Friday, 26 April 2024

The Upper Room Discourse 88

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John 17:22 The glory that You have given to Me I have given to them, that they may be one just as We are one -

In this subject verse, we have "glory" that goes around and comes around. The word "glory" appears in the Greek as "Doxa" (and in the Delitzsch version - see RT below - as "Kavod" in Hebrew). We need to examine this by digging deeper. What is that "glory" being given, first by the Father to Yeshua and then from Yeshua to His disciples.

Rabbi Trail: I love the Franz Delitzsch Version vineofdavid.ffoz.org/resources/dhe/the-delitzsch-hebrew-gospels/ of the Hebrew Gospels. Franz Delitzsch was a Jewish Bible scholar who accepted Yeshua as his Lord and Savior about 150 years ago. He then assembled a team to assist him in his work of translating the Gospel books into their proper Hebrew context (along with commentary). It is an excellent resource. I highly recommend it. (He went on to translate the entire New Testament into Hebrew.) End RT.

The Greek word Doxa is described as "exercising personal opinion which determines value." It is translated as good opinion (always good in NT), praise, honor, renown and splendor. Another amplification adds, "an especially divine quality, the unspoken manifestation of God." Let's stick with this to make these lofty words more meaningful.

The Hebrew word Kavod is related etymologically to the first Hebrew word of the fifth commandment. "Honor" your father and your mother ... Kabed Et Avicha V'Et Emecha. The connotation of the use of "glory" in these two languages is one of "value." God puts value on His Son and His Son puts value on each of us, His disciples.

But from where does that "value" come? How is it generated? What fuels it? The answer might surprise you. Glory is the blessing and benefit of obedience.

Philippians 2:7-9 But He emptied Himself - taking on the form of a slave, becoming the likeness of men and being found in appearance as a man. He humbled Himself - becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. For this reason God highly exalted Him and gave Him the name that is above every name.

We also, are called to a life of obedience. We had this teaching from earlier in the Upper Room Discourse. John 14:23-24 Yeshua answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word. My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our dwelling with him. He who does not love Me does not keep My words. And the word you hear is not Mine, but the Father's who sent Me.

What about grace? I'm glad you asked. Grace is the desire and ability to obey God. Note - God will never give desire without also giving ability. He loves us. If He gave desire without ability, that would be cruel. (End Note) Paul understood this truth when he wrote to the Corinthians ... 1 Corinthians 15:10 But by the grace of God I am what I am. His grace toward me was not in vain. No, I worked harder than them all - yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.

Peter wrote about this connection between grace and obedience. 2 Peter 1:2 May grace and shalom be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Yeshua our Lord. He connects both grace and shalom with the knowledge of God and Yeshua. To know God and Yeshua is always connected with obedience. I'm in company with none other than C.S. Lewis on this. Headline: REFLECTIONS: TO KNOW GOD IS TO OBEY GOD By C.S. Lewis Institution January 1, 2013. They even called it a reflection.