We Beheld His Glory — Stephen Kaung

The Word Became Flesh and We Beheld His Glory

Will you please turn to the Gospel according to John, chapter 1, verse 14. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have contemplated His glory, a glory as of an only begotten with a Father, full of grace and truth.

The same Gospel, chapter 11, chapter 17, chapter 17, verse 24. Father, as to those whom thou hast given me, I desire that where I am they also may be with me, that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me, for thy love is with me before the foundation of the world.

Second Corinthians, chapter 4, verse 6. Because it is the God who spoke that out of darkness light should shine, who has shone in our hearts for the shining forth of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

May we look to the Lord in prayer. Lord, we know that thou art here, we are standing on holy ground, and we do want to remove our shoes prostrate before thee, because thou art the Lord of glory. We ask that thy glory will fill this house as we consider thy glory.

We pray that we may have eyes to see, ears to hear, and heart to understand. O Lord, show us thy glory in the name of our Lord Jesus. We have been considering together on this very important matter, thine is the kingdom, thine is the power, and thine is the glory.

This is the whole Bible. We do thank God that kingdom belongs to him, power belongs to him, and glory belongs to him. Our God is the God of glory. Glory is his. Glory subsists in him and him alone. He is the only one who is full of glory.

There is the glory of God as God, which he will never share with another, because he is God. But thank God, he is not only the God of glory, he is also the Father, and as Father, he is the source, the spring, and the giver.

So he desires very much to share with us a certain aspect of his glory. The glory of his life, his divine nature, his own character, and together with these, his kingdom and his power. Now these are the aspects of the glory of God that he is most anxious to share with his people.

We have to acknowledge that when we touch this matter of the glory of God, it is beyond us. We have no way to define it because God is infinite. And whenever you find to define anything, you really confine it to an indefinite area.

But our God is infinite, therefore his glory is infinite. It cannot be defined. The little that we know of the glory of God is by association. He reveals his glory to us through his name. And by knowing his name, we know something of his character.

We know something of his inward being, who he is, and what kind of God he is. Furthermore, we find that we know a little bit of his glory through manifestation. Through the whole Bible you find again and again he manifests himself to his people.

Now as a matter of fact, these manifestations probably are not as deep as association. Because by manifestation, it gives us an impression of his majesty, of his greatness, of his power, of his holiness.

In other words, manifestation gives us more of an outward expression. But association gives us more of an inward being. Now this morning, we would like to share together on this matter of we beheld his glory.

Christ’s Desire That His People Behold His Glory

The apostle John, in writing the gospel, he said, The word became flesh and tabernacled among men, full of grace and truth. But in the parenthesis, he put, We beheld his glory, even the glory as of an only begotten with a father.

Now brothers and sisters, of course we know that this refers to the glory of Christ. You remember, in John chapter 17, it is commonly called his high priestly prayer. And in that prayer, he himself, in verse 24, he asked the father.

He said, Father, as to those whom thou hast given me, I desire. In other words, you find the Lord Jesus has a desire. And he expressed that desire to his father. He prayed to his father. He tells his father what he wants, what he desires.

And brothers and sisters, the father, no doubt, fears him. And what is the desire? He said, I desire that where I am, they also may be with me. That they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me, for thou hast loved me before the foundation of the world.

In other words, you find that it is the desire of our Lord. That we should behold his glory. To behold his glory. He said, where I am, they also may be with me. If you want to behold something, you have to be there.

You have to be with him. If you are distant from him, away from him, how can you behold the beauty of the Lord? So the condition is, the Lord said, where I am, that they also may be. That they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me.

Now of course we know that when our Lord was praying that high priestly prayer, it was on the eve of his being betrayed and later to be crucified. In other words, he was departing from this world. And he is going back to his father.

Now that is very true. But if we know something of the gospel according to John. If we know something of the spirit, that John writes the gospel. We know John is not a person who is concerned with time and space.

He is a person more concerned with eternity. With the ultimate. In other words, he is not concerned with the physical. He is deeply concerned with the spiritual. So when you read the gospel according to John, even though he may say, where I am, that they also may be with me.

Now the where, probably we will think, well that is heaven. Because he is going, leaving this world and returning to his father. So that will be the third heaven. The throne of God. Way up, far away. Now if the Lord says where I am, they also may be with me.

Then we have to wait thousands of years. Before we can ever behold his glory. So to me I feel, I may be wrong. If I am wrong, please correct me. To me I feel, with the apostle John, even when he used the word where, which is a place, and yet the where is spiritual.

In other words, where is the where? It is the heavenlies. Brothers and sisters, you remember, in Ephesians, our brother has mentioned already, how the exceeding greatness of the power of God demonstrate in raising our Lord Jesus from the dead.

And not only that, but have exalted him up high by the throne of God. In the heavenlies. And then when you go on to Ephesians chapter 2, as our brother said, there is actually no chapter division. It is a continuation.

And you will find that power that has raised Christ from the dead and has lifted him up, exalted him to the heaven is the same power that is working in us, quickening us, raised us up with Christ and also seeded us with him in the heavenlies.

Now the heavenlies is a place. It is a spiritual place. You do not locate it here or there. It is everywhere if you are there. So here you find when John said, where I am, the Lord is in the heavenlies.

He is in that heavenly realm. And by his grace, through his redemption, he has brought us into the heavenlies. Brothers and sisters, physically we are here on earth. Physically we are confined to a location.

We are in Richmond now. Not only in Richmond, but even smaller than that, we are in University of Richmond. We are here. And we are limited by time too. We are here. Now. And if it is now, it is not then, it is not afterwards.

Physically we are here on this earth. And in a sense, we say the Lord is not here. Because he is in heaven. That is true. To a certain sense. But dear brothers and sisters, how much better it is. Knowing that, even though physically we are here, yet spiritually we are in the heavenlies.

We do not belong to this earth. We are not the people of the earth. We are heavenly people. Our dwelling place is in the heavenly realms. Where our Lord Jesus is. This is where we are. And brothers and sisters, because of this, we can behold his glory, even today.

You don't need to wait for two thousand or more years. We don't know how long it will be, before you can see his glory. But thank God our Lord Jesus desires that we may behold his glory, which God has given to him, even now.

Christ’s Essential Glory and Given Glory

In prayer, you find that our Lord Jesus actually mentions two different aspects of his glory. John chapter 17 verse 5. And now glorify me, thou Father, along with thyself, with the glory which I have along with thee before the world was.

Now here the Lord Jesus mentioned one glory. He said, Now glorify me, thou Father, along with thyself, with the glory. Now what glory is that? With the glory which I had along with thee before the world was.

Seven years ago, the Word became flesh. The beginning was the Word. And the Word was with God. And the Word was God. But two thousand years ago, this Word became flesh. In other words, you find that the Word, the Son, the eternal Son, the second person of the Godhead, he who shares with his Father, and the Spirit, glory that belongs to the Godhead, and to the Godhead alone.

There is a glory that God will never share with anyone. It is His. Forever. And here you'll find that glory is only shared among the three persons. The Triune God. There is a glory that God the Son shared with His Father even before the world was.

Even before there was time. Even before there was space. In eternity past. In the beginning, God. The self-existing God. And with God there is a glory there. A glory. The glory of God. And here you'll find the Son.

He shared that glory with His Father from the very beginning. It is His. By right. But He left. He left that glory behind Him when the Word became flesh. Now He was going back. He prayed, Father, glory which I had along with Thee before the world was.

Where is that glory? That glory is the glory of God as God. God is going back. Return to that glory. That was His. Brothers and sisters, this is not the glory that He desired of Father that we may behold.

Why, as we mentioned the first time, no one can see God and live. As Brothers Fox said, the naked glory of God means destruction. Too bright for us. Too glorious. Unapproachable light. No one can see that glory belongs to God.

And God alone. Only shared among the Godhead. And that is the glory that our Lord is returning when He prays His prayer. But then, towards the end of His prayer, He asked the Father, He said, Father, I desire that those who believe in Me, those who are Mine, whom Thou has given to Me, I desire that they may see My glory.

But remember, He specified. He said, that they might see My glory Thou has given Me. In other words, you'll find here is His glory that is given to Him. The glory in verse 5 is His. By right. Not given.

But the glory in verse 24 is given to Him. By whom? By the Father. One is what the theologians will call the essential glory. The essential glory is the glory of God as God. His very being. Alone. Unique.

Himself. Comparable. And then you have another glory which is called given glory. And this given glory is the Father gives to His Son because His Son has obeyed Him, has come into this world has proved Himself well pleased to the Father and has accomplished the work that the Father has given to Him.

Therefore, as the Son of Man He is given a glory. He is given the world as His inheritance. The kingdom as His inheritance. This is the glory that He desires that we may see. And thank God we may see.

So brothers and sisters when we are considering this matter of beholding His glory that is beholding the glory of Christ actually we are in this second realm. We are not talking about that essential glory.

We are talking about that given. To John chapter 1 verse 14 The Word became flesh and tabernacled among men full of grace and truth. When He was on earth as God's tabernacle and truth to see Him to hear Him near to Him you are maybe quickened or maybe frightened by His grace and His truth.

Walk upon this earth and when you touch that man you find He is full of grace. You find He is full of truth. In the parenthesis if you belong to those in the parenthesis if you contemplate in other words if your touch with this man is not just an outward just hearing is not just but if you contemplate if you consider the grace of God has your inner eye open and your inner ear open and your heart open what do you see?

You not only see here is a man full of grace and truth but you see the glory as of an only begotten in other words the world may see grace and truth. Some believe some reject so far as those by the grace of God has their eyes open the Father has revealed the Son in them then what they see is glory.

They see glory. What kind of glory that is He said it is as the glory of an only begotten. With brothers and sisters we were like to to consider together matter of beholding His glory. What is the glory?

Christ as the Perfect Representation of God

First of all His glory as a perfect representation of God the Father His glory as a perfect representation of God. You know God is a God who loves to reveal Himself as in Hebrews 1 verse 1 it said in the former days God has spoken to our fathers through the prophets in many ways and in many manners in parts and in pieces frequently but in the last day He speaks to us in the Son.

In other words you will find that throughout the history of mankind God tries to reveal Himself and He tries to speak to man. He tries to tell man who He is and what He is like. Because unless He reveals Himself we will never be able to know Him.

He is a mystery. And only when the mystery is revealed then it becomes an open secret an experience of Him to us. So you find in human history from the very beginning in the Garden of Eden God tries to reveal Himself to man.

You find that God raised up man and women to represent Him. That through these men and women who knew Him the world may come to know. Who? All these men. Noah Enoch Abraham David Moses David the prophets.

You find that God because of His love for us because He wants us to know Him. Therefore He raised up people to represent Him. But no matter how they represent it's only pieces only fragmentary. Why? Because men are so imperfect.

Men are so limited. Often times you find we misrepresent Him more than representing Him. But thank God when the word became flesh that God has found a perfect representation. That's why in the gospel of John it says.

No one has ever seen the Father. But the Son who is in the bosom of the Father He has declared Him. We do not know what kind of God He is. We do not know who He is. But our Lord Jesus declares Him He is in the bosom of the Father.

He knows the very heart of the Father and He declares the Father to the fullest. If you want to know God the Father just know Him and you know all of it. You can know the Father. And strangely you find after He was with His disciples for three or some years during His last gathering with His disciples who was one of the earliest who came to the Lord.

Show us the Father. Oh how it must grieve. The Lord said I have been with you all these years. And you are still asked do you not know that if you see Me you see the Father brothers and sisters of God of the glory of God.

Perfect representation of God in 2nd Corinthians chapter 2. Chapter 4. 2nd Corinthians chapter 4 verse 6. Because it is the God who spoke that out of darkness light should shine. Who has shown in our hearts for the shining forth of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Now brothers and sisters how we thank God. The God who spoke has now shined for the reading of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. In other words when you see the face of Jesus Christ you see the glory of God.

You get the knowledge of the glory we mentioned last time. Moses not satisfied with the manifestations that he had experienced of God. He knew something of God's glory. Because from the very beginning you find that he saw the burning bush and God spoke to him face to face.

And by face to face it doesn't mean the naked face of God. It means that in some form. And you find God manifest himself under the clouds. Moses desire to know God. Now Moses said show me thy face. And God said no you cannot see my face.

No man can see my face and live. But I will pass by you. I will hide you in the cleft of the rock put my hand over you until I pass and I will leave my name with you. In other words Moses was allowed to see the back side of God not the face.

And brothers and sisters even that when Moses came down from the mountain his face you cannot see the glory of God without being glorified. That today God allows us to see his glory in the face of Jesus Christ.

In other words it's not just a name we already mentioned. A name is when a person is absent. That is when the name works. But when the person is there you see his face. And how much better that you can see in the face of our Lord Jesus.

Oh the face of our Lord Jesus is the face of God. We have such a privilege not just seeing the back but even the glory of God in the face. Brothers and sisters do you see the face of Jesus. Do you see his face everyday.

To see a face you have to be very close to see his face. You have to turn to him. And you will find the words of the prophets always calling his people return. Turn back and he will turn to you. So how we need to turn to our Lord Jesus.

Do not look elsewhere. If you look elsewhere you do not see the glory of God. Only place that you can see the glory of God is in the face of Jesus Christ. Look at him gaze upon him behold him. And brothers and sisters you see in his face the glory.

Perfect rep of what God. If we see the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ will not our faces. I want to quote brothers T. Austin Fox again to be seen nakedly means destruction. But God manifest in Christ means that something has come between the blazing light to break it into his components and gives us the effect of a prism.

P .R .I .S .M. So that the blessing the blazing white ray is now come in all his manifold hues. The body of Christ was like a prism breaking up for us the rays of infinite holiness. And we are able to see what God is in Christ.

Now let me read it again because I feel it is so clear it really explain it to us. But to be seen nakedly means destruction. Now we all understand this now. But God manifest in Christ means that something has come between the blazing light.

It is a blazing light that blinds every eyes. Not only blinds but heals every man. But here you find when God manifest in Christ there is something that comes in between that blazing light and serves as a prism to break the light into his component parts so that we can see all the different hues.

The light is break into all the different colors. Now the body of Christ that is the incarnated son the body of Christ is like that prism breaking up for us the rays of infinite holiness. In a sense you know God is holy.

But that infinite holiness that we can never see is too holy for us. But here you find it is break into the rays of infinite holiness. We are able to see God what God is who God is. And he say also he said it was glory interpreted in terms of grace and truth.

It was the glory of God through the prism of his humanity. It was the glory of God showing himself through a human life along the lines of grace and truth. Here you find the glory of God is manifested in a human being and this human being is none other than the incarnated son.

And because he comes as a human being his humanity is the prism that breaks the blazing light of God impenetrable holiness of God into something that we can see we can hear we can touch we can contemplate and we even can participate.

Grace and Truth Revealed in Christ’s Signs

That glory is interpreted in terms of grace. What is grace? The gospel according to John that tells us of the life of the Lord Jesus on earth full of grace and truth. But then you turn to first John first epistle of John.

And there you find the apostle John is trying to tell us who God is. He said God is love. That is what God is is light in him. There is no darkness. And brothers and sisters what is grace? Grace is the expression of the love of God through the grace of our Lord that God is light and there is no darkness in him.

Because expression of light is truth. The Lord said I am I mentioned last night of the gospel of John. We know the gospel of John is the gospel of the ultimate. And you find that there are a number of signs.

All the miracles in the gospel of John are called signs. They are miracles. They are wonders. John used the word sign in other words do not stay with these miracles but go beyond these miracles. And see something now that is John, the gospel of John.

Now in all these signs they show us he is full of grace to illustrate it. The first miracle that our Lord Jesus performed is during the wedding the marriage in Cana turning the water into wine. Now don't stay with the miracle and hope that all your waters will turn into wine.

That is not the meaning of it. You know in our life on this earth marriage is one of the highlights. Marriage is one of the happiest moments. Here you find it begins with the marriage. It was a very happy occasion.

Everybody was happy. Oh how they enjoyed the feast. How they enjoyed the wine prepared for them. But then you know as usual all the happiness on this earth always ends up in shame. Fortunately the Lord was there as our brother said graciously.

He turned the water into wine. He made that which is flesh into something tasty. He changed the sorrow into joy into glory into abundance. Because six huge stone basins full of wine. Not just for that wedding time but probably for their lifetime.

That is grace. Through that grace you find St. John said this is the first sign that he demonstrated his glory. Remember his glory the glory of the grace. And then you pick the last sign. The last sign is at home.

Lazarus was dead. And you remember when the sisters went to tell the Lord your friend the one whom you love is sick. And the Lord stayed away for two more days. And he told his disciples he said this sickness is not unto death but for the glory of and then after four days he arrived there and Lazarus was already in the tomb for four days and our Lord Jesus raised him out of the dead.

Lazarus come forth. Fortunately the Lord said Lazarus otherwise the Lord said come forth or the dead will come forth. And here you find Lazarus come forth. Brothers and sisters this is the glory of God.

Life, the Lord said I am the resurrection and the life. This is the truth. This is the eternal truth. God is life not death. The Lord is the resurrection and the life. But why? Because he entered into death robbed death of his power.

And come out on the other side victorious. That is the truth. Brothers and sisters grace and truth. If you contemplate if you think you see the glory as of an only begotten with you will find that the scripture used as of an only begotten with a father.

It doesn't use the word as the only begotten with the father. It used an indefinite now that doesn't mean he is not. It simply means the emphasis is different, in other words he is a son the son with the father.

But here the glory that we contemplate is the glory as of an only begotten with a father. In other words it is not the relationship of the father and the son that is the emphasis that they are but it is the representation that is so the glory here is the given glory that we see.

So Westcott Westcott said the glory of the incarnate word a glory that is of one who represents another being derived from him and of the same essence with him, the idea conveyed is that of not, is not that of sonship only but of mission.

And I think that explains it. I have to dwell on this first point more. My time is almost up. Hebrews chapter 1. Hebrews chapter 1 verse 3 being the effulgence of his glory and expression of his substance and upholding all things by the word of his power having made by himself the purification of sin set himself down on the right hand of the greatness.

Here you find the incarnate son, Christ is the effulgence of God, the effulgence means in other versions a brightness, a radiance. It is like the light that shines forth from the sun. Now you cannot look at the sun but is the light that shines upon you.

And yet even though in that illustration you may think that if it is the brightness, the radiancy of his glory that comes out of the glory of God but is other than the glory of God so immediately you find the writer says that he is the expression of his substance or the exact image.

In other words even though he comes out from God and yet he is one with God he is the exact image. We are told that this word image here in Greek is character. He is the character what God essentially is by the character.

Now the word character. Alexander White says the artist and the handicrafters of Greece employed this word to describe the itching on the face of a seal or the engraving on the face of a stamp. In other words you find that character something that is itchy.

You may use an iron tool or something to itch something on the face of a seal or it is the engraving on the face of a stamp. In other words it is the exact thing it is the exact image just the same as the original and that is the character.

So we find the glory of God is manifested as expressed through his character. Brothers and sisters how do we know a person. How do we judge a person. You judge a person by his character. I have a very formal definition here.

Bishop Butler has a very solid definition of character. He said by character is meant that temper taste, disposition and the whole frame of mind from which we act in one way rather than in another way.

Principles from which a man acts when he became fixed and habitual in him we call his character is the character of God the father the whole. The father's whole character is fully and foremost and sealed down upon his son is the full representation.

Christ’s Moral Glory and Perfect Holiness

We see him in his face the glory. I have to borrow some time from you all and if you get tired you can walk out. I will not be offended because it is me who offends you. We see the glory of the Lord in his life.

In other words the moral glory of the Lord. I want to quote another one J .B. Bennett he said the glories of the Lord Jesus are threefold and moral. His personal glory he veiled faith discovered it or on occasion demanded it.

His official glory he veiled likewise he didn't walk through the land as either the divine son from the bosom of the father or as the authoritative son of David. Such glories were commonly hidden as he passed on in the circumstances of life day by day.

But his moral glory could not be hidden. He could not be less than perfect in everything it belongs to him. It was himself from his intense excellency. It was too bright for eyes of man and man was under constant exposure and rebuke from it but there it shone whether man could bear it or not.

Now it illuminates every page of the full evangelist as it once did every path which the lord himself trod on the earth. There is a moral glory brothers and sisters you never see a man. We do not have the time to go into it.

If you read the gospel according to Luke you find that he who was born was called the holy thing. When he was born he was called the holy thing. When he was 12 years old he said I must be occupied with my fathers business.

He was devoted to his heavenly father. And yet he left the temple returned with his earthly parents and submitted himself devoted to god the father and submission to his earthly parents. You find that he came to be baptized not because he needed it but to fulfill all righteousness.

You find when he was tempted he was not like the first Adam the first man the second man. How he denied himself to the uttermost and obeyed only he put his rock on this earth. No one can find a single sin in his life.

He can challenge his enemies. Anyone can point out where the one who betrayed him confessed that he has betrayed an innocent man. The judge knew that he was innocent. In other words he was the perfect man.

He was on the hypocrite but he was tender to sinners he said forbid them. He was approachable and yet he disciplined before god and before man the same. The moral glory of the lord Jesus. Brothers and sisters is something for us to contemplate.

The more we contemplate his moral glory the more ashamed we are. Even the heavens open and say this is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased. His own condition is concerned. He has come into this world walk on this earth.

Do the will of the father perfect. The man that god had in the very beginning desired to have was here and he could easily exit from this earth from the mount of transfiguration, but he didn't. He chose to exit from this world the moral glory.

And in that glory we see the glory of god. Not only that, thirdly we find his work. We see his glory in his work in his mission. It is a mission accomplished it is finished. How difficult is that mission.

How he was tempted all the time to depart from that mission. But he obeyed his father even to death and to death. No wonder paul said I glory in the cross, we see his glory in his exhortation. How he was exhorted by the father and was given a name that is above every name, and to that name every knee shall bow every to confess that jesus is lord and apostle john gets a glimpse of it in revelation chapter 5.

The lamb newly slain, standing before the throne take over from the hand of the one on the throne that scroll the title deed of this universe. He is the only worthy one to execute the plan of god to bring everything back to god himself.

And no wonder you find the whole heaven burst into praise. And brothers and sisters this is the glory. He came as a king but not a king that the world knew. But one day he will come back as the king of kings and the lord of lords.

And what glory. So brothers and sisters he wants us to behold his glory. Why? Not because he wants to display himself. It is for our encouragement, it is that we may by beholding his glory we may be transformed from glory to glory.

The King of Glory and the Call to Behold Him

I do not know how to end this meditation. The only thing that comes back to me it doesn't seem to fit that well but somehow I feel that's the only thing I can conclude. It is psalm 24. Lift up your heads ye gays and be ye lifted up ye everlasting door.

And the king of glory shall come in. Who is this king of glory? Jehovah strong and mighty. Jehovah strong in battle. Lift up your heads ye gays. Yea lift up ye everlasting doors. And the king of glory shall come in.

Who is this king of glory? Jehovah of course he is the king of glory. Brothers and sisters how we need to lift up our hearts. Open our hearts and let the king of glory lord. How we thank thee that thou dost desire that we behold the glory that the father has given to thee lord.

Open our eyes open our hearts that we may see thy glory in the name of our lord Jesus.