Glory, Work, and Eternal Life: Reflecting on Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer
In the quiet moments before his arrest and crucifixion, Jesus offered a profound prayer that gives us a glimpse into the very heart of God. This prayer, often called the High Priestly Prayer, is recorded in John 17 and offers rich insights into the nature of glory, our purpose as believers, and the essence of eternal life.
At its core, this prayer can be distilled into one powerful statement: Jesus prays that God would have glory through him so that God’s people can have eternal life. But what does this really mean for us today?
Understanding Glory
Glory is a concept that permeates Scripture, but it can be challenging to define. In essence, glory refers to God’s complete character, His being, His nature, and His presence. It’s everything that makes God who He is. When Jesus prays for God to glorify Him, He’s essentially asking to be made more like God – a request that highlights both His divinity and His humanity.
This prayer comes at a crucial moment. Jesus knows what lies ahead – the brutality of the cross – and He’s preparing Himself for what’s to come. In this vulnerable moment, we see Jesus relying on the Father, just as we are called to do in our own lives.
There’s a beautiful progression here: from recognizing our need for help, to turning to God for that help, to actually doing the thing we needed help with. It’s a pattern we can follow in our own lives, whether we’re facing major challenges or simply trying to get through our daily tasks.
The Work That Brings God Glory
Jesus states, “I have brought you glory on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do.” This raises an important question: what are the works of Christ? During His earthly ministry, Jesus performed miracles, offered profound teachings, and fulfilled Old Testament prophecies. But it wasn’t just the acts themselves that brought glory to God – it was the fact that Jesus relied on God to accomplish them.
This is a crucial lesson for us. We often think we need to do great and impressive things to glorify God. But Jesus, who is God incarnate, says He can do nothing apart from the Father. If the Son of God relies so completely on the Father, how much more should we?
The key is not in the magnitude of our works, but in our reliance on God as we do them. Whether it’s our job, academic studies, serving at church, volunteering, or simply doing household chores – all these can be works that glorify God if we do them in reliance on Him and in alignment with His will.
The Role of Relationship and Prayer
At the heart of this glorifying work is relationship. Jesus, facing the most difficult task of His earthly life, turns to prayer. This is our model. When we face challenges or simply don’t feel like doing what we know we should, prayer is our lifeline.
Prayer is how we build our relationship with God, much like how we build relationships with others – through communication and spending time together. As our relationship with God grows, so does our ability to glorify Him. It’s a beautiful cycle: the more we know God, the more we can reflect His glory, and the more we reflect His glory, the deeper our relationship with Him becomes.
This ties directly into the purpose for which we were created. As the Westminster Shorter Catechism puts it, our chief end is “to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.” Prayer isn’t just about asking for things; it’s about enjoying God’s presence and aligning ourselves with His will.
The Nature of Eternal Life
In His prayer, Jesus gives us a profound definition of eternal life: “Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.” Eternal life isn’t just about duration – living forever. It’s about quality – knowing God intimately.
This knowledge isn’t mere head knowledge. It’s the deep, relational knowledge that comes from walking closely with God. And here’s the amazing thing: this eternal life doesn’t start when we die. It starts now, the moment we begin to truly know God through Christ.
We’re still looking forward to a future, perfect glory. But even now, we can experience God’s presence and His glory while on earth. The best moments in life are those spent in God’s presence, and if that’s how good it is now, imagine what it will be like in its fullness!
Bringing It All Together
Jesus’ prayer reminds us that it is by God’s glory that we have eternal life. This will be fully realized when we’re face to face with God in heaven, but we can begin to experience it now.
So how do we respond to these truths?
- Pray: Whether you’re facing a crisis or having a great day, prayer is always appropriate. It’s through prayer that we deepen our relationship with God and gain the strength to do His will.
- Give God glory through your work: Like Jesus, we can reveal God’s character through our actions and attitudes. Live in a way that shows others what it means to have the joy and hope of eternal life.
- Know Christ: To live like Christ and reflect His glory, we need to know who He is. This comes through studying Scripture, prayer, and walking closely with Him day by day.
- Expect the Holy Spirit to work: As we come to God in prayer and partake in spiritual practices like communion, we should expect the Holy Spirit to move powerfully in our lives. It’s not about ritual, but about a living, dynamic relationship with God.
- Worship: In heaven, worship is constantly happening around God’s throne. We can join in that eternal song even now, giving God the glory He deserves not just for creating us, but for redeeming us through Christ.
As we reflect on these truths, may we be filled afresh with the Holy Spirit, empowered to live lives that bring glory to God in everything we do – in our personal lives, our families, our jobs, and our relationships with others. For in glorifying God, we find our truest purpose and our deepest joy.