2023-09-13
Good Morning Dear Ones,
The Holy Spirit has waited until now to have me write about glory. That’s because so many people use that word without really taking the time to understand its true meaning. He wanted me to see the ramifications of such an intangible thing. The best way I can use to introduce the subject is to liken it to God’s light that pierces the darkness of evil. From the Latin word “gloria,” it is the manifestation of God’s presence as perceived by humans according to the Abrahamic religions. Brightness or splendor, great power and strength, majesty and honor are all components of glory. One can focus on one or all of these elements. Worship, praise, honor, and thanksgiving are all part of this picture. We already know that God deserves all these things. David understood this well and demonstrated his understanding in the 72 Psalms that he wrote. Being in one’s glory can mean being in a state of great gratification of exaltation, being in a height of prosperity or achievement. For our God it is marked by beauty or resplendence, the splendor and happiness of heaven, eternity with Him. This brings to mind the Transfigured Jesus, Moses, and Elijah, found in MT 17: 1-3. James, John, and particularly Peter, were not ready to see this glorified state and didn’t fully understand it at the time, but John in particular, would come to understand it better when he was imprisoned on the Isle of Patmos and was allowed to have the vision, which became the book of Revelation.
One aspect of glory is the glorification of human beings who are victorious believers in Jesus Christ. What I mean by victorious is they have lived righteously and/or been forgiven and have overcome temptations to serially sin. COL 3: 3-4 helps us to understand this concept. “For you died and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, Who is your life appears, then you will also appear with Him in glory.” We’re told just before this amazing statement that we should “keep our minds on the things above and not just on earthly things” [COL 3: 2]. This is another way to say, “We should think eternally.” We are justified as believers in Christ, have been saved for eternal life with God in heaven, and all hope to be glorified, which means to be taken up to heaven by the Lord. After physical death.
We might ask: What are six ways we can display God’s glory? 1) Take an active part in the Covenant of Grace by confessing our sins and declaring God’s righteousness. This first step means we must be open and honest with both ourselves and God in this process. 1 JN 1: 9-10, “If we confess our sins, [God] is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves.” 2) We must be willing to forgive others for their wrongdoing. PS 130: 3-4, “If You, Lord, kept a record of sins, Lord, who could stand? But with You there is forgiveness, so that we can, with reverence, serve You.” COL 3: 13, “Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.” MICAH 7: 18-19, “Who is a God like You, Who pardons sin and forgives the transgression of the remnant of His inheritance? You do not stay angry forever but delight to show mercy.” 3) Trust God. PS 37: 4-6, “Take delight in the Lord; trust in Him and He will do this: He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn, your vindications, like the noonday sun.” PR 3: 6, “In all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight.” 4) Produce fruit. This doesn’t mean raise an orchard, although there is nothing wrong with doing that if you have the skills. What does mean is be productive in serving God and showing the gifts of the Holy Spirit in one’s life. We glorify God when we closely follow His desire for us to produce good fruit and a lots of it. Seek to do things outwardly that demonstrate that we have been made new in Christ [2 COR 5: 17]. JN 15: 4-5,” Abide in Me [Jesus said], and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the Vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the Vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in Me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.” Part of this fruit is our repentance in confessing our sins, showing the love of Jesus to others, and growing in our faith. 5) Give thanks and praise. David did this richly, and so can we. We must learn to take stock of our blessings each day and give God the thanks and praise He deserves. PS 60: 30, “I will praise the name of God with a song; I will magnify Him with thanksgiving.” PS 100: 4, “Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise; give thanks to Him and praise His name.” PS 7: 17-19, “I will give thanks to the Lord because of His righteousness; I will sing the praises of the name of the Lord Most High.” 6) Pray. Having a rich and dynamic prayer life makes a huge difference to us and to God. PHIL 4: 6, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.” RO 8: 26, “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness.” JAS 5: 13, “Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise.” PS 115: 1, “Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to Your name give glory, for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness!”
PRAYER: Dearest Father God, we offer You our love and devotion. Through Your Spirit and Your word, we learn Your will and experience the love You have for us. Glory isn’t easy for us to understand, because it is not in our nature to be glorious. However, through obedient faith in You, we can correct our wrongs and elevate ourselves toward Your glory; our Lord Jesus is eager to share His glory with us. Your generosity in forgiveness when we confess our sins is such a blessing! We acknowledge Your glory through any of Your three personalities and the love the Lord Jesus modeled for us to be more Christlike in our earthly lives. Because You have told us that no challenge is too great for us to overcome, in 1 COR 10: 13, we can’t claim ours to be special than those of other humans. Please continue to watch over us, intervene in our lives when necessary, and not let us lose track of the wisdom You share with us. We offer You our loyalty, love, praise, and thanksgiving, in the holy/ mighty name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
NEXT WEEK: The Holy Spirit has told me His will is for me to continue writing about glory. His generosity in sharing what He knows we need to know and understand about this subject is amazing! I stand both stunned and blessed! In the meanwhile, we shouldn’t ignore MK 11: 24, “Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” This remarkable verse coupled with studying His word, lets us know what is appropriate to ask for in prayer. When we study whatever wisdom God shares with us, we have prepared ourselves to serve Him with distinction. Nothing can be more insurance that we will ourselves one day be glorified to spend a joyful eternity with Him in heaven. PS 109: 30, “With my mouth I will give great thanks to the Lord; I will praise Him in the midst of the throng.”
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn, JS 24: 15
© Lynn Johnson 2023. All Rights Reserved.
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