Certainly as Christians we can see the Revelation given to
John in this first passage. As the Lord
restores the blessing on Israel they and the world will see that it is He who
has brought upon them this destruction and the restoration. No other explanation will suffice. The nations will be brought low in
destruction and the true Israel of God revealed in glory and there will be no
way to get around the reality that this has all been the work of God. For those who doubt the truth of the Bible,
what other explanation is there for the perseverance of the nation of Israel
throughout history? Empires have come
and gone and yet still this small nation continues to play a central role in
the world today. Where are the Babylonians
or the Assyrians, whither the Roman empire or the Egyptian empire? For millennia this tiny nation, sometimes in
exile, sometimes under foreign domination, sometimes flourishing, always under siege,
has endured. How can we doubt that the
Lord will indeed establish a new Jerusalem, the true Jerusalem, and all nations
will come to her?
Jesus speaks of the glory the Father has given to Him and
that He has given it to the disciples. How
has He given that glory to them? John
says in the prologue, “We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only
Son from the Father. It sounds like the
glory He has shared with the disciples is the revelation of God but also
perhaps the Holy Spirit, the unity of the Trinity and the unifier of believers.
What the disciples know is that Jesus and the Father are one, the Father loved
the Son before the foundation of the world, that the Father has sent the Son,
and the Son has made known the Father.
The glory of Jesus is at one with the glory of God the Father and in the
Revelation we see when John tells us, “the glory of God gives it light, and its
lamp is the Lamb.” The transfiguration
of Jesus on the mountain that the four disciples saw is a precursor to what will
be through all eternity. Jesus cannot be
one way to the Father, He and the Father are one and no one else can or has
made such a claim.
Paul is deeply appreciative of the Philippians’ concern for
him and that they have given to his need.
He apparently didn’t ask them to help but they did because they were
concerned about him. I always smile when
I read this passage because it seems Paul was a reluctant fund raiser. He was willing to suffer whatever was
necessary rather than ask for relief from the churches he had served, he never
wanted to be a burden to them. In that
he had learned an important principle, “I can do all things through him who
strengthens me.” He appreciates all the
Philippians have done and sees it as something that will increase their faith,
that the Lord will supply all they need when they are in want. That doesn’t mean that there is a cosmic
correspondence between sacrificing for others and receiving from God, that is
karma. There is also no principle that
if you give you will receive abundantly, Paul is simply saying that we are to
love one another and if Christians do that we will see the glory of God
revealed in our unity with one another in suffering. We will see God’s glory in the church if we
truly love one another, seems like I have heard that promise somewhere before.
Sing praises to the
LORD, O you his saints,
and give thanks to his holy name.
For his anger is but for a moment,
and his favor is for a lifetime.
Weeping may tarry for the night,
but joy comes with the morning.
and give thanks to his holy name.
For his anger is but for a moment,
and his favor is for a lifetime.
Weeping may tarry for the night,
but joy comes with the morning.
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