Whose Honor Do You Seek?

(John 5:41-44)

I. Introduction.
A. Orientation.
This morning,
We saw Jesus pointing to what proved His Messiahship:
He didnt ask others to take His word for it
He knew He needed at least two or three witnesses
To confirm this fact
And so He pointed to another witness
One that was greater than any man could provide
That of His Father,
Who testified through the works He gave Jesus to do,
As well as through His Word
That Jesus is His Son.

B. Preview.
This evening, were returning to a part of our morning passage
That we just had time to glance at
A parenthetical comment Jesus made
Where He tells us what His real motivation was
Behind what He was doing;
One that we should also share
As His brothers and sisters in Gods kingdom;

And one that can also be used as a test

Of the genuineness of faith.

It all boils down to whose honor were seeking

Whose admiration and respect were really trying to get.
Jesus sought His Fathers glory in all things,
Because He loved Him,
And because He wanted the honor His Father had to give.
But the Jews, who didnt love the Father,
Really didnt want to glorify Him,
Because it conflicted with their main goal:
To gain the honor of this world.

This evening, lets consider two things:

1. Those who belong to Jesus seek honor from God.
2. While those who belong to the world seek honor from the world.
II. Sermon.
A. First, those who belong to Jesus seek honor from God.
Jesus tells us, I do not receive glory from men (v. 41).

Now we should note here

That Jesus isnt saying that He shouldnt be honored by all men.
He should be because He is God.
He should be, because weve already seen that the Father
Gave Him the ability to do the works He did,

To have life in Himself to grant spiritual life,

To have power to raise all the dead on the last day
To gather all men together for judgment,
And the authority to judge them,
So that all would honor Him even as they honor the Father (John 5:23).

Jesus wasnt saying that we shouldnt honor Him

For who He is and what Hes done
It is our privilege and duty to glorify Him everyday
In all that we think, say and do.

What He was saying was

That it wasnt yet time for Him to receive that glory
The glory of His completed work,
That He would receive from His people on that day.
He didnt come to seek His own glory in the world,
But His Fathers
He was there to serve Him,
To repair His justice,
And to save His people,
By humbling Himself to the point of death on a cross.
Thats why when Satan offered
To make Him head of the worlds kingdoms,
He turned Him down.

The end was right

This is what He would eventually gain
But the means were wrong
It wouldnt be now,
And it certainly wouldnt be in way the devil suggested.

Jesus here appears to be answering an accusation

The Jews had undoubtedly been leveling against Him:
That He came to glorify Himself,
To make Himself the head of a new movement.
But thats not what He was after:
He wasnt in it for the money
Throughout His ministry, He had just enough
To meet His needs and no more.
And He wasnt in it for the fame
More often than not, when He ministered to others
He told them not to tell anyone.
He even turned down every offer they made to make Him king
Which came from the people of Israel,
Not her leaders.
He was far more willing to suffer dishonor at their hands
Than to receive their honor,
If thats what it took to glorify His Father,

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Because He was looking for the glory
That came from His Father, not from the world.

This, among other things, is what it means

To be a follower of Jesus Christ
To be a genuine believer:
To follow Him in His humiliation
As Paul writes in Philippians 2:5-8, Have this attitude in yourselves which was
also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard
equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of
a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in
appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of
death, even death on a cross.
To follow Him in His attitude towards the fame and glory of the world
John writes, Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the
world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of
the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the
Father, but is from the world (1 John 2:15-16).
To follow Him in the suffering that comes from obedience
Peter writes, For this finds favor, if for the sake of conscience toward God a
person bears up under sorrows when suffering unjustly. For what credit is there
if, when you sin and are harshly treated, you endure it with patience? But if
when you do what is right and suffer for it you patiently endure it, this finds
favor with God. For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also
suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, WHO
COMMITTED NO SIN, NOR WAS ANY DECEIT FOUND IN HIS MOUTH;
and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered
no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously; and He
Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and
live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed. For you were
continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and
Guardian of your souls (1 Pet. 2:19-25).
That you might gain the glory that comes from God.

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Jesus said to the church at Laodicea, He who overcomes, I will grant to him to sit
down with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father
on His throne (Rev. 3:21).
Well consider how to do this in a few moments.
B. Second, lets consider that those who belong to the world seek honor from the
world.
Jesus didnt want glory from men,
But the same wasnt true of the Jewish leaders.
They wanted honor from this world
And not from God.
Why? Because they didnt love Him.
Jesus says, But I know you, that you do not have the love of God in yourselves
(v. 42).

If they had loved God,

They wouldnt have wanted to kill His Son (John 5:18).
If they had loved God, they would have loved
The One who is His image Jesus
And come to Him to be reconciled with God.

They only thought they loved Him

And had proved it to themselves
By their zeal for the Law, for the Temple, for the Sabbath.

There are so many who profess to love God today

But reject the only kind of love He will accept:
The repentance of their sins,

The receiving of His Son in faith,

And humble obedience to His commandments.

What was the evidence Jesus gave for His charge?

Besides what He already said,
He added this: But I know you (v. 42).
Jesus is able to search the heart.
He knows what is in man.
He can see through the disguises.
He knows us better than those closest to us.
The Jewish people thought the scribes and Pharisees
Were good and devout men,
But Jesus knew they really didnt love God.
They had a good opinion of themselves,
But Jesus knew how corrupt they really were.
Men might be able to deceive themselves and others,
But they cant deceive Him.

Their sin also took on another form:

Not only were they unwilling to receive Jesus,
They were willing to receive false Christs and prophets.
Jesus says, I have come in My Fathers name, and you do not receive Me; if
another comes in his own name, you will receive him. How can you believe,
when you receive glory from one another and you do not seek the glory that is
from the one and only God? (vv. 43-44).

Jesus came in His Fathers name

As One who was seeking the Fathers glory
But they didnt receive Him.
If someone else came in his own name
Someone who wasnt sent by God,
Who sought His own glory
Him they would receive.

And He tells them why

Because of ambition:
The very thing Jesus said He didnt seek
I do not receive glory from men (v. 41)
Was what they had set their hearts on.

Jesus said, You receive honor from one another

What you want is a Messiah that was outwardly glorious,
That would set up a kingdom in this world,
That would deliver you from Rome,
That would give you worldly honor.
They were willing to show honor,
If by doing so they could receive honor in return.

But Jesus wasnt that kind of Messiah.

He was lowly and humble of heart.

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His kingdom was not of this world.
He didnt come to set them free from Romes tyranny,
But from that of Satan.
He didnt have worldly honor to give,
But heavenly glory.
So they rejected Him.

Those who want the honor of this world

Will not come to Jesus,
Because He has nothing of this to give;
And because they wont come,
They will ultimately be undone.
Jesus said, How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and
you do not seek the glory that is from the one and only God? (v. 44).
You cant savingly believe in Jesus
If this is the condition of your heart,
If the praise of men and the wealth of the world is your idol,
Especially today where its becoming increasingly unpopular to be a Christian.

If you give up the glory God has to give

For the glory of this world,
You will lose your soul.
Jesus says, For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits
his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For the Son of Man
is going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and WILL THEN
REPAY EVERY MAN ACCORDING TO HIS DEEDS (Matt. 16:26-27).

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Jesus wasnt seeking the honor that comes from the world,
But that which comes from His Father.
If you would inherit this heavenly glory,
You must do the same.

C. In closing, lets consider how to do this.

1. First, you must use the means of grace.
I know weve heard this many times,
But how many of us are being faithful?
The more faithful you are,
The stronger your resolve will be.
You must read about this glory in your Bibles,
Listen to what God says about it,
Believe His promise that He will give you glory,
Obey His commands that lead to glory,
And be afraid of His threats to take that glory away.
Let His Word work on your heart
And strengthen your resolve to seek for heavenly glory.

2. Second, you must keep yourself from sin.

Every time you compromise,
Every time you step off the path,
You weaken the Spirits influence in your soul
Your desire for the glory the Father has to give

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And you strengthen your desire for worldly glory.

Sin will weaken you and make it impossible to move forward,
You must repent of every sin.

3. Third, you must set your heart fully on gaining that glory.
This will only be possible if you do the first two things.
As you use the means and keep from sin,
You faith will become stronger,
That goal will become more real,
And your desire for it will become stronger.
It must be your strongest desire
Or you wont pursue it as you should.

4. Fourth, let this glory always be in the forefront of your mind.

We tend to think about these things
Only about as long as the sermon lasts,
But we stop thinking about it when were done.
We have to purpose to keep it always in our minds and on our hearts.

5. Fifth, be deliberate in everything you do.

Let every choice you make be a stepping stone
That brings you closer and closer to your goal.
Make every decision according to His will,
By choosing what you know honors Him.

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6. Finally, trust that He will make good on His promises

That there is glory to be gained,
That He will give it to you on that day
And be willing to make whatever sacrifice you must to obtain it.

The more faithful you are in these things,

The stronger you will become
The less youll care about the glory of this world,
The more you will do for His glory,
And the more glory and honor you will receive
On that final day when Jesus calls you
To give an account of your life.

Whose honor do you seek?

That of the world?
If so, Jesus says you will perish with the world.
Or that which comes from the Father?
If so, then pursue it
Let go of this world
Of your hope for glory and riches in this world,
Of anything that holds you back
And seek to glorify and serve God
With all your heart, mind, soul and strength,
That He might honor you on that day

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With glory that will last forever. Amen.

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