What is the meaning of John 17:22? I have given them Jesus speaks as the gracious Giver. Earlier He said, “I have revealed Your name to those You have given Me” (John 17:6) and “I gave them the words You gave Me” (John 17:8). Now He adds another gift—glory. • What has been given is not earned; it flows freely from Christ’s love (cf. Romans 8:32). • Every believer is included; the pronoun “them” reaches beyond the Eleven to “those who will believe in Me through their word” (John 17:20). the glory “The glory” is the radiant manifestation of God’s presence and character. Moses longed, “Please show me Your glory” (Exodus 33:18). In Jesus that longing is met: “We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and Only” (John 1:14). • This glory is moral and relational, not merely visual. It shines through holiness, love, and truth (2 Corinthians 3:18). • It is shared, not hoarded. Romans 8:17 says we are “heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ,” destined to be “glorified with Him.” You gave Me Christ’s glory is both eternal and received. He prayed, “Glorify Me in Your presence with the glory I had with You before the world existed” (John 17:5). • The Father is the fountainhead; the Son gladly acknowledges the source (John 5:19). • By passing this glory to us, Jesus invites believers into the love that has forever pulsed between Father and Son (John 17:24). so that A purpose statement follows. The gift has a goal: unity. God never gives without design (Ephesians 1:11). • The glory of Christ is the adhesive that binds His people. • Like oil on Aaron’s beard (Psalm 133:1-2), glory flows downward to create harmony. • Wherever saints lose sight of Christ’s beauty, division grows; wherever His glory captivates, unity blossoms (Ephesians 4:13). they may be one Unity is not uniformity but a Spirit-wrought oneness of heart, mind, and purpose (Acts 4:32). • Paul pleads, “Make my joy complete by being of the same mind” (Philippians 2:2). • The Body has many members, yet “in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body” (1 Corinthians 12:13). • The world notices: “By this everyone will know that you are My disciples, if you love one another” (John 13:35). as We are one The pattern for Christian unity is nothing less than the relationship within the Godhead. Jesus said, “I and the Father are one” (John 10:30). • Their oneness is relational (mutual love), functional (shared purpose), and doctrinal (perfect agreement). • Believers are invited to reflect, not replicate, that divine unity—distinct persons held together by shared life (John 14:20). • Such unity is supernatural, maintained by abiding in Christ (John 15:4) and walking in the Spirit (Galatians 5:16). summary Christ has handed His own glory to us so that, transfixed by His splendor, we might live as one people who mirror the Father-Son relationship. Unity is therefore not a side project but the very aim of the gift. As we prize the glory of Jesus, we grow into the oneness that convinces the world He truly came from the Father. |
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