◄ What Does John 17:8 Mean? ►

Throughout the Old Testament, God gradually unveiled His character, His names, and His attributes to the race of fallen man as, little by little, He unfolded His eternal plan of salvation. But when the fullness of the time had come, God revealed Himself in a new and unique way by sending His only begotten Son as the Word made flesh, to live a perfect life, to die a sacrificial death, and to reveal Himself to a race of condemned sinners.

As God's only begotten Son, the Lord Jesus is the perfect radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of His Person. During His earthly life, Christ manifested the Word of God to His disciples and revealed to them the very essence of God's being in the life that He lived and the death that He died.

He was filled with the Holy Ghost and lived His life in spirit and truth. He spoke only those things that He heard from the Father, performing only those acts as authorised by God's Holy Spirit. Although He was fully God, the Lord Jesus did not speak or act under His own authority, but only as instructed by His Heavenly Father.

As the Cross loomed ever closer, Jesus was able to pray in spirit and truth: "The words which You gave Me I have given to them." They had heard His gracious words, observed His tender acts of mercy, witnessed His supernatural signs, and had themselves been empowered by Jesus to also carry out the wondrous works of God.

Slowly and unhurriedly, He revealed more of His Father's words to His followers until He was able to declare the astonishing truth: "I and My Father are One." And as the nature and character of God was increasingly unveiled, Christ's dearly beloved yet bewildered disciples finally confessed Jesus, as the promised Messiah, the Son of the living God.

His work on earth was complete and Jesus was able to say to the Father: "The hour has come. I have glorified You on earth by completing the work that You gave me to do." He had manifested God's name and revealed God's words to those that God had given Him, and in His High Priestly prayer Christ was finally able to announce: "They received Your Word and truly understood that I came forth from You, and they believed that You sent Me."

We are all God's gift to His Son, for we too have been bought with a price; the precious blood of our Saviour, Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh. May we learn to read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest the Word of truth in the Word of God. May we receive the good news of Christ willingly and joyfully, and truly understand that Christ is One with the Father, for He came forth from the Father to be born as our Saviour so that believing on Him we might have life everlasting.

Heavenly Father, I praise You for Your gracious plan of salvation and for sending Your incarnate Word to reveal Your divine attributes and holy nature to sinful man. Thank You that Christ was sent to become my Saviour through the life that He lived, the death that He died, and His glorious Resurrection from the grave. There is much that I still don’t understand, but this I know - that He died to pay the price for my sins and rose again to break the power of sin in my life. May I live to Your praise and glory. In Jesus' name, AMEN.