How the Eternal Glory Shattered Eternity's Barrier and the Time Barrier — Ian Paisley

You will find an authorized version of the Holy Scriptures in front of you in the pew. And I might say that we only use the authorized Scripture in the King James Bible in this house. And our little leaflet, which has been run out of copies, has been tastefully printed again.

And you'll find copies of that leaflet quite free at the door. Take some of them and distribute them to your friends. The battle for the authorized version is a very important battle. And if we don't have pure Scriptures, we'll not have pure churches.

And if we don't have pure Scriptures, we'll not have pure Christians. So get copies of that, read it carefully, keep it in your Bible, and tell others about it. We're reading in the Gospel of John. John's Gospel.

The Prologue of John Reveals the Word’s Divine Identity

And we're reading at the chapter 1. The first chapter of John's Gospel. And we're reading down to verse 14. Taking your time from me, we'll read it together. Not mumble it like Episcopalians, but we'll read it like free Presbyterians should read the Word.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made.

In Him was life, and the life was the light of man. And the light shineth in darkness, and the darkness comprehended it not. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the light that all men through Him might believe.

He was not that light, but was sent to bear witness of that light. That was the true light, which lighteneth every man that cometh into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made by Him, and the world knew Him not.

He came unto His own, and His own received Him not. But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe in His name. Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

And the word was made flesh, and dwelt among us. And we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace. Ending our lesson at verse 14, and God will stamp His infallible Word with His own divine approval.

Amen and Amen. I take the promised Holy Ghost, the blessed power of Pentecost. To the uttermost, I take. Thank God, thank God, He undertakes for me. And the people of God said, Amen. You may be seated.

The Eternal Glory and the Incarnation of the Word

Turn with me please, in your Bibles, unto the first chapter of John's Gospel. Unto that great text in verse 14. And the word was made flesh, and dwelt among us. And we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace.

And my subject this morning is how the eternal glory shattered eternity's barrier, and the time barrier as well. The word of the Bible is the word of the living God. And like its author, it liveth and abideth forever.

The first chapter of the Gospel of John has been used to the conversion of many, many, many, many precious souls. The junior was a great author in the early days of the church. He was converted through reading this chapter.

He says in one of his books, my father, who was a Christian, who was frequently reading this New Testament, and had long observed with grief the progress I was making in infidelity. The Gospel of John in my way, in order to attract my attention.

And he prayed that his son would take up that Gospel and read it. One day I was in his library. I saw the Gospel of John that he had laid there. And I took it up really out of curiosity. But I wasn't very long reading the first chapter that the Holy Spirit fastened His power upon me.

I was so effected. I was struck with the divinity of its argument. The majesty and authority of its composition. And the infinitely surpassing highest flight of human eloquence. My body was shuddered.

My mind was in amazement. I was agitated. I scarcely knew who I was and what I was doing. In other words, I came under conviction of sin. And my father had the great joy of pointing me, his son, to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

All the Scriptures are signposts to one person and to one person alone. That is our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. What a text this 14th verse is. And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us. And we beheld His glory.

The glory as of the only begotten of the Father. Full of grace. There are seven aspects of the coming of Christ in this most precious Scripture. First of all, you have the mark of His pre-coming. There was a time when our Savior was not clothed in flesh.

When He dwelt in the bosom of the Father. And had not yet touched the virgin's womb. He was rather described in the first two verses of this chapter. In the beginning was the Word. And the Word was with God.

And the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. What was in the pre-coming period? He was the uncreated Son. He was the incomprehensible Son. He was the eternal Son. He was the Almighty Son of God.

In the Trinity, and in the unity of that Trinity, there is one Father. Not three Fathers. There is one Son. Not three Sons. There is one Holy Spirit. Not three Holy Spirits. The three persons are co-eternal.

And co-equal together. In the Trinity, there is none before. Or none after. There is none greater. And there is none lesser than the other. The wonderful Trinity of God. Jesus Christ was God. One with the Father and the Holy Spirit.

From all eternity. Give to the Father praise. Give glory to the Son. And to God the Holy Ghost, the equal honor done. Mark carefully, that in the eternity before His incarnation, the Lord was given something from His Father.

I was greatly struck with this, this week. What did He receive? He received a special gift of glory. We are not told when in eternity it was done. But all things done in eternity are eternal. You can have nothing of time in eternity.

Except God so ordained it. So then, giving was an eternal giving. And thus, glory that was given was the eternal glory. Listen to these astounding words. You will find them in John 17 verse 24. And the glory, the Son said, which thou gavest Me, Father.

The glory. Note the doubling of this glory. He had personal glory as the eternal Son. But now God gave Him extra glory. Given to Him by His Father in His pre-coming period. Note carefully that it is this glory which Jesus wanted His elect to behold when they came to heaven.

He said, Father, I will that they also, whom Thou hast given Me, be with Me where I am. That they may behold My glory which Thou hast given Me. For Thou lovest Me before the foundation of the world. This was the glory of Emmanuel's Lamb.

When in eternity was there such a milestone of celestial purpose. That the Father added His Son special to the Son of God alone. And then I thought of a day when Father, Son and Holy Ghost. In the ages of the great past eternity met.

And the Father appointed His Son to leave the eternity. To come down into time yet to be committed. To walk upon a world yet to be created. And to save sinners yet to inhabit this world. And I believe at that time when His Son said, I delight to do Thy will, O my God.

That the Father gave His Son this special glory. And it is that glory that we are going to view in the eternity above. When you and I, redeemed from this earth, will be changed from glory to glory. It will be the glory of Emmanuel's Lamb.

Christ Became Flesh and Took Human Nature

Now we see, my brethren, through a glass darkly. But then, the face, and what is in the face of the glory of God. Secondly, mark something more. We have looked at His pre-coming. Mark now His becoming.

The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us. We beheld His glory. The glory as of the only begotten of the Father. Full of grace and truth. The Word became flesh. The Son of God came to this world. Who was He?

He was God made flesh. Here miracle was piled upon miracle. And wonder, Christ came in the likeness of sinful flesh. What a statement. It doesn't say He came in the likeness of human flesh. It says He came in the likeness of sinful flesh.

The body of Christ bore the marks. He too knew what it was to be weary. He too knew what it was to be weak. He too knew what it was to be sad. He too knew what it was to bear the opposition of hell. In His own mind and in His own body.

The Word of God. The eternal Son became flesh. I picked up that great ancient Nicene Creed of Saint Athanasius. The man who fought the first Unitarian heresy in the early church. Saint Athanasius wrote the great fundamentalist creed.

He said in it, For the right faith is that we believe and confess that our Lord Jesus, the Son of God, is God and man. God of the substance of the Father. Begotten before the world. And man of the substance of his mother.

Born into the world. Perfect God and perfect man. Of a reasonable soul and human flesh subsistence. Equal to the Father as touching His Godhead. Inferior to the Father as touching His manhood. For He said, My Father is greater than I.

Who although He be God and man, yet He is not two, but He is one Christ. One not by the conversion of the Godhead into flesh, but rather by the taking of manhood into God. One together, not by confusion of substance, but by unity of person.

For as the reasonable soul and flesh is one man, so God in man and man is one Christ. Who suffered for our salvation. Who descended into hell. He rose again the third day from the dead. He ascended into heaven.

He sitteth in the right hand of the Father. God Almighty, from whence He shall come to judge the quick and the dead. Of whose coming all men shall rise again with their bodies and shall give account of their own works.

They that have done good shall go into life everlasting. And those that have done evil into everlasting fire. This is the true Christian faith. Which except a man believes faithfully, he cannot be seen.

The Word became. Mark what He became. What a wonder is this. What a miracle is this. What a shattering of eternity's barriers and time's barriers is this. But look again at the text. And you will mark His coming.

The Word Tabernacled Among Us

The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us. And dwelt among us. God not only became flesh, but He dwelt among us. The Word in the original Greek text is tabernacle. Put up His tent among us. He pitched His tent in our encampment.

Wonder of wonder, wonders that He should live with us and become our neighbor. No wonder He had so much to say about neighbors. For He was a neighbor to us and to the whole world. As He came to them, He came to do something.

To draw attention to Himself. It was by hearing His gospel, by waiting and looking on Him, man and woman could be saved. When they believed in Him and believed on Him, they partook of enlightening and enlivening glory.

Given to Him by His Father. And He became Jesus, the light of the world. So much about His coming. But mark His post coming. When He came, what happened? He came unto His own. And the word there in the Greek text is His own people, His own nation.

Christ’s Rejection and the Call to Look to Him

And they received Him not. He was rejected in His post coming period. They put their hands to their eyes so that they would not see Him. They put their fingers into their ears so that they would not hear Him.

They refused deliberately, sinfully, shamefully to look on Christ, the only Savior of the world. What a division. What a condemnation. What a damnation. Some looked, but more looked away. Some turned to Christ when He was upon this earth, but more turned away from Christ when He was upon this earth.

So much so that the Lord Jesus Himself lamented. And He said, many are called, but few, but few, but few are chosen. But Christ did not give up. He still went on showing Himself to the people and manifesting His glory until He expired on the old tree of the cross.

He was despised. He was rejected. He was spat upon. But even on His very cross, the word, behold, still passed on His lips. Why? Because by seeing Christ and seeing Christ alone, we can be seen. Oh, if dying men and women only looked to Christ, they would live through Him and by Him and with Him forevermore.

I read an old hymn this week, and it runs like this. Jesus, when faith with fixed eyes beholds Thy wondrous sacrifice, love rises to an ardent flame, and we all other hope disdain. With cold affections who can see the thorns, the scourge, the nails, the tree?

Thy flowing tears and purple sweat, Thy bleeding hands and head, look saints into His opening sight. The breach, how large, how wide, how deep, then seizes forth a double flood of cleansing water, pardoning blood.

And so, my soul, a balsam flows. Heal of thy wounds and cure thy woes. Immortal joys come screaming down, joys like as grief's immense undo. Thus I would ever, ever sing the sufferings of my heavenly King.

Christ’s Prophetic Glory at the Transfiguration

The glowing pleasures spread abroad, the mystery, the mysteries of a dying. But fifthly, we have in this text a warning to us all to mark His prophetic. Upon the mount of transfiguration, the glory of Christ burst through on one special.

And if you read the narrative of His transfiguration in Luke's Gospel, chapter 9, verse 28 to 36, you'll find out as Jesus prayed, His countenance was offered and His raiment was white and glistening.

The glory that was in Him burst through. Man appeared to Him. Who were they? Moses and Elias. And what does it say of them? Who appeared in glory. So there was the glory of Christ, unique, unparalleled.

It was His and His alone. But the two men that met Him, they had a glory of their own. And they spoke of His decease. They had a conversation on the mount of transfiguration about Calvary, which He was going to accomplish at Jerusalem.

And it came to pass, as those two men left Him, Peter said unto Jesus, Master, it is good for us to be here. Let us make three tabernacles, one for Thee, one for Moses, and one for Elias. Not knowing what He said.

While He thus spake, there came a cloud and overshadowed them. And they feared as they entered into the cloud. And there came a voice out of the cloud saying, This is my beloved Son here. And when the voice was passed, Jesus was found.

Elias was only a servant. Moses. Christ stands alone as the only Savior. And as He was transfigured, it says that the disciples saw His glory. Look at verse 32. It says they were heavy with sleep, but when they were awake, they saw His glory.

So it was the glory of Christ, the glory of Moses and Elias. And then there was the glory that they saw. It is said of all five, they saw His prophetic glory in dazzling splendor. Sixthly, mark His unique coming.

The Chosen and Converted People Who Behold Christ’s Glory

His glory was beheld as the glory of the only begotten Son. And we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father. Jesus said the chosen people would see His glory. And He said, ye have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you.

He said the called people, those specially called, will see My glory. He said the converted people will see My glory. For only a changed man, a changed woman, a changed boy or a changed girl, can look with the eye of faith on the face where the glory of God is.

And He also said a confirmed people, those that are sealed unto the day of final redemption, they can see the glory. Are you a chosen person? Are you a called person? Are you a converted person? Are you a confirmed person?

If you are, you are entitled to see the glory of Christ. And seventhly and lastly, full of grace and truth, mark His full coming. This coming of Christ had a fullness all of its own. Please note carefully that this was a blessed fullness.

Grace and Truth United in Christ’s Redemption

He was full of truth. No, truth takes second place. If you had to deal with God first on the base of truth, you would be put into hell. But God deals with you first on the basis of truth. So the first thing that you see when you see Christ is not truth.

You see grace. Grace that can pardon you, that can forgive you. Grace that can open your blinded eyes to see the glory of God in the face of Jesus. Oh the wonder of it. He was full. As old John Newton said, it was well for me a sinner saw grace first, for I would have no chance when consigned to hell to ever see the grace of God.

So grace there is by every death to pay. Blood there is to wash by every guilt of sin away day by day in Christ for me. Now having seen the grace, I receive the truth. And the first thing I receive is that Christ is the truth.

I am the way, the truth, and the life. It is blessed truth. It's blessed grace. But they're blended together. It's not grace and then after that, without the conjunction and, grace is mentioned. No, they're mentioned together for grace and truth are blended together in the work of our pardoning and our redemption.

It is also balanced. He gives us the grace we need, the right amount. He gives the truth and the right amount to his people. D .L. Moody once prayed to be filled with the Holy Ghost and the power of God came on him in a street in Chicago and he went to a house and he said to the woman in the house, he said, can you give me a room with a lock on it?

She says, are you alright? He says, yes, I'm alright, but I must get along with my God. She took him upstairs and she gave him a room with a lock on it and he locked the door and he knelt down and the glory of God came upon D .L. Moody and he lay on the floor and he said, Oh God, you've got to lift your hand from me for if you don't I'll die.

I can't take any more. God blended the grace with the truth and from that day Moody turned Chicago upside down with the power that he had and the preaching of the gospel. God balances truth and grace.

But thank God best of all, it's blessed. Oh, the grace of God is a blessed thing and the truth of God is a blessed thing. These are not crutches that we use on the way to heaven. These are our blessed companions to Emmanuel's land.

We walk with grace every day. We talk with truth every day for Jesus is both grace and truth. Come ye that love this Saviour's name and joy to make it known the sovereign of your heart proclaim and bow before his throne.

Behold your King, your Saviour crowned with glories all divine and tell the wandering nations round how bright these glories shine. Infinite power and boundless grace in him unite their ways. You that have seen his face can you forget his praise.

May God show us the one today who is full of truth. Let us pray. For thy precious word, O Lord, we give thee thanks. We thank thee for opening our eyes that we might behold wondrous things out of thy law.

Bless us as we gather around thy table and may we receive thy grace and receive thy truth. Sweetly blessed. Sweetly blended. Sweetly balanced. May we receive them in Jesus' name. And everybody say, Amen.