For the Father loves the Son and shows Him all that He Himself is doing. And greater works than these will He show Him,

so that you may marvel.

John 5:20

The “For” at the beginning of v20 is important. Here Jesus explains what’s at the bottom and the end of the profound unity and harmony of the Father and the Son as stated in v21. At bottom is the Father’s love for the Son. The end is the glory of the Son.

Within the Godhead, there dwells an eternal, perfect, pure, untainted, holy love. The Father deeply and passionately loves the Son and that explains why the Son is doing the works of the Father. That explains why Jesus healed this man (ch5) and that explains why Jesus does every good and miraculous and supernatural and saving work that He does. The Father loves Him and desires for Him to share in His work because the Father means for the Son to be glorified!

Love leads to glory! The heart of the Father is for the Son to be magnified, to be praised, to be marveled at because of His works. Why? Because the Father loves Him so dearly. That’s why He shows Him His works. That’s why He’s going to show Him greater works - that we may marvel at Him! It thrills the heart of the Father when we make much of His Son because of all that His Son has done on our behalf!! When the Son is glorified, the Father is glorified!

If we get that right, we get it all right! That’s why we were created. That’s why we were saved. That’s what true worship is - to glorify God by magnifying His Son! And at bottom, the root of it all, is the profound, eternal love that the Father has for the Son. God loves you because God loves His Son and means to make much of Him by our making much of Him. That’s what’s underneath John 3:16. The love of the Father for the Son is the basis of, the foundation of the love of God for the world. Because whoever believes in the Son will not perish but have everlasting life. And that everlasting life will be dominated by one primary response - worship of the Son! We worship and magnify the Son for giving us and securing for us everlasting life. We were made to marvel. We were saved to marvel.

Paul picks up on this glorious theme in regard to the return of Christ when he writes in 2 Thess 1:10 that Christ will come “on that day to be glorified in His saints, and to be marveled at among all who have believed.”

You were made to marvel at the Son!

Look upon Him.

See Him in His glory.

See Him as the Son of God.

Look upon Him in the manger - the long awaited Messiah.

Look upon Him on the cross - dying in your place, for your sin.

Look upon Him at the resurrection - victorious over death, hell, and the grave. Mighty to save. Mighty to give life.

Look upon Him at His return - Living Lord - Judge of all the Earth - unmatched in beauty, glory, and power.