“If I honour Myself, My honour is nothing. It is My Father that honoureth Me…” John 8:54 KJV
“If I glorify Myself, My glory is nothing; it is My Father who glorifies Me…” John 8:54 NASB
The Lord Jesus spoke these words to a hostile crowd, challenging His teaching and authority. It is a natural tendency to defend and honour oneself when under attack. But there never was anything “natural” about the Lord Jesus Christ. He chose to allow His Father to vindicate and honour Him. There were occasions during His earthly sojourn when the Father did honour the Son: the announcements at the Jordan and on the Mount of Transfiguration prominently. But I am thinking just now of a seven-fold honour the Son has received from His Father after His work on the cross. There was the honour bestowed in:
Resurrection
In Romans 6, we read that He was raised by the glory of the Father. Men placed Him on a cross; those who loved Him placed him in a tomb. Then, they sealed the tomb, and the Jewish leaders set a watch to prevent any chance of the body being taken away. After all the dishonour of a mock trial, scourging, and the cross of Calvary, God stepped in and honoured His Son in resurrection.
Ascension
Earth rejected Him, but Heaven received Him (Acts 1:9). It is very possible that it was the Shekinah cloud of glory. If so, the Glorious One was received in glory and taken to glory. The One Whom earth refused and lifted up on a cross was “taken up” (Acts 1:9) to Heaven, owned and honoured as the Son of the Father. He ascended up through the realm of the prince of the Power of the Air and all his hosts, as they stood by impotently, a defeated foe.
Enthronement
But honour was heaped upon honour. The Father addressed the Son, Whom men dishonoured and found unworthy of earth, and said, “Sit on My right hand” (Heb 1:13). The Father has accorded Him the highest place in Heaven, far above all principalities and powers. He has given Him the most honoured place in Heaven – at His right hand. His has given Him a place of which no one else was ever worthy.
Addressed as Son
In His incarnation, the Lord Jesus became, for a little while, “lower than angels.” Men looked upon the Lord Jesus and saw a lowly carpenter, a Nazarene. They despised and rejected Him. His claim to be the Son of God was challenged, derided, denied, and ultimately mocked at the cross. But God has addressed Him: “Thou art My Son; this day have I begotten Thee” (Heb 1:5). Some would apply this verse to incarnation; others link it with resurrection. The Spirit of God, the penman of Hebrews, links it with His honour and glory.
High Priest
“Thou art a priest forever after the order of Melchisedec” (Heb 7:21). We are also told that “no man takes this honour unto himself.” Meaning that no one has the authority to make himself a High Priest. This honour belongs to God alone. In addressing His Son as a High Priest forever, God was heaping another honour on His Son.
Given the Nations
“Ask of Me .. the heathen for thine inheritance … uttermost parts of the earth for Thy possession” (Ps 2:8). In this Psalm, which can only speak of David’s Greater Son, God has given to the Lord Jesus, the nations of the world over which to rule. He has been crowned with “glory and honour,” triumphing where Adam failed. As the Last Adam, He now has the moral right to rule and dominion over all the earth.
Every Knee to Bow
Finally, God has decreed that “every knee will bow, and every tongue confess” that He is Lord of all. Universal homage, even from unregenerate men, will be His. Adoring worship from the redeemed shall be His eternally. Honour upon honour will be His for the ages to come.
The Father has honoured Him and will honour Him.
Consider:
Can you think of other ways in which the Father has honoured His Son and will honour Him eternally?