Thank you, Rick and Michelle, for those selections of songs that connect both our morning sermon and the evening sermon today. Before we pray, let me just say, during lunch, I received a phone call and a text message from Pastor Michael about this delay, and they were getting ready to board the flight. I think it was about 1.30ish or so. I haven't had any other updates since then, but they should be back in town soon. But needless to say, the youth group isn't meeting tonight, and they'll push that off to the future. So let's continue to pray for their safety as they make their way to their homes this evening. Let's pray. Father, thank you for this time. when we can gather and sing these songs of you being Messiah, of you being Lord, and all of this is strongly and clearly tethered to your work at the cross and your victory over death. I pray that you'll help us to see that tonight as well from our time in your Word. Lord, we thank you for our teens and Pastor Michael and Maddie and the Cantrells as youth staff just taking this past week and sacrificing financially and with time to do this missions trip out in Salt Lake City, declaring this amazing gospel, this good news of Jesus Christ, our Messiah and our Lord. And I pray for the churches in the community out there that benefited from the work of not only our youth group, but the many other churches that were represented as well from around the country. as they focused and prayed through and worked hard there in the Salt Lake area. I pray that what was sown will be watered, and what is watered will reap as a harvest soon in souls. Thank you again for the time that we have in this hour to tie off this Lord's Day corporately as we started it. And I pray that we'll be encouraged with each other and with your word. In Jesus' name, amen. Well, please open your Bibles with me to John chapter 17. John chapter 17, and I believe you received a handout on your way in, and I hope you have that accessible as well. As you're turning there, I came across a few statements that start out, you know we're in trouble when the statements start out this way, right? Mark and Brenda, you know you're old when? I'm not saying that Mark and Brenda are old, I'm saying they know old people. But this particular author started with the 40s. You know you are 40 when you've been there and done that, but you don't remember what that was. It means you're in the 40s. Or you know you are in the 40s and old when you stop growing at both ends and start growing in the middle. And I can relate to that one. Then they move it up to the 50s. You want to hear these or no? You know you are 50 when you knew when the Dead Sea was only sick. That'll take a while to sink that one in, right? You know you are old when you go to the beach and turn a wonderful color, blue, from holding your stomach in. You know you are old when people tell you how good you look all the time. In other words, that's translated, I'm glad you're still alive. You know you are old when almost everything hurts and what doesn't hurt just doesn't work. You've heard that. And then he takes it up to the 60s. You know you are in your 60s and old when you hear your favorite songs in an elevator. You know you are old when you're told to slow down by your doctor and not the police. And there's several I'm not reading here for obvious reasons. But along those lines, I came across a story of an agitated patient named Mark Meredith. And he was stomping around his doctor's office one day, running his hands through his thick, dark hair. And Mark was almost in tears. And the doctor said, what's wrong, Mark? Mark says, doctor, my memory's gone. It's gone. I can't remember my wife's name. I can't remember my children's names. I can't remember what kind of car I drive. I can't remember where I work. And it's all that I could do to find my way here. And the doctor says, Mark, just calm down. How long have you been like this? And Mark said, like what? So I don't know why I felt inclined to bring that to the attention of the church. But I do want to talk about our memory tonight, just as we make our way back to this series that we have stepped away from for some time. And let's just assume that all of us need to find our way back to the series at least a little bit in our minds before we jump back in. And so I have some review points in your notes there in the handout. And you're on John 17, and just stay there as I remind you where we've been in this series. How in the world did we even get into this series? Well, the series took us through Romans chapter 8. And we studied verses 26 through 27, and then verse 34. And you might remember these words as I read them. Romans 8, 26. In the same way, the Spirit also helps our weaknesses, for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. And he who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because he intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. And we saw in those verses, as we studied them theologically, that the Holy Spirit is groaning and interceding with us. And we have here in these two verses a two-way communication that's inter-Trinitarian between the Father and the Spirit. And what's their concern in this intercession going on? You. They are interceding for you as sons of God, sons and daughters. And then our series took us further into chapter 8 of Romans, and this time to verse 34, where we find out it's not only the Father and the Spirit involved in an inner Trinitarian communication about you, But it's also the second person of the Trinity, Jesus Christ himself. In verse 34, we find these words, who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is he who died, yes rather, who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, and look at this, who also intercedes for us. And so here in Romans 8, we got a little excited, because this is good news, and it's jolting if you think of it, that every member of the Trinity, of the Godhead, is involved in an inter-Trinitarian communication about you. And we took two messages to study that theologically, and then we asked the question, well, what does that look like, practically? What does it sound like to have a member of the Trinity, a member of the Godhead, talk about me. And we found a practical example of this in Luke chapter 22. Again, you don't need to turn there, I'll just remind you of these verses. In Luke 22, on the eve of our Lord's betrayal, we find these words. Jesus says to Peter in front of the disciples, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat. But I have prayed for you, not just you, Simon, but all the disciples, that your faith may not fail. And you, Peter, when once you have turned again, strengthen your brothers. And we see, oh, so that's what it sounds like. Our Lord is not just having merely warm, affectionate thoughts to us, for us, if you will. He's praying specifically for things we're going through before we even go through them. And Peter himself was an example of that. And so that just captured us. And we saw this in Romans 8 theologically, and we saw it in Luke practically. But then we wanted to ask the question, what does this look like specifically? And that's what brought us to the passage that's open on your lap. And hopefully I've reminded you of enough to communicate what we're studying together. We've come to John 17 because here we have preserved for us, hours before our Lord's arrest and crucifixion, we have a recorded prayer of the second person of the Trinity, the Son, praying to the first person of the Trinity, his Father. And that was our first study as we came into John 17 in our most recent message in this series. It's the fact that Jesus is praying to the Father. And we spent much time studying in that sermon the importance of the fatherhood of God and why that should matter to us, especially in our prayer life and in our Christian pilgrimage. And then, that brings us to tonight. And we note this. As we get into this text, which we're going to do this chapter thematically, not verse by verse in this series, we note this. Before Jesus prays for others, we might be surprised to see that he prays for himself. That's interesting. The second person of the Trinity talking to the Father about himself. That's what we come to here at the beginning of John chapter 17. You say, well, what does he pray about? I mean, before he prays for us, and that's really what we thought was of interest to us, what are nouns and verbs that Jesus is praying for us even tonight, if we're his? It's important to see that before he prays for us, he prays for himself. You say, well, in particular, what are we talking about here? And this is very important, this fact. Jesus prays for his father to make something very important, very obvious to his people. And what is that reality? It's the glory of the son. The son prays to the father that the father would make the glory of the son obvious to those he redeems. And that's what I want to do. I want to give you five statements about the importance of the glory of Jesus Christ. The glory of the Son. And these statements will answer questions. And I want you to see, first of all, the timing of his glory. The timing of his glory. Now look down at chapter 17, verse 1. Jesus spoke these things, and lifting up his eyes to heaven, he said, Father, and look at the next phrase, the hour has come. The hour has come. And this word in your English, hour, is so important. He's not just saying these 60 minutes have come here in the upper room right before we leave to go to the Mount of Olives and I'll be betrayed and put into the custody of Jews and then eventually Gentiles and killed. We're not talking just 60 minutes, but we are saying the timer ringer is about to go off. This is the eve of his crucifixion. And the countdown timer, listen, has been running, has been clicking down to zero, listen, for centuries. Right since the beginning of your Bible. Hold your finger here and go with me to Genesis chapter 3. Genesis chapter 3. That far back the timer started to tick. And we have, at the beginning of Genesis chapter 3, an awful event. In a perfect environment, man sinned. He disobeyed the creator. He disobeyed his father. And because of that, according to Romans chapter 5, death came in. Death is reigning, in a sense. But it's right in the wake of the fall that we have promise. The timer has started to click. Remember this? Go with me to verse 12. The man said to God, the woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me from the tree and I ate. And the Lord God said to the woman, what is this you have done? And the woman said, the serpent deceived me and I ate. And the Lord said to the serpent, because you have done this, cursed are you more than all cattle and more than every beast of the field. On your belly you will go, and dust you will eat all the days of your life. And verse 15 is the sound of a timer starting to tick. I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed. He shall bruise you on the head, and you shall bruise him on the heel." What you see in verse 15 is the promise of the rescue of sinful man. through a Redeemer that would come and defeat the enemy. Now at that point, the timer was going to start ticking, yes, but it would tick for centuries. Century after century. And you see it's still ticking when we get to Isaiah 52. Go with me to Isaiah 52 as a reminder. And I want you to hear the ticking of this timer. Isaiah chapter 52, talking about the exalted and the suffering servant, as some of your Bible headings say. In Isaiah chapter 52, verse 13, looking forward to Jesus of Nazareth. Behold, my servant will prosper. He will be high and lifted up and greatly exalted. Just as many were astonished at you, my people, so his appearance was marred more than any man and his form more than the sons of men. Thus he will sprinkle many nations. Kings will shut their mouths on account of him. For what had not been told them, they will see. And what they had not heard, they will understand. Who has believed our message? And to whom is the arm of the Lord been revealed? For he grew up before him like a tender shoot and like a root out of parched ground. He has no stately form or majesty that we would look upon him, no appearance that we should be attracted to him. He was despised and forsaken of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And like one from whom men hide their face, he was despised, and we did not esteem him. Surely our griefs he himself bore, and our sorrows he carried. Yet we ourselves esteemed him stricken, smitten of God and afflicted, and he was pierced through for our transgressions. He was crushed for our iniquities. The chastening for our well-being fell upon him, and by his scourging we are healed. All of us, like sheep, have gone astray. Each one has turned to his own way, but the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on him. And we could continue through the rest of the half of this chapter. We'd read in verse 10, or in verse 8, about the stroke and the cutting off that he endured, the crushing in verse 10, and the grieving. We would see in verse 11 the anguish that he would suffer. His servant, though, would justify many. As you read through these texts that need no introduction to you, I want you to hear in the background the ticking of the timer that started in Genesis chapter 3, centuries before We get to Daniel chapter 9, verses 24 to 26, and with all the curiosity that this chapter creates in our minds about prophecy, we can't deny that in the background we hear the tick, tick, tick of the timer. That's been going at this point for centuries. Daniel chapter 9, verse 24, 70 weeks have been decreed for your people and your holy city to finish the transgression, to make an end of sin, to make atonement for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness. The timer's still moving towards this promise given in Genesis chapter 3. That's when the timer was ticking in terms of centuries. But as we get closer to the cross, that timer is no longer talking of centuries, it's talking about months. And you see this back in the Gospel of John. Hold your finger in John 17 and look at John 2, verse 4. It's no longer centuries. We're talking months away. In John 2, verse 4, this is where our Lord makes wine from the water. And in that scene, at the beginning of that scene, his mom says to him, It says to the hosts of the wedding, whatever he says, do. And Jesus said to her, verse 4, woman, what does that have to do with us? And look at this phrase, my hour has not yet come. But we know it's so close now. It's not centuries. We are literally months away. As you go to John chapter 7, it continues to tick. John chapter 7, verse 30. He said this, so they were seeking, or you read, they were seeking to seize him at the feast, and no man laid his hand on him. Why? Because his hour had not yet come. Now we're just months ahead. In chapter eight, verse 20, you'll see similar language. These words he spoke in the treasury as he taught in the temple, and no one seized him. Why? Because his hour had not yet come. There's a parallel in Luke chapter 9. I'll just turn to that for your sake. Luke chapter 9, verse 44 and 51. Just to keep in the pocket with these John references, Luke chapter 9, let me just read to you verse 51. And when the days were approaching for his ascension, he was determined to go to Jerusalem. You might remember from our series through the Gospel of Luke, Luke 9.51 is a turning point of the Gospel account. Because from that verse on, he's making his way, his face is set, he is on a mission that will end. It will zigzag, it will lag, but it will end at Jerusalem. to the night that's being reflected on here in John 17. So this countdown timer was ticking at first for centuries, and then suddenly it's just a matter of months, and then as we get further into John, in John chapter 12, we are now just hours away from the ultimate hour and the dinger going off on this timer. John chapter 12, verse 23. Jesus answered them saying, the hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Mark that wording. The hour has come. Look down in verse 27 of chapter 12. Now my soul has become troubled and what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour? but for this purpose I came to this hour. Look at chapter 13, verse one, as we begin the upper room discourse and the scene there in the upper room where he will finish this passage with John 17. Now before the feast of the Passover, Jesus, knowing that his hour had come, that he would depart out of this world to the Father, Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. He loved them to the utmost display of love. So that timer that started in Genesis has been ticking so faithfully as the promises of God do. And what lasted for centuries went down suddenly to months. And then to days, and now to hours, and that we find ourselves in John 17, 1. Jesus spoke these things in lifting up his eyes to heaven. He said, Father, the hour has come. The timer will stop. It's all been building to this. So we have to ask the question and answer it now. What do we think? What do we need to know about the timing of his glory? And here's what you put in that blank. This is the historical crescendo of the cross. What was promised in Genesis 3 is now going to go down, when you're in John 17, tomorrow morning. When he's on the cross. That's the timing of the glory. So as we come to John 17, we see when our Lord says, I want you to glorify me. Glorify your son that the son may glorify. What does that mean? It means it's all been building to what's next. My glory, Jesus is saying, is tethered to the historical crescendo of the cross that's right in front of me. And it's then that we realize that all along, as long as this timer has been ticking through the Testaments, God's perfect plan, listen, not just from Genesis 3, but God's perfect plan from eternity past was a person. The person of Jesus Christ. And this is what Paul is communicating to us when he writes these words in Galatians 4, verses 4 and 5. It's all been building to this point. And when we see the cross with all the darkness, with all the gloom, with the weight of it, also see, as Christ hangs on the cross and absorbs the wrath of God, see the glory of Jesus. This is the timing of His glory. And that's a theological important starting point to the study. But I want you to see, secondly, the result of His glory. The result of His glory. Now this is very important to grasp, especially in conservative evangelical circles like ours with the publishing houses and podcasts of our generation, our time. And I'll explain what I mean by that. What's the result of his glory? What's the end game for the glory of Jesus Christ? Well, verse one tells us. Look back again. Jesus spoke these things and lifting up his eyes to heaven, he said, Father, the hour has come. Glorify your son. And here's the answer to our question. What's the result of his glory? Glorify your son so that, look at this, the son may glorify you, Father. What's the result of his glory? The goal is his father's glory. that's what you write in that line the result of the glory of Christ the goal is his father's glory Jesus is praying to his father saying as I now do what you sent me to accomplish glorify me so that when people see me in my glory The ultimate endgame will happen. You, Father, will receive all the glory. That's the result of His glory. The Son is not, carefully say, I'm going to say this carefully, the Son is not the isolated goal of His own glory. The Father is. The Son is the connect between us and the initiator of our salvation, who is the Father. The result of his glory is his father's glory. This is not something that's new, a new idea in the gospel of John. If you've been in your read-through paying attention, you have read John chapter 13, verses 31 and 32. John 13, verses 31 and 32. Therefore, 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 will glorify him immediately. Our Lord's glory serves as a signpost to the ultimate glory of the Father. Now the reason I'm saying this is because it's important every day. Everything in scripture points to Jesus. I really believe that. I really believe that. You go through the Old Testament and you see that we get hungry for a perfect king because even the best of kings fail. We see faithful prophetic ministry and it makes us hunger for the perfect prophet. And we look, as we read through the history books and the law and the wisdom literature and the prophets, we see we need a perfect priest. And in all that we read in the Old Testament, it forces us to look forward with hunger for the perfect prophet, the perfect priest, and the perfect king. And all of those will be answered in the person of Jesus. When we come to the Gospels, this is the introduction of the king. And then we come to Acts, and this is the activity of the risen King. We see in the epistles the explanation of the King, of Jesus. And then we see in Revelation the consummation of everything in the King, in King Jesus. All scripture points to Jesus, but we don't put a period at the end of that. We put a comma. Because as Christ is pointed to and marveled at and glorified in the Old Testament and the New Testament from cover to cover, if you will, it's so that ultimately His glory will project the majestic glory of the Father. That's what we just read. from his own mouth in John 13, 31 to 32. But I want you to hear Paul explain this too. In the great resurrection chapter, 1 Corinthians 15, listen to verses 50, 1 Corinthians 15, 25 to 28. I'll start at verse 20. But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who are asleep. For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. But each in this order, Christ, the firstfruits, and after that, those who are Christ that is coming. And listen to this, and then comes the end. when he, Jesus, hands over the kingdom to the God and Father when he has abolished all rule and all authority and power. For he, Jesus, must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. And the last enemy that will be abolished is death. For he has put all things in subjection under his feet. But when he says all things are put in subjection, it's evident that he has accepted who put all things in subjection to him. And verse 28 is the capstone of this thought. When all things are subjected to him, Jesus, then the Son himself also will be subjected to the one who subjected all things to him, so that God may be all in all. As Christ pointed out with all of Scripture, yes, is His glory on display in both Testaments? Yes. Every book, cover to cover. But the end game isn't there. The ultimate end game is the Son being glorified in the work the Father has given Him to do, handing everything to the Father so that He may be all in all. The result of His glory is His Father's glory. You know, even up here in the upper room, in John 13-17, we read our Lord saying this about the Holy Spirit. Just to put this in on the side of the whole discussion. In John 15, verses 26-27, Jesus says, when the Helper, the Holy Spirit, comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is, the Spirit of Truth, who proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me. So you kind of have this amazing Trinitarian parade getting set up. You have the Spirit who points to Christ, and Christ whose glory points to the Father, and the Father who receives all the glory, and the eternal Godhead is magnified. This is a big deal. And so Jesus is praying, would you help my people to see my glory? The more they see of my glory, the more they will glorify you, Father. When I was pastoring there in Virginia Beach at Colonial Baptist, a lot of pulpit time preaching, a lot of pulpit time announcements, a lot of pulpit time praying, running the Wednesday night services, and doing much on the Sundays as well. I had an older couple, a retired missionary couple, the McMillans, who were just the sweetest people in our church, I think. Very deep in their faith. Decades of ministry experience with Baptist mid-missions. And their son was a colleague of mine, Dr. Roger DePriest in the church there, a biblical counselor. Well, Mr. and Mrs. Priest, or, excuse me, McMillan, came to me one night after prayer meeting with the greatest spirit in the world. And they just asked me a question, and the question itself was a challenge for me to think something through. Here I am, a pastor with six other pastors, teaching in the seminary, and they said to me, We've noticed that in a lot of your praying, you only pray to the Son. And that's not wrong. I believe you can pray to all members of the Trinity, and I think you ought to. But they said, we don't hear you addressing the Father a lot. You just say, Lord. Well, that's Jesus. And I mean, technically, I think we can make that point. It often is in scripture in the New Testament. But the point they were making is I wasn't addressing the Father all the time. And they said, the Lord, yes, pray to the Lord. And he told us as disciples to do that because he's our representative to the Father. But every time he was asked how to pray, he always said, pray to the Father. And that just, of course, you know, when I heard that, I was like, well, they must, I'm sure I do that, you know, I'm sure I'm covering those bases, but the more I thought about it and talked to my pastor about it, they were right. I wasn't consumed with the glory of the Father as much as I should have been. And that was the beginning of a change in my personal prayer life that is still ongoing today. The end game of the glory track, if you will, is the father. And the son is saying the result of my being glorified is so that he is glorified. So that's the second very important point about his glory. But number three, what about the reflection of his glory? The reflection of his glory. When the glory of Jesus is on display, it's intensifying. How does that reflect itself? What does that look like? And let me give you the answer on this one for that blank before I develop it shortly. It's this, what's the reflection of His glory? His glory highlights His Lordship. His glory highlights His Lordship. I mean, it's an indisputable fact that Jesus alone has the right to rule. Jesus alone has the right to the titles Lord and King. It's indisputable. And we see it here as we go into verse 2 of John 17. He says in the middle of verse 1, Father, the hour has come, glorify your Son so that the Son may glorify you. Look at the next phrase, even as, that's connecting this, you gave him authority over all flesh. You gave him authority over all flesh. What does it mean for Christ to be glorified? It's for all flesh to see that he is Lord of all. I didn't say that all flesh enjoys that news. You just have to read through Romans 1 through 3 and you realize there's a mutiny against the lordship and the kingship of Jesus Christ. And the more they see it, those who are unregenerate, the more they see that Jesus does win. Jesus is Lord. the more they hate it, unless God intervenes. And we have an example of this reaction against his kingship and against his lordship, and none other than Psalm 2. Psalm 2. Why are the nations in an uproar and the peoples devising a vain thing? The kings of the earth take their stand, and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against his anointed, saying, let us tear their fetters apart and cast away their cords from us. We don't want them to rule over us. We don't want them to bind us. We don't want to be accountable to them. But verse 4 says, but he who sits in the heavens laughs. The Lord scoffs at them. Then he will speak to them in his anger and terrify them in his fury, saying, As for me, I have installed my king upon Zion, my holy mountain. You can debate it. You can point at it. You can look away from it, but it doesn't change the reality that Jesus is Lord. And that is the reflection of His glory. He has authority according to John 17 to over all flesh. And we're not surprised then to come to the Great Commission at the end of Matthew in 28 verse 18. And the first thing Jesus says in that Great Commission is, he says, all authority, exousia, all authority has been given to me in heaven and in earth. This is a cosmic marveling at his lordship. That's why we also read in Philippians chapter 2 verses 5 through 11 that every tongue will confess, every knee will bow, every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. You see the Lordship of Christ, again we find ourselves, is not the end game ultimately, it's His Lordship on display that ultimately brings glory to the Father. When we say our, we refer to the glory of Christ, we're talking of his indisputable, unchallenged, unilateral, unending lordship. I remember in 10th grade, it was my first year on varsity soccer for Springfield, just up the road. I think we played you guys that year too. If we did, I know we won. We went undefeated that year. And then we defeated the Ohio State Champs that year, and we were one of eight teams to make it to the Nationals in North Carolina. We didn't win the Nationals. We never won a game down there. We went three straight years. But for three years, we were able to say we were state champions in soccer in the state of Michigan in MACS. We were able to say that for three years. Yes, we had a swagger when we went into McDonald's. Yeah, we thought we were something. That lasted for three years. We even had a ring made. We paid for a second-class ring in high school that year, and only the soccer team could get it, and it was a state championship ring. I still have it, and I'll bring it and show it to you sometime if you want to see it, which I'll probably never bring it. And we could wear that for three years, state champs, but then it expired. Let me tell you something. Our Lord says there's something that lasts a little longer than three years, and it will never be challenged. And I can walk with a cosmic swagger, if you will, if I can be careful with that illustration. Jesus says, I am Lord. My glory reflects my lordship. and it never expires so his prayer is the hours come glorify your son that the sun may glorify you even as you gave him authority over all flesh but we have a third a fourth question what about the evidence of his glory how do we know that his glory indeed is radiating. How do we know that the Father's glorified, that he's pleased and glorified by the work of the Son at the cross in a few hours and over the grave in a few days? What's the evidence of his glory? And here's the answer for this one. His glory is evidenced, are you listening, in the sovereign gift of a redeemed people. in the sovereign gift of a redeemed people. A gift being given, listen, from the father who was glorified by the son, given to the son. The evidence of the sovereign gift of a redeemed people. Where do you see this? Well, we see that from verses two through four. Even as you gave him authority over all flesh, watch this, that to all whom you have given him, he may give eternal life. And this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. I glorified you on the earth, having accomplished the work which you have given me to do. What is this? This is the evidence of his glory. This isn't a new concept in the Gospel of John. In John chapter 1 verses 12 to 13, one of your favorite evangelism verses, I'm sure. I hope you include both of them. But as many as received him, Jesus, to them he gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in his name, who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God, the Father. From the beginning of this Gospel, there's a redeeming, a rescuing of lost humanity, of lost souls, who are redeemed by God's sovereign hand and given as a love gift to the Son. You say, really, that's what's going on? Yeah, that's how you know that the Father is glorified in the Son, because of the Son's glory. Because there is a redeemed, rescued people in existence. Because of the accomplished work of the glory. In John chapter 6, verse 36 through 38, I read these words. Jesus said to them, I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will not hunger, and he who believes in me will never thirst. But I said to you that you have seen me, and yet you do not believe. All that the Father gives me will come to me. And the one who comes to me I will certainly not cast out. I've come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of Him who sent me. That's the Father, the one giving the Son this redeemed people. We could also go to verses 44 and 45 in the same chapter of John chapter 6. No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. Verse 45, everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me. Seeing a pattern here? What's the evidence of the glory of Christ? It's evidenced in the sovereign gift of a redeemed people. The father accepted the son's sacrifice and justified those whom he gave to the son. Romans 4.25, Paul states it this way. Who was delivered for our offenses and was raised again for our justification. So I might ask you, here we are in the middle of the dog days of summer, middle of July. Thunder over Michigan's always a milestone in my summers here in Michigan. It's like, just expect it to be hot. Just run into the air conditioning, that's all you can do, right? But my mind is starting to wander and the headlines are starting to swell on ESPN and some other sports apps that something's just around the corner now, just a month away. What is that? It's football. And I know that this fall and colder weather is just in front of us. I walk by my closets every once in a while, peek in there, and tell Mr. and Mrs. Carhartt, I'll be coming back soon. And I can't wait. I mean, I love living in Michigan on the expressions of all the seasons, but my favorites, as you know, is the cool fall and the cold winters. And my question is this, what is the evidence of a Michigan winter? Think February. What is the evidence of a Michigan winter? It used to be a one-word answer. It's been a little challenging lately, but we usually could say snow. There's snow. We must be in winter. It's cold. Christmas is just behind us. We must be in winter. What's the evidence of Michigan winter? Snow. But let me push it a question farther in our context from John 17 now. What is the evidence of Christ's glory through his accomplished work on the cross. And again, the answer is one word, souls. People are being redeemed. And we see living out right in front of our faces a loved gift of redeemed souls being given from the Father to the Son. That's the evidence of his glory, but there's one more One more reality of the glory of Christ that we need to mention. Number five, the extent of his glory. The extent of his glory. We've seen the timing, the result, the reflection, the evidence. What's the extent? And here's the answer for your blank. It's eternal. And I'd like to add to that answer these words. It's eternal in both directions. Someone might say, so is his glory that he's praying for here, is it just from the cross forward? I mean, was he not fully glorified until he did the Father's work? He pressed through the cross and the suffering for the sin of man. Then he willed himself dead and he then willed himself alive. Is that when the glory started then? If everything was working towards that and this timer and all that? Is that when it started and it's going to last forever from this point? And the answer is no. Because the glory of Christ is a reality from the cross, both backwards and forward. You say, how can you say that? Look at verse 5. Now, Father, glorify me together with Yourself with the glory which I had with you before the world was. It's from the cross, both backwards and forward. And I'll just give you a little spoiler alert. This theme of the eternality of the glory of Christ saturates this entire prayer. You want to see an example of this? We'll do a whole study on this verse alone in this series later, but take a peek ahead. Look at verse 24 of John 17. Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, be with me where I am. I want them in heaven with me. Why? So that they may see my glory, which you have given me, for you loved me before the foundation of the world. Oh, this is a glory that existed before time began within the Trinitarian reality of the Godhead. And it's one that will echo through all of eternity. More than echo, it'll be the centerpiece of all eternity, because the more that Christ continues to be glorious, the Father continues to be glorified, ultimately. And so you know what Jesus is doing here? He wants us on a human level, if I can say it this way, he's desperate, he's zealous, he's eager, his heart beats. Father, I want my redeemed to marvel at my glory. That's what he's praying here. We've seen the glory of the Son. There's more we'll say about the glory of Jesus in our next message, but this will suffice for now. He wants us to hear him praying tonight, and he wants us to see his love for his own glory. The hour has come. Glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you. You want to know how Jesus is praying for you in 2024? He's praying for you. He's speaking to the Father that you would be overcome with his glory and his work of rescue accomplished. That's how he's praying for you. You want nouns and verbs? You got it. You think this might help you pray better yourself? Knowing this, if he's praying so much for you to see his glory, that's gonna mean you're gonna have to slow down a little bit enough to look into his word and see it, and respond to it, and sing it, and share it. And it might just move us to pray something like this with everything else we pray every day. We are praying, right? We're praying, Lord, Show me your glory so that the Father would be glorified. Show it to me afresh today. You know, maybe this is what Paul was trying to say in Colossians 3, one through four. If then you've been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your affections on the things above, not on things on the earth, for you've died. Your life is hidden with Christ and God. And when Christ, who is your life, is revealed, you'll also be revealed with him in glory. I have in your notes there a quote from Puritan John Owen. Look at this. Thoughts of the glory of Christ are too high and too hard for us. We cannot delight in them for very long without becoming weary and turning away from them. We are unspiritual, our thoughts and desires being taken up with other things. If we would stir ourselves to believe the things the angels desire to look into, our spiritual understanding and strength would increase daily. And look at this. We would then show more of the glory of Christ by the way we live and death itself would be welcome to us. Because while we have glimpses by his kindness of the glory of Christ in this life, someday the blinders will be taken off. Rick Getchell often has us sing these words when we come to the Lord's table as a church, written by Paul Q, I believe. Behold the lamb, the spotless lamb, who takes away our sin. The debt we faced was not erased, but paid in full by him. Behold the lamb, the bleeding lamb, who takes away the veil. His body torn, his soul forlorn, Christ cut to God a trail. Behold the lamb, the dying lamb, who takes away just wrath. God saw the blood of his beloved, and over us has passed. Behold the Lamb, the risen Lamb, who takes away death's sting. All knees shall bend, all praise ascend to Christ, the living King. So gaze on the Christ. How does he pray for you? He wants you to see his glory. Would you stand with me as we're dismissed in a word of prayer this evening? So Father, we come to you where all glory is aimed. Even the zeal and the glory of the Son is aimed and fixated on increasing your glory. So with open hearts, we look to the Son who is interceding for each one of us now, who wants us to be fixated on his glory. We pray in concert with him at the conclusion of this Lord's Day and as we walk out into this week that you've called us to and equipped us for, would you show us every day your glory, Lord Jesus. Spirit, Open up your word that we read and show us Jesus throughout scripture. Take our breath away. Blind our eyes with light and truth and marvel. May we be captured with the momentum that's thrusting us towards the cross and because of the cross and the empty grave, towards eternity. And may we, too, join in the zeal of the Son for the Father to be glorified in all and be all in all. Thank you, Lord, for praying this way for us and teaching us how to pray for ourselves and others. Show us your glory. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. God bless you.