The Glory of God

In the Gospel of John, Jesus is identified as the Logos, the “Word made flesh” in whom the “Glory of God” now resides. He is the Greater Tabernacle foreshadowed by the Tent carried by Israel in the wilderness, the place where Yahweh’s glory is manifested. And this declaration anticipates John’s later passages that link the Nazarene to the Father. Thus, the same man who gave his life for all humanity on the Cross is the ultimate expression of the glory of the God who created all things.

During her sojourn in the wilderness, Israel carried the “tent of meeting” wherever she went. The Tabernacle was the place where Yahweh met His people through their priestly representatives, the temporary dwelling place of His presence on the Earth, although access to His presence was limited and often fleeting.

[Photo by Jimmy Conover on Unsplash]

Only Moses on one occasion was granted the favor to behold the glory of God, but he only saw Yahweh’s “backside.” Full exposure to the Divine glory would have ended the Great Lawgiver’s life then and there - (Exodus 33:17-23, 34:1-6).

The Tabernacle was always a temporary structure, and its various functions foreshadowed the Greater Tabernacle to come. Moreover, as the Gospel of John confirms, the true and permanent “Tabernacle” is none other than Jesus of Nazareth, the “Word made flesh.”

Moreover, John’s Gospel applies the verbal form of the Greek word for “tent” to the life of Jesus. In His Son, God now “tabernacles” with His covenant people – (John 1:14).

In this same Jesus, all believers behold God’s glory and experience His presence. Access to Him is no longer confined to the Temple in Jerusalem or the Tabernacle in the wilderness, nor is it limited to the geographic boundaries of the land of Canaan or the city of Jerusalem– (John 1:14).

Both the ancient Tabernacle and the Jerusalem Temple were “types and shadows” of the greater reality that is found now only in Jesus. In Him, the Father is revealed, and apart from him, there is no accurate knowledge of God.

Thus, every man and woman who believes the words of Jesus “will see the glory of God.” The Son of God is the “way, truth, and life, and no one comes to the Father except through him” – (John 11:40, 14:6).

ONLY IN JESUS

The Father can only be known in His Son. Anyone who knows Jesus has seen the Father. The man who beholds him “beholds Him who sent me.” No one can experience the presence and knowledge of God apart from the “word made flesh.” He is the only place where God’s “Glory” is manifested openly for any man or woman to see – (John 12:45, 17:24).

When Philip asked Christ to reveal the Father, the Messiah of Israel responded - “He who has seen me has seen the Father!” As he declared earlier, he “that believes on me believes not on me, but on him that sent me”– (John 2:44, 14:7-9).

And so, in Jesus, the glory of God is revealed both now and forevermore. He is the ultimate expression of the Father. And though John maintains the distinction between Father and Son, they speak and act as one. Jesus only declares the words he first hears from his Father, and the glory that he manifests is the Father’s own glory.

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