Application questions: Knowing that God's glory is coming, how do we prepare?
1) Is God my glory, my security and highest joy now?
Psalm 3:3...“But you, O LORD, are a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head.”
Isaiah 41:16...“And you shall rejoice in the LORD; in the Holy One of Israel you shall glory.”
[If eternity will be enjoyment of God to the full, have we begun to experience that now? 2 Cor 3 teaches us that glorification begins now in progressing stages of growth.]
2) Am I seeking glory from God rather than man?
John 5:44...“How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God?”
John 12:42-43...“… many even of the authorities believed in him, but for fear of the Pharisees they did not confess it, so that they would not be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God.”
[Undue fear of man is fear of being dishonored by others, which shows we value their honor above that of God's.]
3) Am I willing to go down in order to go up?
John 12:25-26... “Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.”
Philippians 2:5-7..."Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant..."
[Adam and Eve, and Lucifer before them, though unequal to God sought to grasp the glory of God. Jesus, equal to God, did not grasp, but emptied himself. God's reasoning is often counter-intuitive. Jim Elliot, who gave his life reaching the Waorani Indians, wrote in his journal: “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.”]
4) Am I willing to endure some pain to receive eternal pleasure?
Romans 8:16-17...“we are children of God, and if children, then heirs--heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.”
2 Corinthians 4:17-18... For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.
[Satan like a dishonest salesmen who promises pleasure but hides the pain that will follow. Jesus tells us the truth, he’s the good Shepherd: he tells us of the pain and difficulty that will entail in following him, and the eternal pleasure to follow. Also, don't focus on the difficulties. Don’t be like Eeyore who “who finds the thistle in the pasture and then sits on it.”]
5) Am I seeking God’s glory for others?
Romans 15:7...Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.
1 Thessalonians 2:20... “For you are our glory and joy.”
[See also 2 Timothy 2:10 “Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.” God's glory will be upon the City of God, not just individuals. Glorification by the grace of God through Jesus Christ means that I do not need to glorify myself, or decrease the glory of others that I might look better. Just like self-justification leads to divisions in God’s community, so too does self-glorification. This affects how we view and treat others, even in our childrearing. We should deal with our children respectfully, knowing that one day they will stand as our glorious equals in the Kingdom.]
6) Do I myself see the glory of Christ?
2 Corinthians 4:4, 6... “…the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. …For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”
[Conversion brings a change in our view of Christ, not just intellectually but morally and aesthetically. Have we begun to see and taste the actual goodness of Jesus Christ in this life? This IS salvation, to know Christ.]
1) Is God my glory, my security and highest joy now?
Psalm 3:3...“But you, O LORD, are a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head.”
Isaiah 41:16...“And you shall rejoice in the LORD; in the Holy One of Israel you shall glory.”
[If eternity will be enjoyment of God to the full, have we begun to experience that now? 2 Cor 3 teaches us that glorification begins now in progressing stages of growth.]
2) Am I seeking glory from God rather than man?
John 5:44...“How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God?”
John 12:42-43...“… many even of the authorities believed in him, but for fear of the Pharisees they did not confess it, so that they would not be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God.”
[Undue fear of man is fear of being dishonored by others, which shows we value their honor above that of God's.]
3) Am I willing to go down in order to go up?
John 12:25-26... “Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.”
Philippians 2:5-7..."Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant..."
[Adam and Eve, and Lucifer before them, though unequal to God sought to grasp the glory of God. Jesus, equal to God, did not grasp, but emptied himself. God's reasoning is often counter-intuitive. Jim Elliot, who gave his life reaching the Waorani Indians, wrote in his journal: “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.”]
4) Am I willing to endure some pain to receive eternal pleasure?
Romans 8:16-17...“we are children of God, and if children, then heirs--heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.”
2 Corinthians 4:17-18... For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.
[Satan like a dishonest salesmen who promises pleasure but hides the pain that will follow. Jesus tells us the truth, he’s the good Shepherd: he tells us of the pain and difficulty that will entail in following him, and the eternal pleasure to follow. Also, don't focus on the difficulties. Don’t be like Eeyore who “who finds the thistle in the pasture and then sits on it.”]
5) Am I seeking God’s glory for others?
Romans 15:7...Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.
1 Thessalonians 2:20... “For you are our glory and joy.”
[See also 2 Timothy 2:10 “Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.” God's glory will be upon the City of God, not just individuals. Glorification by the grace of God through Jesus Christ means that I do not need to glorify myself, or decrease the glory of others that I might look better. Just like self-justification leads to divisions in God’s community, so too does self-glorification. This affects how we view and treat others, even in our childrearing. We should deal with our children respectfully, knowing that one day they will stand as our glorious equals in the Kingdom.]
6) Do I myself see the glory of Christ?
2 Corinthians 4:4, 6... “…the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. …For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”
[Conversion brings a change in our view of Christ, not just intellectually but morally and aesthetically. Have we begun to see and taste the actual goodness of Jesus Christ in this life? This IS salvation, to know Christ.]
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