SHARING GOD'S GLORY WITH HIM - PART 6

SATURDAY 22 FEBRUARY 2025

Reference: John 17:22 English Standard Version (ESV)

"The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one."

Today's focus is majored on the second segment:

That they may be one even as we are one.

The Lord Jesus Christ personalizes His relationship with us, reminding us that our identity and existence are rooted in our all-round connection to Him. The saints being one even as God and Christ are one, suggests that the Lord Jesus made reference to us as one body, which is the body of Christ. There is only one Lord, and there is only one God, and all the saints are the body of Christ, because they belong to Christ.

Yes, there could be denominational teachings, different kinds of service, and even diverse doctrinal approach within the born-again Christian Churches around the world, but we are all one body. To that effect, 1st Corinthians 12:5-6 reads, "There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work" (NIV). In all diversities of operation, the saints have faith in the same Saviour and share the same glory with Godhead, plus very soon, we will enjoy exact oneness in heaven!

As for the latter part of this versified segment, Jesus also acknowledged that He is one with God the Father. To that effect, Pauline epistolary expression numbered as Colossians 2:9 reads:

"For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body" (Colossians 2:9 NLT).

Christ is the radiant being and true exhibition of God's character, and also the being and character of His works in the entire Creation. To instantiate this verity, Colossians 1:16 reads, "For through Him, God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can't see - such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through Him and for Him" (NLT).

The glory of God eventually revealed its purpose which was hidden from the beginning, meaning that the bodily manifestation of Christ is being regarded as the very thought of God revealing His glory on earth, which He had in mind before the beginning of time. Hence, Pauline epistolary expression numbered as Colossians 1:19 reminds us saying, "For God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him", and this is the reason why the well-articulated rendering in accordance with Johannine literature reads, "The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son..." (NIV). The glory of the one and only Son was seen and captured by men inspired by God's grace and truth because God Himself was pleased to have all His "heavyweight" fullness dwell in Christ.

Beloved, the Almighty God and the Lord Jesus Christ are one, and the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of their Deity. Hence, the Lord Jesus Christ exists in heaven in form of God, although He was made in human likeness while on earth so we could become saints through His atoning sacrifice.

The saints, having become one in Christ, now function as gods on earth because the Spirit of Christ indwells them. Unfortunately, many a saint has been functioning below their true identity as powerful gods on earth, but I'm here to remind them of this superior identity, just as the queen of Babylon reminded king Belshazzar that there was a man in his kingdom who had within him the spirit of the holy gods.

In the book of Daniel 5:14, when Daniel was brought in before the king Belshazzar, he said to Daniel, "I have even heard of thee, that the spirit of the gods is in thee, and that light and understanding and excellent wisdom is found in thee" (KJV).

Now, if the Babylonians could sense and recognise that the spirit of the gods was fully resident in Daniel, then my earnest question is how much more conscious of this truth should those who have been born anew into the realm of ever-present and rapidly-increasing glory in Christ become? Indeed, it literally means that Daniel was a god, because only the gods can have the spirit of the gods. Beloved, who are you? Shalom! 

Scripture Reading - Exodus 15:11; Psalm 19:1; John 1:3; 2 Corinthians 4:6.

Guided Prayer:

Heavenly Father, I'm immensely grateful because I already possess your majestic glory on account of Christ's permanent presence in me. Mindfully and pleasingly, I acknowledge your ever-increasing glory in my life as I grow in relational intimacy with the Lord. Hence, soon and very soon, when Christ appears in His glory, I shall behold the rare beauty of your glorious splendour on the throne throughout eternity, in Jesus' Name, Amen!