God’s Glory Compared to Jesus’ Glory

Joel Hemphill

Jesus Has Great Glory

I am a minister of Jesus Christ and I love to talk about his glory. He is the supernaturally conceived, virgin-born, sinless Son of God; savior, redeemer, Messiah, and soon coming king, and he has great glory! He said:

They shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory” (Matt. 24:30).

Jesus’ glory is so great that he will destroy the Anti-christ “with the brightness of his coming” (II Thess. 2:8). John the beloved apostle who lay his head on Jesus’ bosom at the last supper, “fell at his feet as dead” when he saw Jesus in his glory in Revelation Chapter One.

But Jesus has his own glory!

 …when the Son of man shall sit upon the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones” (Matt. 19:28). Please note: These thrones are not in heaven!

When the Son of man shall come in his glory…then shall he sit on the throne of his glory” (Matt. 25:31).

The Son of man…shall come in his own glory” (Luke 9:26).

Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory” (Luke 24:26).

..and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father” (John 1:14). Note: Not the glory as of God, or as of the Father in flesh, but “as of the only begotten of the Father.”

This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth his glory” (John 2:11).

God our Father’s glory is much greater than Jesus’ glory because God’s glory is innate, the essence of who He is. Jesus’ glory is a “given glory,” given to him by God his Father.

“Father…the glory which thou gavest me…that they may behold my glory which thou hast given me” (John 17:21, 22, 24).

(Christ) “verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you, Who by him do believe in God, that raised him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that your faith and hope might be in God” (I Peter 1:20-21).

God’s Glory is Greater

“God the Lord” speaks in the first seven verses of Isaiah chapter forty-two of the coming Messiah, “my servant” whom He would send, “for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles, to open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison.” (Note: Not once in the Bible is Jesus called “God the Lord”). But God says in verse eight:

I am the Lord: that is my name; and my glory will I not give to another.”

He says again in Isaiah 48:11:

I will not give my glory unto another.”

The Lord God our Father is not jealous of His Son, but He is for sure jealous of His glory. Again and again He commands us in Scripture to give Him the glory that He is due. Here are some examples:

“Give unto the Lord, O ye mighty, give unto the Lord glory and strength. Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name; worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness…And in his temple doth every one speak of his glory“(Ps. 29:1-2, 9).

“Sing unto the Lord, bless his name, Declare his glory among the heathen, For the Lord is great, and greatly to be praised: he is to be feared above all gods. Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name: O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness: fear before him, all the earth” (Ps. 96:2-4, 8-9).

“Give glory to the Lord your God” (Jer. 13:16).

“If ye will not hear…to give glory unto my name, saith the Lord of hosts…” (Mal. 2:2).

“To God only wise, be glory through Jesus Christ for ever. Amen” (Rom. 16:27). Notice: Not “to” Jesus Christ, but “through” Jesus Christ. Note Paul’s statement in Romans 6:4, that “Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father.”

“Now unto the King (God the “great King”) eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen” (I Tim. 1:17). Note: The word “invisible.” Jesus was not invisible, he was seen by thousands.

“To the only wise God our Savior (God our ultimate Savior), be glory…both now and ever. Amen” (Jude v. 25).

“And the same hour was there a great earthquake…and the remnant were affrighted, and gave glory to the God of heaven” (Rev. 11:13).

“And men…blasphemed the name of God, and they repented not to give him glory” (Rev. 16:9).

When the New Testament speaks of giving glory to God our Father, the word “glory” in Greek is “doxa.” It means “to recognize a person or thing for what it is. It basically refers to the recognition belonging to a person – honor – renown. To recognize, honor, praise.” [1]

To do properly what we have been commanded to do by our God, we must answer this question in our minds: Is Jesus’ glory and God our Father’s glory the same? The clear biblical answer is, no!

“But he [Stephen], being full of the Holy Ghost looked up steadfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God, and said, ‘Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man [a human being] standing on the right hand of God’ ” (Acts 7:55-56).

Again, what did Stephen see? “The glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God.” We have Stephen’s dying testimony that they are distinct and separate, and what God has separated let no man join together.

Note: Peter, who saw Jesus’ awesome glory on the Mount of Transfiguration, said God the Father’s glory is the greatest glory!

“But we saw the greatness of Jesus with our own eyes. Jesus heard the voice of God, the Greatest Glory, when he received honor and glory from God the Father. The voice said, ‘This is my Son…’”(II Peter 1:17 NCV).

The first Adam reached for God’s glory and brought upon mankind all of the sin, suffering, and death that we have known for the past 6000 years; for the tempter said, Eat of the forbidden fruit, “and ye shall be as gods” (Gen. 3:5). But when Jesus Christ “the last Adam…the second man” (I Cor. 15:45-47) was tempted by the devil and offered “glory,” he said, “Get thee behind me Satan” (Luke 4:6, 8). Paul says in Philippians 2:6 that “Christ Jesus…did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped” (NASB – NIV – ESV – The Scriptures – The Complete Jewish Bible – The New English Bible).

Jesus said in John 8:50, “I seek not mine own glory: there is one [the Father] that seeketh and judgeth,” so if he did not even seek his own glory, it is for sure he did not seek the Father’s glory for himself. It is we in our ignorance who have given Jesus, the Son of God, God the Father’s glory.

We are told in John 5:23 that “all men should honor the Son, even as they honor the Father,” but trust Jesus when he says in verse forty-one, “I receive not honor from men.” What is that again precious Jesus? “I receive not honor from men.” In Scripture, Jesus’ honor is from the Father, with which he is more than content.

Hemphill, Joel W. (2010). God’s Glory Compared to the Glory of Jesus. In, Glory to God in the Highest (pp. 17-22). Joelton, TN: Trumpet Call Books.

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[1] The Hebrew-Greek Study Bible; AMG International, Inc.; p. 1708-1709