John 17:22-24
And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me. Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me: for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world.
MARTYN LLOYD-JONES (1899-1981): Well, that brings me to the last, which is the height, and this again is the most glorious thing―Have you ever considered its extent in that particular dimension?
JOHN CALVIN (1509-1564): The Son of God became the Son of Man that the sons of men might become the sons of God.
CHRISTMAS EVANS (1766-1838): It was a great condescension in Him, who is above all, God blessed forevermore, to be united to the nature of man.
C. H. SPURGEON (1834-1892): Were it not so well attested, it would be absolutely incredible that the infinite God, who filleth all things, who was, and is, and is to come, the Omnipotent, the Omniscient, and the Omnipresent, actually condescended to veil Himself in the garments of our inferior clay. He made us, yet He deigned to take the flesh of His creatures into union with Himself.
MARTYN LLOYD-JONES: What is the height? Well, here it is…He did all He did, not only that my sins might be blotted out, but more, that I might be given a new birth; not merely that God will no longer punish me, but that I might be made a child of God, a son of God, and heir of God, and a joint-heir with Christ. His love for us is so great that He has actually joined us to Himself. We are united with Christ. He’s made us parts of Himself, of His own body. That is why we were quickened with Him, and raised with Him, and seated with Him in the heavenly places.
C. H. SPURGEON: Beloved, we must not fail to note the intimacy of this love, for Jesus said, “I and my Father are one.” Even such is His love to us; it is intimate in character; for Jesus saith, “I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one.” Jesus has made Himself one with His people. He loves them with a marvellous intimacy, so that in loving them He loves Himself, for He has made them to be “members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones.” It is, then, a very near and dear union which Christ has established between Himself and his redeemed; and this union could not be more complete than it is. It is, also, a most wonderful union. The more you think of it, the more you will be astonished, and stand in sacred awe before such a marvel of grace.
JOHN KENT (1766-1843): O sacred union, firm and strong,
How great the grace, how sweet the song,
That worms of earth should ever be
One with Incarnate Deity!
C. H. SPURGEON: But so it is. Even the incarnation of Christ is not more wonderful than His living union with His people.
MATTHEW HENRY (1662-1714): Our spiritual life results from our union with Christ; it is in Him that we live—union with the Father and Son is obtained and kept up only by the Holy Ghost.
STEPHEN CHARNOCK (1628-1680): Adoption gives us the privilege of sons, regeneration the nature of sons.
THOMAS WATSON (1620-1686): The Lord has two heavens to dwell in, and the holy heart is one of them.
MARTYN LLOYD-JONES: Now, lastly, let us come to the highest level.
MATTHEW HENRY: Being the sons, we are also heirs of God, and are entitled to the heavenly inheritance.
JOHN CALVIN (1509-1564): We must attend to the proper method of seeking Christ; that is, our minds must not be fixed on the earth, but must ascend upwards to the heavenly glory in which He dwells…And certainly, if this mystery is heavenly, nothing could be more unreasonable than to draw down Christ to the earth, when, on the contrary, He calls us upwards to Himself.
ADAM CLARKE (1760-1832): Height [reaches] to the infinite dignities of the throne of Christ. He that overcometh will I grant to sit with me upon my throne, even as I overcame, and am set down with my Father in His throne, Revelation 3:21. Thus we see that the Father, the Son, and all true believers in Him, are to be seated on the same throne! This is the height of the love of God, and the height to which that love raises the souls that believe in Christ Jesus!
MARTYN LLOYD-JONES: He prayed these words: “Father,” He said, “I will that these also whom thou has given me, shall be with me where I am, that they may behold my glory. ” Do you realize what He means by that? He loves us to this extent that He prays to His Father, “Father,” He says, “I want them to be there with us; I want them to see me in all my glory.” That’s the expression of His love for you. That’s the height of His love.
C. H. SPURGEON: This is the last petition which He offers, “That the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them,” John 17:26. He reaches no greater height than this, namely, that His people be filled with the Father’s love. How could He rise higher? For this is to be filled with all the fullness of God, since God is love, and he that loveth dwelleth in God and God in him…Oh brothers, we are nothings, we are nobodies; yet this glorious All in All did actually set His love upon us!
JOHN OWEN (1616-1683): We are never nearer Christ than when we find ourselves lost in a holy amazement at His unspeakable love.
EDWARD PAYSON: Had I the tongue of an angel, I could not do justice to it. God Himself, speaking by the mouth of His inspired messengers, could only say that it is unsearchable, that it passeth knowledge. It is a theme which will employ the praises of saints and angels through a whole eternity. How then can a weak mortal set it before you in the space of a few minutes and in the compass of a few pages?
ANDREW FULLER (1754-1815): There is breadth, and length, and depth, and height sufficient in His love to occupy our powers, even though they were ten thousand times larger than they are.
EDWARD PAYSON: We can only say that, to love and be beloved by Christ, is the very essence of heaven.
