²² “The glory which You have given Me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as We are one…”

We have seen in verse 21, a unity that bears witness to Christ being sent from God. Now looking closely at verse 22, we can see that there is a glory that is given to us. But in what sense?

At one level, a Christian is an attention-getter for being “in” the world, but not “of” the world (vss. 13-14). We are in the truth (vs.19). We are in Christ (21). But though we are in the world, we are not “of” the world, in the sense of being at home here. We are redefined by our relationship with our Savior. And thus we stand out in this fallen world and are “hated” by the world (vs. 14). Just as the world rejects the glory of Christ in their rejection of His truth, they also reject the reflection of that glory in us, His followers.

Now in the western world, Christians are normally not persecuted to the point of death. But around the world, testimonies abound of the hardship and martyrdom of Christians. Even in our more civilized countries, where evangelism is active and immorality is challenged, intense hatred often bursts out with charges of self-righteousness, moral smugness, narrow-mindedness, naiveté and fundamentalist fears. Why the extreme reaction?

It is popular among some Christians seeking to appease the world to point out that we often invite such reactions from the world for our hypocrisies and our poor efforts at evangelism. But at the heart of the matter is the glory of God. John spoke of this earlier in his gospel account, “In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it” (John 1:4-5). “[The Word] came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him” (1:11). “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). So if they reject the glory of Christ, they will also reject us when we reflect Christ’s glory.

We understand the phrase, “The glory … I have given to them…” to refer to a reflective glory. The more we become like Christ, the more the world sees in us what Christ came to reveal about God. While the world, for example, is attracted to grace, the world reacts strongly to the idea of grace needed. That is, the implication of grace goes deeper than needing a helping hand. But, grace strikes at the root of absolute depravity of the heart. It was “while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” The world accepts the inevitability of sin, but rejects the core sinfulness that separates us from God. So they reject Christians.

Lord, help me to reflect Your Glory even though the world rejects it.