The Church of the saints - What does it mean? ...My Glory I will not give to another?

Church of the saints (4)

What does it mean? ‘...My Glory I will not give to another?’

 

Thomas: Hey,, are you gonna bring us some biscuits with the tea we're sipping every now and then? 😀

 

Mark: Hahahaha .. don’t hold your breath 😀

 

Thomas: You're right. Honestly, I've been dragging on and annoying you with my questions.

 

Mark: Nah hahaha, I'm just messing with you. In fact, I really enjoy our conversations. The theological discussions and these questions are very helpful in strengthening our faith. Because the mind nourishes faith, as long as the discussion aims for understanding, and is committed to humility, respect, and love, seeking to deepen our understanding of our relationship with Christ and the greatness of divine providence for our salvation, guided by the Holy Spirit. But when the discussion aims to prove one party right and triumphs with mockery and disrespect, those are just stupid discussions. The scriptures advise us to stay away from them, as they waste time and jeopardize personal peace

 

Thomas:  Agreed. Anyway, let's get back to our topic. I was asking about when I request prayers from others, especially if those people (I'm sorry) have passed away. Doesn't that encroach on Christ's role? When I take on God's attributes, describe myself as an intercessor, or pray for the forgiveness of someone else's sins, am I equating myself with the Lord? We even have a jealous God so to speak, who said, "I am the Lord, that is My name, and My glory I will not give to another." (Isaiah 42:8)

 

Mark:  Hmm... You have a point. But let's put aside the issue of intercession for a moment and address the second part of your question, which we'll also divide into two:

 

•  What did the scripture mean by the verse: "I will not give My glory to another." (Isaiah 42:8)

• Does the fact that Christ is an intercessor mean that no one else can be an intercessor?

 

Thomas: I believe there's no disagreement in the meaning of the verse. God is saying He doesn't give His glory to anyone else.

 

Mark: Trust me, your interpretation is where the disagreement lies. If the conversation is too simplistic and shallow, how does Christ say to the Father, "And the glory which You gave Me I have given them" (John 17:22)? Does God contradict Himself?

 

Thomas: Hmmm... so what do you think?

 

Mark: As usual, when you take a verse out of its context, it leads to a truncated meaning and a wrong inference, which is more dangerous than not inferring at all. Let's see the context of this verse and ask the Holy Spirit for guidance in our reading:

 

• ""Behold! My Servant whom I uphold, My Elect One in whom My soul delights! I have put My Spirit upon Him; " (Isaiah 42:1) (Now, who is this servant? The answer is in the following verses)

• " He will not cry out, nor raise His voice, Nor cause His voice to be heard in the street. A bruised reed He will not break, And smoking flax He will not quench; He will bring forth justice for truth. He will not fail nor be discouraged, till He has established justice in the earth; and the coastlands shall wait for His law." (Isaiah 42:2-4)

It's very clear that all these are testimonies about Christ, portrayed as a suffering servant, and the New Testament also refers to this. Consider these verses from the New Testament, among others:

•  "But when Jesus knew it, He withdrew from there. And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them all. Yet He warned them not to make Him known, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: 'Behold! My Servant whom I have chosen, My Beloved in whom My soul is well pleased. I will put My Spirit upon Him, and He will declare justice to the Gentiles.'" (Matthew 12:15-21)

•  "But made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant." (Philippians 2:7)

St Paul walks us through Isaiah's prophecy step by step to show how the suffering servant gains the glory of the Father mentioned in the prophecy:

• "Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Philippians 2:9-11)

• Therefore, the context of the verses in the Book of Isaiah and Paul's explanation in Philippians make it clear that when the Father says, "My glory I will not give to another," it is to exclude any "other" besides the person of Christ, the suffering servant. It's not about any other "other" excluding the Father Himself.

 

Thomas: Sorry... I'm not quite understanding your point in the last sentence. Are you saying that he excludes any "other" apart from the suffering servant Christ, and not any other apart from himself (the Father)?

 

Mark:  In simple terms, in my dialect, the Father is saying: "I won't give my glory to any other except to the Son in his incarnation." He's not saying, "I won't give my glory to any other, with no exceptions!.." The divine statement here is a promise from the Father to give his glory only to Christ in his incarnation, excluding all competitors eager to embezzle and steal the glory of God like false gods. That's why the verse continues: "And my praise to carved images."

 

Thomas: No, I understand your point. But…how does this make a practical difference in applying the verse??

 

Mark:  The matter is not just a correction of interpretation, but the truth is that the good news begins here and goes beyond description. In John 17, you will find the greatest plea in history raised by Christ on behalf of humanity so that the Father accepts it again. The key to understanding it is that the talk about Christ is in the form of the suffering servant. Let's read it together:

 

• Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said: "Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You" (John 17:1) - Keep in mind that this refers to the promised hour described in Isaiah 42. And to emphasize the meaning, he says:

• "I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which You have given Me to do. And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was" (John 17:4).

 

Here, he clearly refers to the verse we are discussing (Isaiah 42:8). In simple terms, Jesus is saying to the Father: You said in Isaiah that my glory is not given to any other but me, and you described me with qualifications worthy of glory. And now, I have completed all the work of the mentioned servant in that prophecy, so give me the promised glory now in this form as a servant, so that your Son may glorify you as well.

 

Thomas: Alright, what does the part "that Your Son also may glorify You" mean?

 

Mark: Listen, when Adam fell, human incapacity to glorify their Creator in His image within them became apparent, as the image became distorted and unable to grow to the stature of Christ the only Son. Follow me so far?

 

Thomas:  I'm with you.

 

Mark: Consequently, the glorification of the Father through the "human nature," the earthly and perishable nature, could only be accomplished by crediting the Father to the incarnate Son, the God apparent in the nature of dust, with His glory, so that He may glorify Him also and fulfill the divine purpose, with a human being as an icon of its Creator, accepting glory from Him and returning it to Him.

 

Thomas: That's very interesting. Is this the meaning we explained in Isaiah 42:8?

 

Mark: Exactly. But that wasn't the end of Christ's work. Otherwise, why did He need to incarnate, and humans would have perished, and the Father would have retained His glory with His Son in a transcendent state beyond comprehension? But the good news in Christ's receiving glory in the form of the suffering servant is this:

 

• "I have given them the glory which You have given Me, that they may be one just as We are one" (John 17:22).

 

If we try to put this into simple steps, it would be as follows:

 

• Glory has been with the Father from eternity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit by nature).
• The Son incarnates to receive the glory humanly after revealing the Father's righteousness (according to Isaiah's description of the prophet Isaiah 42:2-7).
• When the Son receives the glory, He gives it to those who believe in Him.
• They remain qualified to enter the Father's house, heirs of incorruption.

 

Thomas: So, in Isaiah 42, it says that the Father gives His glory only to the incarnate Son, and in John 17, the Son says that He alone received this glory and gives it to believers.

 

Mark: That's right. Now you understand the intended meaning. And you've earned two cups of tea with us to answer the second part of your question, which is: Can anyone else be an intercessor if Christ is the intercessor? 😊

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