Dear Christian friends:

We all desire praise and glory and we need it. But worldly praise or glory, the glory of the politician, the glory of the movie star or football star, the glory of riches continues only a short time. It ends with death and often before death. The praise and glory of this world can deceive us and disappoint us.

In our text Jesus tells about true glory. True glory, the glory that continues forever, we receive when we join with Jesus Christ and humbly walk with faith in Him.


Jesus walked on the true glory road. But surprise! It was a road of humble service and suffering. Also for us the true glory road is a way that demands humble service and often suffering.

In our text Jesus reminds us of this truth. He says, "Now the Son of man receives glory, and God receives glory in Him."(verse 31) Jesus_says, "Now." When was that? "When Judas left." (verse 31) When Judas left the upper room and went out to betray Jesus. It was the evening before Jesus got nailed to the Cross. Jesus is saying here that by His suffering and dying He receives glory and also God the Father receives glory in that. In Jesus' suffering and death God shows His wonderful love to the world. The Bible says, "God shows His love to us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8) Jesus' suffering and death on the Cross shows God's unique love, and His love is His eternal glory. In heaven all angels and all all saints will give God who sits on the throne and Jesus the Lamb who stands before the throne glory forever and ever. (Rev. 7:10-12) (Last Sunday, Second Lesson)

Therefore, the true glory road is to love others, humbly serve them and suffer for their sake.

True, we can't and we need not serve and suffer in the exact same way as Jesus did. Really, we can't! Only Jesus, God's Son, could, suffer and die for the world's sin, and He has done that beautifully and perfectly. In our text Jesus says to His disciples, "Children, I am with you for a short time. You will search for Me, but as I told the Jews I now tell you: The place I go, you can't go." (verse 33) Only Jesus can die for the world's sin, and He has done it! "It is finished," He said before He died. We need not and cannot serve in that way. We can't receive glory by trying to suffer for our own sins or for anyone else's sins. But there is something we can do! There is a glory road also for us!

In our text Jesus tells us what that glory road for us is. He said to His disciples that night before He suffered and died, "I am giving you a new command: Love one another! Love one another the same as I have loved you." (verse 34)

We should love one another and others "the same as Jesus has loved_us." Jesus died for us. He offered His life for us! He suffered sin, shame and God's anger against sins. Jesus suffered and served for our sakes! Therefore, we should love one another and serve and suffer for one another. Christian love is unique because Jesus' love is the basis of it! Unbelievers love one another sometimes too, but Jesus' love is not the basis of their love. Their love is natural love. Christian love is from God!

Our Christian love shows itself in humble ways that do not seem glorious: mothers and fathers taking care of their children, children taking care of their elderly parents, one Christian helping another who is crippled or handicapped or poor, one spouse who is well taking care of the other who is sick and perhaps dying, and doing this without expecting any pay or reward! Christians humbly serve in this way because Jesus commands them to do it!

Christians love one another also because in doing this they can show the world that they are really Jesus' disciples. In our text Jesus says, "By your loving one another everyone will know that you are My disciples." (verse 35) Unbelievers in the world will see and know that we are really Jesus' disciples because we are not selfish and we humbly serve and help one another the same as Jesus did.

Are we loving one another? Or are we hating one another? Are we jealous and suspicious of one another? Are we selfish and proud and competitive? I'm sure that you will agree with me and feel ashamed with me because you know that we often forget Jesus and His Cross and fail to really love and serve one another. And when we do this way we are not showing the world that we are Jesus' disciples. And we are not attracting others to join our church. Worse, we are failing to give glory to God. We are not walking on the glory road.

We need to remember Jesus and His great love that He showed for us by His dying on the Cross for us! Love one another the same as I have loved you!" And we need to remember the Father's love. John writes about the Father's love: "Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and everyone that loves is born of God, and knows God. He that loves not knows not God; for God is love. God showed His love to us when He sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His Son to pay for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another." (1 John 4:7-11) We must Confess our sins and again and ask God to forgive us!

Those who remember Jesus' love and then humbly love and serve others show that they are really Jesus' disciples. In doing that they give glory to Jesus and to God the Father, and they will one day share God's glory in heaven forever and ever. This is the true glory road.

Amen