Have You Seen the Glory of Christ?

The Glory of Christmas

If you have a Bible nearby, please turn with me to John, Chapter 1. As Christmas approaches, here, in just a few days, I want to do what I can here to help you be refreshed and refocused in your appreciation for Jesus. I think it’s easy at Christmastime to just focus on the fact that Jesus came – that Jesus was a cute baby in a manger filled with straw. But sometimes we can neglect to really enjoy why Jesus’s coming matters, and what it tells us about the goodness and glory of God. So we’ll spend some time tonight looking at John Chapter 1, verse 14. Before I read our text tonight, though, please pray with me:

[Pray and Read Text]

Not Just Spoken, but Shown

When a young man and woman get married, it’s quite normal for them to exchange vows. And the things they say to each other are usually pretty significant. They promise to stand by each other’s side – to be committed to each other, “For better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do us part.” And because of the seriousness with which they say those words, there’s an understanding that they really, truly, will be there for their spouse.

But even though a promise like that is really a beautiful thing – even though there’s something really rich and meaningful about it – it becomes even more significant when these marriage vows are lived out, visibly. When the husband comes home with the crushing news that he’s lost his job – he knows that his wife has promised to be with him, “For better, for worse.” But it’s so much more meaningful when she visibly lives this promise out – when she responds to the news by putting her arms around her husband, and saying, “It’s okay. We’ll get through this together.” And in the same way – when the wife gets that awful diagnosis from the doctor – yes, her husband promised he’d stand by her in sickness and in health on their wedding day. But when her husband holds her hand, and looks her in the eyes, and tells her – I love you. I’m going to take care of you. And when he spends the weeks and the months and the years after that, doing the laundry, and cooking the meals, and caring for his ailing wife – the visible way he shows his love for her is even more precious and powerful than those vows he said as a young man. Words are meaningful. But we have something even greater when the real substance behind those words is visibly demonstrated before our eyes.

And in our text, one of Jesus’s followers is speaking, here – a man named John. And John tells us, that he hasn’t just heard God tell him about his divine glory. But he has actually seen God’s glory. He’s seen the glory of God physically lived out, with his own two eyes. He has literally gazed upon the greatness and splendor and majesty of the Most High Supreme being. And specifically, John wants us to know that he has seen this divine glory in the arrival of Jesus.

And so tonight, there’s really just one big idea from the text that I want to point out in our time together: Because Jesus came in the flesh at Christmas – because of his incarnation – we’re able to see the glory of God in the clearest, most compelling way possible. This is the main point I want to make – and then at the end I’ll give a few ways this should impact us.

The Word Became Flesh

You’ll see in our text, in verse 14, that John first draws attention to the fact of Jesus’s coming. We’re told that “the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us.” Just to clarify, when John talks about “the Word” here, it’s just a way to refer to Christ before he became a baby – before he was given his earthly name, Jesus. Because long before that first Christmas night, even before the foundation of the world was set in place, Jesus was already there. He existed in the heavenly places as the divine Son of God.

But then, John tells us – at just the right time, the Divine Word, the Son of God – the Eternal Glorious One of Heaven – he stooped down to our level. He became flesh, and he dwelt with mankind. Literally that word dwelt carries the idea with it that he set up a tent. He set up camp right in the midst of his people.

And as John points at what Jesus has done – how Jesus became a real baby in Bethlehem, and came to us – John gets excited. Because, he tells us – the word became flesh, and dwelt among us, “And we have seen his glory! Glory as of the only Son of the Father!” John wants us to know – that he and the other disciples have seen the glory of God, in a way that’s more exhilarating and amazing and expansive than anyone else in world history has ever seen! And John argues that it’s all because Jesus came 2000 Christmases ago, and set up his tent to dwell among us.

Didn’t People in the Old Testament See God’s Glory?

But before we go too far, you might wonder – didn’t people see incredible displays of God’s glory in the Old Testament, too? Especially, think of Moses. In the Old Testament, there’s quite possibly no one who’s considered to be closer to God, and more familiar with God, than the great prophet Moses. Remember, Moses is the man God used to rescue the Israelites from their slavery in Egypt – the one God worked through to send the plagues on Pharaoh, to part the Red Sea, and to send bread from heaven. Did John really see God’s glory more clearly than Moses?

It’s worth our time to consider this for a bit. Because as you might recall, on multiple occasions, Moses had some extraordinary encounters with God. The LORD revealed himself to Moses at the burning bush. He appeared to Moses, and to all the people, as a great pillar of cloud and fire, to lead them through the wilderness. The LORD made his presence known at the top of Mount Sinai with flashes of lightning, and thick darkness. We’re even told, at the beginning of Exodus 33, that God would come down in the form of a cloud and meet with Moses at a tent.

Remember how John said that the Word took on flesh and dwelt among us – he set up a tent among us? Well, that sounds just like something Moses experienced, too. So Moses saw it all! From the sound of it, surely Moses laid eyes on the glory of God just as well if not better than John. Right? And yet after all that Moses has seen, he has a rather surprising request – he asks God a question later in Exodus, Chapter 33. And here’s what he wants. He asks to see God’s glory.

Why? Well, it’s because Moses realizes – he hasn’t actually seen it yet. I think that this might surprise some of us. Because when we consider all those intense experiences – the fire, the dense cloud, the plagues, the powerful signs – we might assume that those kinds of things show us the fullest picture of God’s glory. Even today, people might assume that the glory of God is shown most clearly through magnificent church architecture, or through dramatic music and stage lighting, or through miracles and mighty wonders. And yet after all of his extraordinary spiritual experiences, Moses realizes that their value is more symbolic than anything else. They communicate something about God’s greatness – but the truest, fullest picture of God’s glory is still something that Moses hasn’t seen.

And so that’s why Moses asks to see God’s glory. And this request is granted, somewhat. Moses isn’t permitted to look at God’s glory front-on but he gets permission to catch a glimpse of it. And so if we’re reading our Bibles correctly – this should have on the edge of our seats. What will Moses see? What will the immense, otherworldly glory of God look like? Moses, tell us!

Yet when Moses eventually describes this experience – it’s not really what we would expect. Because there’s no mention of blinding lights from heaven or massive earthquakes, or the appearance of a giant spiritual emperor up in the clouds. But instead, this is what Moses tells us about seeing God’s glory, in Exodus 34, verse 6: “The LORD passed before him, and proclaimed, ‘The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.” That’s how God reveals his glory to Moses.

And what we learn from this is that the deep, real glory of God – it isn’t just about a fireworks show. It isn’t just about outward appearances, or supernatural power plays. But the true glory of God – the substance of it – is his goodness. It’s the profound, infinite goodness of his character. That’s at the heart of God’s glory. And in this encounter, Moses is told, specifically, what this dazzling goodness of the LORD consists of – first, that he’s a God who abounds with steadfast love – who overflows with grace. And second, that God abounds in faithfulness – in truth and trustworthiness. So as Moses catches his little glimpse of the glory of God in Exodus 34 – what he learns is that the LORD God is full of grace and truth.

Full of Grace and Truth

Does that sound familiar? Look with me at John 1:14 again. John tells us that “The Word became flesh, and dwelt among us. And we have seen glory – glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” The parallel between these two accounts isn’t an accident. In the ancient Greek texts of Exodus 34 and John 1:14, similar or identical words are used in both places to describe the appearance of God’s grace and truth. Moses caught a glimpse of God’s glorious goodness – just a glimpse of it. But John wants us to know that the glory of God is no longer something we need to view through a fuzzy old TV screen in black and white – but in the coming of Jesus, the image has now become crystal clear, in full color. What Moses just heard about God’s glory, we have now seen lived out in the service and sacrifice of Christ.

And we all need to know this – the grace and truth of Jesus – it’s seen most clearly at the cross. He gives us compelling evidence that his goodness isn’t just a nice-sounding idea – but there’s real flesh and blood to it. In the crucifixion, Jesus Christ puts his glorious mercy to sinners on display. Out of the abundance of Jesus’s steadfast love and faithfulness, he suffers the penalty for the sins of his people, and he raises us up to new, radiant life. Here in verse 14, John wants to make sure we don’t miss the mysterious heights and depths of divine glory that have been revealed to us, through the Christmastime arrival of Jesus Christ. If we’ve seen and understood his glory, it should affect how we live.

How Seeing the Glory of Christ Changes Us

I’ll mention three ways it should affect us.

First, it should cause us to treasure God’s gift to us. Our response to the arrival of Jesus should be like John’s response. We should be thrilled – and thankful – and excited to get the word out. We have seen his glory! Glory as of the only Son from the Father! If you know the saving grace of Jesus – and his faithfulness toward you – then you have seen what Moses longed to see. You have been given a window into heaven, to see the greatness of God. Don’t take Jesus for granted. But treasure him. Listen to his voice in the Scriptures, and learn from him. Watch him. Worship him. And of course, bear witness about him. Treasure God’s gift to us – the Christmas gift of Jesus.

But second, understanding Jesus’s glory should also cause us to treasure God’s character. Because, remember, that’s at the very center of what it means for God to be glorious. Certainly, God is powerful. Yes, God is brilliant. But the thing that makes God divinely perfect and wonderful is his goodness – the abundance of his steadfast love and faithfulness. And when we understand this is the case – it just makes sense that we’d desire to reflect God’s greatness ourselves – that one of our greatest desires would be to resemble Jesus Christ in his grace and truth. Understanding Jesus’s glory should cause us to treasure God’s character.

But one more thing, here – seeing his glory should also cause us to treasure God’s fullness – the fullness of his grace and truth. Don’t forget how the glory of Christ is described at the end of verse 14. It says that he’s full of grace and truth. He’s filled to the brim – overflowing! Exodus 34 says the same thing about the LORD’s steadfast love and faithfulness. He’s abounding in it.

And John really wants this to be pressed home to us. Jesus’s goodness isn’t limited somehow. The ocean of his grace and truth will never dry up. But as he draws near to sinners, to save us – he is full of grace and truth. And Jesus doesn’t just declare it. But he does something even more meaningful. He demonstrates it – by entering our world as a baby, by hanging on a cross for our sins, and by walking with us and working in us by His Holy Spirit.

So whether you’ve known about Jesus for decades, or you’re hearing about him for the first time tonight – behold the glory of Jesus – and don’t stop treasuring him. I hope you’re encouraged to do that this Christmas. Please pray with me:

Fellowship Reformed Church is a bible-believing Presbyterian church in Mt Pleasant, MI. We’ve been joyfully gathered together to be worshippers, workers, and witnesses for Christ.