All Things Glorious |
Amen 2 |
God's
Word is His personal covenant promise to you! In fact, Jesus staked His
life on it and shed His blood to establish this truth. His present desire
and will is that you would take full advantage of this by acting upon the
Word of God by faith. Know that when you do, His desire is for you to begin
to expect the glory! He wants you to get your hope set, becoming fully convinced,
that your present situation or circumstance will become glorious, based
upon His promise to you.
Let me ask you a question. Way back in the Garden of Eden when Adam and Eve initially sinned, disobeying God's command forbidding them to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, what was the very first thing they were aware of after doing so? What was it that really got them all shook up? Unfortunately, it was not the error of their ways, or their disobedience to God's command, or even a heavy heart of repentance, but instead it was that they were aware of their nakedness! (Genesis 3:7). And the very first thing they did was to begin to sew fig leaves together as an attempt to cover up. Why was this so startling to them? After all, most of the pictures or paintings we've seen that depict their life in the Garden, show them as being naked, don't they? You need to understand that those pictures or images we've been accustomed to are grossly incorrect. You see, up until that time they had been plugged into the life, the presence and the goodness of God, and His glory was their covering and daily life. They had never been without it; it was apart of their day to day experience and a major part of who they were. It's important for us to take a moment and gain an understanding of what the glory really is; the glory is the essence, the sheen, the brilliance, the radiance, the magnificence, the goodness, the wealth and anointing of the life of God, and it clothed them and flowed through them. Needless to say, it greatly enhanced their lives in every way possible and added the beauty of God to their very being. When the glory was removed, due to their sin, it exposed their nakedness, which went far beyond just the mere exposing of their flesh. It left them with a sense of an utter aloneness within their spirit, a feeling they had never experienced before, and they were in shock over this new state of awareness they had encountered. What they were experiencing was the effects of spiritual death, being cut off from the life of God and all His glory, the brightness and beauty of His being. It's important to note that, within the heart of God, mankind was never created to be without it!!! When we think of the life of God, that same thought should reflect and include His glory. We need to begin to understand them as inseparable, and should think of them in this new way, as a hyphenated word: Life-Glory. Because really they are one. We should retrain our thinking to include both terms when either one is thought of in reference to our life in Christ. Now you may be wonrdering where we fit in to all of this? Ephesians 2:4-5 reads; "But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)." Let's look also at 1 Corinthians 1:30; "But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God and righteousness and sanctification and redemption." Praise God, though once we were dead, separated from God, we are now alive because of what Jesus did for us on the cross. Yes, having been born-again, we are now "in Christ." And the Bible tells us that "He is the way, the truth and the life!" (John 14:6). So, if we are in Christ, then we are positionally in the life of God, and therefore we are also in the glory. If we have the right to experience His life, then we also have the right to experience His glory. Again, His life is the glory. Romans 5:1-3 lays out our covenant right that we have been given to expect the glory: "Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God." The word "hope" in the original New Testament Greek language, does not have the uncertain meaning of "wish," something that may or may not take place. Alternatively, the biblical word for hope is much different than we've come to know in our modern cultural thinking. Instead, it is a very strong and sure word. Biblical hope has the meaning of earnest expectation of something that is definitely going to take place, but just hasn't happened yet. It is every bit a concrete and sure word like faith. The difference being that faith takes place in the present, and hope refers to a future event - a sure event. So the last part of that scripture tells us that we can earnestly expect the glory to show up, because we are in Christ!!! We have a right to expect this, and we should. After all, it's a sure event, and it will come to pass. Don't allow the enemy to persuade you to give up through discouragement and let go of your expectancy. Remember what Galatians 6:9 tells us, "And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart." You see, we've unfortunately been trained by natural circumstances and events, going by what we've seen and experienced, not to expect victory and blessing in our lives. The world models a "just get by the best way you can" mentality. However, we need to remember that they are not plugged into the life of God! Therefore we need to change our thinking, and cause it to line up with what the Word says. And yes, we need to get our hopes turned WAY UP and begin to expect His life, His glory to manifest and permeate our very being and all that concerns us, regardless of the situations life may be revealing to us at the moment. Know this: Your will and where you direct it, what you expect based on what you believe, and the tenacity in which you stand, is key to the degree of victory you will experience in this life. Let's take a look at a sampling of some of the Scriptures that pertain to the glory in relation to us. Romans 9:23-24 2 Corinthians 3:18 Ephesians 1:17-19 Philippians 4:19 Ephesians 3:16 Colossians 1:26-27 1 Thessalonians 2:12 2 Thessalonians 2:13-14 Hebrews 2:10-11 1 Peter 4:14
Romans 8:30
Amplified Version 1 Corinthians 2:7 Romans 3:23-24 I hope by now you are as excited about this as I am! After reading these wonderful Scriptures, there can absolutely be no doubt that we've been living far below what God's will for His people is. Obviously, there is much more for us to believe for and I want to break through the lies of the devil that you've possibly been believing, that you don't deserve anything better. That's a down right lie from the pit of hell and the Word of God proves it. Know that you are a special treasure in the eyes of the Lord. That's right - you are a special, prized gem to Him and He wants to bless your socks right off! Whatever
your situation is today, I want to encourage you to begin to expect
the glory. Yes, expect that your circumstances, whatever they are,
will become glorious and saturated with the life of God. Begin to praise
Him and thank Him for it! After all, if Adam and Eve had it, and they
were plugged into the life of God, then it only stands to reason that
we should have it too, because we are born-again and therefore one with
Christ, who is the Life-Glory! Romans 8:2 tell us; "For
the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the
law of sin and death." And that includes you! Begin to expect
the law of the Life of God, begin to expect the Glory!!! Dan Downey |
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