In Luke 12:50 the Lord said, “I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how I am pressed until it is accomplished!” His undergoing physical death was the baptism referred to here. He was pressed, constrained, in the shell of His humanity, and He longed to be put into death, which was a baptism to Him. This death broke His human shell so that His unlimited and infinite divine being with His divine life might be released from His flesh, which was His glorification in resurrection.
At His last entry into Jerusalem under the exaltation of the people of Israel, some Greeks came to exalt Him, but He told them that that was the hour for Him not to be exalted by man but to be glorified by the Father, that is, to die to have His divine glory and life released in His resurrection (John 12:12, 20-24). John 12:23 says, “Jesus answered them, saying, The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.” For Him to be glorified was for Him to be released from the shell of His humanity through death and resurrection.
It is in the second section of this book, from 12:20 to 20:29, that the Son was crucified to have His human shell broken and His divine glory and life released in His resurrection for the dispensing of His divine life to His believers with which they could glorify the Father also. This matter is referred to in 12:23, 28; 13:31-32; 14:13; 15:8; 17:1, 5, 10, 22 and 24. It is also referred to in 7:39 and 12:16.
The Son prayed to the Father, “Glorify Your Son that the Son may glorify You” (17:1). The Father glorified the Son by putting Him to death and resurrecting Him. The Son’s human shell was broken by death so that the concealed God could be released, glorified. The Father would thus be glorified in Him. Because the Son’s human shell was broken, the Father was released for His glorification.
The Father’s house in 14:2, the vine in 15:5, and the child in 16:21, which imply the Body of Christ, are all the issues of this glorification of Christ through His death unto resurrection.
God is glorified in Christ and in the church in the church age (Eph. 3:21). If we are not a part of the church, we will miss this glorification.
When the believers express God in their behavior, God is glorified (Matt. 5:16).
When the believers as the branches bear much fruit, the Father is glorified (John 15:8). The more fruit we bear, the more God is glorified in our Christian work.
The believers who suffer with Christ in this age will be glorified in the kingdom age, that is, will reign with Him as His co-kings (Rom. 8:17; 2 Tim. 2:12; Rev. 20:4, 6).
Peter was martyred so that God would be glorified (John 21:19). The Lord Jesus predicted this to Peter.
Eventually, all of God’s chosen people will participate in the glory of the New Jerusalem, that is, will be glorified with the glory of God for eternity (Rev. 21:11). We need to enjoy what Christ is and live Him. Eventually, we will be eternally glorified in His glorification.
