THE GLORY OF THE LORD - PART 3

MONDAY 31 JULY 2023

I want to reveal to us that we have Christ in us as a display or specimen of God's glory resulting from God's grace and mercy. But why do we need the glory of God? It's because outside Christ, mankind has a sense of human insufficiency. Moreover, may I cease this opportunity to announce to those in Christ Jesus, that our sufficiency is of God, and His glory is that sufficiency. More below!

Reference: Isaiah 60:2 New Living Translation (NLT) "Darkness as black as night covers all the nations of the earth, but the glory of the LORD rises and appears over you."

It's a thing of joy that the glory of God always stands up for His people in the very midst of darkness. In such situation, prophet Isaiah proclaimed the rising sun of Jerusalem's prosperity, which in general, denotes the fatness of God's glory-cloud upon all His children, whom He has brought into the domain of light, where His goodness, mercy and grace overspill like a flood.

The more there is deep darkness around the people of the world, the more the glory of God rises and shines brightly over His own. The Bible says, "The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it" (John 1:5 NLT). This light is the light of God's glory and it is as clear as crystal. To receive the depth of its meaning, the Bible says, "For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of God's glory displayed in the face of Christ" (2 Corinthians 4:6 NLT).

Notice that God said, "Let light shine out of darkness." Regardless of how darkness, as black as night, covers all the nations of the earth, divine light shines out of the same darkness, and it appears in our hearts, so we could know the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ.

When God made His light shine in our hearts, it's not a one-off shining benefit for those in Christ Jesus, but rather it's a light that has a fixed and established abode in our hearts. In other words, we have an inward, spiritual and first-hand knowledge of it. Why? Christ permanently dwells in our hearts through faith. So the knowledge of this glory is what we've been called to experience in Christ because it is seen in the face of Christ, bearing in mind that He is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of His being...(Hebrews 1:3 NIV). Got it?

Yes, Christ permanently dwells in the hearts of born again Christians through faith. His presence in us is what grants us access to divine glory. In a more assured manner, apostle Paul said, "To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory" (Colossians 1:27 NIV).

This is our secret to glory: Christ who lives in us. "Hope of glory" denotes that He gives us the assurance of sharing God's glory. And it's not just the ever-increasing glory we derive from feeding on the Word, but also the glory of God that transcends all human thoughts and comprehension, as well as time realm.

Don't forget that the word "hope" means an expectation and desire for a particular thing waiting to happen. Hence, Christ as the hope of glory implies that the full satisfaction of God's glory is reserved for our future experience in eternity. Stay tuned for part 4. Shalom!

Scripture Reading - Psalm 104:31; Job 37:22; Hebrews 1:3; Romans 6:4.

Guided Prayer: Heavenly Father, I desire to speak of your glory, splendour and majesty in the midst of the world around me, today and always. Therefore, I pray that your glory which has risen all over me and is resident in my life through Christ in me, will continue to have a more special influence and bearing on those with whom I am more immediately connected in my world, such that they will receive glorious brightness of salvation and serve you as the only true God, the author of all being, in Jesus' Name, Amen!