Friday, September 21, 2018

A Trinitarian Perspective Of John 17

        Jesus Christ petitioned the Father to give Him the glory that they both shared since before the timing of creation (John 17:4-5). God the Son expresses having a relationship with God the Father from eternity past (John 17:24). Notice also how God said in the Old Testament that He would give His glory to no other (Isaiah 42:8). If Jesus is not God, then how could He share that same glory?

        The Son reveals an inextricable unity between Himself and the Father (John 17:11; 20; 22). Both have fellowship with each other. Both are one in essence. If the Father and the Son are one by nature, then does this not imply the latter to be divine? Just as everything belongs to the Father, so everything also belongs to the Son (John 17:10). The Father and the Son are co-equal and co-eternal while having different functions.

        Both share the same divine glory. Jesus oftentimes spoke from a human standpoint, which should not surprise us because He is a composite being. He is fully man and fully God. According to John 17:25-26, Jesus Christ reveals to us the Father. The knowledge and understanding of God transcends our mental faculties by an infinite margin. How could Christ reveal to us the Father if He Himself were not also God?