Peace in Christ, the end of our whole Christian calling. 947 25. 26. troubles, by this are delivered from the pressure of all JOHN troubles, for the sake of this we bravely bear up against all XVII. 1. tribulation, that in this we may blissfully reign without any tribulations. Well might He make this the close of His words, which to the disciples, while they little understood them, were proverbs: though they should understand them when He should have given them the promised Holy Spirit, of Whom He said above: These things have I spoken unto ch. 14, you, being yet present with you. But the Paraclete, Which is the Holy Ghost, Whom the Father will send in My Name, He shall teach you all things, and suggest to you all things that I have said unto you. This truly was that hour that should be, at which according to His promise He would no more speak to them in proverbs, but would tell them openly of the Father. For those same words of His by revelation of the Holy Ghost should be understood by them, and then be no more proverbs. For it was not meant, that while the Holy Ghost spake in their hearts, the Only-Begotten Son would cease to speak; Who said, that in that hour He would tell them of the Father, what, being now understood, should be to them no proverb. But this very thing likewise, how both the Son of God and the Holy Spirit do together speak in the hearts of Their spiritual ones, or rather the Trinity Itself Which worketh inseparably, this to them that understand is a word, to them that understand not, a proverb. 2. When therefore He had told them to what end He had spoken all, to wit, that in Him they might have peace, who in the world had tribulation; and when He had exhorted them to be of good cheer because He hath overcome the world: having ended His discourse to them, He thereupon directed His words unto the Father, and now began to pray. For thus the Evangelist goes on, saying, These words spake ch.17,1. Jesus, and lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify Thy Son, that Thy Son also may glorify Thee. The Lord, the Only-Begotten and Coeternal with the Father, if, in the form of a servant and from the form of a servant, need were that He should pray, might have prayed in silence: but then it was His will, while exhibiting Himself to the Father in the attitude of prayer, CIV. 948 Christ's hour fixed by Himself in the Divine counsels. HOMIL. to remember that He was our Teacher. Accordingly, the prayer which He made for us, He hath also made known to us: because being so great a Master, not only what He saith in discoursing to His disciples, but also what He saith to the Father in praying for them, is their edification. And if theirs, who were there to hear these things when they were said, doubtless ours also, who should read them when put in writing. Wherefore this saying, Father, the hour is come: glorify Thy Son: denotes that all time, and what thing, at what time, He would do or suffer to be done, was all disposed by Him Who is not subject to time; because the things that were to be at each several instant throughout the times, have their efficient causes in the Wisdom of God, in which are no times. Then let it not be thought that this hour came by urgency of fate, but only by God's ordering. Neither did sidereal necessity bind Christ to an enforced passion: far be it from us to imagine that the stars could compel the Maker of the stars to die! Therefore not time forced Christ to die, but Christ chose a time to die: as also the time at which He was born of the Virgin He settled with the Father, of Whom He was begotten without time. Agreeably with which true and sound doctrine, the Apostle Gal. 4, Paul also saith; But when the fulness of time was come, God sent forth His Son: and God saith by the Prophet, At an acceptable time have I heard thee, and in the day of 2 Cor.6, salvation have I helped thee; and again the Apostle, Behold, now is the acceptable time; behold, now is the day of salvation. Then let Him say, Father, the hour is come, which We have together ordained for men's sake, and among men in order to My glorifying; the hour is come; glorify Thy Son, that Thy Son also may glorify Thee. 4. 2. 32. 3. The Father's glorifying of the Son some take to consist Rom. 8, in this, that He spared Him not, but delivered Him up for us all. But if He be said to be glorified by Passion, how much more by Resurrection? For in the Passion it is more His humility than His glory that is shewn forth; witness the Phil. 2, Apostle, who saith, He humbled Himself, being made obedient unto death, even the death of the Cross: then he goes on, and speaks now of His glorifying; Wherefore God also hath exalted Him, and given Him a Name which is above every 7-11. The glorifying of the Lord Jesus in the form of a servant 949 XVII. 1. name: that at the Name of Jesus every knee should bow, of JOHN things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ the Lord is in the glory of God the Father. This is the glorifying of our Lord Jesus Christ, which took its beginning from His Resurrection. His humility, therefore, begins in the discourse of the Apostle at that point where he saith, He emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant; and reaches to the death of the Cross. But His glory begins at the place where he saith, Wherefore also God hath exalted Him, and reaches to, In the glory of God the Father. For as it regards the word, if we look into the Greek copies, from which tongue the Apostolic Epistles were translated into the Latin-the same word which here is 'gloria' [in gloria Dei Patris], is there dota: from which the verb is derived, so that in the Greek it is dotarov, which the Latin interpreter makes clarifica, whereas he might have said glorifica, which means just the same thing. And therefore in the Epistle of the Apostle, where the word is gloria, one might put claritas: which were it done, the meaning would be just the same. But not to leave the sound of the words, just as from claritas is derived clarificatio, so from gloria is derived glorificatio. Now in order that the mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, might be1 glorified, He was first humbled' clarifiby suffering; for He should not have risen from the dead, car had He not died. The humility is the earning of the glory, glorifithe glory the reward of the humility. Howbeit this was done in the form of a servant: but in the form of God, there always was, always will be, glory: nay, not 'was' as if it were now no more, nor will be,' as if it were not yet; but without beginning, without end, always is glory. Therefore, that He saith, Father, the hour is come: glorify Thy Son ; is to be understood as if He had said, The hour is come for sowing in humility; delay not Thou the reaping in glory. But what meaneth this that follows: That Thy Son may glorify Thee? Did God the Father also undergo humility of the flesh or of suffering, that thereby He behoved to be glorified? Then how should the Son glorify Him, Whose caretur caretur CIV. HOMIL. everlasting glory could neither from the form of man seem to be less, nor from the form of God could be greater? But this question I am unwilling to crowd into the present sermon, or by it to make the sermon longer than is meet. HOMILY CV. JOHN Xvii. 1-5. That Thy Son also may glorify Thee. As Thou hast given Him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to all that Thou hast given Him. And this is life eternal, that they might know Thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, Whom Thou hast sent. I have glorified Thee on the earth: I have finished the work which Thou gavest Me to do. And now, O Father, glorify Thou Me with Thine own Self with the glory which I had with Thee before the world was. 1. THAT the Son was glorified by the Father as touching the form of a servant, which the Father raised from the dead, and set at His own right hand; the fact itself declares, and no Christian doubts. But since He not only said, Father, glorify Thy Son, but added also, that Thy Son may glorify Thee; there is good reason for asking how the Son glorified the Father, seeing the Father's everlasting glory neither in human form underwent diminution, nor in its own Divine perfection could be augmented. True, but though in itself the Father's glory can be neither diminished nor increased, yet among men it was without doubt less, when only in Ps.76,1. Jewry was God known: ere yet from the rising of the sun even to the going down of the same, the children praised the name of the Lord. Now seeing it was by the Gospel of Christ that this was brought about, that through the Son the Father became known to the nations; doubtless the Son also hath glorified the Father. But if the Son had only died and not Ps. 113, 1-3. |